Aarryckha

Yes, alcohol is my issue.

And I can understand if prescription meds were your DOC, how you would want to avoid other ones as much as you can.

Always a concern of a transfer of addiction no matter what your (our) drug of choice is.

Maybe I got lucky. Prescription drugs were never really my thing. <shrugs>

Dunnd40

I would also add that we should not assume something is alright because a doctor says to do it. Psychiatrists in particular have been known to over-prescribe medications. There can be many reasons for this, some of them the fault of the patient and some the fault of the doctor. You cannot completely overlook economics either. To think that psychiatrists or other doctors are completely immune to financial incentives is naive in my opinion. I have had GPs agree that this does occur at times. In the end we have to be our own best advocate. We're fortunate enough to live in the information age but sorting through too much information steers some of us to believe what we want to believe. It's hard.

I have heard and read so many times that benzos are for short-term use yet every psychiatrist (except my first one, a renown doctor in his time) has written script after script for years on end with hardly a question asked. My last psychiatrist jokingly called himself my drug dealer twice when I visited him. I'm not making that up. Not all doctors are great and my impression is that the psychiatric field has a disproportionate amount of questionable doctors compared to doctors who work in other fields. I'm a reasonably smart man who's seen several psychiatrists over a 25-year period and I've come to that conclusion not out of resentment but rather close observation.
They are working in a less precise field than other doctors and their go-to move is to prescribe medications. Of course over-prescribing occurs.

Watch out for the benzos, guys. Heed the warnings of those who have gone before you. I would list my stories here but it would take too long and scare the heck out of most of you. I can tell you I spent a month in intensive care last year, suffered respiratory failure and almost died. That is the last and most drastic story but I have plenty of other scary ones. If someone can actually take just .5 mg each day, I'm not too worried about them. I also think they're getting little more than a placebo effect because tolerance goes up pretty fast with benzos and .5 mg usually doesn't cut it for long.

Are you willing to play those long odds? Trade one addiction for another? For those who need anti-convulsants and sleep aids there are many other options. Get a second and third opinion when you see some other doctors. See what they say. You'll probably listen to them a lot quicker than some stranger on a forum.

Be well.

Aarryckha

Of course you should advocate for yourself and be active in your health and well-being. I would hope that everyone would do that.

However, if folks come to different conclusions, we shouldn't be written off as wet behind the ears and "Oh, you'll find out how horrible it is for you!"

There was a point about two and a half years ago that I was in a constant state of panic and I took my prescribed dose of up to 2mg of Xanax a day and it helped.

Here I am two and half years later and I've taken a total of 1.5mg in the past four months. I wouldn't have even taken that if I wasn't getting on a plane. What I feel during a flight isn't anxiety; it's almost all out terror. So yeah, I'm okay with taking those pills. Would do it again tomorrow if I needed to.

I think it's very nice to try to pass along information and experiences, however, things are highly individualized. If I had a chance to get addicted, it would have been two and a half years ago.

We just don't all work the same. Side effects are not going to effect us the same way or even at all. Sure, be cautious, but again, it comes down to do the benefits outweigh the risks.

DragonInTheSky

Thank you for reinforcing exactly what I was trying to say Dunnd. It's playing with fire in my opinion.

Dee74

This thread seems to have deviated into an area of medical advice.

Here is the SR Rule in full....

I understand that all who shared are well meaning and trying to help - however what happened to you and how you overcame it may not be suitable for others, and may well keep someone else from seeking the professional assistance they need.

We are a peer support group here.

We simply cannot give medical advice.
You need to see a medical professional for that.

Thanks for your understanding

Dee
Moderator
SR