• 💖 [Donate To Keep MyPTSD Online] 💖 Every contribution, no matter how small, fuels our mission and helps us continue to provide peer-to-peer services. Your generosity keeps us independent and available freely to the world. MyPTSD closes if we can't reach our annual goal.

Any ideas for a replacement for diazepam?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Re Gabapentin - I know it can be used off label but it seems it’s easier for hospitals to do that than GPs here - partly because GPs don’t necessarily know all the off label uses and partly because they tend to be more expensive options.

Many docs don’t want to prescribe it off label because there was some sort of lawsuit regarding it being pushed for off label usage. My doc won’t prescribe it for mood stabilization but will prescribe it for anxiety. It’s a bit of semantics I suppose, lol. At the end of the day, he prescribes it for me, so that’s what matters.
 
I will never take psych meds again

I wouldn’t judge all psych meds based on your experience with a class (benzodiazepines) that causes more dependency issues (overall) than most other psych meds.

There are many other medication options out there that don’t cause dependency and require prolonged tapering in order to stop taking them.
 
I saw a new GP today. I told her what I’ve outlined in this thread including the sleep stuff and how the sleep disorder clinic didn’t think the propranolol wasn’t suitable for me etc. And I finished by saying that I would prefer to just continue taking diazepam the way I’ve been taking it the last few years.

And...she just shrugged and said, “that’s ok.”

And I was so shocked by that response - that she was listening to me, that she trusted that I was taking it sensibly, that she wasn’t wanting to tamper with what was working, that she heard me saying what I wanted and why, that I wasn’t having to go into battle with her about it - that I was then completely de-railed for the rest of the appointment!

She asked if I need any now and I said I was ok so she just said to go and see her whenever I ran out and she would sort it out.

I am reeling a bit from the fact that it went so smoothly and she was completely supportive. That isn’t often my experience with doctors!

I feel a massive sense of relief - I hadn’t realised just how much anxiety I was having around it.

Thanks so much to all of you who posted. Although I didn’t end up needing to discuss any alternatives with her, prepping some ideas / options here really helped me channel my anxiety in the run up to this appointment. And it’s good to know that some other good option are out there, should there come a time when diazepam isn’t working well for me. Thank you!
 
That’s awesome!

My doc gives me what I ask for pretty much, but I’m still on a low dose of Ativan (1mg prn.) He knows I’m not abusing it.
 
I wouldn’t judge all psych meds based on your experience with a class (benzodiazepines) that causes more dependency issues (overall) than most other psych meds.

There are many other medication options out there that don’t cause dependency and require prolonged tapering in order to stop taking them.
My decision is not based on just one type, I have dealt with Paxil, Mirtazapine, Doxepin, Xanax...I no longer need them or the problems they caused me. I also ditched all other prescriptions, blood pressure, heart meds and such, I feel better than I have in several years and have my Drs puzzled at my increase in health. I was dying by inches last year at this time, my recovery is ongoing, I had the right help at the right time and still do, I feel blessed. There are alternatives to medication and in the long run you will live better without them.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top