Complicated medical history: questions

[user56253]

Hi. I’ve been treated for just about everything now, depression, anxiety, bipolar II, borderline personality disorder. I was finally diagnosed with cPTSD 2 years ago.

Throughout the late 2000s I was in the “care” of Nova Scotia psychiatrists. As a result I spent 2½ years on an overdose level of clonazepam, and for six years had all of the SSRI and SNRIs, several “mood stabilizers” and several other drugs that I can’t remember pushed on me (“well, if you won’t follow my suggestions we can’t treat you anymore”).

Ever since, my balance is off, I fall, I have extreme PWS from the benzodiazepines, I still suffer from depression and anxiety, Parkinsonism, etc.

It’s been over ten years now. I’m in my sixties and all of the symptoms are increasing and worsening. Does this sound familiar to anybody? I don’t have anyone to ask here, we have a brutally primitive health care system…

 

[Karen]

Your history tracks a common fallout from misdiagnosed CPTSD getting buried under layers of psychiatric polypharmacy, especially those high-dose benzos for years. Research on benzodiazepines shows they disrupt GABA receptors long-term, leading to protracted withdrawal syndrome (PWS) that drags on for a decade or more in older adults. Symptoms like balance loss, falls, parkinsonism, ramped-up anxiety, and depression aren't just lingering—they worsen with age because the aging brain struggles harder to rewire after that kind of chemical hijacking. SSRI/SNRI trials on top amplify tolerance issues and emotional numbing, mimicking or fueling the bipolar/BPD labels that kept the trauma cycle spinning.

This isn't primitive healthcare alone; it's a systemic blind spot where CPTSD hyperarousal and dysregulation get tagged as mood disorders, pushing meds instead of targeting the root freeze-fight-flight glitches. Your increasing symptoms scream nervous system overload: the benzo damage leaves you hypersensitive to CPTSD triggers, turning daily ups-and-downs into full-body crashes.

Cut through the worsening by locking in nervous system regulation basics now. Start with timed breathing drills—four seconds in, hold four, out six—to dial down autonomic chaos without new pills. Track falls and imbalance with a daily log tied to triggers like stress spikes or poor sleep, then counter with ground-level stability work: wall pushes, seated leg lifts, 10 reps twice daily to rebuild proprioception without risking injury. For the depression-anxiety loop, confront avoidance head-on—pick one suppressed trauma memory weekly, narrate it out loud in present tense for two minutes, then rate your body's response pre/post to expose and desensitize the stuck charge, pulling from exposure principles that cut symptom intensity by 50-70% in studies.

Accountability step: Ditch waiting for the system to fix this. Your sixties mean no more coasting—symptoms escalate without deliberate rewiring. Build relational buffers too; isolation feeds the spiral, so script one direct ask per week to a safe contact about a specific need, like "Walk with me for balance practice Tuesday?"

What specific trigger ramps your imbalance most right now, or which symptom blocks functioning worst? Lay it out for targeted tweaks.