Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => Other Health Discussion => Topic started by: honeybun on May 27, 2013, 08:49:19 AM
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I have been given them by my GP to be used if I "really " need them with instructions on not to use too many.
I got the prescription in Jan and have used about 10. They really do help but my dilemma is how quickly do you become dependent on them. They are 2mg so not strong and I have only taken one a day occasionally.
Any advice ladies.
Honeyb
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I had them for a while Honeybun when my first marriage ended many, many years ago but I hated the way they made me feel so I only took them now and again for a couple of months. You are only taking a very small amount so I am not sure you would become dependent.
My mother-in-law was prescribed them by her doc for anxiety which began in her fifties. He was a private doc and as such she could just renew her prescription, so it seems, for years without ever having to consult him again. She gradually had to use more and more to get the calming effect and without any of us knowing had become dependent on them. In the end the side effects from the diazepam mimicked the anxiety symptoms so she took more of them whereas, in fact, she had got to a stage where the pills were causing the anxiety. That sounds a bit weird but that's what happened. She is now off them altogether but she had got to the stage where she had to have a carer as her muscle spasms were so great and she couldn't walk unaided etc. We have no idea how many she ended up taking everyday. She now realises that hers was menopausal anxiety but twenty years ago such things were not really discussed as much.
The thing is you may gradually need more to achieve the same result Honeybun but for short term anxiety such as that accompanying tragic life events etc. it can get you through. You might find this helpful http://www.dependency.net/learn/diazepam/
Taz x
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I know someone who takes them every time she goes on holiday because she hates flying. She goes from being an absolute wreck and throwing up the night before she goes, to being completely calm and coping with the flight. She has young children so needs to be able to cope. So maybe you could just use them to get through times when you are extremely anxious eg. When you go away in a couple of weeks time.
LM x
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I have to take 2 x 2mg to get the desired effect. I love the way they make me feel and could so easily become addicted. It really depends on your personality. If you only take them occasionally HB you will be absolutely fine.
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I don't want to add to my problems. I don't think my GP would prescribe them very often.
I don't notice a massive difference when I take one...it just takes the edge off things. I suspect I would have to take more to take the anxiety away completely.
I think I will just stick to what I am doing. Just taking one occasionally if I really need some extra help.
Has anyone taken just one a day for a longer period of time and still found them helpful without having to increase the dose ?
Honeyb
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I used to use Valium on an 'as necessary' basis. If we had an event I would take 5mg at night and 2mg the next morning. Having them with me helped too. Until one morning I took the 2mg and felt quite 'odd' and that happened again about 2 weeks alter when we had another event. So I never took them again.
I do use Rescue Remedy .......
I was initially prescribed 1 x 3 daily for 2 weeks with the proviso that I could wean off ......... knowing that they did ease symptoms helped.
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Hello honeybun, your doc could be mine as I was given them for just the reasons you state although mine are 5mg. I have tried taking them an hour before a dentist's appointment and they work well for that. My back also sometimes "goes" and if I take one at night, it relaxes me enough to pretty much sort me out before the next morning. I am still having anxiety issues around food so a week or so ago decided to "experiment" with taking half a tablet a day (or 2.5 mg) around 11am to see whether it calmed me down and stopped the dread feeling I get before meals, well I did this for 4 days and it did help a bit but I was still getting the odd throat thing I get (where my vocal chords go into spasm and block my airway, just for a nanosecond but unpleasant) so I stopped again. I am like you in that I don't want to get dependant on them and am scared of doing so. 5mg I find really calming but a bit heavy duty during the day as they do make me dozy but half a tablet is okay, it takes the edge off. I must be honest and say that if I was invited our for a meal, say, tomorrow night, I would take a half tablet about 30 minutes before leaving to just calm me down a bit (I hate eating out). I am due to see my GP again this week - I still have most of my packet left - and will discuss all the above as I am still not convinced that the eating/food/spasm thingy does not have a medical cause rather than just being anxiety. I will see what she says. In the meantime, I would carry on much as you are but just don't get into the habit of popping one in every day - keep them in reserve. But 2mg is a very low dose. Have your theanine tablets come and have you tried them yet?
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PLEASE tell your dentist if you are taking this drug - it can interfere with treatment!
Used sensibly on an as-needed basis one is un-likely to become addicted. We are so much more aware. You could of course ask for a beta-blocka but these can make people hyper instead of having a calming action ::)
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Beta blockers don't work for me as my problems are in my head rather than the racing heart etc., they just seem to make me sleepy. Good point about the dentist, I did tell her and would always in the future - thanks for pointing that out :)
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I was given 2mg diazepam years ago for the anxiety/panic attacks but as I was so scared of taking anything I never took them. Then say 7 years ago I had to go hospital for a in depth smear and was terrified I took half a tab the night before and though I never slept I was not up and down all night going to the toilet so I think it did help. On the say I took the other half and I did go hospital and have the smear. But on the way back I had a horrible panic attack and I blamed the tablets. So never took them again until last year for when I was going to the IOW and they really did help me well they go there and now if ever I have to go anywhere or I feel the panic coming on I take a 2mg and I really wish that I had done that years ago perhaps I might have had more of a life. I seem to be able to just take when needed. I have to go to the dentist my fear is so bad that I only eat soft food. but tonight I had rice a salmon and as I was eating I felt something crack and I thought oh know I have cracked my tooth but I think all is ok. Though I cannot stop feeling my teeth with my tongue to see if they are ok and I stopped eating so I will eat nothing now and go back to mashed potatoes. I'm sitting here shaking and thinking I might have to take a 2mg just to calm down. My dentist check up is well over due and i'm to scared to make a appointment.
The longest I have took them for is 7 days when I was on holiday but I soon stopped when I got home.
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TAz2, I heard that a lot of woman were prescribed Diazepam in the past and became addicted like your mother in law, a lot of it was for meno related anxiety which is why many doctors reluctant to give it out now, however it just shows us that anxiety and the meno is a huge ongoing problem for woman and we still dont have solutions that can help, we really havent moved on much , dicovering the imbalance that causes it and how to correct it safely would bring such a benefit to all of us going through this.
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Pj44 - go along to a dentist. Have a chat about how you feel - they are so used to patient worries. Mine has taken a Psychology Degree and has plenty of time to listen. It is important that your teeth and gums are as healthy as possible to avoid excruciating pain. If you build a working relationship with the dentist and his staff you will feel better. I used to dread it so had an in-depth chat prior to any treatment plan. If I lived nearer I would go with you ;)
Soft food is as likely to build up plaque which causes gum disease and loose teeth as biting hard on firmer food. Also eating well does help stave off anxiety surges.
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CLKD thanks for that. I have made an appointment trouble is my dentist has moved on and he has not been there that long I felt was only just getting ok with him. Now there are 2 new dentists and I had to choose which one I told the receptionist who knows me well that my fear has is now out of control. she did not say much really. I'm going next Tuesday and I will have my granddaughter with me so I shall have to be brave which will help me a little lol. I'm scared to eat hard food and I thought rice and fish would be fine there must of been a bone in it. I keep checking tooth today have to keep telling myself I am fine. dread to think how I will be by next week. That's why I eat soft food don't even have toast now.
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Hi pj - have you had any help with this phobia? You are not going to help your teeth by only eating soft food. You need to chew in order to keep your gums healthy and if your gums aren't healthy then your teeth will loosen. I wonder if you can get any help from this site http://www.dentalfearcentral.org/ You are definitely not alone in your fear!!
Taz x
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pj44, hypnotherapy is very good for phobias and you may only need one session if you can find someone that specialises in them.
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Honeybun
In answer to your question - a couple of years a go I did something to my neck, and ended up being diagnosed with something called an 'acute torticollis' or 'wry' neck...all the muscles in the base of my neck and top of shoulders went into spasm. Painful and very debilitating. I was prescribed 2mg diazepam, three times a day for ten days as this is the only thing that relaxes the spasm. I have to say, like Milliemoo...I enjoyed the feeling it gave me, and was rather looking forward to the ten day 'trip' lol, but sadly I noticed after a few days the effects were much less noticeable and by the end, I didn't feel anything at all!! I am glad to say at the end of the ten days my neck was fine and I was not 'craving' more diazepam!
PJ44 - I am also not great at the dentist (understatement of the year) and have had both diazepam and IV midazolam for implants etc. IV Midazolam is just THE greatest invention ever for dental phobics...you just get in the chair, conk out, wake up, and can't remember a thing about it. Bliss. No one, NO ONE should spend days worrying and panicking about going to the dentist these days. Dentistry should be painless now, and has moved on from when we were girls and went through all that hell that caused us to become phobic in the first place...but I am still utterly terrified at the thought of a root canal, and I consider myself otherwise an level headed, intelligent mature woman! Try to find a dentist who does IV sedation (midazolam) it is the answer!
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I've had root canal, extractions and 2 implants with the 'new' dentist and have been OK because I know he is aware of my fears.
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You are so lucky CLKD to have conquered it. I have always had dentists who were aware of my fears...but I still anticipated pain, and felt it sometimes :-\
Didn't help that a particularly cack handed one actually dropped the drill in my mouth and cut my gum and under my tongue when I was about 23. Nowadays, if I even hear the drill I go rigid :-\
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Thing is I like to be in control and not being is what cause my anxiety. I'm not actual scared of the work being done to me at the dentist its the staying in the chair all the things that go with having a filling. hate having the frozen feeling because I know that I am not in control that once it has been frozen I have hours to wait before the numbness wares off. But certainly lately I am totally terrified and think all the time what I will eat incase something might make my fillings come out. General anxiety is so much better but I have now replaced it with this fear which is with me all the time.
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Speak to your dentist. Explain the feelings of fear. BET YOU a dollar that they will be aware of how patients are likely to feel and will discuss ways of relieving those feelings. I HATED being trapped in that chair but we have a signal so that dentist will stop ........ and as I know that he will stop, I rarely have to use the signal.