Posted by gilbert on June 22, 2001, at 10:30:37
In reply to Re: Addictive meds in general » JCB, posted by Annabelle on June 22, 2001, at 6:30:09
JCB,
I have been sober for fifteen years and when I was using would snort eat or drink any mood altering chemical I could get my hands on. I also suffer from panic and anxiety. About 2 years ago I began trying meds. The only drugs that help without horrendous side effects are benzos. I have some guilt in using them however I have been on and off of xanax for the last year and have never had any problems starting or stopping the meds. I can taper down slowly and stop....no rebound anxiety none of the horror stories you hear about. I also have never wanted to take them to get high in fact I don't feel high at all from taking them...they just get rid of the panics and make me feel normal. The benzo phobes and the attitude toward benzos needs to change. They are very effective drugs. If medically supervised they are very very safe for long term use. Even though tolerance may appear after the initial dose most people can maintenace dose with the same amount year after year. I have had every ssri and tricylcic and nsri and remeron and serzone pushed at me due to the fact that they are not addictive. I will tell you all drugs cause dependence at some level. Your body becomes used to the drug and will react if you remove it from your system. Even blood pressure drug removal causes rebound. Addiction versus dependcy is the issue. Are diabetics addicted to insulin....no. Are diabetics dependent on insulin.....yes. Some of my AA friends feel I am jeopardizing my sobriety by use of these meds. I can honestly say I would be drunk if it were not for xanax. It has been a life saver. I can drive anywhere. I am a functional dad and husband. I had my best sales year and finished first in the company last year. There are some great articles and I would direct you to this explaination of benzos specifically xanax......
http://neuro-www.harvard.edu/forum/PanicDisordersF/Xanaxexpalinedagain >html.P.S. ssri dependency is also very prevelant and coming to the forefront now that users are having withdrawal problems. Again if they taper slowly no problem. But to think that you can just cold turkey stop any of these pyscho-active drugs just to prove they are not addictive is pie in the sky.
P.S. I have never thought wow why don't I take a bunch of xanax and go hang out downtown and party. They just don't feel or work that way. I have been able to take xanax and do things I was always afraid to do I.E. visit friends in hospitals, ride elevators, be a pallbeareer at funerals. I am taking my family on a summer trip to Mackinaw island. I could not do these things without my meds. Bill Wilson the founder of AA suffered from terrible depression throughout his sobriety. After many years sober he did LSD to try to alleviate his depression. So I think some of the addiction specialist need to know that even the man responsible for starting the greatest reovery program since time began still continued to suffer and had to search out pysch-active meds for a solution.
Gil
poster:gilbert
thread:1356
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010618/msgs/67470.html