Posted by garnet71 on April 19, 2009, at 0:02:53
In reply to Help pdoc is in ICU looks bad no meds for me?, posted by Phillipa on April 18, 2009, at 23:52:02
Sorry to hear about your doctor, Phillipa. I couldn't imagine ANY doctor allowing you to suddenly stop benzo usage. The implications of suddenly stopping them after 37 years would be severe. You could get seizures, hallucinations (not trying to scare you); however, wouldn't any reasonable doctor give you like 2 years to taper off in any case?
If I was in your position-go to a new PDoc. I seriously doubt any of them could let you stop cold turkey. If so, you can threaten with a law suit--and no I don't mean outright. Bring a notebook and write down what they are saying in front of them. Have a poised demeanor; present yourself in a sharp, professional, calm manner. Be honest about your situation, but if they see you are making notes and are seriously concerned about the adverse effects of withdrawal, well, I know doctors are afraid of malpractice lawsuits....but maybe it is just your fear of not having benzos that is causing your present reaction.
You know, some of the best outcomes come from forced changes or tragedies. Not that your doctor's car accident could ever be positive, but the forced change may be a mixed blessing. I can think of very few bad things that happened in my life that did not have a subsequently positive effect. There was always something better that derived from something "bad". I bet, in the end, it will be a mixed blessing for you. :-)
poster:garnet71
thread:891516
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090416/msgs/891517.html