Diazepam - should I just ignore the prescription and avoid it ?

[Sheryl]

I have seen quite a few first hand accounts of agonizing and very prolonged withdrawal from benzos over the years in this forum.

And certainly there have been cases of people who became addicted to benzos without deviating from prrescribing instructions..indeed, for thsose obtaining them through legitimate channels, it would not be possible to obtain a larger amount than is consistent with the script.

It is common practice to prescribe drugs like this to be taken "prn" i.e. only when/if needed and then to be provided in an amount consistent with maximum need. For example, for insomnia, it would often be prescribed as 1 at bedtime if needed, and then 30 tabs issued as the maximum month's supply.

Benzo addiction is a known complication of treatment for anxiety disorders and discussed as such in medical texts. Fortunately better, non-addictive drugs have come along for long-term managemernt of anxiety but not all doctors availa of them. In Thailand especially, a GOP will often prescribe benzos for anxiety. And even where nonaddictive alternatives are used, they take time to work and are more preventive than abortive i.e. they will not quickly alleviate an anxiety or panic attack, so some degree of benzo use remains necessary at least at the beginning.

People do, in fact, get addicted to benzos (and to pain killers) without intentionally abusing them. Of course, they will have taken them more often than was advisable, but they will not necessarily have known that or have taken them more often than the maximum frequency prescribed. It is in my experience the exception rather than the rule that a physician prescribing a benzo or narcotic carefully explains the risks of addiction to a patient and gives c;ear guidance as to how frequently it is safe to take it.

A prescription does not render drugs with addictive potential free of risk of physical addiction. In some cases, physical addiction (and the resulting dosage tolerance) has to be accepted, this is often true in terminal illnesses and sometimes other situations as well. But a patient is certainly wise to be alert to this problem and to question his/her doctor closely about this risk. Do not assume that following the prescription will mean you cannot develop a physical addiction.

[atyclb]

I have seen quite a few first hand accounts of agonizing and very prolonged withdrawal from benzos over the years in this forum.

And certainly there have been cases of people who became addicted to benzos without deviating from prrescribing instructions..indeed, for thsose obtaining them through legitimate channels, it would not be possible to obtain a larger amount than is consistent with the script.

It is common practice to prescribe drugs like this to be taken "prn" i.e. only when/if needed and then to be provided in an amount consistent with maximum need. For example, for insomnia, it would often be prescribed as 1 at bedtime if needed, and then 30 tabs issued as the maximum month's supply.

Benzo addiction is a known complication of treatment for anxiety disorders and discussed as such in medical texts. Fortunately better, non-addictive drugs have come along for long-term managemernt of anxiety but not all doctors availa of them. In Thailand especially, a GOP will often prescribe benzos for anxiety. And even where nonaddictive alternatives are used, they take time to work and are more preventive than abortive i.e. they will not quickly alleviate an anxiety or panic attack, so some degree of benzo use remains necessary at least at the beginning.

People do, in fact, get addicted to benzos (and to pain killers) without intentionally abusing them. Of course, they will have taken them more often than was advisable, but they will not necessarily have known that or have taken them more often than the maximum frequency prescribed. It is in my experience the exception rather than the rule that a physician prescribing a benzo or narcotic carefully explains the risks of addiction to a patient and gives c;ear guidance as to how frequently it is safe to take it.

A prescription does not render drugs with addictive potential free of risk of physical addiction. In some cases, physical addiction (and the resulting dosage tolerance) has to be accepted, this is often true in terminal illnesses and sometimes other situations as well. But a patient is certainly wise to be alert to this problem and to question his/her doctor closely about this risk. Do not assume that following the prescription will mean you cannot develop a physical addiction.

Some very good points. If i may add in the usa there is a huge problem with prescription narcotic addiction. a common practice is for patients to visit multiple doctors but omit informing them they are already taking narcotics from doctors x, y, z, ......... some also obtain rx narcotics to sell for profit. the other route is via mail order.

another not uncommon scenario is someone on pain killers for real surgical pain acute/ chronic and getting addicted..

i have to say Sheryl writes this stuff in quite a well organized cohesive manner not inconsistent with a healthcare provider.

May i ask if you are licensed in a branch of healthcare?

[MrWorldwide]

Almost hard to believe you were prescribed Valium for this . Perhaps give the Dr's name so we all can get the heads up and possibly this Dr will get a kind wake up call ?

Thanks for your post

If I live by one rule in Pattaya, its this - never get on the wrong side of a Thai. I have absolutely no idea who this man is (beyond his name on the follow-up appointment slip), how many hours he'd already put in when I presented to him at 06:30am or what his circle of influence is in the wider Thai community here in Pattaya. To this point, my post has been purely 'should I take this drug for this condition ?' and NOT 'did the doctor screw up in prescribing this medication ?' : I've simply accepted the advice given by Sheryl and others and avoided the Diazepam entirely - today I didnt take any of it, not even the Flumicil. My nasal passages are clear and the coughing seems to be restricted to a few instances in the morning - that's it.

As pointed out earlier, I owe it to myself to get a regular physician and query future prescriptions - I'm happy to leave it there.

[monk213]

If using the topic to relay personal experience or anecdotes but not presume expertise or the right to advise others based on that alone then any reader should have the sense to leave the information where it was found

If using the forum to give direct medical advice then the writer's credentials or the source of their evidence based information would definitely give more weight to their opinion

the assumption that any reader should have the sense to leave the information where it is is quite a reaching assumption and if you believe your statement you would not have posted the response to "wasa" about high dose benzo's.

some posters content seems to suggest they have some medical background although nowadays the internet can yield a lot of information and some could present it in a way similar to that of health care practitioners.

this is why it would be quite reasonable to know what qualifications and licensure such posters hold.

there can also be a disclaimer saying the information is not advice but sharing of knowledge

Trial and error my friend, also ever since I got mixed up in all kinds of things I always made a point to heavily research what I was putting into my body. You would be surprised at how many doctors do not even fully understand the dangers of benzos and withdrawals, or they simply do not care that much. I know more about how substances interact with the human body on a chemical and biological basis than a few doctors put it that way.

I remember for my 19 birthday my mother bought me a factual book on Ecstasy, and I can discuss with you the ins and out of exactly how it manages to release huge quantities of serotonin on a molecular basis. On a ratio standpoint MDMA is less harmful than horse riding, that's a fact, benzos on the other hand are really quite dangerous for multiple reasons. Anybody who is curious to learn more about benzos check out the works of Dr Ashton as I mentioned previously, her work is second to none in my honest opinion, very extensive research on people who use and or abuse. and the drugs themselves.

http://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/

"Mixed up in all kinds of things"? So you are a recreational drug user? Or used to be?

I got news for you...... Every drug user thinks they are an expert in the subject.

MDMA safer than horse back riding? Buddy.... I don't think you know what the work "fact" actually means.

I used to be yeah, from age 14-20 or so. Many users will take something barely knowing the bassline level of the drug, the celing dose, what drug interactions are safe r not safe and so forth, so they don't really have a clue what they are doing apart from using an unknown substance. I am not making myself try to sound like some chemist, but I have done thousands of hours of research over the years on the subject so I know quite a bit put it that way.

The 'fact' as you mentioned about MDMA and horse riding, that came from a government hired scientist who conducted a large study and subsequent report on various substances and that was one of his actual quotes, a little paraphrasing but that was basically what he was saying to put it into perspective. If you don't belieeve me look up Professor Nutt and his study on it and google deaths and hospital visits of MDMA to horse riding.

[Sheryl]

A post extolling "recreational" drug use and describing illegal activity has been removed .

I think this thread has veered far off topic and run its course. the original OP query was answered and at least report he is doing well. Closed.