Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
Get free and confidential advice from an addictions clinician on all aspects of Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment, rehab ,withdrawal,admission,cost, therapy,counselling and aftercare.
Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment is nothing to be scared of.
If Benzodiazepine use has become difficult to control, or stopping leads to withdrawal symptoms, the next step should be a clinical assessment rather than trying to stop suddenly.
Find Me a Rehab provides free, confidential advice on Benzodiazepine addiction treatment, detox and rehabilitation with support from experienced addiction clinicians.
We do not provide treatment directly. Our role is to understand what is happening, explain suitable options and signpost you to an appropriate service.
This can include registered residential rehabilitation, outpatient support or statutory (free to use services), depending on your needs.
Get The Help You Need Today with Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
Effective discharge planning starts at the point of pre admission assessment. For free and confidential advice from an experienced addictions clinician with over three decades experience of helping people overcome addiction: Call us.
Contact UsWhen Benzodiazepine use Becomes a Problem
Benzodiazepines are prescription only medications used for a variety of clinical reasons including muscle spasms, anxiety and the emergency treatment of seizures.
They are not antidepressants.
When they were invented as a safer alternative to Barbituates, no one could imagine the problem long term use would cause.
Benzodiazepines are highly addictive.
If you use them for more than a few weeks, addiction is highly likely.
It is never, ever safe to suddenly stop taking them, or reducing too quickly.
Signs that it may be time to seek help include:
* Taking more Benzodiazepines than prescribed
* Finding difficult to cut down or stop
* Very strong urges to take Benzodiazepines
* Spending time and money seeking out Benzodiazepines
* Continuing to take Benzodiazepines despite the problems
they are causing you at work, university, home and in
relationships.
* Feeling unwell if you reduce the dose or miss doses
Dependence and addiction are not the same thing.
A clinician can help assess what is happening and what level of support may be appropriate.
Why You Should Not Stop Using Benzodiazepines Suddenly
Stopping Benzodiazepines suddenly can cause withdrawal symptoms.
No addiction clinician or your GP would ever advise you to stop suddenly or reduce quickly. It can be incredibly dangerous.
Withdrawl can include:
* Crippling anxiety
* Enduring insomnia
* Extreme irritability
* Sustained hand tremors
* Muscle spasms
* Severe headaches
* Profuse sweating
* Dangerously fast pulse
* Panic
* Persistant nausea and vomiting
* Dull body aches
* Hypersensitivity to light and touch
* Depression
* Poor concentration
* Flashes of light or blurred vision
* Hallucinations
* Delirium
* Seizures
* Goosebumps
* Abnormal bodily sensations (skin crawling)
This means that Benzodiazepine addiction treatment should always be a planned intervention and you should not stop using before admission.
Free Rehab Advice
Free Rehab Advice exists to provide free and confidential advice to those seeking admission to drug and alcohol rehabilitation from an experienced addictions clinician.
Find Out MoreHome Detox
Speak to an experienced addictions clinician on home detox: free, and confidential advice.
Find Out MoreResidential Rehab
Call for free and confidential advice on residential rehab,detox,recovery, therapy and counselling from a clinician.
Find Out MoreWhat Does Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment Involve?
Treatment starts with an assessment.
A clinician will usually need to understand what Benzodiazepines you are taking, how long you have been taking them for, the strength of the medication, how you take them, if they are prescribed/purchased on-line or from a dealer or a combination.
Where dependence is present, treatment will usually be a period of treatment in a residential rehab centres.
Many people start recovery from Benzodiazepines with a reduction agreed with their GP and come into treatment when they reach the last hurdle as this is the most difficult phase.
The setting depends on individual risk and support needs.
For most people, a structured residential programme may be appropriate.
Find Me a Rehab can help you to explore residential rehab options where medical support, therapy, relapse prevention and aftercare are provided in one setting.
Treatment may also include group or individual therapy and recovery approaches such as SMART Recovery or 12 STEP programmes. The right programme depends on the person, not simply the substance involved.
Benzodiazepines, Opioids and Other Sedating Drugs
Mixing Benzodiazepines and Alcohol is very dangerous.
Benzodiazepines and Alcohol work on the same receptors in the brain and affect the Central Nervous System (CNS).
If you combine the two the CNS may not be able to cope and you run the risk of an overdose.
While there is an emergency drug that can be given by medical staff, unless it is obvious as to what you have taken, it will take time for them to diagnose you which could be extremely problematic.
If you use Benzodiazepines on top of Opioids, there is the potential to overload your respiratory as well as central nervous system.
Both can lead to a medical emergency and fatality.
If you mix Benzodiazepines with Nitrous Oxide, this will, quite likely, suppress your central nervous system to a degree where your breathing can become extremely shallow, or stop.
Using Cocaine and Benzodiazpeines creates a push and pull effect on the brains receptors. Cocaine is a stimulant and Benzodiazepines are a relaxant.
Either one can mask the effects of the other meaning you will use more because you think they are not doing what you want them to do.
This leads to accidental overdose.
Get The Help You Need Today With Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
Find Me a Rehab is an entirely clinician led advisory service.
If you find controlling the amount of Nitrous Oxide you use is problematic and become unwell when you try and stop, you need expert advice. We provide this: For free, and in confidence.
Free Clinician-Led Rehab Advice
Find Me a Rehab is an entirely addiction clinician led advisory, signposting and referral service.
The service is completely free to use and totally confidential. It's clinicians have experience across private rehabilitation centres, private hospitals and outpatient settings, prisons, NHS and local authority funded (free to use) services and other treatment areas.
Find Me a Rehab states that it only signposts clients to legally registered services.
If private treatment is not an option, the team can also provide information about statutory (free to use) services.
You can learn more about Find Me a Rehab and how the referral service works before making an enquiry.
Get Help With Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
You do not need to decide on a detox plan or rehabilitation centre before asking for advice.
Start by explaining what Benzodiazepines you are taking, whether they are prescribed, bought on-line or sourced from street dealers, how many you take, how you take them and the dosage.
A clinician, in order to advise you, will ask you about other prescribed medications and your general physical and psychological health history including any other current and previous addictions and if you have had addiction treatment before.
Contact Find Me a Rehab for free and confidential advice about Nitrous Oxide addiction treatment and suitable referral options.
Call 0333 041 9922 or email info@findmearehab.net. The helpline is available 24/7, everyday of the year.
Michael Imonirhua
Michael has been a qualifed substbance misuse practitoner since 2007.
He overcame his own addiction and thrives in recovery by using is lived experience to enhance his work with clients.
He is extremely passionate about person centred care having experienced the drawbacks of traditional community service provision.
Michael holds diplomas in:
* Counselling
* Conflict management
* Group work
* Cognitive behavioural therapy
* Advanced group facilitation
Michael maintains a busy caseload of clients who are overcoming addiction as well as those seeking treatment for PTSD, tramua and other mental health conditions.
In addition Michael is a skilled and experience educator and trainer aside from his role as clinical director of a private treatment service in London.
Frequently Asked Questions on Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
Unsurprisingly, we get asked a lot of questions on Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment, to make things easier for you, we have included some of the most common one below.
How long does a Benzodiazepine detox take?
That depends, entirely on the following:
- What Benzodiazepines you take
- The dosage
- How long you have been taking them for
- The way you take them
- If the medication is prescribed or bought on-line/from a street dealer
- Your underlying physical and psychological health
- Date of previous detox (if applicable)
- Any other current cross addictions (Eg alcohol, Heroin, etc)
For some people it could be a month, for others much longer.
To reduce cost most people start a reduction at home, in collaboration with their GP and come into treatment for the last hurdle as this is the most difficult phase.
What happens if I go Cold Turkey on Benzodiazepines?
When you take Benzodiazepines they activate receptors in the brain which, in turn, affects chemical messaging. This is what they are designed to do.
This altered chemical messaging is what causes the effects you want the medication to have.
If you take them for a period of time, the brain becomes used to them being on the receptors and you reach a state known as uncoupling.
This means that you will need increasing amounts of Benzodiazepines to have the same effect as the amount you first started with.
If you stop taking Benzodiazepines (or reduce too quickly) your brain simply can not cope with the immediate change. It will be able to adjust, but while it does incorrect chemical messaging occurs.
You are going to experience withdrawals which are not only psychologically very distressing but, physically, can be extremely dangerous: Even fatal.
You run the risk of a stroke, active suicidal thoughts as well as delirium and seizures.
Untreated delirium and seizures are an acute medical emergency and will lead to fatality if not correctly treated.
When you stop taking Benzodiazepines, your brain will tell you what you already know: If you take some you will stop feeling ill. This is known as craving.
The problem is, while you have been taking Benzodiazepines for a long time, within a very short space of time when you stop, your brain is adjusting to life without them and simply won’t be able to process the same amount you were taking even a day or so before.
This means that, while you take an amount you think you will need to settle yourself based on what you had been taking, your brain won’t be able to cope. You are at extreme risk of an accidental overdose. This, left untreated, is extremely serious and can be fatal.
Can I get a Benzo detox on the NHS?
Potentially.
Free to use addiction services are funded by your local authority: Not the NHS.
Your local authority (who you pay your council tax to) can choose who they want to provide services. Some do it themselves, others buy in services from private companies, charities or commission an NHS trust to run it.
These free to use services do not provide community detox’s for Benzodiazepines. They can give you advice but none are funded for at home treatment for Benzodiazepines.
Residential detox/rehab may be provided, when you are down to the last few tablets a day, but this will be after a long period of assessment and engagement with the service.
You will need to keep regular appointments with your keyworker and attend all groups and sessions as part of your recovery plan.
Residential treatment can only be provided if the local authority funding panel agree to it: Even if the NHS is running the service they can not authorise it. Your keyworker will make the application to the funding panel.
Where you go, when and for how long will be the decision of the funding panel in collaboration with the in-house clinician.
Why is my GP trying to reduce my prescription for Benzodiazepines?
Your NHS GP is a private company which is contracted to provide services for the NHS.
Part of the contract is to reduce and stop inappropriate prescribing for Benzodiazepines.
The NHS monitors prescribing trends (not your individual medical records).
There are financial incentives for your surgery to address inappropriate prescriptions.
In any event, long term Benzodiazepine use is counterproductive.
Due to the way the brain responds to long term use, the more you take: The more you need. Your dose becomes less effective, over time and you need more and more to have the same effect.
Benzodiazepines do not treat the source of the problem. They mask your anxiety, muscle spasms and are an emergency treatment for seizures. They are not curative.
What is a detox for Benzodiazepines?
A benzodiazepine detox is a period of treatment where you take reducing amounts of medication until you are able to function without them.
Usually, if you are not taking Diazepam, your addiction clinician will switch you to Diazepam. This is because Diazepam is a longer acting drug and also, because of it’s strength, it is easier to administer in fewer tablets than other types.
Another reason for the switch is that Diazepam comes in different strengths meaning it is very straightforward for an addiction clinician to reduce the dose. In severe cases, this can be done with liquid medication.
Can I get a home detox for Benzodiazepines?
Due to the length of time it takes to detox from Benzodiazepines a home detox would be extremely cost prohibitive and wholly impractical to have a home detox for Benzodiazepines.
However, what is a popular move is to work with your GP/consultant to reduce your prescription and when you are down to the last part, to have a home detox.
This is never available on the NHS.
It may be necessary to have a live in specialist nurse and the oversight of a consultant psychiatrist (addiction specialist) and/or a GP special interest.
Residential treatment is going to be far, far cheaper.
How much is a Benzodiazepine detox?
The cost is wholly dependent on how long you need to be in rehab/detox.
Our addiction clinicians can advise you.
The usual reduction regimes are based on, what is known as the, Ashton formula.
Professor Heather Ashton was the world’s leading expert on Benzodiazepine research.
If we know what you are taking, how much you take and the dose we can give you an estimated time frame.
Where Benzodiazepines are purchased over the internet and/or from the street it is a little more complicated as you can not be certain that what it says on the label is actually what you are taking so more caution is needed.
What is the cheapest Benzodiazepine detox?
A weeks admission to a fully Care Quality Commission rehab/detox unit starts at £1,975.
This includes:
- Clinicians
- Nurses
- Therapists
- Support staff
- Accommodation
- Meals
- Hotel services
There are no hidden charges.
A weeks admission, for Benzodiazepines, would be the exception to the rule and would only be considered for those at the very tail end of a community reduction plan.
The inhouse clinician would have the final say on if this would be permissible.
Can I use Ayahuasca for Benzodiazepine detox?
No.
Ayahuasca or any other type of alternative medicines can not be used to treat Benzodiazepine withdrawals.
Only Benzodiazepines will work on the receptors activated by Benzodiazepines.
Please do not use alternative medicines. They are illegal to possess and use in the UK, do not work and you are, literally, putting your life at risk.
Can I use Ibogaine for Benzodiazepine detox?
No.
Ibgogaine or any other type of alternative medicines can not be used to treat Benzodiazepine withdrawals.
Only Benzodiazepines will work on the receptors activated by Benzodiazepines.
Please do not use alternative medicines. They are illegal to possess and use in the UK, do not work and you are, literally, putting your life at risk.
Can I do a Benzodiazepine detox without the 12 STEPS?
Yes.
There are some centers that use SMART or a STRENGTH model.
Please call in for a list.
Can I do a SMART Benzo detox?
Yes.
There are some centers that use SMART or a STRENGTH model.
Please call in for a list.
Can I do detox only for Benzodiazepines without rehab?
Yes.
As clinicians we would never recommend this but we understand that, for some people, it is the best option.
We can signpost you to a suitable centre.
Please call in for a list.
Why do I need a detox for Benzodiazepines?
Benzodiazepines work on receptors in your brain. This is what they are designed to do.
After a period of time, as little as two weeks, your brain will adjust to the presence of Benzodiazepines. It does this to protect itself.
At this point, you will need more and more of the medication in order to have the same effect as the amount you started with.
If you stop, though your brain will be able to adjust back to before you took Benzodiazepines, it will take time.
While it adjusts your brain will be in a state of flux.
It will send out incorrect chemical messaging which is what causes the physical symptoms known as withdrawal.
The symptoms of Benzodiazepine withdrawal can be very extreme including delirium and seizures. Left untreated, these can be fatal.
A detox involves, usually, a clinician replacing the Benzodiazepine you take with a longer acting one, if possible, and reducing it over an agreed period of time until you are medication free.
How much is a 28 day Benzodiazepine detox?
£6,950
A 28 day admission to a detox and rehab centre for Benzodiazepines is £6,950.
This includes everything:
- Medication
- Clinicians
- Nurses
- Support staff
- Therapists
- Therapy groups
- Relapse prevention workshops
- One years aftercare (minimum)
- Food, accommodation and full hotel services.
There are no hidden charges.
Please call in for a list of centres.
Is it cheaper to go overseas for a Benzodiazepine detox?
No.
Going overseas is never less expensive, despite what the glossy website may tell you.
You have no assurance that the centre is properly registered, that the staff are qualified and regulated or that the service is safe and effective.
Your travel insurance would be invalid and if you had to be medically repatriated to the UK it can cost hundreds of thousands of pounds. The British Embassy or High Commission is not going to pay.
Overseas clinics may use dangerous and unproven treatments.
In any event you would have to keep taking medication, during your travel, which is going to be problematic in itself.
Where can I do a rapid Benzodiazepine detox?
You can’t.
There is no such thing as a rapid Benzodiazepine detox.
Please do not entertain any adverts that you see online for a rapid Benzodiazepine detox.
The only safe treatment is a gradual reduction, working in collaboration with your GP or an addictions clinician.
Can I go to A+E if I am in withdrawal from Benzodiazepines?
You can but you won’t get the treatment you think you might get.
The NHS Accident and Emergency service is not funded, or set up, for people in withdrawal.
The duty of care of staff, in this situation, is limited to what is reasonable in the circumstances.
You will be assessed but if you are fit to be discharged you will be sent home with some leaflets and safety advice.
If you are in significant withdrawals the staff may give you some Benzodiazepines , monitor you and then send you home when you have stabilised.
The NHS is not going to admit you, from A+E for a Benzodiazepine detox.
Still Have Questions on Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment?
Contact Support on Benzodiazepine Addiction Treatment
if you find yourself in need of assistance at any hour, we're here to support you around the clock.
Whether it's the dead of night or the crack of dawn, our team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, ready to lend a helping hand whenever you require it.
So, if you ever find yourself in a pinch or simply need someone to talk to, don't hesitate to reach out. We're committed to being there for you whenever you need us, no matter the time.
We only signpost to legally registered services.