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88 Comments
- NicoNicoNico, on 12/02/2008, -0/+26Thanks for posting this article. There is such thing as SSRI discontinuation syndrome (Google it). I am actually trying to get off of Cymbalta (I had it for chronic pain, which is an off label use), which is the hardest thing to do. People have said that severe withdrawal symptoms resembles the withdrawal you get from discontinuing heroin. The worst thing is that doctors and the pharmaceutical companies don't warn you about this very well, if at all. In a study done a few years ago, they even found that an alarming minority of doctors didn't even know people could withdraw from anti-depressants.
But apparently Marijuana isn't "safe" enough, or at least that's what my Congressperson said when I wrote him about it. Lack of information is killing the pharmaceutical industry, at least when it comes to the patients. - drmobutu, on 12/02/2008, -4/+29Marijuana is often quite effective, in treating many of the conditions that benzodiazapenes are prescribed for, too. Insomnia & anxiety in particular...
- sheeplescareme, on 12/02/2008, -10/+29over 32,000 people die each year as a result from misuse of prescription drugs (that is not counting suicides). not one person has ever overdosed on marijuana.
- NHeerDesign, on 12/02/2008, -4/+20I'm all for the legalization of marijuana. But there's absolutely no need to go banging on about it in every Digg comment area remotely related to medicine.
- anstice85, on 12/02/2008, -0/+14Um.. as hard as I'm sure that is, withdrawal from drugs is ten times worse. Most eventually just grow out of playing WoW.
- inactive, on 12/02/2008, -2/+14I might probably get buried to hell for this but I am still going through the withdrawl of quiting World Of Warcraft, for f{_)ck sake that game was addictive. But everytime I have the urge to download the game, I go look in the mirror and check out my weight on the scale to remember how much not playing that game has helped me recover.
Moral of the story is not all addictions come in the form of a pill or drug. I know warcraft players who read this will probably bury me but face it, that game is like the cheapest form of crack but on overdrive and jacked up with 30 different types of steroids.
/ducks - anstice85, on 12/02/2008, -0/+12I had the same thing when I quit Paxil. I wanted to commit suicide for weeks, and I'd never been depressed before ever (I was prescribed it for anxiety). I'm no Scientologist, mind you, but I really feel for people going through this.
- algaeturd, on 12/02/2008, -0/+10That's the big lie. The idea is that if a doctor prescribed it, it's safe. The hippocratic oath states: "First, do no harm.' You should be able to count on your doctor to wean you off of medication that they themselves prescribe. Believe it or not, it's not common knowledge that this stuff is dangerous as *****. People eat them like candy and then stare down their noses at crack addicts simply because they have a prescription and the crack addicts don't. It's really the only difference.
- danconia, on 12/02/2008, -0/+10Oooooh let me just say I just finished withdrawing off of suboxone about two days ago and the lure of just taking another one to end the misery is incredibly seductive. Of course I was only on suboxone because I wanted to get off of oxycontin whose withdrawals were even worse for me.
For months on end I paid hundreds to thousands of dollars to put off the having to get off the drug (and hence avoid withdrawing) but in the end had to go through it anyway. On painkillers and even suboxone you'll watch your life slowly pass you by with nothing to show for it.
Prescription medications have the problem of providing a false sense of security. "It's endorsed by my doctor" leads people to believe it's going to be just peachy to use and then get off of the medication when in fact quite the opposite is often true. - Greanbeens, on 12/02/2008, -2/+12I know from personal experience it makes anxiety worse, i have no idea why people say it helps anxiety and depression. It just temporarily masks the problem.
- Digital.Totem, on 12/02/2008, -0/+9This isn't some pothead conspiracy it's science. Mind altering drugs with addictive qualities are dangerous because they can ultimately cause far more problems than they could ever fix, in fact these drugs will not cure you of a god damned thing but they will cause dependency this isn't an accident on big pharma's behalf they know exactly what they are doing to millions of people and they just don't give a ***** because they are addicted to the money that their addictive drugs bring them.
- bg2500, on 12/02/2008, -0/+8You are right, alcohol withdrawal can kill. But so can benzo withdrawal. Alcohol and benzos have very similar effects and create a cross tolerance. So, you can substitute one for the other basically. That is why they use Valium (usually, I think other benzos are used at times also) to detox alcoholics.
- bipolarruledout, on 12/02/2008, -0/+8You should try some xanax, it really mellows you out.
- Chordonblue, on 12/02/2008, -0/+8Yeah, but none of them had a doctor's seal of approval on it. Clearly we put too much stock in what Big Pharma says helps us. My wife's been on this ***** for too long, but the side effects coming off of it are nasty. She didn't take it for kicks, she took it for postpartum depression because her doctor gave them to her.
The LAST thing we should be doing here is blaming the victims of this conspiracy. - bipolarruledout, on 12/02/2008, -2/+9Benzodiazepines are just as addictive as narcotics if not more so but one of the big differences is that you can DIE from benzo withdrawal.... and also alcohol withdrawal... which really isn't talked about due to the love affair with alcohol. None is this is news. Despite this benzos are very effective drugs for certain conditions and are probably not over prescribed. Of course anyone taking these drugs should have the utmost respect for them.
- spyd3rweb, on 12/02/2008, -0/+6Add Prozac and SSRI's to the list
- enantiodromia, on 12/02/2008, -0/+6saqer, such strong words coming from someone who recently said this:
"There's no Rabbit hole. There's God and there's his creation. There's nothing before Him or after Him. How hard is that to understand."
if you stop pretending to have any understanding of science, we'll start pretending we care what you have to say about anything.
deal? - inactive, on 12/02/2008, -0/+5And prescription drugs dont mask the problem?
- bababooey141, on 12/02/2008, -2/+7but alcohol withdrawal can kill a mofo
- bipolarruledout, on 12/02/2008, -2/+7Uh yeah... your an idiot and obviously have no idea what your talking about.
- inactive, on 12/02/2008, -1/+5Why is the first reaction to this article 'how wonderful marijuana is'? Something about that strikes me as inappropriate.
- paulmer2003, on 12/02/2008, -8/+12Sigh. I'm tired of hearing people go on about how ganja has no risks and "isn't a drug". Funny how a lot of people I know who smoke pot ride around on their high horse by claiming that weed isn't a drug. Hahaha.
I know a few people who have had some seriously bad trips on weed. Weed isn't a joke. I'm not saying that it's OMG BAD, just like, be honest with yourselves (and the rest of us) about it. Seriously. - inactive, on 12/02/2008, -0/+4Get off your high horse douchebag... No one cares about your substance free lifestyle and how superior you are to the rest of us because of it... Ill smoke my weed, drink my alcohol, take my advil, and meet the same end as you. I will just have more fun memories.
- anstice85, on 12/02/2008, -0/+4I came off of Paxil gradually - over a period of months - and still experienced crippling depression, along with 1-3 hours of sleep a night, constant nausea, and "brain zaps" (google this if you have no idea what they are).
And I hate Scientology.
Withdrawal is real and, if anything, it isn't talked about enough. If I had known about it I never would have started Paxil. - algaeturd, on 12/02/2008, -0/+4I knew a guy addicted to xanax who has been doing a taper for over TWO YEARS. For those unaware, a benzo taper has to be so microcosmically slow that it's done by taking a razor and slicing off a barely visible sliver. WEEKLY. And that's how you work your way down if you want to avoid the nightmare associated with benzo withdrawal. And the lower you get in dose, the slower you have to cut back.
This stuff is deadly when stopped instantly and anything less than a short taper is a nightmare that lasts a long time. Play safely with it or don't play at all. The safest way is to work with a trusted doctor, remind him to safely monitor your prescriptions and to take a break from them on a regular basis. If your anxiety is that bad that you can't function without them, look into cognitive therapy, meditation and other alternatives to drugs. Trust me, they'll help more than benzos in the long run. - soulonfire928, on 12/02/2008, -0/+4***** awesome, I'm having the most pain in the ass time coming off Zoloft. My brain feels weird (seriously) and can't concentrate worth a damn on anything. Its been the same thing, every day, for the past 2 ***** months. I'm about ready to kill my doctor.
He sticks me on Paxil to try and help cope--that's got worse discontinuation issues than Zoloft. He's an ass. Ruining my ***** life. - enantiodromia, on 12/02/2008, -0/+4so it makes you, not depressed?
amazing!
did you mean to say its not an SSRI or MAOI? you know, most of these brain candy pills, their actions are either not understood or known at all, they just know "it works".
grab a copy of a nurse's reference guide to pharmaceuticals and see for yourself. - DigitAl56K, on 12/02/2008, -1/+5Why is it inappropriate? If marijuana can provide the same benefits as the prescription drugs but without the withdrawal problems then that's worth mentioning as part of the discussion. i.e. "Our current solution has some downsides, here are some alternatives..".
- enantiodromia, on 12/02/2008, -1/+5what about people who smoke pot, then take pills? i've known many people like that.
- Digital.Totem, on 12/02/2008, -1/+4You can't be serious, the brains reward center isn't stimulated enough by WoW in any normal person to cause addiction and withdrawal on the level of any drugs. People use addicted when they should be using the word obsessed, because anything you would call an addiction to a video game is simply a lack of self controll.
- inactive, on 12/02/2008, -0/+3blame the 16-year-I-old-smoke-pot-in-the-high-school-bathroom potheads, IMO.
- Olfster, on 12/02/2008, -0/+3Warning Paxil is even worse. One of the news outlets had a group of people that had the hardest time coming of off Paxil. I suggest asking your doctor if he knew what the issues with the drugs were before subscribing them. Then get a lawyer. Good luck, you are going to need it from what I hear.
- Greanbeens, on 12/02/2008, -1/+4Pot isn't an anti depressant, sure you get high but it does nothing to actually help you, just makes you "feel" better.
- BlueSun420, on 12/02/2008, -0/+3"There are consequences in life for EVERYTHING."
Exactly, so should EVERYTHING be against the law? The question isn't so much whether there is a negative consequence to smoking cannabis, but whether or not the negative consequence is significant enough to warrant the criminalization of it.
I believe the point that was being made was that the consequence of cannabis is not significant enough to warrant the criminalization of it. - inactive, on 12/02/2008, -2/+5But there may be some reasons why it does not work for you. But for most of the people it works well.
- enantiodromia, on 12/02/2008, -2/+5FTA:
"Cindy's gynecologist first prescribed her Valium after she hit a bout of insomnia with menopause. It worked, but eight months later, she began to feel depressed and have rashes."
"Burns continued to take Ativan and antidepressants for nine years"
"Moran tried for years to take the drug, then to taper off for three months before he built up too much of a tolerance, and then to start again."
"Alison Kellagher is one such person. She took benzodiazepines for 17 years, originally just to treat a couple of panic attacks she had in a new job."
Look, I've known a lot of "druggies", "stoners", "pill poppers", "coke heads", "acid freaks", "E Tards", and the occasional "i like to do some speed on the weekends for fun" types, but every single one of them knew that doing powerful drugs every day for years and years was a bad idea, mmkay? - thumperings, on 12/02/2008, -0/+3I "started" coming off Klonopin in 2003 after being on then for 9 years. I was doing the taper method. It took almost 3 years for the last of the withdrawal symptoms to subside, and I still now only sleep 5 hours a night. Do NOT take benzos habitually. You will regret it.
Most horrific 3 years of my life. I didn't sleep AT ALL for 17 months couldn't stand ANY sounds or bright lights. and had Dp/Dr (depersonalization/derealization - m0llusk, on 12/02/2008, -0/+3Panic attacks are one of the physiological symptoms of benzo withdrawl talked about in this article which no one coming down of WoW has ever experienced. Instead of trivializing other people's experience with irrelevant junk from your own life it might be more interesting and productive to listen and understand.
- mimTN, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2and another thing "they" don't tell you,
after being on various drugs for depression and PTSD for years, my teeth were going, I mean I will probley end up with dentures, My mom died at 80 and had great teeth. now at 54 I won't. Why? you know that little warning about dry mounth. Well turns out most dentist know this is big cause of major tooth problems.
and another thing,
I have leukemia, am on new drug that may allow me to live normal life span, BUT, it is hard on stomach and liver and because of all the years on the other stuff I am having problems. Funny thing as soon as I had cancer and had to take this drug, they had to take me off all the other stuff, and I am thinking clearer and doing better than I have in my life.
I have never had withdrawal, even after taking morphine for 4 years, just gradually stopped over 2 weeks and no problems, now if pain gets too bad I grab Aleve, but that only happens 4-6 times a month. I have just learned to live with some level of pain. - spaceddaisy, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2I have, but no withdrawal whatsoever, I was so glad to be done with that stuff!
Unfortunately it only helped for about a year, then I was back at square one. But never ever using that stuff again, ever. - valentino600, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2Speaking of withdrawal symptoms, has anybody here taken accutane?
- soulonfire928, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2Yeah I'm thinking I'm not really gonna bother taking it. He'll be an ass about it but tough *****.
- algaeturd, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2Amen. Best of luck to you...hang in there. You gotta count weeks instead of days.
- Jacare, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2its a psychological addiction not a physical addiction
- thumperings, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2was a sad little ***** troll you are sager.
- thumperings, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2wrong it does that to YOU. To everyone else it's relaxing.
- soulonfire928, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2Did years ago. I ended up being depressed, probably from that (not that solely--but apparently, in addition to my home life, it wasn't likely to help).
- SirFoxx, on 12/02/2008, -1/+3You just know that "Big Pharma" knew all about these side effects and how addictive these drugs were before they were released and all they saw were dollar signs. They knew that money would be rolling in because no one would want to go through the withdrawals and when they did it would take a long time.
- drmobutu, on 12/02/2008, -0/+2Generally, people who find that pot makes their anxiety worse, don't smoke pot...problem solved.
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