ITV features and article and video today about the widespread problem of addiction and withdrawal from benzodiazepine drugs used to treat anxiety, including Ativan, Librium, Diazepam and Temazepam. Mother of three Sandra Minshull shares her story and discusses how Ativan “robbed her of her life.”
I have spoken to Sandra and thanked her for her bravery for this interview and her family are very supportive.
We need more victims and survivors to speak out to media and spread the message on these highly addictive drugs.
Benzodiazepines where described as non addictive when they where UK marketed in the 1960s as is the current debate with SSRIs. Our UK Regulatory Authorities could not recognise addiction if it sat up and bit them on the butt.
Barry Haslam. Ativan drug survivor.
I did the benzo thing for “only” seven years.
So you get this bottle that is supposed to last 30 days but some days the anxiety, (caused by the pills themselves) is bad so you take an extra one or two. I will just take a little less later to make up for it you tell yourself.
It doesn’t work you have an empty bottle, call doctor , goto doctor and get new Rx… take the blame for all this and get reduced to almost begging.
Next goto pharmacy … “insurance says 30 days not up yet” OK I will pay cash “We cant do that controlled substance”
You need to call doctor or they say they will call doctor.
Wait Wait Wait go back , can I have my pills now ? No
Why not ? Usual pharmacy bull goes here ____________ .
I ended this story once by bringing my video camera putting it on record and sticking it in that pharmacy ******s face and saying “You tell my doctor why I cant get my prescription ! ” And just kept recording.
She walks back gets the bag and takes my cash.
I wish I had that video to upload but this was years ago.
I recently over did the anger during a pharmacy hassle because of the memories of all these benzo times. I won but felt bad cause I let them have level 10 without going to 5 first. Its like they expect you to be subservient to them.
Another time a pharmacist accused me of forgery and told me he needs to check and I needed to come back.
NO, one of 2 things are going to happen here.
1. You will hand me back my prescription.
2. You will call the police and tell them I forged a prescription wile I wait.
That SOB handed it back to me.
You don’t always win and end up in the ER with panic attacks. The gown, the drug test, observation incarceration, will they send me up to psych and label these withdrawal reactions “schizoaffective” or some crap and try and force me on pills that just zombify but don’t even touch the anxiety withdrawals ? Again.
I know the benzo nightmare. It is a robbery, a full time job you never wanted.
They were trying to hook me on this drugs. They denied every possible side effect and didn’t notice almost complete anterograde amnesia while I was being “observed” 24/7 in a hospital. A drunken monkey with a razor blade would do a better job in helping people than an average psychiatrist.
