Anyone have experience with anxiety/depression?

[TechGod]

I'm 17. I also have ADHD, OCD Dyspraxia and suffer however mildly from depression due to the extreme bullying I experienced for 11 years because I wasn't white and I was in a white majority school. That and my dyspraxia makes me appear "slower" than I really am so my intellectual and physical capabilities have always been questioned. I even started cutting myself but I just don't know why but I started telling my best friend everything.

It helps me, makes everything tolerable because she listens and she helps. That's honestly the only way I'm coping, I would have killed myself had I not told her.

I don't exactly see an end to this and the "it gets better" line is the biggest ******** I've ever heard or read.

 

[radioking]

One day you will "arrive" but it's not just going to happen. It takes continuous work. You have to learn how to calm your mind and realize that thoughts are not necessarily truths. I think mediation is a good way to accomplish this. It's not easy at first but becomes easier if you stick with it.

I found this podcast useful for guided meditations

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-meditation-podcast/id200323953?mt=2

A couple books that I have read that can give you a different perspective.
"Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor Frankl
"The Book of Awakening" by Mark Nepo
"The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle

It's going to be a lot harder without having someone to talk to about this on a constant basis. So I would recommend going to a therapist of some sort. It might take going to multiple ones before you find one you click with. This can be a slippery slope though. If they diagnose you as having some sort of disorder it can lead you to feeling as though it's a problem that you have no control over, and the only solution is pharmaceuticals. It can go the other way too. If you think a pill will make you better then it just might.

 

[CurvedParker]

My only advise is to not touch ANY Benzodiazepine that a doctor may subscribe you. I went through 8 years of hell due to that that evil drug.

Are you a doctor? No? Then shut the hell up. Benzos are very effective if managed and taken correctly. Don't dish out this stuff when you have no basis for your claims. It may not have worked for you, but it works for a lot of other people, including myself.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Are you a doctor? No? Then shut the hell up. Benzos are very effective if managed and taken correctly. Don't dish out this stuff when you have no basis for your claims. It may not have worked for you, but it works for a lot of other people, including myself.

No but I am.

I stated this earlier: Benzodiazepines are extremely dangerous drugs. To casually brush off safety concerns of these medications is foolish, naive, and uneducated. Therefore you should not be claiming the safety of these drugs. That is why they are controlled substances as determined by the FDA. Yes, it is possible for these drugs to be taken safely. But they can also be terrible destructive. They should only be prescribed if absolutely necessary. Benzodiazepines are absolutely efficacious, but in the long term with tolerance and rebound symptoms they are not. Considering anxiety is usually a chronic disease, the only good way to treat it for long relief is through behavior modification (therapy).

Want a basis for my claims. First, they're scheduled drugs so there's a start. Regarding the long term effectiveness and safety, I invite you to go onto PubMed database and start reading some quality medical journals. Or just listen to the local media reports to hear about all overdoses and rampant drug related issues. You should stop by my work to see all of the patients who are currently being treated for prescription medication addiction. It's a problem that keeps getting bigger and bigger. It doesn't matter if you're dirt poor, middle class, or rich - dumb as a stone or an IV league graduate - black or white - an atheist or a religious zealot - anybody can become a victim. Unless you've experienced addiction first hand, you will never truly understand how devastating a disease it is. Drug addiction is more prevalent than you might imagine. Some people are lucky enough to stop on their own. Some people cannot. And most who cannot never seek treatment.

The decision is between the OP and his/her doctor. Only they can consider all the factors in play here. I can tell you working at one of the top psychiatric hospitals in the world, the leading experts do not like benzodiazepines. A lot of doctors prescribe them because they are a quick fix. But the long term cost/benefit analysis has to be completed. If there is a diagnosis of it being a chronic problem, a history of addiction in the family, the determination the OP has a job that requires full cognitive power, etc benzos will be a poor choice.

 

[CurvedParker]

No but I am.

I stated this earlier: Benzodiazepines are extremely dangerous drugs. To casually brush off safety concerns of these medications is foolish, naive, and uneducated. Therefore you should not be claiming the safety of these drugs. That is why they are controlled substances as determined by the FDA. Yes, it is possible for these drugs to be taken safely. But they can also be terrible destructive. They should only be prescribed if absolutely necessary. Benzodiazepines are absolutely efficacious, but in the long term with tolerance and rebound symptoms they are not. Considering anxiety is usually a chronic disease, the only good way to treat it for long relief is through behavior modification (therapy).

Want a basis for my claims. First, they're scheduled drugs so there's a start. Regarding the long term effectiveness and safety, I invite you to go onto PubMed database and start reading some quality medical journals. Or just listen to the local media reports to hear about all overdoses and rampant drug related issues. You should stop by my work to see all of the patients who are currently being treated for prescription medication addiction. It's a problem that keeps getting bigger and bigger. It doesn't matter if you're dirt poor, middle class, or rich - dumb as a stone or an IV league graduate - black or white - an atheist or a religious zealot - anybody can become a victim. Unless you've experienced addiction first hand, you will never truly understand how devastating a disease it is. Drug addiction is a bigger problem then most realize. Some people are lucky enough to stop on their own. Some people cannot. And most who cannot never seek treatment.

The decision is between the OP and his/her doctor. Only they can consider all the factors in play here. I can tell you working at one of the top psychiatric hospitals in the world, the leading experts do not like benzodiazepines. A lot of doctors prescribe them because they are a quick fix. But the long term cost/benefit analysis has to be completed. If there is a diagnosis of it being a chronic problem, a history of addiction in the family, the determination the OP has a job that requires full cognitive power, etc benzos will be a poor choice.

Fair enough, but they worked for me over the short term. To make a blanket statement like "don't take them" is irresponsible. These drugs are useful and can be very helpful, again, if taken responsibly and properly.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Fair enough, but they worked for me over the short term. To make a blanket statement like "don't take them" is irresponsible. These drugs are useful and can be very helpful, again, if taken responsibly and properly.

I'm sure not irresponsible is the correct word. I cannot think of a good term at the moment, but I see what you are getting at.

Off the top of my head I can only think a few specific situations where Benzodiazepines can/should be used as a first line of treatment without question. They would all occur in a hospital and the doses would be small and few.
1. Seizures - injection in acute seizures
2. Alcohol withdrawal/detox
3. Benzodiazepine withdrawal/detox

There are a few select cases where regular benzos may be a necessity due to the harm of the disease outweighing dangers of the drug. This could include seizures that have not responded to other medications or patients with severe panic attacks that lead to fainting. Loss of consciousness can lead to severe physical trauma.

Other than those cases, Benzodiazepines are not drugs that will not stand between life or death. While uncomfortable, you cannot die of strictly anxiety or insomnia (another use of benzos), thought these conditions are not good for your health overall.

Therefore, telling someone not to take them is not irresponsible, but practical more than anything, in my opinion. I cannot argue that benzos are not effective, because they are. They're the most effective thing we have. I can argue that in most cases the potential dangers can outweigh the practical benefits and there are many other options with proven effectiveness available that should be tested first.

And I will say again, in most anxiety and depression cases, the issue can be solved through changing the way you think. Changing the way you processes information changes how your brain functions and the chemicals involved. Medication can give you a boost but will not solve the root problem. Life circumstances are uncontrollable and some things will never change. The only thing you can change is the way you handle thoughts and feelings.

 

[CurvedParker]

I'm sure not irresponsible is the correct word. I cannot think of a good term at the moment, but I see what you are getting at.

Off the top of my head I can only think a few specific situations where Benzodiazepines can be used as a first line of treatment without question. They would all occur in a hospital and the doses would be small and few.
1. Seizures - injection in acute seizures
2. Alcohol withdrawal/detox
3. Benzodiazepine withdrawal/detox

There are a few select cases where regular benzos may be a necessity due to the harm of the disease outweighing dangers of the drug. This could include seizures that have not responded to other medications or patients with severe panic attacks that lead to fainting. Loss of consciousness can lead to severe physical trauma.

Other than those cases, Benzodiazepines are not drugs that will not stand between life or death. While uncomfortable, you cannot die of strictly anxiety or insomnia (another use of benzos), thought these conditions are not good for your health overall.

Therefore, telling someone not to take them is not irresponsible, but practical more than anything, in my opinion. I cannot argue that benzos are not effective, because they are. They're the most effective thing we have. I can argue that the potential dangers can outweigh the benefits and there are many options with proven effectiveness available that should be tried first.

Jesus, I never said that people should be on them long term, I said they were helpful in my case (quit drinking, subsided withdrawal symptoms and Valium helps when I experience heightened levels of episodic/situational anxiety and it works wonders, but I only take it twice, maybe three times a month). Like any other pharmaceutical drugs, they can be effective in the right situations at the right dosages and under the right circumstances when taken responsibly, as I've said before.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Jesus, I never said that people should be on them long term, I said they were helpful in my case (quit drinking, subsided withdrawal symptoms and Valium helps when I experience heightened levels of episodic/situational anxiety and it works wonders, but I only take it twice, maybe three times a month). Like any other pharmaceutical drugs, they can be effective in the right situations at the right dosages and under the right circumstances when taken responsibly, as I've said before.

It sounds like you had a very valid use- getting off of alcohol. Thank you for providing more clarity though. Many people unfortunately get prescribed these drugs and take because they are prescribed everyday, multiple times a day, and its really just not appropriate.

 

[CurvedParker]

It sounds like you had a very valid use- getting off of alcohol. Thank you for providing more clarity though. Many people unfortunately get prescribed these drugs and take because they are prescribed everyday, multiple times a day, and its really just not appropriate.

I agree. Benzos should never be a long-tern solution, and before quitting drinking I'd never been on any kind of meds, but Valium was a godsend in that first week, and still is for the situational instances in which I take it. I agree that it's easy to abuse, but I disagree with the blanket notion suggested in this thread that benzos should never be taken. They are extremely helpful in the short term and situational instances.

 

[T.Doyobi]

Im 37 and have been through a psychotic breakdown and clinical depression which was bad enough for my to try and commit suicide by overdose a couple of times. I have spent time in a mental health unit and was in a fairly bad way then.

I have been prescribed anti-psychotics (Amisulpride) and anti-depressants, SSRI’s Fluoxetine (Prozac).

I was very sceptical of both drugs to start with thinking they were not doing anything, so I quit them, but not long after I went down hill again and started getting paranoid. I’m back on them now and the paranoia has gone. I haven’t had a bout of depression for over a year. It’s controversial, and I sometimes wonder if it’s all just a placebo. But it seems to be working.

When I was younger I suffered from pretty bad anxiety, I’m not sure why this has changed over the years but I am a lot better now. I was on Beta Blockers as my blood pressure was pretty high.

I think I might know roughly how it feels to be anxious and I am sorry you are going through this.

You may benefit from a talking therapy, like CBT, try to understand why you are worrying so much. Your Doctor could recommend this. Make sure you look into any drugs the Doctor prescribes, as mentioned, things like Benzo’s should be short term. My drugs have given me zero side effects and I am fine but you may need to find the right medication.

Try talking therapy, CBT, and look into meditation. There are books out there that can get you started, I got one for my Kindle the other day for a couple of pounds and it’s quite good.

Also pay attention to your diet, if you are drinking a lot of strong coffee it won’t help anxiety. Try to eat well.

Red Bush tea is good, it is naturally caffeine free and high in anti oxidants, tastes real nice with a drop of milk and brown sugar. Try it.

Do try to talk to someone you can trust, I hope your Doctor can help. I am lucky my Doctor is very helpful and supportive, but I’ve had previous Doctors who were not helpful at all.

All the best.

 

[AustinIllini]

Yes and like others said stay away from anti-depressants and booze tried them both for years neither helped.

Do what your medical professional says. Anti-depressants worked for me.

 

[torana355]

Are you a doctor? No? Then shut the hell up. Benzos are very effective if managed and taken correctly. Don't dish out this stuff when you have no basis for your claims. It may not have worked for you, but it works for a lot of other people, including myself.

How about you stop being rude to start with. Benzos are bad news, i don't care if they have worked for you, they are a very short-term drug but are very easy to start using long term due to their addictiveness. BTW the 2 psychiatrists and one neurologist that i had to see told me to stay way clear of them. Yes Benzos can be used effectively for very short term use but it just way to easy to become addicted and fall into the trap that many people do. There are simply much better ways to deal with anxiety if you can be bothered to research.

 

[AustinIllini]

How about you stop being rude to start with. Benzos are bad news, i don't care if they have worked for you, they are a very short-term drug but are very easy to start using long term due to their addictiveness. BTW the 2 psychiatrists and one neurologist that i had to see told me to stay way clear of them. Yes Benzos can be used effectively for very short term use but it just way to easy to become addicted and fall into the trap that many people do. There are simply much better ways to deal with anxiety if you can be bothered to research.

Again, unless you are a doctor and OP is the patient, it is unwise and of suspect ethics to make any such medical claims.

Maybe they make you uncomfortable, but we don't know anything about OP, so we can't reasonably say "Stay away from these drugs". We don't know exactly what he needs.

 

[kds1]

My only advise is to not touch ANY Benzodiazepine that a doctor may subscribe you. I went through 8 years of hell due to that that evil drug.

What's so evil about it. Just because YOU have an addictive personality doesn't mean others do.

----------

How about you stop being rude to start with. Benzos are bad news, i don't care if they have worked for you, they are a very short-term drug but are very easy to start using long term due to their addictiveness. BTW the 2 psychiatrists and one neurologist that i had to see told me to stay way clear of them. Yes Benzos can be used effectively for very short term use but it just way to easy to become addicted and fall into the trap that many people do. There are simply much better ways to deal with anxiety if you can be bothered to research.

Sounds like you should have been prescribed Klonopin rather than Valium or Xanax. It has about an 8 hour half life, versus the much shorter term Valium or Xanax.

----------

I'm sure not irresponsible is the correct word. I cannot think of a good term at the moment, but I see what you are getting at.

Off the top of my head I can only think a few specific situations where Benzodiazepines can/should be used as a first line of treatment without question. They would all occur in a hospital and the doses would be small and few.
1. Seizures - injection in acute seizures
2. Alcohol withdrawal/detox
3. Benzodiazepine withdrawal/detox

There are a few select cases where regular benzos may be a necessity due to the harm of the disease outweighing dangers of the drug. This could include seizures that have not responded to other medications or patients with severe panic attacks that lead to fainting. Loss of consciousness can lead to severe physical trauma.

Other than those cases, Benzodiazepines are not drugs that will not stand between life or death. While uncomfortable, you cannot die of strictly anxiety or insomnia (another use of benzos), thought these conditions are not good for your health overall.

Therefore, telling someone not to take them is not irresponsible, but practical more than anything, in my opinion. I cannot argue that benzos are not effective, because they are. They're the most effective thing we have. I can argue that in most cases the potential dangers can outweigh the practical benefits and there are many other options with proven effectiveness available that should be tested first.

And I will say again, in most anxiety and depression cases, the issue can be solved through changing the way you think. Changing the way you processes information changes how your brain functions and the chemicals involved. Medication can give you a boost but will not solve the root problem. Life circumstances are uncontrollable and some things will never change. The only thing you can change is the way you handle thoughts and feelings.

It depends on the case. Some people have been on benzo's long term, and aren't addicted, and use only when needed. And they can be taken when needed in conjuction with an SSRI or Buproprion.

 

[zenbiad]

Solution:
Anxious? --> have a beer or two
Depressed? --> drink a strong cup of coffe

The program still exists when u wake up in another day.

 

[torana355]

What's so evil about it. Just because YOU have an addictive personality doesn't mean others do.



Sounds like you should have been prescribed Klonopin rather than Valium or Xanax. It has about an 8 hour half life, versus the much shorter term Valium or Xanax

I DONT have an addictive personality. Becoming dependant on benzos is EXTREMELY easy to do when you use them to treat bad cases of anxiety, sure its fine to have 1 valium if you are having a panic attack but anything more then that is not advisable. In Australia Doctors will not even prescribe Benzo's anymore due to their addictiveness which says it all really. Klonopin has a much longer halflife but is still addictive. Anyway, unless you have personally gone though Benzo withdrawal you really have no idea just how bad the process can be, feel free to search benzo withdrawal on google and read peoples stories, i can say from personal experience that they are not exaggerating.

 

[kds1]

I DONT have an addictive personality. Becoming dependant on benzos is EXTREMELY easy to do when you use them to treat bad cases of anxiety, sure its fine to have 1 valium if you are having a panic attack but anything more then that is not advisable. In Australia Doctors will not even prescribe Benzo's anymore due to their addictiveness which says it all really. Klonopin has a much longer halflife but is still addictive. Anyway, unless you have personally gone though Benzo withdrawal you really have no idea just how bad the process can be, feel free to search benzo withdrawal on google and read peoples stories, i can say from personal experience that they are not exaggerating.

I'm sending you a private message. You don't fully know what you are talking about.

 

[A.Goldberg]

I'm sending you a private message. You don't fully know what you are talking about.

It's evident to me you do not know what you're talking about.
1) Buproprion is not an anxiolytic, it is not prescribed for anxiety, and in a fair number of patients it will exacerbate the anxiety.
2) SSRI's and NDRI's (that would be where Buproprion is categorized) are only two of many different classes of antidepressants. There are other antidepressant categories containing drugs also effective at treating anxiety. SSRI's are just the most commonly prescribed because they are the newest and tend to have fewer side effects, but they're usually not the most effective in resistant cases.
3) Yes, it does depend on the case but clearly you have not read my post saying that a responsible doctor will should only prescribe them after exhausting other options in the case of such anxiety disorders
4) In reality there is no such thing as an "addictive personality". You can debate it if you want but if you look at just about anyone you can find addictive behaviors. Anyone can become addicted to drugs. Anyone. There is no way of knowing if you are or not. And even if you have taken benzos for years without an issue, addiction can be triggered later in life. If you give someone an addictive substance long enough, in many cases they will get addicted. BZD aren't as severe as some other drugs, like strong opiates, but it's certainly possible. In a lot of cases people don't associate withdrawl symptoms with cessation of the drug the first few times around, which is actually very fortunate.

Just because you can compare half lives does not make you an expert. Theoretically drugs with longer half lives are more difficult to get addicted to, but you also need to consider other factors such as the potency of the drug. Codeine has a short half life, Oxycontin has a much longer half life, yet which one is more addictive? Please stop spreading clinically incorrect and half baked information.

Just because you may have taken this such medication and have no had any problems (yet) does not mean everybody is immune. Also consider the number of people that claim not to have a problem, but as soon as you take away their beloved (and strongly defended medication), problems start to arise. Don't under estimate the power of denial. I'm not suggested anyone is addicted here, but often that's how drug addiction sneaks up on people. They don't realize they have a problem until they don't have access anymore.

The message here to to be very aware of what you're potentially getting into here if your doctor even considers benzodiazpines as a treatment option. Working at one of the top psych hospital in the world I can tell you the leading experts do not generally favor BZD for anything but the three cases I listed.

I am a clinical pharmacist. That does not mean I count pills at CVS. It means I have a doctor of pharmacy degree and I work with in a healthcare team to evaluate a patients condition to find the most appropriate drug regimen for a specific patient. The doctors diagnose, the nurses treat, and I am the drug expert. We must consider everything including other health issues, other medications, allergies, side effects, etc. Treating a relatively healthy patient is easy, you can go by the book. But throw in other diseases, conditions, allergies, age (young or old), and especially failing organ systems and you have yourself a puzzle. I deal specialize in psychiatry and that includes drug addiction, so I see first hand all that goes on here. My advice, be weary of BZD. That's it.

 

[kds1]

Oh but I do know what I am talking about, and I'll send you a private message as well.

P.S. You're also a 25 year old, who if a doctor is probably still in medical school or an intern. There a psychiatrists and therapists out there who are older, have been working in the field longer, and have much much more experience than you. So don't act like you are some kind of authority to try to impress people on a MacRumors forum.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Oh but I do know what I am talking about, and I'll send you a private message as well.

P.S. You're also a 25 year old, who if a doctor is probably still in medical school or an intern. There a psychiatrists and therapists out there who are older, have been working in the field longer, and have much much more experience than you. So don't act like you are some kind of authority to try to impress people on a MacRumors forum.

I will gladly await your PM.

The fact that you don't understand what my degree is and what I do makes me wonder what your role is in all of this. I will admit psychiatry is an field with many different philosophies. But I am strong believer that the old model of overprescribing drugs such as bzd is why we have the growing health crisis of drug addiction to prescription medications.

 

[kds1]

I will gladly await your PM.

The fact that you don't understand what my degree is and what I do makes me wonder what your role is in all of this. I will admit psychiatry is an field with many different philosophies. But I am strong believer that the old model of overprescribing drugs such as bzd is why we have the growing health crisis of drug addiction to prescription medications.

Read the private message.

By the way, I'm also not spreading any kind of clinically incorrect or half baked message, as what I said about half lives is 100% correct and true in relation to Benzodiazepines and is the topic of this discussion. I NEVER said that it applied to any other drug OTHER than Benzos.

 

[Clix Pix]

A very dear friend of mine died last year and one of the main causes was her dependence on benzos....... Not going into specifics here, but her experience clearly demonstrates how dangerous benzos can be in some situations. Yes, she had an addictive personality and there was addictive behavior and symptomatology already (somewhat different) on the part of someone else in the family, and this predisposition to that kind of psychological component, in combination with some actual physical medical issues, was what brought my friend's life to an end all too early.

A few years ago she had been prescribed the benzos with what I'm sure were the best intentions on the part of her psychiatrist at a time when she was experiencing anxiety.....unfortunately she developed dependence and over time things eventually worsened. Everything eventually came to the point where she wound up in the ICU -- basically her system crashed, and although the initial reason for the hospitalization had been fairly innocuous it seemed as though everything began to unravel after that; had she not had the dependence on the benzos maybe there would have been a chance of survival, but unfortunately that just added another whammy on to what was already a difficult medical situation.

I miss my friend and I hate that she died when maybe things could have worked out so differently, had she not been already ensnared by the benzos that delivered an extra (and in the end, final) whammy to a physical system which was already under pressure.........

 

[A.Goldberg]

Read the private message.

By the way, I'm also not spreading any kind of clinically incorrect or half baked message, as what I said about half lives is 100% correct and true in relation to Benzodiazepines and is the topic of this discussion. I NEVER said that it applied to any other drug OTHER than Benzos.

Thank you for your PM, please check your inbox for my response. Hopefully you understand a little more about my education and career experience.

Please consider that experience with BZD is just one out of many. I deal with with dozens of cases each day. I'm not suggesting 100% of BZD takers will become addicted, but the risk is there. That is why they are controlled substances. If it sounded like I was stigmatizing people taking BZD's that was not my intention either. My thoughts reflect the contemporary protocol of reducing exposure to super high efficacy, potentially addictive drugs and trying safer alternatives first. Not only is this philosophy being adopted with BZD, you will also see it in controlled stimulant medications (ADHD- Adderall, Ritalin, etc) and opiate painkillers. Addiction is at an all time high. The patients that require such drugs need access. The patients who have other viable options should try those first. Until you have experienced the devastating effects of addiction first hand, it's hard to understand the beast that has been awaken. Not to minimize anyone's condition, but battling drug addiction is on a whole other level than dealing with anxiety.

 

[kds1]

Thank you for your PM, please check your inbox for my response. Hopefully you understand a little more about my education and career experience.

Please consider that experience with BZD is just one out of many. I deal with with dozens of cases each day. I'm not suggesting 100% of BZD takers will become addicted, but the risk is there. That is why they are controlled substances. If it sounded like I was stigmatizing people taking BZD's that was not my intention either. My thoughts reflect the contemporary protocol of reducing exposure to super high efficacy, potentially addictive drugs and trying safer alternatives first. Not only is this philosophy being adopted with BZD, you will also see it in controlled stimulant medications (ADHD- Adderall, Ritalin, etc) and opiate painkillers. Addiction is at an all time high. The patients that require such drugs need access. The patients who have other viable options should try those first. Until you have experienced the devastating effects of addiction first hand, it's hard to understand the beast that has been awaken. Not to minimize anyone's condition, but battling drug addiction is on a whole other level than dealing with anxiety.

I think we've settled our differences in private, and now that you understand where I am coming from, we are simpatico.

Just for the record, I have taken Vicodin when it was prescribed to me for pain, and I went through the first prescription and 4 refills (I needed it) and never got addicted to those.

Peace

 

[torana355]

I advise people ignore kds1's advise as it clear he has little knowledge on this subject. Stay away from Benzos unless you have exhausted every other option and even then remember that Benzos should only be taken for 4 weeks max! Benzos don't require an addictive personality to become addicted, you can become addicted in a matter of weeks from taking what your doctor prescribed you. In Australia you cant even get a new prescription anymore, only old cases can still get one and they are closely monitored. Over time your brain stops creating its own GABA at which point you have hit addiction as you NEED Benzos to replace the GABA's effect.