The Devastating Effects from Benzodiazepine Drugs 

Written for the Medical Community 

Intent: To Bring awareness to the Medical Community as a whole of the detrimental effects the these drugs can cause

​

To: All Doctor’s, Nurses, Pharmacist’s and other Professionals who are involved in the care of someone who is taking a prescription Benzodiazepine drug.

 1)   Benzodiazepines are becoming the next crisis and have actually been a hidden Pandemic for quite some time now due to the unrecognized signs and symptoms of tolerance and withdrawal from the drugs, which are not the same as an addiction issue. For decades patients have come together by finding one another on the web and have joined in unity to support each other as a community that have personally suffered the devastating effects from Benzodiazepines. In 2019, there were an estimated 92,000,000 prescriptions that were dispensed for Benzodiazepine drugs, in the United States alone. Advocates have been sending Citizen’s Petitions to The FDA for many years asking them to enforce stricter prescribing guidelines for these drugs. Included in the 2010 Citizen’s Petition were many personal stories from the patients/consumers who were harmed by the devastating effects that they were never warned about by their doctors. Of those people, many became disabled and permanently injured from the drugs. They lost their careers, income, relationships and marriages were destroyed, and many other losses were involved from their doctors withdrawing them too quickly off of these drugs and with no warnings that they would experience negative side effects coming off of them. This is no fault of the patient. They were never formally informed. Surprisingly, most doctors do not know of the harmful effects that Benzodiazepines can cause, and especially after long-term use which is after the 2-4 weeks that the package insert states. What we have seen over the last decades happening is that a patient will be withdrawn from a Benzodiazepine, they will start to become symptomatic and present numerous symptoms and behavioral changes and they have been diagnosed with having a Mental Health Condition when in fact, what they were experiencing was a Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Syndrome after the drug started leaving their system. A lot of those patients then ended up in the Mental Health community because they were told they have a Mental Health Condition. These patients then become poly-drugged from a Psychiatrist who believes the patient is presenting with a new or onset diagnosis of a Mental Health Condition. The patient usually cannot find any prescription drug that can quite make them feel comfortable or alleviate their symptoms from the Benzodiazepine withdrawal. The withdrawal syndrome goes on to be a Protracted Syndrome for a percentage of patients which can last months to several years. For some patients, the syndrome can be a very prolonged one and they can remain ill and the drug injury may last way beyond those several years, ultimately causing these patients a permanent disability. One of two things usually happen within a Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Syndrome. One: The patient has realized what has happened to them and is now aware that the Benzodiazepine itself has caused their symptoms so then less and less medications are needed to aid in the patients recovery and wellness. They know that time away from them will heal them.

Two:  The patient will often be misdiagnosed, referred to Psychiatry and other Specialist's, and will usually fall into a broken Mental Health system that was never intended for those patients to begin with.

*The major issue here is that Benzodiazepine's have been strongly advised by the Manufacturer’s and The FDA to be taken "short-term,” but many physician’s are unaware all of the warnings and have prescribed them for more longer-terms such as 6 months - 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, and throughout the course of a patient’s lifetime. When the patient is ready to come off of the Benzodiazepine, they are then faced with the experience of an abrupt taper of say, a few days – 2 weeks which they have been instructed to do so under their doctor. This is very dangerous because life-threatening physiological effects can and will emerge. They are extremely uncomfortable for the patient and can have very serious patient complications. This should be avoided altogether with a proper drug-taper schedule and a strong working relationship between both patient and physician as a collaborative effort. A gradual taper schedule is recommended which should be guided and led by “both” doctor and patient “as tolerated by the patient,” which is very imperative and necessary for good outcome. Often times the symptoms that emerge are known to be very torturous to the patient and they live through a very agonizing experience, so many are put back on the Benzodiazepine at even higher doses. Many patients are not being properly monitored after the initial prescription. They are not being weaned off after the short-term period (2 of the recommended 2-4 week maximum use.) Adverse effects are misdiagnosed as other ailments and mental health conditions, when in fact the effects from the benzodiazepines are the cause of their symptoms. This is why the short-term use, (2-4 weeks) stated on the package insert, is imperative to follow. Benzodiazepines were originally intended for emergency situations such as adverse drug reactions. This is why particularly Ativan is widely used in the ER’s. Benzodiazepines are also widely used during surgeries of all kinds via IV sedation. A patient taking a benzodiazepine daily, can suffer devastating effects after the drug is removed. This is because the brain has become used to being “shut down,” “shut off,” or “suppressed” for beyond the originally intended and recommended timeframe. With one time use for those types of procedures, it is not as likely to have any detrimental effects on the patients. Chronic modulation of the GABA(A)-Benzodiazepine receptor complex, plays a major role in central nervous system dysregulation during abstinence of the drug. All patients who are taking these drugs also have potential for an adverse drug reaction, which may not be so obvious after treatment begins. **A slow and steady taper is best for patients, to prevent any serious complications but to also avoid the severity of the symptoms that will and can emerge from discontinuation. A slow and steady taper prevents the unnecessary cascade of drugs to follow. A full history of how the patient was and functioned prior to being prescribed a Benzodiazepine should always be documented and known for the most effective treatment for the patient going forward. Many of the severe effects from coming off of Benzodiazepines even as prescribed are Suicidal Ideations, Akathisia, Homicidal Ideations, Aggressiveness, Hostility, Severe forms of Depression, Uncontrollable crying spells and Dysphoric mood, a Paralyzing Anxiety/Fear/Panic, Uncontrollable Panic attacks, Derealization and Depersonalization, and in some cases Seizures and Death can occur.

 The following are educational resources:

Professor Heather Ashton of The Institute of Neuroscience, New Castle University – The Resource Site for Involuntary Benzodiazepine Tranquillizer Addiction, Withdrawal and Recovery https://www.benzo.org.uk/

Professor Heather Ashton Manual – Benzodiazepines: How they work and how to withdraw https://www.benzo.org.uk/manual/index.htm

Bristol and District Tranquilliser Project www.btpinfo.org.uk/prof-ahstons-manual A 58 page printable manual Benzodiazepine Information Coalition https://www.benzoinfo.com/