Treatment, Therapy, and Alternatives
- Current Dose
- How long someone has been taking it
- Whether or not someone is taking more than one benzodiazepine
- If other sedating drugs are being taken
- Other substance use issues
- Whether someone is quitting more than one substance
- (Osborn, 2020).
Therapy for Benzodiazepine Addiction
Depending on the individual and their benzodiazepine addiction and the stages it is in, it will depend on what type of therapy will be more beneficial. Such as individual, group, family, etc.
According to Roots Through Recovery (2020), Benzo Buddies is an online support group for people going through benzo withdrawal. Some might find it helpful, but others find it to be harmful than beneficial. Benzo Buddies is privately owned. Users of this site either complain that what they post is either censored or deleted. Benzo Buddies try their best to keep everyone positive, but some individuals share harrowing stories that can trigger some users (Roots Through Recovery, 2020). Many Benzo Buddies users say the group's tone is judgemental and abusive. This site's theme is seeking medical or other professional help for ending dependence on benzos is unnecessary and frowned upon (Roots Through Recovery, 2020). The national institute on drug abuse says individuals need professional help to overcome it, along with good intentions, and willpower is enough to help addicts into remission for the long-term (Roots Through Recovery, 2020).
Obviously, Benzo Buddies would not be an effective group therapy for a client. In fact, it would hurt them rather than help them. But finding an effective group therapy so the client would be able to share their stories and hear from other people would be a good idea if that's something they would be interested in.
After an individual goes through Detox, they are encouraged to continue with their rehabilitation stages. After they do Detox, they go to addiction treatment. These counselors use other therapeutic approaches. The most common approach is cognitive-behavioral therapy which focuses on identifying negative thought patterns and triggers that can lead to the patient's drug abuse (American Addiction Centers, 2020). Other methods are contingency management, motivational interviewing, and group therapy with a 12-step or other recovery-based support group (American Addiction Centers, 2020).
Alternative Options
Benzodiazepines are prescribed for many different reasons, but the biggest reason is anxiety. When someone becomes addicted to benzos and goes through withdrawal, they should turn to other helpful strategies that can help with their anxiety, such as meditation, mindfulness training, and exercise (Osborn, 2020). . During treatment. Depending on the type of treatment the individual goes through, they will be educated on different coping skills they can utilize instead of turning to their benzodiazepines.
Below is a youtube video that trains an individuals brain on mindfulness meditation for a variety of reasons, such as Anxiety, Depression, ADD, and PTSD:
Reference
Ascend Healthcare. (2018, January 30). Teenagers and Benzodiazepines. https://www.ascendhc.com/teen-rehab-blog/teenagers-and-benzodiazepines/
American Addiction Centers. (2020, May 27). Benzodiazepines addiction treatment and rehab options. https://www.rehabs.com/guide/guide-benzodiazepine-addiction-treatment/
Big Think. (2017, September 6). Train your brain: Mindfulness Meditation for Anxiety, Depression, ADD, and PTSD. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEMUDaLMWJ8
Osborn, O'K., C. (2020, April 1). How long does withdrawal from benzodiazepines last? Very well, Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/benzodiazepine-withdrawal-4588452
Roots Through Recovery. (2020, August 24). Benzo Buddies support groups: Do they help or hurt? https://roots-recovery.com/benzo-buddies-support-groups-do-they-help-or-hurt/
Cortney, I really enjoyed your blog, it taught me a lot of information about treatment options for those with benzodiazepine use disorder, and how those different treatments can help them to recovery. It was especially interesting to me to learn about withdrawal from this substance can be extremely dangerous, and even cause seizures if the individual suddenly stops using it. This was new information to me as I did not know withdrawal could be so serious, so I’m glad you included some of the consequences that can happen when trying to get off of a substance. Another thing that was interesting to me was your discussion about mindfulness meditation. This is something I also included as an alternative method for my blog on cannabis use disorder, so I thought it was good to see someone else include the benefits of this approach. Since I did already know about mindfulness meditation, I did want to learn about some other alternative options for benzodiazepine dependence. With some research, I found one article that talks about how an infusion of a neutral modulator known as flumazenil can be useful for benzodiazepine overdose and reversing the sedative effects of the substance (Hood et al., 2014). This infusion also helped reduce the harmful withdrawal effects, reduced cravings, and reduced post detoxification relapse rates (Hood et al., 2014). Although flumazenil is not fully understood, it is seen as a great potential treatment option that works fast and efficiently for those recovering from benzodiazepine use. Overall, I thought your blog was well-written, academic, and did a great job at explaining how withdrawal can be dangerous, but how to help those going through that process.
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Hood, S. D., Norman, A., Hince, D. A., Melichar, J. K., & Hulse, G. K. (2014). Benzodiazepine dependence and its treatment with low dose flumazenil: Benzodiazepine dependence and its treatment. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 77(2), 285–294. https://doi.org/10.1111/bcp.12023
Courtney, I loved your blog about the treatments for benzodiazepines and I liked how you added the alternative option of mindfulness meditation. At my internship regarding substance abuse treatment, I was able to observe a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT group session and the therapist at my office was teaching her clients by the end of the session about mindfulness meditation and everyone was able to participate. I wanted to research and see some other alternatives regarding benzodiazepines and the alternative was prescribing Antidepressants instead of Benzodiazepines, one that in particular that I personally have taken was Buspirone or BuSpar, which is used for Chronic anxiety "it enhances the effect of the neurotransmitter serotonin. It is less effective than benzodiazepines and takes longer to work (several weeks), but it is less likely to cause physical dependence" (Benzodiazepines (and the alternatives) n.d.) this could work great for someone who was diagnosed with anxiety and instead of being prescribed a benzodiazepine that could run the risk of abusing it, could be put on BuSpar, and for the time I was on it I could say it really helped and getting off of it wasn't awful either. But I also want to note that medication should be the last option instead of the first.
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Benzodiazepines (and the alternatives). (n.d.). Retrieved March 08, 2021, from https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/benzodiazepines_and_the_alternatives