How Do You View Benzo Usage?

Pros: helps during manic phase with sleep/anxiety, can avoid the hospital, pleasant feeling like drinking alcohol but it works better with psych meds than alcohol
Cons: life is more dull and less fulfilling, memory issues, "easy" route to suppress anxiety rather than coping skills, addictive, dangerous to taper off quickly

I had a very scary accidental overdose with a Benzo. Took a bunch while I was sleep walking. Spent the next day/night in the hospital. Have to avoid them now, obviously.

I have only good things to say about them. I've been hypo the last few days or week, probably... and I couldn't sleep well. I took some to help with that. It helped but with hypomania, I still couldn't stay asleep. Otherwise, when I do use them they help with anxiety quite a bit. Just wanted to share my own personal experience. I've been on them forever. I take 10mg of diazepam (valium) twice a day as needed.

I took them for a long time too for sleep, until I read that you don't get the best sleep while on them. I've been off them since November 1 and I have a lot more energy. Downside is I think I'm drinking more alcohol to compensate so maybe I should give that up too.

Have you talked to your pdoc about a sleep aid? I know some people view that as not a good thing, getting a sleep aid, because they think they'll become dependent on it, but from my own personal experience I didn't get hooked on anything. Also, it doesn't have to be a specific "sleeping pill," it can be something like I take and I only take it as needed. I've been off it so long, (1 year or so) that I would need it in a much smaller dose. It's too strong for me now. Just something to think about. We really need our sleep. I know you know that.

I know too, from experience, benzo's don't actually give you the most rested feeling. That's true. Sometimes I just need something to slow down my mind a little to doze off.

Physical exercise is really great for burning energy and getting better sleep. Mental stimulus like reading and talking to people is also good to wear me out mentally. If I don't get enough of these I am not that tired at night.
I joined a site called *mod edit* that helps people get off benzos and many people on there try to never take them again for whatever reason. The research is somewhat mixed about long term usage. I have also tried melatonin but it never seemed to work that well.
My latest thing is to have silence, total darkness, and a cool room. That means blackout curtains and just a light blanket in the winter, plus a cold shower before bed in the summer.
Being on a good amount of my antipsychotic and mood stabilizer are also important if I'm going to avoid benzos as much as possible.