I’m a recovering overachiever. Most days, I manage to reel in my cravings to do more, learn more, be more. But old habits are hard to break. I find myself now with more irons in the fire than I can manage. So, I’m doing my best to put a pin in some of the things on my ever-growing to-do list. Even though I’ve been creeping into the “I’m doing too much” zone, I am excited about the things I’ve been working on.
My new website, thrivewithdrjenn.com, is now live. The purpose of the site is to help people overcome anxiety without medication. Wouldn’t we have all liked to have known how to do that so we could have avoided the suffering of benzo withdrawal? I’ll be offering masterclasses and coaching. I’ve hired someone to teach me the ins and outs of social media, which means you can expect better and more videos on my Youtube channel and informative posts on Instagram and Facebook. I’m even going to jump into TikTok and see what happens!
I’ve created a new marketing piece for thrivewithdrjenn.com, the Forgotten Anti-Anxiety Tool ebook. If you’d like, you can download it here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/iHuaEFM/freeantianxietytool (If you’ve never worked with me before, the ebook has an offer of 50% off your first 60-minutes coaching session.)
I am almost finished with my second ebook, The Whole-Food, Plant-Based Starter Guide For Overcoming Anxiety. It contains nutrition information, grocery lists, meal prep ideas, cooking techniques, kitchen tools and equipment, recipes, and more. I am excited to finish it and share it.
Other irons in the fire: I am in four new classes to learn more about the brain, nutrition, nervous system, etc. I’ve probably spread myself a bit thin here, but I am so passionate about discovering how to help us heal. But I promise I won’t add any more classes for a while after this. I’ll let my brain rest.
My next big project is to finish my book, The Benzodiazepine Survival Guide. I’ve started and stopped so many times. I’m unsure what keeps me from buckling down and getting it done. I guess that it’s still hard to go back and make sense of so many years spent in unbearable agony. There is so much I want to share with you, with doctors, therapists, and caregivers, and I want the information to be rock solid. I will finish the book, hopefully, sooner rather than later.
One last iron in the fire to mention is a big one and one I am very excited about! I’ll create a separate post for it soon, but I want to let you know I now partner with a husband-wife psychiatrist team. They are benzo-knowledgable, and what they don’t yet know, they are learning. It’s lovely to be able to confer with doctors who understand the dangers of benzodiazepines and are willing to help, but more than that, know not to further harm.
I am happy to introduce you to Dr. Marissa Witt-Doerring and Dr. Josef Witt-Doerring. You can find them at www.wittdoerringpsychiatry.com. They are licensed to practice in these states: New Mexico, Texas, Georgia, Tennesee, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Utah. You can email them at jwd@wittdoerringpsychiatry.com. I am impressed with their genuine care and concern.
I’ve not felt this much excitement and curiosity about the future in a long time. Good things are afoot. Good things, indeed. I am eager to continue to share with you, to help you on your path of healing, your path to true health and happiness.
Dear Dr Jennifer, I have been following you since October 30th 2017. I was convinced that the withdrawal would kill me. It has been a really rough 4 yrs. I could never have made it without you and the Lord. You are an inspiration. You are one of the strongest women I follow. You are constantly in my thoughts and prayers. I hope to be like you some day. I try to follow all of your advice. My family has learned so much too and they are a great support too. Stay strong and never change. God bless you. Barb
Barbara, Thank you for your kind words. They mean more than you know. Keep being awesome. You’re a bright light.
Dr Jenn,
Thank you for all you do! Thank you for all of your hard work. These are all great things that you are doing!
I wonder how it came to be that the “opioid crises” became a well known thing ??? Did people like you and others similar have to break down the same barriers? Did doctors need to be told again and again before they finally “got it”? Did some person high in government power, in a position to “do something about it” have to be harmed to finally get the wheels turning?
What does it take to break that barrier of greed where pharmaceutical companies and doctors are willing to admit that their drug is harming so many?
I’ve wanted to watch the new show “Dope Sick” even though it’s about opioids, I’m curious to see how that barrier was broken, but I am still too fragile to watch such a show.
I am just now able to watch TV and enjoy it without the lights and noise stressing my CNS and without it triggering mental symptoms. I have watched TV during my withdrawal, but not very often. I would have stretches over a month or more where the TV was never turned on. My smart phone was better tolerated, but I’d still have to stick to gentle content.
I can just as of the last month watch TV and movies and enjoy it and be COZY ! – I still keep the content gentle and light hearted. I am very happy for this current new milestone.
Anyway, not to get off subject… How did we get “Opioid Crises” to be a common house hold phrase? How will we get “Benzodiazepine Crises” to be the same?
I think it will happen. At least now the FDA prescribing info for benzos is updated and “better” as of Sept 2020. (Not perfect, but “better”) At least we can arm ourselves with that. It does now say that withdrawal symptoms can happen within a few weeks, and can happen even when taken as prescribed, and that it can take months or years to recover.
We can at least now be armed with that. Take it to our next doctors appointment and tell them they need to brush up and get current with the new prescribing info. We would be doing them a favor. Tell them their ego has no place here. We would be doing doctors a favor.
Wow..you are busy, Jenn..so happy about the cookbook….thank you for your never-ending desire and energy to keep helping all of us Benzo survivors…..the partnership with the doctors sounds wonderful…it will help many Benzo victims to feel safe in the hands of understanding physicians. Be sure to leave room in your busy schedule for caring for yourself…..
Thanks for sharing your wisdom with us all.
Shelly, great question! I’ve heard from doctors that it takes 17-20 years for information to become mainstream and put into practice. Hopefully, the information about the dangers of benzos has been in the world long enough that we are close to the “tipping point” where doctors won’t prescribe for more than a few days, if at all. We are getting there. Slowly. Surely. The wheels of the medical machine turn at a snail’s pace, unfortunately. But don’t give up hope. The truth will prevail. You can’t keep light from shining into the darkness.
Ruth, thank you for your kind words. I am carving out time for myself. I am back in the SF Bay Area, close to two of my children and my three grandchildren, with a fourth due literally in a few days. I am the happiest and healthiest I’ve been. Life is incredibly sweet. Hope you are doing well.
I always look forward to your blogposts. By providing the email address of the doctors you mentioned, I am assuming I can email them personally about my situation?
Maybe you can help me – I am polypharmed and wondering which med. to taper first – the Benzo or the the SSRI? I’ve come a long way down on both but still have a way to go because it is getting more difficult and I’m going so slowly.
Is there current research that tells which med. should be tapered first? My (Benzo uninformed) doc thinks the Benzo but I’ve read elsewhere the SSRI should be tapered first.
Thank you for all you do to help me/us! I’m grateful for that!
Rose, yes, you can email them. There isn’t any research that shows which med to taper first. Some say the benzo. Others say the antidepressant. And to complicate our decision, some say taper both at the same time. All three have been tried by people.
Most of my clients have tapered the benzo first, but that does not mean that everyone should. What do you think makes the most sense for you?
Thank you for answering my question. My first taper attempt was tapering the K while leaving the SSRI intact. I crashed at .25 mg and was reinstated and then I switched to V. Since then, I have been tapering both the V and the SSRI at the same time, alternately. I’ve been told by somebody who had a similar situation that tapering the SSRI first is better (at least it was for her). SO, I’m left not knowing what to do since my doc doesn’t know either. I REALLY do not want to crash again as I am minimally functional as it is during this taper.
Rose, there are many opinions about which drug to taper first. In my 11 years in the benzo community, I have seen people come off different medications first. I don’t believe there is a right or wrong answer. It is what works best for you. The key is to listen to your body and slow down if need be. Fueling your body with the proper nutrition to support health and healing is critical as well. I hope your taper goes smoothly.
I love you, Dr Jenn and have been following you for several years. You were my daily lifeline for months. One thing: the https://thrivewithdrjenn.com/ link in your second paragraph is broken. It’s a simple typo, but anxious people might not be able to overcome the disappointment. Thanks for being who you are, sending love and wishes for the new year.
Thank you so much for your kind words and for catching the typo. Much appreciated!