Two weeks ago I received a phone call from a woman who had kicked benzos over a decade ago and has been helping people ever since. She was a wealth of information. In all of her years of looking for the “holy grail” to help people heal from benzo withdrawal, she said the closest thing she has found was the GAPS diet. I was intrigued so I bought three books from the website. www.gapsdiet.com
The diet makes sense. If indeed people with “leaky guts” have psychological problems, it could explain why some of us can taper with minor problems and others are flattened by the process.
I am starting the diet this week and will report if I find it helps at all. I am holding at my dose per my new doctors orders, so I may not be the best test case. But it will be interesting to see if I feel better overall.
The woman I spoke with claimed that people who followed the diet had a significant reduction in symptoms. I am hoping to heal my gut before I start to make any more cuts. ( Or at least start healing, as healing will take time I am sure.)
I have no affiliation with the GAPS diet website. I don’t receive any compensation if you buy the books. I am passing on the information because it sounds as if, at least in theory, it can help those of us in benzo withdrawal.
If any of you are on the diet or start, and have information on how well it works, or doesn’t work, I welcome you to write me and share your stories.
I hope everyone is having a great memorial weekend.
To healing out guts and our brains, which are directly tied to each other!(FYI the gut is now thought of as the second brain)
Dr. Jenn
Dear Dr. Jenn,
Hello! I stumbled upon your website and found it refreshingly honest! Thank you! And, as I am tapering down from Klonopin myself, I would love to hear more about your journey, your recent successful transition to “beyond meds” and also to hear more from the woman who also was successful in tapering off of this drug.
I am a 52 year old wife, mother of two grown daughters, aged 21 and 25, and grandmother of two grandsons aged 3 and 4.
I am presently on .042 mg (2x) a day, having tapered down from an original dose of 1mg given to me following a hysterectomy 6 years ago. I have about 4 and 1/2 months to go before being off of this drug and I have found the broken sleep, withdrawal symptoms and fatique to be very tough to deal with, along with the emotional roller coaster. My question to you is, what did you do to help with the insomnia and depression symptoms during withdrawal?
(I am considering taking benadryl.)
Thanks so much Dr. Jenn!
Sharon
Can you still have sex while benzo withdrawal and how you if it benzo withdrawal?
Hi this is mike I am at 115 days off cloazepan. I was doing better a few weeks back. Now I have gotten new and powerfully symptoms. The difference is diet. I went to visit my mom and she has a house of sugar. Pies cakes chocolate. The old school of thinking. I decided I could puss through and be done with withdrawal. Man was I wrong. Bread , chocolate milk , pie , ice cream the mother load! Well now I am back on watching my intake. Atkins diet. Strick. Started today after a very bad night. Itching ringing ears depression real bad like before or worse. I will keep you informed as to my change if any. I have read a great deal about sugar and carbs I want to see if a struck Atkins will make a good change. I know I could be getting better simply because it’s time but I do think the sugar shock has a big part of it. Your gut is working in hyper drive so it’s very likely this sensitivity would exaggerate the already adverse effects of sugar or sugar products like bread etc. Atkins would make sense as a start and avoid foods which don’t agree from there. Keeping good notes and trying foods over again to validate their effects. I am not trying to market this information just think we should all try and document different ideas. Also it’s a good way to manage the time. Seeing a positive response would be very encouraging.
Mike