Question: In 1996 I entered an alcohol detox facility. Not a drink since, A week or so later I went back to the psych asking for something to help me relax, Rx no help. Asked again and he said what I really wanted was like booze in a pill (benzos). Went to new shrink and within 1 minute he dis RX for Ativan 1mg. Then 2ng. Now several psychs and many years later I'm on 40 mg valium and 10mg ambien. I need to quit but do not want to talk to current shrink. Not sure why. Am afraid he will be too aggressive or maybe I am not committed. Want to be school teacher and cannot nap as required. Have studied Ashton technique and want to try that. How does ambian fit in that? Obviously need help and should talk to shrink, but very skeptical. Went to one shrink who insisted on his schedule and he scared me off. Way to aggressive. Need help.

Dr. Mark Abrahams Says...:

Dear MikeL24:

Your predicament IS serious and it is one that requires medical intervention especially given the amount of Benzodiazepines that you have become habituated to. Withdrawal treatment of significant daily intake, plus its accumulation in the fatty organs over such a long period of time is NOT something that an individual should attempt without careful monitoring and the availability of a physician familiar with Benzo withdrawal. A competent and ethical physician would not advise you to proceed with the Ashton Technique on your own. 

By now you are probably aware of potentially life-threatening symptoms that can occur from Benzodiazepine withdrawal withdrawal. If you are not familiar with BenzoBuddies, this is an on-line community which can provide support and information to help you take the necessary steps to get free from Benzodiazepine addiction. This site is NOT a substitute for sound medical advice. http://www.benzobuddies.org . You may well require a stay at a detox facility where the attending psychiatrists are sympathetic to your situation and not contributing to it!

Once an individual has finally become detoxified from Benzodiazepines, there are a number of OTC supplements that can facilitate relaxation (e.g., certain isolated amino acids, herbals, and nootropics), but these cannot work as long as one's nervous system is monopolized by benzodiazepine drugs and the consequential neurotransmitter imbalances that characterize the condition.

Best regards,                                                                                                                                                   Dr. Mark Abrahams

Question: I quit cannabis and I have no appetite whatsoever. I am already too skinny from smoking weed because most people get all munchy high but I never did except for the first few months. Now I am 6 feet tall and 155 pounds and I have already lost 7 pounds in the first 7 days because I can barely get any food down without feeling like I want to throw up. My mom keeps trying to make me eat breakfast because she is getting worried about how skinny I look but I have to make some excuse every day. I think she thinks I have anorexia or something now. I am sick of weed and I don’t want to smoke ever again but I am worried that I cannot keep losing weight like this or I will be a skeleton. How long is this going to last for?

Dr. Mark Abrahams Says...:

I don't know much about you from this inquiry, which is understandable on a venue like this. If you were in my office I'd be asking you for a brief medical history. We want to check out any physical complaints before we head to psychological or even spiritual problems. You have to deal with the 'denser' problems first. The physical body is foundational. 

You may think you know the reasons for smoking cannabis, and there are several, one of which is self-medication. I am left wondering if you had appetite difficulties before you began using because you heard that cannabis increases the appetite. There are undoubtedly unconscious motivations for using, and these are like 'sub-basements' in the 'building' which is the body. At any rate, even though I don't know how long or how much cannabis you were using, it can't be all that long if you're talking about your mom (I know people who have been smoking for 50 years). But what you are experiencing with your appetite does not sound like it is directly connected to cannabis use, not any kind of withdrawal symptom. 

Since I am a virtual counselor, and I am not a medical practitioner, I would urge you to see a medical doctor. Anorexia nervosa IS a serious problem, but unless you are restricting your diet intentionally, and exercising your ass off, AND a female (which you didn't identify but which I doubt), you have something else going on. Some kinds of ulcers make you sick when you eat, and other kinds make you sick when you don't, just to give an example. If your body-type tends to be lean and long (long arms and legs), you might ave a primarily Ectomorphic constitution, and Ectomorphs ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatotype_and_constitutional_psychology ) have a temperament that often suffers from high levels of anxiety, which can also ill-effect your appetite.

The bottom line here is to check out your physical health before proceeding with your mental health. This would be the advice of many different specialists in the mental health field. A sex therapist would insist on having the physical 'hard drive' checked before the mental 'software,' if you catch my drift. Before I treat someone with hypnosis for pain management, I'd want to be sure someone's headaches aren't caused by a brain tumor! The headaches aren't felt any more, but the tumor kills them! So, I insist on a letter from a medical doctor saying it's OK to treat for pain. Nausea is not a normal response to food. Please ask your mom (if she's still legally responsible for you), or you, yourself, if you're of age, to make an appointment with a physician ASAP. 

Question: Raving man turned raving mad…Whenever I hear doof doof I get a shiver of excitement and then painful disappointment. And then I just feel frustrated. What do you do when the music that you love makes you want to feel the excitement of a night out so badly it hurts? Forget trying to hit that scene sober. I have tried that too many times to have any illusion about my abilities to control myself. Do I have to erase my music collection or will I ever get to the point that I can enjoy this again?

Dr. Mark Abrahams Says...:

Is this actually a real question? Because you're being addressed by a Grateful Dead head since 1972, who lived for shows until 1994, my last. I never approached a mental health professional with the thought that I'd have to eliminate my music connection." Forget trying to hit that scene sober. I have tried that too many times to have any illusion about my abilities to control myself." Were you high when you wrote this? Because music is not the problem, your lack of self-control is the problem, and probably your using behaviors. I recommend that you reformulate your question and orient the quandary to what do you have to do to enjoy your favorite music without being inebriated. I'm here to help, but you need to take responsibility for what is distressing you without me having to assume anything. Music is awesome, and if you think you can't dig it without dope, then you do have a problem. Cop to it, and write back.