Mark Leeds, D.O. is an osteopathic physician and deprescribing specialist in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He helps patients come off benzodiazepines and sleeping pills with a slow, patient-directed taper guided by the Ashton Manual and the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines. Physical dependence is not addiction, and a careful taper is measured in months, not days.
Do probiotics help with benzodiazepine withdrawal symptoms? Not in any way that anyone can promise. The evidence that probiotics ease benzodiazepine withdrawal is limited. Fermented…
Does hydroxyzine help with Xanax withdrawal? Hydroxyzine is a sedating antihistamine. It can make a person drowsy, and some patients say that it helps them…
What does kindling mean when a person stops a benzodiazepine? Kindling is the name for a pattern in which each abrupt withdrawal from a benzodiazepine…
Do herbal supplements help during a benzodiazepine taper? Some patients say that a calming herb takes the edge off anxiety, or off the insomnia that…
What is the neurological dysfunction that can follow benzo withdrawal? It has a name. Benzodiazepine-induced neurological dysfunction (BIND) is the term now used for the…
Can Xanax ease intrusive thoughts during a benzodiazepine taper? No, not in any way that lasts. An extra dose of alprazolam (Xanax) may quiet a…
When is the day, and who started it? World Benzodiazepine Awareness Day (W-BAD) is held every year on July 11. It was started in 2016…
Key Takeaways Benzo Buddies is a free online peer forum for people tapering off a benzodiazepine or a z-drug, run by its members rather than…
Key Takeaways Constipation is a known side effect of benzodiazepines and a listed symptom of withdrawal in the Ashton Manual, so it can appear on…
Can L-theanine help with benzodiazepine withdrawal? It can help a little, for some patients, with the anxiety and broken sleep that a taper stirs up,…
Key Takeaways Many patients tapering Xanax (alprazolam) can take magnesium glycinate, and the alprazolam label lists no interaction with magnesium. In Dr. Leeds’ experience, magnesium…
Is itching a real benzodiazepine withdrawal symptom? Yes, and it is a recognized one. Chapter III of the Ashton Manual, Professor C. Heather Ashton’s guide…
