u/Electronic_Driver_78

Been on diazepam 10mg/day (5mg morning, 5mg evening) since mid 2025 for anxiety. Recently got a full blood panel back and my urinary free cortisol came back nearly undetectable, basically confirmed HPA axis suppression from the benzo. No surprise given the duration, but seeing it on paper hits differently.

The daily fatigue is real. Every morning feels like running on empty, heavy legs, zero energy, just flat. Then somehow by late afternoon things feel more human. Anyone else notice this morning/afternoon pattern? I'm guessing it's the blunted cortisol awakening response but would love to hear if others experience the same.

My plan is to start sertraline(zoloft) first, stabilize on it for 4-6 weeks, then begin a slow hyperbolic taper (10% or 5% every 2 weeks with liquid drops). The idea being the SSRI provides a soft landing when the benzo comes down.

Has anyone here started an SSRI while still on a benzo before tapering? How did you manage the initial activation anxiety? Did the benzo actually help buffer it?

Feeling kinda ready to get off this thing but trying to do it right. Any experiences welcome.

Hey, looking for people who've been on diazepam long term, especially in hot climates.

I've been on 10mg daily (split 5mg morning / 5mg evening) for about 11 months. Generally managing okay but lately I've been noticing that on hot days I feel completely wiped out, heavy limbs, general weakness, tired even after sleeping, persistent thirst. Like my body just can't cope with the heat the way it used to.

I'm currently somewhere tropical so this is kind of unavoidable. Wondering if anyone else on long-term benzos has noticed that heat hits differently? Does the combination genuinely make fatigue and weakness worse or am I reading too much into it?

Also open to hearing how people generally feel physically on long-term diazepam, the fatigue, muscle stuff, any tips for managing it in summer/hot weather.

EDIT: I was supposed to start tapering 5 months ago but were given bad advice by my psychiatrist who didn't know how to get me off it. Scared of possible withdrawal. So I'm stuck while waiting my appointment with a new psychiatrist.

I recently had a 24h blood pressure Holter and I’m struggling to interpret the results compared to my usual home readings.

Important context:

\- The cuff inflating kept startling me and making me tense

\- I became very focused on it (kind of “body scanning” all day)

\- I noted “anxiety” several times in the diary

\- I actually removed it before sleeping because it was compressing my arm and made my neck and jaw stiff and painful, so the night data is incomplete

Holter results (daytime only):

\- Average: 128/84

\- Range: about 109/68 → 146/100

Cardiologist noted “blood pressure profile satisfactory” but then if my average ia 128/84 during the holter, how can he say satisfactory if if is considered stage 1?

At home with Omron monitor :

Usually around 105–115 / 65–75-80

Even got 110/77 right after being active

What’s confusing me:

The Holter average is clearly higher than my usual readings. I don’t feel like that day reflected my normal life at all. I was anxious, anticipating each measurement, and constantly startled by the cuff inflating and scanning my body.

So I’m wondering if the anxiety and the cuff itself artificially raise my average or is the Holter still considered more reliable despite that? How do you actually determine your true baseline BP in this situation?

My cardiologist didn’t seem concerned, but I’m trying to understand what these numbers really mean.

Any insights or similar experiences would really help😵‍💫

Thanks!

I recently had a 24h blood pressure Holter and I’m struggling to interpret the results compared to my usual home readings.

Important context:

- The cuff inflating kept startling me and making me tense

- I became very focused on it (kind of “body scanning” all day)

- I noted “anxiety” several times in the diary

- I actually removed it before sleeping because it was compressing my arm and made my neck and jaw stiff and painful, so the night data is incomplete

Holter results (daytime only):

- Average: 128/84

- Range: about 109/68 → 146/100

Cardiologist noted “blood pressure profile satisfactory” but then if my average ia 128/84 during the holter, how can he say satisfactory if if is considered stage 1?

At home with Omron monitor :

Usually around 105–115 / 65–75-80

Even got 110/77 right after being active

What’s confusing me:

The Holter average is clearly higher than my usual readings. I don’t feel like that day reflected my normal life at all. I was anxious, anticipating each measurement, and constantly startled by the cuff inflating and scanning my body.

So I’m wondering...

Did the anxiety and the cuff itself artificially raise my average or is the Holter still considered more reliable despite that? How do you actually determine your true baseline BP in this situation?

My cardiologist didn’t seem concerned, but I’m trying to understand what these numbers really mean.

Any insights or similar experiences would really help😵‍💫

Thanks!

​

Hey everyone, I could really use some perspective because I think I got stuck in a bit of a monitoring/anxiety loop this morning.

I'm on valium 10mg. I had bp spiking to 150-116/103 before but it was during intense anxiety.

Readings today:

Morning (fasted):

128/82 — first reading

110/86 — right after sneezing

99/76 — immediately after (no pause)

106/76 — settled

124/91 — anxiety after seeing 99 systolic 

Then a bunch of repeats while anxious: 118/93, 117/87, 115/88, etc.

Eventually calmed down to: 102/80 (but I rarely get this low)

After eating :

Mostly stable: 109/72, 105/74, 106/73, 101/74

After nap:

120/83   woke up anxious

115/78 — settled again

I think what’s really worrying me is that the 99/76 reading scared me since I’m not used to seeing numbers that low, and on top of that I’ve been extremely tired since last evening and today I feel drained and weak. I also slept badly, so I’m not sure how much that’s affecting things, and I ended up getting stuck in a checking loop which probably made my readings go up.

Are these fluctuations normal throughout the day?

Thanks 🙏