Recovery and Renewal: Your essential guide to overcoming dependency and withdrawal from sleeping pills, other 'benzo' tranquillisers and antidepressants Revised Edition

by Baylissa Frederick

This easy-to-read, inspirational and supportive guide is essential reading for anyone struggling to overcome prescription drug dependency.

Drawn from the author's personal knowledge of coming off benzodiazepine tranquillisers and her experience as a counsellor, this book explores everything you need to know before, during and after withdrawal, from how to recognise the symptoms to how to manage them and make firm steps towards recovery. With a focus on recovery and empowerment, it provides all the practical and emotional support needed to help you cope and regain control.

This book will be a lifeline for anyone taking or withdrawing from sleeping pills, other benzodiazepine tranquillisers and antidepressants. It will also equip family and friends to offer support and provide counsellors, psychotherapists, complementary therapists and other health professionals with invaluable insight critical to providing best care.

Genres: Health, Self Help

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book invaluable during my taper off clonazepam. It helped me to understand why I was experiencing withdrawal side effects. It also gave me the information needed on how to taper. Luckily, my PA was willing to prescribe my medication to allow for a reasonably slow taper. The book helped me to understand how insidious the dependency to this class of drugs becomes. I’m thankful to be successfully off this drug and will never take it again!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very helpful book for both those dealing with this issue and those supporting someone else. I suspect in the future we'll look back and realize these psych meds (that also happen to be used for a lot of other conditions as well) should have been prescribed far less often and for far shorter timeframes, if at all. The author explains both how the meds alter brain chemistry while they are being used and how the brain then needs to recover and heal after cessation. The book is filled with advice on self-care and how to psychologically navigate the process. As the author herself emphasizes, please be aware that while there is quite a laundry list recovery symptoms in the back of the book as well as snippets of personal experiences (both of the author's own recovery as well as others'), the journey is unique to each person in recovery length, which symptoms, and so on.

[Pam Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant books, especially for people who have become dependent on anti depressants, tranquilizers and benzodiazophene etc. Contains indepth info about drugs, the side effects and how long term effects can take a traumatic effect both on the brain heart and body. Having a couple of friends who addicted to these type of drugs helps me understand why they think as they do and how harmful drugs are having on their system,s and brains.

[John Duff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. Lots of excellent information for weathering the process, not making mistakes, and caregiver resources.


Side Note:
In 10 years we will be as familiar with the 'Benzo Crisis' as we are now with the opiate crisis.

Doctors who refuse to learn are the cause, again.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are going to taper off of a benzodiazepine, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

[Kenneth Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

This book has some great information in it and the author's journal adds a depth to the story that is normally absent in these types of books.

[Alex Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beginner’s Introduction to withdrawal

Very basic, but the book ends with some compelling stories. Similar material can be found online, including more current medical information.