Reflections: To Ask or Not To Ask Your Doctor?

A significant percentage of people in the layperson withdrawal community have found that “the prescriber relationship” is one of the most stressful aspects of the taper journey. Often, people feel uneasy, afraid, or even outright immobilized at the thought of what lies ahead when they merely consider bringing up the topic of psychiatric drug withdrawal with their prescribers – many prescribers simply believe that “doctor always knows best”, regardless of what the person taking the drugs may be experiencing.

If you find yourself feeling some amount of discomfort, that’s perfectly understandable. Hopefully some of the layperson tips we’ve provided will resonate with your situation and help in some way. But rest assured that many, many people have successfully reduced or completely come off their drugs while in a wide variety of different kinds of relationships with their prescribers. With or without the active encouragement of a prescriber, the keys to success that laypeople are reporting tend to be the same: Get highly informed about all things withdrawal. Plan carefully. Proceed slowly. Build out support systems and prepare for contingencies as much as possible. Connect with others who’ve gone through withdrawal. Listen to your body and respond to its messages.

And these are the themes that we’ll continue to explore throughout this Companion Guide.

Photo courtesy of Vanessa and Flickr Creative Commons/Effects have been added to this image.