Robb J Jdc

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Verified Reviewer

Benzobuddies is causing permanent problems, then they blame the doctors.

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Although it is true that the doctors don't know what their drugs do quite often and do not recognize toxic reactions when they should absolutely recognize them, and that is the problem, doing 10 months to years of tapering with drug toxicity (which is a literal poisoning) is everything that is wrong with that site, and all the people who are even more clueless than the doctors are. They preach these ridiculously long tapers and are literally killing people and maiming them if they have toxicity.

You need to get off the drugs rather quickly to reduce cellular damage, and the fear mongering they blame on doctors is far more a product of the Ashton Manual and the horrifying advice than anything else. The site is a cult. It maimed me. I am now 11 years off, and I have no idea if I will ever be fine again.

I am not one of these little wimpy people either, and almost all of them are. The mentality on that site is pathetic. That cannot be good for anyone, and is often a product of that gawd awful Ashton tapering protocol which is very very dangerous, but you say that and you'll be banned from the site and attacked by the disgusting personalities that hang out in them like it's a dive bar. I tried to help them, but instead I end up understanding why people cannot stand the so-called mentally ill.

Never again. It's a cult.

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Preferred solution: Apology

User's recommendation: If you have toxicity, stay as far away from this site as possible, it just might save your life.

Dosha Nhe

This review is from a real person who provided valid contact information and hasn't been caught misusing, spamming or abusing our website. Check our FAQ

Verified Reviewer

Please stay away from them

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Original review Sep 30, 2023
Severe cyberbullying on the part of senior members. Totally anti-doctor and anti-psych med - mainly on the part of some senior members. Its not written in the rules, which are not anti-psychiatry. Most members claim to be clean, which seems total BS to me. Enough to see their aggressive writing style or behavior. The cyberbullies made me suicidal. Do not seek friends there, no matter how lonely you feel. Only information purposes. Two stars less for cyberbullying, one star less for new, highly addictive features of the UI, comparable to those of FB, IG, Twitter.
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Cons:
  • Destroy your mental health

User's recommendation: STAY AWAY

Anonymous
map-marker Washington, District Of Columbia

Stay clear

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BenzoBuddies was initially a lifeline as I entered acute withdrawals from taking Clonazepam as prescribed from trusted providers-for years.

I felt: Yes! That is what I am experiencing too!

I found some validation, support. Initially.

As weeks went on however,the horror stories of 30 months, 80+ months to find recovery, healing terrified me.

I tried sharing my own-as prescribed-story-tried supporting and encouraging everyone as being in this situation is simply unconscionable . The suffering is literally biblical.

I was suspended twice for reasons I only assume to be that I spoke highly of the medical community stating constantly that doctors take an oath to do no harm, 1. And 2, you decided to take this medication.

Period. Own it.

The moderators, IMO, have an agenda, their lives are solely focused on their own trauma and to disagree? State opposing views? Banned.

Anyone going through this torture should definitely read the forum in the persuit of knowledge then move on.

Move on! Trust science, your doctors and yourself.

Finally, if you are experiencing this brutal withdrawal from benzodiazepines? Its not your fault and it IS temporary.

And not 80 months temporary. Keep going and do not believe what you read on these Internet forums.

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User's recommendation: Do not linger on BenzoBuddies. You will get easily sucked in. Gain information there and everywhere else then move in. Live through it as you will heal.

Anonymous
map-marker Houston, Texas

Dangerous site

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Do to this site I tapered and stopped taking a benzo for my anxiety. It cost me my life and health. They are against any pharmaceutical drugs and leave people thinking they can get off this medication with time. The site is dangerous and damaging. It causes more problems for people dealing with anxiety disorders. The site needs to be taken down, people are losing their lives to miss information.
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john s Xjs
map-marker Reno, Nevada

Site is more harmful than helpful..

You can find SOME support on there but the majority of folks are stone cold stuck! Like an al-anon meeting that never ends only worse. It opened my eyes to the idea that, 'yes' this is gonna be a long road...years in fact but it also hooked me to the point I was not progressing because I was constantly worried about healing. I'll save you the misery - withdrawal can take a long time so you're not going crazy if you feel like crap. now grab a beer and relax. Ohhhh, you can't mention beer on that website because it will start you over at ground zero. f them!
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Yolanda H Ykk

Problem log in

Can not log in. I dont receive mail to reset my pastword. Username Yollie Email is: yolandahaarloo@***.com Or yolandahaarloo@***.com. please answer me soon. I am desperate
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Preferred solution: Free

1 comment
Guest

I have the same problem! Am also desperate! What is going on with this website?

Anonymous
map-marker Leawood, Kansas

0 stars

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If youre looking to taper a drug, benzo, antidepressants, etc. Stay off this site. No positive stories, horror story after horror story. Seemed like a bunch of bored crazies on this site. Scared me to death!
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Adrick W

I believe it causes more hysteria than help

I have been to the site and almost everything you see is the worst of the worst if there is any truth to alot of it I remain skeptical. I read alot of the posts about how each day is worse than the one before it and honestly it left me with this feeling of "Why even try" and that is dangerous territory for a person who is already afraid. My logic followed along these lines (I am not a Dr this is not medical advice). Most of the people in there did not realize that blood concentrations of benzos are constantly changing each day everyday no matter if you are still taking your stable dose or not so these minute changes that they are making that are causing such extreme duress is most likely from mass hysteria. Let me give you an example. Things that can drastically cause blood concentrations of a benzo to change that I know of are, Smoking (can reduce concentrations up to 30 percent of the Cmax and lower efficiency by 50 percent), eating too close to a dose especially certain foods, antacids, certain antibiotics and a plethora of others. Most people with mental illnesses smoke this according to the studies can lower the amount by a little or alot and you just don't really seem to notice it usually. Now certainly taking 30 percent off your plasma levels would be much more noticeable than taking 1/300th off a pill right? Well, not from what they are saying by stating that removal of 1/300th of your dose could cause massive side effects that last years. It also appears that many of the people on the forum completely forgot that they had an anxiety issue or some other issue that caused them to seek help in the first place. This issue will come back. Now we have added several hundred mental disorders of the combined group all being added to an ever growing list of side effects. It is like smelling smoke in a crowded theater. One person claims they smell smoke and pretty soon everyone does and panic ensues. You never really see anything positive and when you do it is actually negative disguised as positive. Person such and such got off of 3 mg of such and such and is partially functioning 24 months later! I am sorry this is not very helpful to a terrified person about to come off of a medication, relive the reason they got on the medication and are most likely depressed. It can increase instances of things like harming ones self. I just overall do not believe that it is helpful.
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Reason of review:
Bad quality
1 comment
Guest

Thank you, I know this about this site, everyone's experience is VERY different and I did not fall victim to the herd mentality.

Anonymous
map-marker Grants Pass, Oregon

BenzoBuddies has been a big help for me.

I’ve not experienced the complaints that others have shared. The folks I have met on BB have been very helpful and kind. I’ve never been flamed or treated poorly. True you have to take some of the advice with a grain of salt but BB is way better than another well known online benzo forum that was quite militant.
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1 comment
Guest

Nbbb. B

Resolved
Rob D Fti

This review is from a real person who provided valid contact information and hasn't been caught misusing, spamming or abusing our website. Check our FAQ

Verified Reviewer
| map-marker Camp Douglas, Wisconsin

Resolved: Vindicitive and Draconian

Updated by user Mar 07, 2019

The moderators are fair and reasonable in dealing with "moderations" for users. I requested that my account be suspended for 6 months so I could take a break from the site. I don't need to be on it and found I was spending too much time trying to help others and I just ended up getting in trouble with my posts.

Updated by user Mar 02, 2019

Peer advice can help, especially from those experiencing similar symptoms. I wrote the other post in a moment of anger.

This site has helped me and I would recommend it.

Although you might need to take a break from time to time. That helped me from not making other people's recovery stories my recovery story in terms of symptoms, severity and length of time.

Original review Feb 28, 2019
The so called moderators impose their double standards and "rules" on those that do the most to try to help people struggling with Benzo withdrawal. This site is mostly a *** session by people struggling to get off of drugs. Any attempt to suggest something positive is met with resistance. It's a peer forum designed to give peer advice...major problem though is that withdrawal is unique to the person going through it, so peer advice almost never works.
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John D Xpo

Cyberbullying Dangerous Site

Full of cyberbullying, including from Colin who started it and a number of the admins and mods (LeslieAsh being one of the cruelest). Also full of vulgarity. Also full of unprofessional and dangerous advice. If you or a loved one is suffering from benzodiazepine harm, stay away from this site.
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Cons:
  • Cyberbullying and dangerous advice
Reason of review:
Cyberbullying and dangerous site

Preferred solution: Site should be shut down.

Anonymous

If you wanna spend your "deciding to get off benzos" life in *** go here.

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Benzo buddies being a "helping" forum is almost laughable. While swearing to the thought that "all psychological, psychiatrist, and mind altering medications" are basically attributed as demonic in nature, they apparently want you to substitute any sound mind reasoning there might be for their brainwash doom and gloom that hold people in their "happy to be poor me" complacency. At the urging of other members of the forum and administrators alike there is a common theme that the only way to get off benzos is to deviate from all medical professional help (physical and mental) and delve yourself into the Ashton cult like buy in. And if you don't do it the "Ashton way," and forbid actually follow your medical team or caretaker's medical advice then you are destined to be in a *** of perpetual unwellness forever.

Despite them "not giving medical advice." There is alot of it going around in that forum, by everyone. Yeah, what do call when they are telling you to not listen to your doctors or mental health facilitators? Don't dare list any other medications, including any high blood pressure medications while on the forum..you are doomed to be burned at the stake like a salem witch for seeking a "witch" doctor's help. You can seek help for blood pressure meds to alleviate side effects, but if you have high blood pressure it is just one of the 1 billion and 1 side effects you can have when you are going off benzos , which apparently can range to anything from the desire to eat dog food, brittle nails, and obsessive toe stubbing on your night stand (no kidding!). Wtf

Before anyone gets on me, I want to say that yes, I was a member, and I deleted and asked to be blocked. I was on ativan, and no doubt, it was hard to get off of, but I did so successfully under the guidance of my doctor, whom while I was on the forum was totally wrong for having me taper my amount over 6 months instead of the 3 years it should have taken me doing Ashton. I had my account deleted 3 weeks before I was done, because I was a hot freaking mess. I realize that a big part of it was my buy in to the Ashton method, and I could have went at any time. But, I bought in to the doom and gloom. I tell you what, i had every symptom they could have mentioned, or might I say, I made myself experience every symptom that they could have convinced me I had. They held my mind at bay by telling me what a freaking mess I would be without them. Until it didn't. I knew that spending day in and day out on that forum was robbing my life and literally driving me crazy. I feel sorry for the long termers who have been there and could easily be helped if they would just get off behind that scream and reach someone tangible. For the short termers or new people on there each day seeking help, no doubt most of them will be giving in to the doom and gloom.

As for me, giving up on that forum was the best decision I ever made a year ago. Sure there were hard days after I finished the doctor assisted ativan taper. No doubt I had withdrawal. But, at its worst, it wasn't as bad as the day to day *** I had convinced myself of at the hands of the Benzo Buddies. A year later, my life is almost back to what it was before my doctor had given me Ativan for almost a year, and the taper for the six months of that, which was still progressively long I feel for my use, but, I had a doctor that understood and guided me, and for that I am thankful.

While many online forums are great for many people and many things, something as dangerous as a controlled substance such as benzos should not be sought behind the help of a public forum.

Turn around if you seek help there, that is my advice. Go and run. Unless you have a sound mind that won't bay at the astonishing amount of brainwashing and losing your will.

Benzo Buddies should be a form of psychological warfare, to bring the enemy down. Give your opposing benzos, get them addicted, and then direct them to Benzo buddies...no doubt you will be victorious! Ninja

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Cons:
  • Complete cult like atmosphere
Reason of review:
cult like tendencies, gloom and doom buy in
3 comments
Guest

truth.

Guest

I tried to close my account with B.B. They said to request it in an email. I did so and never heard from them.

Guest

i agree with you 1 i joined 12 months ago or perhaps a little longer, yes full of doom and gloom, i thought i was in the right place for help ? every day i logged on seeking help, for my medication which was Valium prescribed by my doctor for trauma !

explosion device some 40 yrs ago. i just wanted to get of the med because i saw no point in taking it anymore as it seemed to do little for me, i felt then normal in my every day life ! happy !! after 1 week of Benzo Buddies i started to go down hill so to speak, listening to all the advice and other peoples probs !

over 12 months there i was experiencing all with drawl symptoms imaginable , i got my head together and quit deactivated my account ! i was told that it would take 48 hrs to be deactivated as most people want to change their minds and carry on in the forum ! i wrote back and told them that this would not be so in my case ! that was a few days ago, looking back i now understand that i made the wrong decision to join Benzo Buddies !

its like being brain washed into other symptoms which you never had before joining ! felt like i was going crazy, NOW after quitting that site ! back to normal feeling good and talking to my Doctor ! and listening to my Family and Friends !

the people who i should have listened to in the beginning.

in my opinion never ever join one of these so called help sites stay well clear seek medical advice ONLY !! for these prescribed medications.

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Anonymous

Beware

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Agree 100% and have to add what really rubbed me wrong is a lot of these people do not talk about preexsisting conditions prior to the benzos,some do but everything is blamed on benzos. Women menopausal age completely brainwashed and close minded that it could be related to that, and that's just one example. And omg!... many depressed people who again blame the benzo only. It made me sick stumbling upon people who ended their own lives posts and blogs! Not one other member said hey,go get help now,get to a hospital NOW when they are screaming out for help. They just ignore it and say, it'll be ok, it's the benzo. Really disturbing. This site can do more harm than good and if you are impressionable, beware. Some good people and help there and helpful threads because benzo withdrawal can be very very terrible but still... be careful.
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1 comment
Laquasia Wup

So where do we go for help or a doctor educated in Benzo’s. I would rather have a doctor who has taken Xanax and gotten off them. Because if you have never been on high doses or even low doses for years ; you have no idea what it’s like!

Anonymous

Benzobuddies made me backtrack my recovery

stalkers, ppl sending you pm that you are ''very similar'' and therefore they want to meet you .... (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), its supposed to be an anonymous heaven? I had one member asking specifically for personal info from me, where to i work, where do i live etc, claiming he feels close to me (!!!???)

some mods sound as if its god himself! your not allowed to say anything without his approval !!! not even about using milk instead of alcohol to titrate!!! milk is FORBIDDEN ...?

unnecessary arguments, in a forum that is supposed to be there for ''support'' :/ Making things worse for you because last thing you want as sufferer is to have people judge you and give you advice that contradict your reality but makes them feel like docs or gos...

Some admins are ok, but some others definetally play gods on sick people. Shameful.

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Reason of review:
Bad quality
Anonymous

HOW DO YOU JOIN IN THE FIRST PLACE????

I have tried almost 20 times to register and hopefully get help and I am forever blocked. What is an activation code, they say it is sent.....Where? outer space? Benzo buddies are supposed to be helpful but you cannot even register to get the help. Am I alone in finding this? Please help! It is easier to get into Fort Knox than to register for benzo buddies which can be a real problem if you need help and are suffering withdrawal symptoms. I feel that I would need to be a safe cracker to get into this "help" site. Is there anybody out there? What happens if you log in for over your allotted time? Why is the help page woefully inadequate?
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3 comments
Guest

I AM HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM!!!! HELP!

Where’d the activation code GO? Not to MY email.

Ahhhkk, cannot get on to save my life. And I’m trying to save my life here, mid way through my taper, NEED SONE SUPPORT.

Guest

Same problem

Guest

I am having the exact same problem. I have tried several times, unsuccessfully, to register.

There seems to be way to contact them. The "Help" and "Form mail" links go right back to the main page that supposedly explains how to register. There is no other email address by which to reach them. There is no snail mail or phone number anywhere on the website, as far as I can see.

The links go in circles. I thought my email was blocking them perhaps, as I got a "Do you need a reactivation code" message a couple of times, followed by "Reactivation code successfully sent." Nothing. I followed the instructions to be sure they are on the "safe sender" list. Still nothing.

Giving up. Obviously they help some people - not me I guess.

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Anonymous

Hot mess in the disguise of help

Benzo buddies is a hot mess of gloom and doom stories that the admins and moderators only pick on those they feel like. Heaven forbid you don't go the ashton manual exactly, and if you convey that you follow your doctor's suggestion and don't commit to the group hate of the medical community.

You will be bullied and told you are wrong. I know, I have tapered successfully off loraz. I spent the biggest part of my taper there, when I knew spending day after day on that site reading horror stories and being told how wrong I was day after day was destroying me. In the final weeks of my taper I asked for my account to be shut down.

Thank God....if I had stayed there I would have been convinced that I am still not healed and post there everytime I get a headache, toe ache, a cold, need to use some sort of housecleaner, break out in a rash...have a butt ache.

It all would have been withdrawal. If you have a delicate manner about you, stay away from BB!

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Reason of review:
Poor customer service
1 comment
Adrick W

I have to agree. Most of it I believe has to do with the fact they are now back with the disorders that they had to begin with and are not coping well, therefore everything that is happening is related to the benzo.

The other thing is just being back to anxious they are hyper-aware of everything going on. You would be surprised at just how many strange things your body does in a day that we do not notice until we are anxious. For example when I crushed my ankle and was put on oxycodone for a little bit and came off of it I was remarkably surprised at just how much pain and fatigue the body feels in one day that I did not feel on the oxycodone.

My body felt heavier everything kinda sucked and yes my ankle still hurt very bad but I did not blame my crushed ankle pain as a side effect of stopping the oxy it was the reason I was on it. Often they forget the reason they were on them and how bad the anxiety was, when coming off you have to confront this.

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