01-04-2018, 12:52 AM
Thank you so much, Fire. You raise an excellent point when you ask if it was possible that the counselor more easily scripted for the benzo, given that she had already written for the AD. I was thinking the same thing and probed my wife about it when she came home with the ALP's the first time. I asked her if she thought that she would have been given the ALP if she had turned down the benzo. She thought that she would have, in her particular case, for a few reasons. The first was that she had a long history of successfully using ALP on a short term basis. Never a problem with habituation. The second was that the counselor knew my wife had been an RN for 30 years and was probably a more responsible and knowledgeable person than the average Jane or Joe off the street. As you know, all nurses have a kind of sorority/fraternity thing going on, kind of like the police do. They tend to stick together. It could be that helped her get the ALP, but maybe not because she said that that she didn't even ask for it. She said that the woman treating her was kind of pushing it and definitely pushed the refills prematurely. I was delighted by the whole thing because, although my wife appears cool as an iceberg, she is actually a nervous wreck. To find a practicioner who appeared to be benzo-happy was a welcomed change. I am going to pose your question to her and will post back. I am so glad that people are beginning to use these services, especially those shut in by panic disorder. I have been in their position for a good portion of my life. I could not bear the idea of sitting still, for a set amount of time, and being scrutinized. Alas, such is the nature of PD. I would so love for others who experience that to be able to be helped. I thing all the "tele" forms of medical treatment that are out there are a huge change for the better. Thanks again, Fire. RF