clinic Posted October 1, 2016 Share Posted October 1, 2016 (edited) Is it possible to fix cognitive impairment(forgetfulness and confusion) caused by benzos by taking drugs like those used for Alzheimer disease(memantine/donepezil) or maybe cognitive enhancers like atomoxetine or modafinil ? Does cognitive impairment worsen over time ? Is it safe to take benzos for life long ? Can we fix cognitive impairment using memantine/donepezil or atomoxetine/modafinil ? Edited October 1, 2016 by clinic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OliverB Posted October 1, 2016 Share Posted October 1, 2016 (edited) I had memory problems when I took 2mg 3 times a day, but they went away. I was just 2 weeks doing that, and then stopped for 10 days. Now if I take 0.5mg twice a day I don't notice any problem but I always try to take the few it's possible without anxiety killing me. Edited October 1, 2016 by Bixo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted October 1, 2016 Share Posted October 1, 2016 53 minutes ago, clinic said: Is it possible to fix cognitive impairment(forgetfulness and confusion) caused by benzos by taking drugs like those used for Alzheimer disease(memantine/donepezil) or maybe cognitive enhancers like atomoxetine or modafinil ? Does cognitive impairment worsen over time ? Is it safe to take benzos for life long ? Can we fix cognitive impairment using memantine/donepezil or atomoxetine/modafinil ? To answer your first question, Idk if it possible to fix cognitive impairment caused by benzos by taking alzheimer meds. I am on modafinil and can say, at least for me, it is not a cognitive enhancer. It may be indirectly (it keeps me awake during the day, therefore as a cognitive enhancer). But I don't think that it would help a person's mind think better/fix cognitive impairment. For me cognitive impairment has not gotten better over time. (Well, part of it started when I was having so many back to back major surgeries in a short amount of time though (between 2007-2010), which all required general anesthesia. And being under general anesthesia can slow down a person's brain, at least mine. A lot. So having the anesthesia and my mind getting worse from that happened). But after the surgeries there was a new base line (which I go by now), where I can't think as fast and memory recall isn't good, etc. As time has gone on, I think I've been ok (as best as I can be). I have found that working on word find puzzles actually has made my mind a little faster. I used to be able to do 1/2 a puzzle in the beginning. Now I can do 2 or so in that same amount of time. And I can think slightly faster. So I think cognitive impairment getting worse or not is a YMMV thing. I hope it is ok to take benzos life long ... I've been on them since 1995, and don't plan on getting off of them anytime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 I had short term memory problems when I was on Xanax for 10 years, but they only became bad in the last year I was on it. I've only been off of it for about 6 weeks, and while it's not all back, my short term memory is much better. I don't think memantine has the right mechanism for treating minor memory and confusion issues if you don't have some kind of actual dementia. It's not for short term memory loss, but it is occasionally used for cognitive decline in MIs. Confusion in Alzheimer's comes from a different place than the type of confusion meds might give you. If you are experiencing confusion, I would call your pdoc sooner rather than later; your meds aren't supposed to do that/are supposed to stop that. I used memantine for migraines about 6 months. I had to quit it because of the side effects. It didn't really help my head, anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted November 10, 2016 Share Posted November 10, 2016 (edited) I've had memory problems. Two types. If I take too much clonazepam, I have blackouts and can't remember anything I did or said. Otherwise, my memory is crap, in general, and I attribute it to a multitude of medications. I think it's just a general blanket of "your memory sucks because you're on 5 medications for the crazy". Do you think it could be due to your cocktail of meds, and not just a benzo? I don't know the full scope of cognitive impairment due to benzos, but I can relate to the memory issues. Edited November 10, 2016 by 2Spirals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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