system
Suffering from depression, confusion, emotional, anxiety. Taking zanax. How long will I feel this?
human
I am 60 years old, I have been smoking pot nearly every day for over 40 years, and have not smoked it now for about a month. I am suffering depression , lack of sleep, confusion, emotional all the time, crying,sometimes every thing seems surreal,I have also been on zanax for 15 years, but find that it is the only thing that helps the anxiety go away.I have been told by several Docters notto try to stop taking the zanax now, as it could do more harm than good,How long will I feel like this, I have not relapsed and am determion never to smoke pot again.
gpt
Hello carolecouzens03  Its very good that you are determined to not to smoke pot again. Although smoking pot don't cause physical dependence but still a lot of withdrawal symptoms are seen for long time, like easy fatiguability, stress, low mood, irritability, change in sleep pattern, crying spells etc. So best thing to avoid these symptoms is you can take OTC non opioid analgesic drugs like Ibuprofen for muscle fatigue. Have tea or coffee at least 2-3 times a day. The symptoms will go in some time. But the main problem is that you have become dependent on Xanex. Try to quit this drug also, as although it is a good anti anxiety drug still it has very high abuse potential. Best you can try is to taper the drug slowly over a month. Start with slight decrease in dose and bring the dose to nil at the end of month. Decrease the dose by 20% each week. If not possible then visit a good psychiatrist. Good Luck Take Care