Benzo Survivors Group is a peer-led community for people navigating anxiety, depression, and life on or after benzos and other psychiatric medications. We are not clinicians — we are survivors supporting survivors. This project lives under The Lorelei Social Impact Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in the United States, built on lived experience, honesty, and human connection.
We are a small, growing, we-based community, shaped by real stories, mutual support, and community wisdom — not medical authority.
My Journey (Post 1 and Beyond)
Part of this site is dedicated to my own lived experience — anxiety, depression, psychiatric medications, benzos, withdrawal, confusion, harm, healing, and the slow process of rebuilding a life afterward.
New posts will appear at the bottom so the story unfolds like a timeline. As the community grows, we hope to include other people’s journeys too, so no one has to feel like the only one living through this.
Getting Together and Talking About Whatever
We host small peer support gatherings on Zoom, usually 2–10 people, where we talk about whatever you’re carrying that day:
- anxiety or depression
- being on benzos or other psychiatric meds
- tapering, withdrawal, or long-term effects
- daily struggles and daily wins
- or simply life, as it is
You do not need to wait for a bad day to show up. You can join when you feel lonely, proud of yourself, overwhelmed, confused, curious, or simply wanting company.
You are welcome to come with your camera off. You can talk a lot, talk a little, type in the chat, or just listen. There is no pressure to perform, impress, or explain. Listening is participation. Presence is enough.
These rooms aren’t about fixing people. They’re about being with people who truly understand what you are going through.
Resources
Our resource section includes books, articles, websites, videos, and tools we have personally reviewed. Nothing here is sponsored or paid for. If it’s listed, it’s because we believe it offers a humane, grounded starting point for people dealing with anxiety, depression, psychiatric medications, tapering, or long-term healing afterward.
Benzo Survivors Group exists under The Lorelei Social Impact Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Our focus is informed choice, transparency, lived experience, and safety — not clinical or pharmaceutical influence.
Invitation to Contribute Resources
If you have a resource that genuinely supports people — a book, organization, podcast, documentary, support group, or event — you are warmly invited to reach out and ask for it to be included.
There is no charge to be listed. Donations are welcome but never required.
This section grows stronger with community contributions and shared wisdom.
Actively Seeking Deprescribing Doctors
We are actively building a list of deprescribing doctors — providers who:
- understand psychiatric medications and their long-term impact
- support slow, patient-led tapering when that’s the choice
- listen without judgment or rushing
- take concerns about side effects and withdrawal seriously
- accept all insurance types, including Medicare and Medicaid
If you know a doctor or clinic like this, please reach out. Sharing their name could help someone stay safer and feel less alone.
Our Purpose With Resources
We are not anti-doctor and we are not anti-pharma. We are pro-information and pro-choice.
People deserve to understand:
- what they’re taking
- why they’re taking it
- the real risks and benefits
- what tapering involves
- what staying on long-term can mean
- what alternatives and options exist
Whatever you choose — staying on meds, tapering, micro-tapering, pausing, or making no changes right now — we support your right to decide what’s best for your life. It is your body, your brain, and your story.
Who This Space Is For
This space is for adults living with any mix of:
- anxiety and/or depression
- current use of benzos or other psychiatric meds
- tapering or considering tapering
- withdrawal or protracted symptoms
- long-term effects after coming off medications
- medical trauma, dismissal, or not being believed
- loneliness, isolation, or feeling “too complicated”
You do not need a diagnosis. You do not need certainty about how you feel about meds. You do not have to be pro-med or anti-med. You only need to be human.
How to Start Here
- Read Post 1 — Get a sense of where this project began and decide if it resonates.
- Join a Zoom group — Come when you’re ready. Camera off is okay. Listening is enough.
- Explore the resources — Browse materials we have personally reviewed and found helpful or honest.
- Go at your own pace — There is no right way or right speed to be here.
A Quiet Invitation
Benzo Survivors Group is still small — more like a circle than a crowd, with a chair open for you.
If you’ve felt overmedicated, misunderstood, dismissed, anxious, depressed, harmed, lonely, or unsure what to do next, this space is for you.
You can talk or listen. You can stay on meds or come off meds. You can show up messy, quiet, uncertain, or overwhelmed.
This space was built by and for people like us — people with complicated histories, sensitive nervous systems, and stories that deserve dignity.
We’re glad you’re here.