To abruptly stop using benzodiazepines may produce a withdrawal syndrome. These withdrawal symptoms include increased anxiety and insomnia (the inability to fall or stay asleep)—the same conditions for which benzodiazepines are generally prescribed. Because the term "withdrawal" is usually applied to drugs of abuse (as opposed to drugs being taken for therapeutic reasons), the symptoms that occur when a person stops taking benzodiazepines are sometimes called abstinence syndrome or discontinuance syndrome.

Not all patients who take benzodiazepines will experience withdrawal symptoms when the person stops using the drug. Several factors determine whether the withdrawal symptoms will occur:

1. The benzodiazepine must be taken long enough so that the person has become dependent on the drug, producing changes in the central nervous system that set the stage for withdrawal symptoms. The syndrome can occur after a person takes prescribed doses of benzodiazepines for several weeks to several...