MenuClose

How long do benzodiazepines stay in your system?

Benzos, how long do they stay in your system?

Do You Have Questions About Addiction? Call Our Recovery Experts Now.

How Long Do Benzodiazepines Stay in Your System?

Amy Winehouse. Heath Ledger. Anna Nicole Smith. Brittany Murphy.

You may recognize these names as names of celebrities who have died within the last couple decades. At first thought, you may think their deaths had little in common. Pneumonia, alcohol poisoning, drug overdoses - the cause of each death as varied as the talents of the victims.

Upon closer inspection, though, the deaths of these celebrities all have something noteworthy in common - the presence of a type of drug called benzodiazepines, or benzos, in the bloodstream.

Benzos aren’t considered hard drugs, but they can be dangerous for addicts or for those who mix them with other drugs. Below, we address several common questions about benzodiazepines and how long benzos stay in your system, such as:

  • What are benzos?
  • What is the half-life of benzodiazepines?
  • What is the difference between short-acting and long-acting benzodiazepines?
  • Which benzos stay in your system the longest?
  • What factors affect the half-life of benzodiazepines?
  • How long do benzodiazepines stay in your system?
  • Can benzos be detected in urine?
  • Can benzos be detected in blood?
  • Can benzos be detected in hair?
  • Can benzos be detected in saliva?
  • Can benzos be detected in sweat?
  • What are the side effects of taking benzodiazepines?
  • What to do if you’re addicted to benzos?
  • And other common questions about benzos

"We treat prescription drug addiction and accept many health insurance plans. Take a look at our Outpatient Program."

What are Benzodiazepines?

Benzodiazepines, or benzos, are prescription medications that release a tranquilizing brain chemical. This chemical depresses the central nervous system. In turn, this makes the body less reactive to external stimuli, calming the user. For this reason, Benzos are considered tranquilizers.

Benzodiazepines are commonly known as benzos, they are prescribed to treat insomnia and anxiety, they can stay in the system for several months and they are highly addictive, and should be limited to short term use

Benzos are used to treat insomnia, anxiety disorders, panic attacks and panic disorders, seizures, and the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. They are usually taken orally, but are occasionally administered intravenously, intramuscularly, or rectally.

For more information on what benzodiazepines are and how they affect the brain, check out this video.

There are a few different categories of benzodiazepines. The categories are determined based on how quickly you can feel the effects of the benzos and how long they stay in your system. The categories are:

Common benzos are xanax, librium, valium and ativan
  • Ultra short-acting benzodiazepines: The shortest acting benzos can have a half-life of up to 4 hours. That means that the drug will be reduced by half every 4 hours or less. Those who use short-acting benzos sparingly should see the drug exit their system entirely within a day or so.
  • Short-acting benzodiazepines: Mid-range or “intermediate” benzos usually have a half-life of anywhere from less than one day to an entire week. While this is a broad category, made larger still by the fact that the chemicals can be found in the system of habitual users for much longer.
  • Long-acting benzodiazepines: Benzos with long-term effects can have half-lives of far longer than one day. It will take the body up to a week to reduce the presence of the drug by half. When it comes to long-acting benzos, the body can show significant traces of the drug for quite a while after the last use.

Which Benzos Stay in Your System Longest?

A variety of factors determine which benzos stay in your system longest, but the categories themselves are a good indicator.

There are a variety of benzodiazepines

When talking about how long a drug takes to break down and leave your system, we use the term “half-life.”

There are a few different categories of benzos, each with a different half life. some benzodiazepines are ultra short acting which means they act up to 4 hours, there are others which are short acting which means they act in less than 1 day and there are long acting benzodiazepines which acts in up to a week

When discussing a drug’s half-life, we are referring to the time interval during which the percentage of the drug within the body is reduced by 50%.

For example, if the half-life of a drug is one hour, then only 50% remains one hour after use. But only 50% of that leaves the body in the following hour, so after 2 hours, 25% remains. After 3 hours, 12.5% remain, and so on.

The categories of benzodiazepines tend to correlate with the drugs’ respective half-lives.

Long-acting benzodiazepines tend to stay in your system longest, and it is most difficult to detox from long-acting benzodiazepines.

Long acting benzos are among the more difficult ones to detox from

These drugs are prescribed by doctors as long-term treatments for issues such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder, seizures, panic disorders, insomnia, and the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Those who use long-acting benzos habitually will find traces of the drug in their system for anywhere from several weeks to a few months.

Long-acting benzos include:

  • Clonazepam (Klonopin) - prescribed for seizures, panic disorder, and akathisia.
  • Lorazepam (Ativan) - generally prescribed for anxiety.
  • Alprazolam (Xanax) - can be prescribed for anxiety or panic disorders.
  • Prazepam (Centrax) - also prescribed for anxiety disorders.
  • Diazepam (Valium) - another benzo prescribed for anxiety disorders.
  • Clorazepate (Tranxene) - prescribed for anxiety disorders, seizures, and the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
  • Quazepam (Doral) - generally prescribed only to treat insomnia.
  • Oxazepam (Serax) - prescribed to treat insomnia, anxiety disorders, and the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
  • Flurazepam (Dalmane) - a hypnotic, used to to treat insomnia

Short-acting benzodiazepines can also be found in the blood and urine after usage, but tend to metabolize much quicker. Therefore, the flushing-out process takes a much shorter period of time. These drugs are prescribed by doctors for short-term use related to alcohol withdrawal, panic attacks, and bouts of insomnia as well as use in conjunction with anesthetics during surgeries and dental procedures. They aren’t meant to be taken over a long period of time.

Some examples of short-acting benzos are:

  • Midazolam (Versed) - used alongside anesthetics for medical procedures, especially with high-risk patients.
  • Triazolam (Halcion) - prescribed for insomnia, though only in very low doses.
  • Estazolam (ProSom) - most often used to treat insomnia.
  • Temazepam (Restoril) - used to treat both insomnia and anxiety disorders.
People who are addicted to or abuse benzodiazepines drugs may experience withdrawal symptoms when trying to come off these symptoms includes anxiety, panic, irritability, insomnia, sweating, headaches, muscle pain, cravings, stiffness and poor concentration

Are There Factors that Affect the Half-Life of Benzos?

There are a number of factors that can affect how long benzos to stay in your system. These factors include:

The factors that affect the half life of benzos are the addiction which determines how much and how long benzos were taken, then is the weight in which more body fat means longer detox period. Health kidneys and livers are key to removing any toxins quickly. The faster metabolism the faster the detox
  • Addiction: People who use benzos frequently will have a more difficult time detoxing. As more and more Xanax is ingested, for example, the body starts to accumulate traces in the liver, hair, and other organs. It takes a longer period of time for someone to completely flush out these traces.
  • Metabolism: People with high metabolisms are generally able to detox from any drugs much faster. This rule holds true with benzos. If your metabolism is operating at a healthy rate, it is much easier for your body to burn off chemicals and remove benzos from your system more quickly.
  • Concurrent use with other drugs: The mixed use of benzos with other drugs can create chemicals that are more difficult for the body to flush out. Taking SSRIs, for example, along with Xanax, Ativan or Valium can slow down metabolism. With this lowered metabolism, it would take much longer to clean your system out completely. There are other reactions that can have similar effects.
  • Health: A healthy kidney and liver are the key to removing any toxins as quickly as possible. These organs work to filter out the chemicals found in drugs like benzodiazepines. An unhealthy liver or kidney will have a more difficult time flushing benzos out of your system, so it will take longer.
  • Weight and BMI: Drugs are often stored in our fat. Therefore, someone with more fat on their body will find that their detox period is generally longer. Of course, this is proportionate to the amount of benzos ingested and for how long the person was using. Large people who take very small amounts of the drug will be able to burn off the chemicals more quickly than a small person who takes large amounts.
  • Age: As we age, our metabolism begins to slow down. Therefore, younger people are usually able to detox from Xanax, Ativan and other benzos more quickly. This may be due in part to the deterioration of the liver over time. If the liver has to work harder, it will take longer to do its job and expel benzos or other drugs or toxins.

Most Major Insurance Plans Accepted

Many insurance companies will cover 100% of the cost of outpatient treatment. Call today and find out if your plan qualifies. We can also help with financing. 208.274.8609


Verify Insurance

Where Can Benzos be Detected in the Body?

As mentioned above, drugs are often stored in body fat. Body fat, though, isn’t what’s tested for the presence of benzos during a drug test. Traces of benzodiazepines can be found in urine, blood, hair, saliva, and sweat after differing amounts of time and varying degrees of use.

However, traces disappear from some parts of the body much more quickly than others.

Xanax and other long-acting benzos usually stop showing up in urine-based drug tests after two weeks. However, this time period is contingent on the amount of Xanax ingested. Those who use benzos habitually will find the drug in their system for a longer amount of time. People who have taken small doses or have ingested the drug only one or two times can flush their system out in less than three days.

A person’s water intake has a huge effect on the way that they metabolize drugs. Drinking water prompts the liver to process and expel chemicals from the body. Therefore, more water means more trips to the bathroom, and more chemicals exiting the body in the process. The more hydrated someone is, the faster they are likely to lose traces of benzos in their urine.

The half-life of benzos is much shorter in the blood than in the urine or hair - small enough doses can break down within a few hours. Larger doses or prolonged use, though, will lead to the presence of benzos in the bloodstream for a number of days.

Long-acting benzos, of course, stay in the system for a longer period of time. Ativan and Valium, for example, will likely be present for several days if used habitually, even in very small doses.

The chemical byproducts of benzos like Xanax also show up in the hair. However, traces take longer to show up in the hair than in the blood or urine.

This is because it is not the drug itself that is deposited in the hair. Instead, it’s the chemical produced by the body during the process of breaking the drug down. This process will usually take a month or so, depending on the person’s age and the health of their hair.

Once these deposits form in the hair, they can stay present for a number of years depending on frequency and amount of use.

A person who uses benzos only a few times is unlikely to find many traces in their hair. This usually only comes with regular use over a long period of time. If someone stops using benzos, traces of the drug in their hair will disappear as the hair falls out naturally.

Benzos can also show up in saliva. If given a mouth swab drug test, traces of benzos will show up in saliva for around two or three days after use.

This timeline obviously depends on the frequency of use and amount ingested - a more habitual user or someone taking larger doses will find that it takes far longer for the traces of benzos in saliva to disappear completely.

Additionally, the drug can show up in sweat for several days. People who are prescribed Xanax and similar substances often report that they sweat heavily during and after taking the drug.

This sweat is sometimes accompanied by a pungent odor. This is because, when sweating, the body is attempting to expel toxic chemicals through the pores in the skin. A heavy odor can be a byproduct of this process.

Though not widely used, a sweat-based drug test has also been developed. This test consists of wearing a patch on the skin for several days at a time. The benefit of this kind of test is that the presence of drugs can be continuously monitored.

What Side Effects are Caused by Benzodiazepines?

So, why does it matter how long it takes to rid your body of benzos? Well, benzodiazepines can cause many unwanted side effects that can be both dangerous and unpleasant.

These side effects can happen short-term, during or immediately after use; or they can occur as a result of long-term use. These symptoms of long-term use can occur days after use - or, in some cases, for months or years afterwards.

For many users, even short-term, legal and appropriate use can cause serious problems. Benzodiazepines were not considered to be addictive until fairly recently, so doctors and other medical professionals were often not prepared to deal with the problems that resulted from this addiction or physical tolerance.

Watch this video to learn more about some of the most intense outcomes of benzodiazepine use. It’s important to keep in mind that help is available for those who need it, and that almost all prescription drugs have some side effects.

The short-term side effects of benzos are often a reality even for those taking the drug safely under a doctor’s orders. Often, these short-term side effects are weighed against the user’s original problem (what the benzos will be treating) to determine if use is worth it. At low or moderate doses, these side effects include:

  • Lack of coordination
  • Drowsiness
  • Lethargy
  • Clouded thinking
  • Confusion
  • Poor memory
  • Depression
  • Issues with vision
  • Stuttering, slurring of words, or other problems speaking
  • Dizziness
  • Shakiness
  • Digestive problems

At higher doses, more extreme side effects are likely. In addition to the symptoms of low doses, those who take higher doses can expect the following side effects:

  • Slow reflexes
  • Mood swings
  • Hostile behavior

When benzodiazepines are removed from the body more slowly, they can cause longer-term effects that are drawn out until all benzos are out of your system, sometimes several days later or more. These include:

  • Impaired judgment
  • Clouded thinking and memory, confusion
  • Slurred speech
  • Poor coordination
  • Muscle weakness

Common Questions About Benzos

Still have questions about benzodiazepines, how they’re tested for, and what it’s like to detox? It’s normal to have more questions, and being as informed as possible can help you use and detox from benzos wisely. Keep reading to learn more.

Urine tests are one of the methods of testing for benzodiazepines, urine tests are less expensive and invasive than other forms of testing. Hair tests are another method of testing for benzodiazepines, hair tests can be the most accurate kind test, they can show drug use within a 90 day period and they are very expensive testing method

Several different drug tests can be used to detect the presence of benzos in the system. An employer, for example, may have a urine test administered to detect the presence of any drugs in your system.

Urine tests are among the least expensive forms of drug-testing. They are also not as invasive as other methods of testing. Both of these facts make them more popular as a drug test of choice.

In some cases, however, companies may conduct hair or blood tests to detect the presence of drugs in their employees. As detailed above, these tests can detect the presence of benzos after varying lengths of time, so they are often used in different contexts.

Other groups, such as courts, will sometimes conduct hair-based drug tests. Hair-based drug tests can be the most accurate way to show drug use within a 90-day time period. However, testing hair follicles is quite expensive, so this is not among the most common forms of drug-testing.

A common form of drug-testing used by employers is the 5-panel drug test. This is usually a urine test that shows the administrator whether or not their employee has marijuana, cocaine, meth, PCP or amphetamines present in their system. While the 5-panel drug test does not detect the presence of benzos in your system, the 6-panel upgrade does.

Oftentimes, employers will use upgraded, several-paneled drug tests to detect drug use. These tests can have as many as twelve panels. Any paneled drug test with more than 5 panels tests for benzodiazepines.

For example, a 12-panel urine-based drug test detects the presence of cocaine, marijuana, PCP, amphetamines, opiates, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, methadone, propoxyphene, Quaaludes, Ecstasy and MDA, and Oxycodone and Percocet.

Detoxing from Xanax, Ativan, or other benzodiazepines can take a long time and have intense side effects. This is one of the reasons that  doctors recommend that their patients wean off the drug slowly, even after taking it as prescribed. Someone who uses benzos regularly and legally for years can take several months to wean off their prescription properly.

A non-addicted user of benzos who has only used the drug occasionally may be able to flush the drug out of their system quickly without any side effects. However, someone who uses benzos habitually should not attempt to detox within 24 hours.

Detox should take place over a longer period of time, and in most cases, under the care of a medical professional. If the process is not done correctly, the chances of relapsing or of never truly detoxing at all are considerably higher.

Do You Have Benzos in Your System?

If you or someone you know is a regular user of Xanax, Ativan, or any other benzodiazepine, know that it can take a few weeks to detox from the drug. The length of this process is affected by a variety of factors, so some users are at a much higher risk of harsh symptoms during detox.

However, the symptoms of detox are worth it if you’ve been abusing benzos or have become addicted to them. Continuing to engage in benzo abuse puts you in danger, both from chemical dependence and the possible adverse effects of mixing benzos with other substances.

With the help of a professional, a steady hydration routine, and discontinued use of the drug, you can remove benzos from your body entirely - sweat, saliva, blood, hair, and urine.

There are many resources that can help you in your detox and recovery process - doctors and counselors, to begin with. Getting benzos out of your system is safer, more comfortable, and more permanent with the help of others.

Remember that you can talk to a rehab specialist

Talk to a Rehab Specialist

Our admissions coordinators are here to help you get started with treatment the right way. They'll verify your health insurance, help set up travel arrangements, and make sure your transition into treatment is smooth and hassle-free.

208.274.8609Contact Us

Full Infographic

Benzos, how long do they stay in your system?. Benzodiazepines are commonly known as benzos, they are prescribed to treat insomnia and anxiety, they can stay in the system for several months and they are highly addictive, and should be limited to short term use. Common benzos are xanax, librium, valium and ativan. There are a few different categories of benzos, each with a different half life. some benzodiazepines are ultra short acting which means they act up to 4 hours, there are others which are short acting which means they act in less than 1 day and there are long acting benzodiazepines which acts in up to a week. Long acting benzos are among the more difficult ones to detox from. People who are addicted to or abuse benzodiazepines drugs may experience withdrawal symptoms when trying to come off these symptoms includes anxiety, panic, irritability, insomnia, sweating, headaches, muscle pain, cravings, stiffness and poor concentration. The factors that affect the half life of benzos are the addiction which determines how much and how long benzos were taken, then is the weight in which more body fat means longer detox period. Health kidneys and livers are key to removing any toxins quickly. The faster metabolism the faster the detox. Urine tests are one of the methods of testing for benzodiazepines, urine tests are less expensive and invasive than other forms of testing. Hair tests are another method of testing for benzodiazepines, hair tests can be the most accurate kind test, they can show drug use within a 90 day period and they are very expensive testing method