Irvingkirsch Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Hi, I've been on Luvox for 3 or 4 years. I tapered down to 50 mg about a year ago and I'm currently taking about 3.5 mg. I've tapered down over 8 weeks. I'm about to stop taking it completeley next Wednesday. What can I expect in terms of withdrawal given the dose that I was on (50 mg) and the time I took to taper. How long will it take me to recover from the withdrawal effects? Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 7, 2016 Author Share Posted February 7, 2016 Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this? Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus KarenB Posted February 8, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hello Irvingkirsch, How quickly did you taper down to the 50mg, then from what date did you start tapering down to 3.5mg? If you've tapered from 50mg to 3.5mg in 8 weeks, then that is a very fast taper and could leave you with withdrawal symptoms. We recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dosage each month. This allows your central nervous system time to adapt as you go. Are you having any symptoms now? They can last for months or years; it's very individual and depends on the rate of taper too. Would you be able to write a signature with all your tapering details and dates? Thanks, it really helps us whenever you post. Tips for tapering off Luvox Have a read of those links, and then come back to this thread to discuss further what your next steps might be. This will be your thread to record your tapering progress. Karen 2010 Fluoxetine 20mg. 2011 Escitalopram 20mg. 2013 Tapered badly and destabilised CNS. Effexor 150mg. 2015 Begin using info at SurvivingAntidepressants. Cut 10% - bad w/d 2 months, held 1 month. Micro-tapering: four weekly 0.4% cuts, hold 4 weeks (struggling with symptoms). 8 month hold. 2017 Micro-tapering: four weekly 1% cuts, hold 4 weeks (symptoms almost non-existent). 2020 Still micro-tapering. Just over 2/3 of the way off effexor. Minimal symptoms, - and sleeping well. Supplements: Fish oil, vitamin C, iron, oat-straw tea, nettle tea. 2023 December - Now on 5 micro-beads Effexor. Minimal symptoms but much more time needed between drops. Symptoms begin to increase. 2024 April - Updosed to 6 microbeads - immediate increase in symptoms for 4 days. Decreased to 5 microbeads. 'The possibility of renewal exists so long as life exists.' Dr Gabor Mate. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Fresh Posted February 8, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hi Irving , welcome to the site. Tapering from 50mg to 3.5mg over 8 weeks is pretty much the same as stopping cold turkey. You can expect a long difficult withdrawal over many many months. From another of your posts today: "08 February 2016 - 10:12 AM Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this?" Please fill in your signature so that we understand your complete drug history. Bw , Fresh 1987-1997 pertofran , prothiaden , Prozac 1997-2002 Zoloft 2002-2004 effexor 2004-2010 Lexapro 40mg 2010-2012Cymbalta 120mg Sept. 2012 -decreased 90mg in 6months. Care taken over by Dr Lucire in March 2013 , decreased last 30mg at 2mg per week over 3 months. July 21 , 2013- last dose of Cymbalta Protracted withdrawal syndrome kicked in badly Jan.2014 Unrelenting akathisia until May 2014. Voluntary hosp. admission. Cocktail of Seroquel, Ativan and mirtazapine and I was well enough to go home after 14 days. Stopped all hosp. meds in next few months. July 2014 felt v.depressed - couldn't stop crying. Started pristiq 50mg. Felt improvement within days and continued to improve, so stayed on 50mg for 8 months. Began taper 28 Feb. 2015. Pristiq 50mg down to 45mg. Had one month of w/d symptoms. Started CES therapy in March. No w/d symptoms down to 30mg. October 2015 , taking 25mg Pristiq. Capsules compounded with slow-release additive. March 2016 , 21mg Link to comment
InvisibleUnless Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this? I responded to this post before I saw that you had an intro thread and mentioned that you had begun quitting medications. I will copy what I wrote that got rejected by SA because the post was moved to your intro thread before the reply was sent. Others can help you with tapering advice, my post was mentioning that your suspected side effects are not unusual and that I can relate to them: being on antidepressants and antipsychotics made my anxiety, depression, and insomnia worse than they had ever been before. i went from a semi-functional human being with hobbies and a full time job to a person on disability who could not drive and stopped caring about life enough to even cook meals, watch movies, or have romantic relationships. when i quit the medications, the anxiety and depression got better immediately. they did not get better fully, and the insomnia got worse due to withdrawal, but all three have been healing over time now that i am trying to treat myself better, physically and psychologically. i have been withdrawing for 5 years and you need to be extremely careful if you come to the conclusion that you do want to taper off these medications---an educated, cautious, slow taper is important. everything you mention is listed in the medication side effects for SSRIs, and many people do experience those outcomes. they do change your brain, in physical ways that you end up having emotional and physical side effects from, and if you quit and recover from them, you may indeed feel much, much better. i cannot guarantee that, or be sure about what is contributing to your worsening problems, but all the doctors would do is speculate as well, unless tests for physical problems independent of medication side effects show you to have something like a hormonal disorder, tumor, or other issue. a 'break' from medication is not really possible for most people. not only would a temporary reduction or absence put you at risk of serious withdrawal symptoms, the physical changes that the drugs have caused in your brain will not switch back to 'normal' over a few days or weeks. depending on how far your brain has adjusted in response to them and living life while taking them, getting back to a more functional state may take months or longer. everyone responds a bit differently to psychotropics, withdrawal, and recovery methods. please do not rush into any medication changes and become aware of the risks involved in downtapering as well as the side effects seen to result in some patients from short and long term use. your receptors may be less functional, less present, altered in locational clustering, or subject to other kinds of changes from using SSRIs that end up feeding depression, anxiety, insomnia, etc. we do not really know exactly how antidepressants and their induced dysfunction work, so saying exactly what has gone on or how long it will take to undo is not within our power. in my opinion, and that of many persons who have discontinued antidepressants, you probably have a good shot at feeling better than you do now if you spent some time off the drugs, but how you spend some time away from them can make all the difference in whether things go well or go horribly wrong when you see how life is without SSRIs. it should also be mentioned that anxiety, depression, and insomnia can all contribute to one another. a destabilization of one can worsen the other two, and it can become a feedback loop. having less awareness or control of this, due to lacking proper coping techniques or having medication side effects (like induced psychological states or disrupted ability to regulate your thoughts or behaviors) can increase the potency of that feedback loop. from 2005-2012, i spent 7 years taking 17 different psychotropic medications covering several classes. i would be taking 3-7 medications at a time, and 6 out of the 17 medications listed below were maxed or overmaxed in clinical dosage before i moved on to trying the next unhelpful cocktail. antidepressants (SSRIs, SNRIs, NDRIs, tetracyclics): zoloft, wellbutrin, effexor, lexapro, prozac, cymbalta, remeronantipsychotics (atypical): abilify, zyprexa, risperdal, geodonsleep aids (benzos, off-label antidepressants & antipsychotics, hypnotics): seroquel, temazepam, trazodone, ambienanxiolytics: busparanticonvulsants: topamax i tapered off all psychotropics from late 2011 through early 2013, one by one. since quitting, ive been cycling through severe, disabling withdrawal symptoms spanning the gamut of the serious, less serious, and rather worrisome side effects of these assorted medications. previous cross-tapering and medication or dosage changes had also caused undiagnosed withdrawal symptoms. brainpan addlepation Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hello Irvingkirsch, How quickly did you taper down to the 50mg, then from what date did you start tapering down to 3.5mg? If you've tapered from 50mg to 3.5mg in 8 weeks, then that is a very fast taper and could leave you with withdrawal symptoms. We recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dosage each month. This allows your central nervous system time to adapt as you go. Are you having any symptoms now? They can last for months or years; it's very individual and depends on the rate of taper too. Would you be able to write a signature with all your tapering details and dates? Thanks, it really helps us whenever you post. Tips for tapering off Luvox Have a read of those links, and then come back to this thread to discuss further t your next steps might be. This will be your thread to record your tapering progress. Karen Hi Karen, I tapered down to the 50 from 100 about a year ago. I went from 100 to 50 in about 8 weeks. I started tapering down from 50 on December 17th to be exact. Thanks for the tapering tips. I am having symptoms now. every time I go down by 3 or 6 mg my insomnia, which is already bad, gets worse for 3 or 4 days and my anxiety gets slightly worse. I just lost my job so I have to go off of it now, as this is the best and only time I can do it. I wish I could follow the 10% rule, but based on the size of the pill and the small dose I'm already on it wouldn't even be possible to reduce it physically by 10% Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this? I responded to this post before I saw that you had an intro thread and mentioned that you had begun quitting medications. I will copy what I wrote that got rejected by SA because the post was moved to your intro thread before the reply was sent. Others can help you with tapering advice, my post was mentioning that your suspected side effects are not unusual and that I can relate to them: being on antidepressants and antipsychotics made my anxiety, depression, and insomnia worse than they had ever been before. i went from a semi-functional human being with hobbies and a full time job to a person on disability who could not drive and stopped caring about life enough to even cook meals, watch movies, or have romantic relationships. when i quit the medications, the anxiety and depression got better immediately. they did not get better fully, and the insomnia got worse due to withdrawal, but all three have been healing over time now that i am trying to treat myself better, physically and psychologically. i have been withdrawing for 5 years and you need to be extremely careful if you come to the conclusion that you do want to taper off these medications---an educated, cautious, slow taper is important. everything you mention is listed in the medication side effects for SSRIs, and many people do experience those outcomes. they do change your brain, in physical ways that you end up having emotional and physical side effects from, and if you quit and recover from them, you may indeed feel much, much better. i cannot guarantee that, or be sure about what is contributing to your worsening problems, but all the doctors would do is speculate as well, unless tests for physical problems independent of medication side effects show you to have something like a hormonal disorder, tumor, or other issue. a 'break' from medication is not really possible for most people. not only would a temporary reduction or absence put you at risk of serious withdrawal symptoms, the physical changes that the drugs have caused in your brain will not switch back to 'normal' over a few days or weeks. depending on how far your brain has adjusted in response to them and living life while taking them, getting back to a more functional state may take months or longer. everyone responds a bit differently to psychotropics, withdrawal, and recovery methods. please do not rush into any medication changes and become aware of the risks involved in downtapering as well as the side effects seen to result in some patients from short and long term use. your receptors may be less functional, less present, altered in locational clustering, or subject to other kinds of changes from using SSRIs that end up feeding depression, anxiety, insomnia, etc. we do not really know exactly how antidepressants and their induced dysfunction work, so saying exactly what has gone on or how long it will take to undo is not within our power. in my opinion, and that of many persons who have discontinued antidepressants, you probably have a good shot at feeling better than you do now if you spent some time off the drugs, but how you spend some time away from them can make all the difference in whether things go well or go horribly wrong when you see how life is without SSRIs. it should also be mentioned that anxiety, depression, and insomnia can all contribute to one another. a destabilization of one can worsen the other two, and it can become a feedback loop. having less awareness or control of this, due to lacking proper coping techniques or having medication side effects (like induced psychological states or disrupted ability to regulate your thoughts or behaviors) can increase the potency of that feedback loop. Thank you so much for the respone!! This is exactly what I was looking for. It's really refreshing to hear from someone that has gone through the same thing I have. I may have only tapereed down over 8 weeks, but I tapered from such a low dose that I feel like I'll probably struggle for 3 weeks to a month and after that I may have odd physical withdrawals, but I'll be able to manage. Thank you again! Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this? Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hello Irvingkirsch, How quickly did you taper down to the 50mg, then from what date did you start tapering down to 3.5mg? If you've tapered from 50mg to 3.5mg in 8 weeks, then that is a very fast taper and could leave you with withdrawal symptoms. We recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dosage each month. This allows your central nervous system time to adapt as you go. Are you having any symptoms now? They can last for months or years; it's very individual and depends on the rate of taper too. Would you be able to write a signature with all your tapering details and dates? Thanks, it really helps us whenever you post. Tips for tapering off Luvox Have a read of those links, and then come back to this thread to discuss further what your next steps might be. This will be your thread to record your tapering progress. Karen Hi, I forgot to ask. Since 50 mg is a sub-therapeutic dose dose and that is where I started my taper 8 weeks ago, do you think the possibility of a long, protraced withdrawal is less likely? Anytime I've tapered off a drug before I tapered much quicker and from high doses so I really have nothing to compare this to personally. Of course those previous tapers did not work out well, as I'm still on an SSRI. However, I was ablet o get off Wellbutrin and trazodone with 8-week tapers and I really had no problems with those Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Fresh Posted February 8, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 8, 2016 "Hi, I've been on Luvox for 3 or 4 years." "Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years." " I was ablet o get off Wellbutrin and trazodone with 8-week tapers and I really had no problems with those " Irving , if you want help you need to be up front with your drug history. Please fill in your signature including ALL medications you've taken , dates , dosages etc. Instructions are here: Please put your withdrawal history in your signature There is no real "sub-therapeutic dose". A therapeutic dose is a term created by pharmaceutical companies to describe the smallest dose they make the drug in. If someone has tapered down to 0.05 mg , then that dose is therapeutic for them. Usually the smaller the dose , the more difficult the w/d can be. Try reading: Why taper? Paper demonstrates importance of gradual change in plasma concentration and What is withdrawal syndrome? 1987-1997 pertofran , prothiaden , Prozac 1997-2002 Zoloft 2002-2004 effexor 2004-2010 Lexapro 40mg 2010-2012Cymbalta 120mg Sept. 2012 -decreased 90mg in 6months. Care taken over by Dr Lucire in March 2013 , decreased last 30mg at 2mg per week over 3 months. July 21 , 2013- last dose of Cymbalta Protracted withdrawal syndrome kicked in badly Jan.2014 Unrelenting akathisia until May 2014. Voluntary hosp. admission. Cocktail of Seroquel, Ativan and mirtazapine and I was well enough to go home after 14 days. Stopped all hosp. meds in next few months. July 2014 felt v.depressed - couldn't stop crying. Started pristiq 50mg. Felt improvement within days and continued to improve, so stayed on 50mg for 8 months. Began taper 28 Feb. 2015. Pristiq 50mg down to 45mg. Had one month of w/d symptoms. Started CES therapy in March. No w/d symptoms down to 30mg. October 2015 , taking 25mg Pristiq. Capsules compounded with slow-release additive. March 2016 , 21mg Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus KarenB Posted February 8, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 8, 2016 Hi Irvingkirsch, In addition to Fresh's explanation, it's worth knowing that each upset to your Central Nervous System is cumulative. So each taper is likely to be worse than the ones before, due to the added stress to an already sensitive system. So you need to take extra care this time. You can get the smaller doses you need for a 10% taper by making a liquid. Instructions in the link I gave you above. It can seem a bit daunting at first, but most people get the hang of it just fine and it really is worth doing. Hi, i've been on SSRI's for 23 years. 7 years ago, I developed severe chronic insomnia for the first time ever and my anxiety and depression became much worse. Is it possible that all these years of being on meds fried my receptors and that a break from medication will help me recover from this insomnia? Has anyone had experience with this? It is very possible that the drugs caused you these additional problems. Personally my depression got way worse on antidepressants, and they also gave me my first ever anxiety attacks. Since lowering my dose I've had a lot of relief from those issues. Sleep seems to be another kettle of fish (well, for me anyway). It can really come and go as your system tries to find normal again. For most people it resolves in the end, but doesn't seem to do so quickly. We have quite a lot of discussion about insomnia here: http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/555-tips-to-help-sleep-so-many-of-us-have-withdrawal-insomnia/ For now, I think you'd be wise to hold at your current dose for at least a month to ensure stabilisation before attempting the last phase of your taper. Karen 2010 Fluoxetine 20mg. 2011 Escitalopram 20mg. 2013 Tapered badly and destabilised CNS. Effexor 150mg. 2015 Begin using info at SurvivingAntidepressants. Cut 10% - bad w/d 2 months, held 1 month. Micro-tapering: four weekly 0.4% cuts, hold 4 weeks (struggling with symptoms). 8 month hold. 2017 Micro-tapering: four weekly 1% cuts, hold 4 weeks (symptoms almost non-existent). 2020 Still micro-tapering. Just over 2/3 of the way off effexor. Minimal symptoms, - and sleeping well. Supplements: Fish oil, vitamin C, iron, oat-straw tea, nettle tea. 2023 December - Now on 5 micro-beads Effexor. Minimal symptoms but much more time needed between drops. Symptoms begin to increase. 2024 April - Updosed to 6 microbeads - immediate increase in symptoms for 4 days. Decreased to 5 microbeads. 'The possibility of renewal exists so long as life exists.' Dr Gabor Mate. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Hi, I took my last dose of luvox, which has practically the same half-life as Paxil, about 70 hours ago. I haven't felt any severe withdrawal symptoms yet as a result of discontinuing my 3 mg dose. I had tapered down to 3 mg over 8 weeks and stopped it 70 hours ago. When should I expect to start sweating, shaking, and basically losing my mind? Thanks in advance. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus KarenB Posted February 13, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 13, 2016 Merged topics as it's one intro thread per member. Each time you want to discuss something, just reply to this thread. Thanks, Karen 2010 Fluoxetine 20mg. 2011 Escitalopram 20mg. 2013 Tapered badly and destabilised CNS. Effexor 150mg. 2015 Begin using info at SurvivingAntidepressants. Cut 10% - bad w/d 2 months, held 1 month. Micro-tapering: four weekly 0.4% cuts, hold 4 weeks (struggling with symptoms). 8 month hold. 2017 Micro-tapering: four weekly 1% cuts, hold 4 weeks (symptoms almost non-existent). 2020 Still micro-tapering. Just over 2/3 of the way off effexor. Minimal symptoms, - and sleeping well. Supplements: Fish oil, vitamin C, iron, oat-straw tea, nettle tea. 2023 December - Now on 5 micro-beads Effexor. Minimal symptoms but much more time needed between drops. Symptoms begin to increase. 2024 April - Updosed to 6 microbeads - immediate increase in symptoms for 4 days. Decreased to 5 microbeads. 'The possibility of renewal exists so long as life exists.' Dr Gabor Mate. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Merged topics as it's one intro thread per member. Each time you want to discuss something, just reply to this thread. Thanks, Karen Hi, I asked a completeley different question? Why would you merge these two completely different questions with different headings? That honestly makes no sense. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Hi, I took my last dose of luvox, which has practically the same half-life as Paxil, about 70 hours ago. I haven't felt any severe withdrawal symptoms yet as a result of discontinuing my 3 mg dose. I had tapered down to 3 mg over 8 weeks and stopped it 70 hours ago. When should I expect to start sweating, shaking, and basically losing my mind? Thanks in advance. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus SkyBlue Posted February 13, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 13, 2016 Well, hopefully you won't! I'm responding in terms of Paxil. On Paxil I have problems within 12 hours of a dose reductions, always within 72 hours. 2020: After 18+ years (entire adult life) on Paxil, a dangerous doctor-led "taper" in 2015, and four years tapering off the last 1 mg thanks to SA and the Brassmonkey slide, I AM COMPLETELY FREE OF PAXIL! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Forever. 2021: Began conservative, proper, CNS-respecting taper of Zoloft, led by the only expert on me -- me. Making own liquid. 5-10% plus holds. 2022: Holding on Zoloft for now. Current dose 47 mg. Hanging in, hanging on. Severe protracted PAWS, windows and waves. While I may not be doing "a lot" by outside standards, things are graaaaadually getting better. Yoga (gentle to medium); walks; daily breath practice; nutrition, fruits/veg; nature; water; EastEnders (lol); practicing self-compassion, self-care; boundaries; connection; allowing feelings; t r u s t ing that I, too, will heal. (--> may need to be reminded of this.) "You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story." - Baylissa Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Well, hopefully you won't! I'm responding in terms of Paxil. On Paxil I have problems within 12 hours of a dose reductions, always within 72 hours. Have you ever gone off either Paxil or Luvox entirely? I have experienced the typical dose reduction insomnia, but that's it so far. I'm sure I'm in for 3 to 6 weeks of horrible withdrawal, but so far I'm just waiting. Link to comment
Moderator brassmonkey Posted February 13, 2016 Moderator Share Posted February 13, 2016 Hi Irving-- each member has a thread in the introductions forum that they use as a journal to keep records of what they do and experience. It is also for asking questions specific to their particular situation. It keeps all the information in one place so it is easier for the member to keep track of and easier for the moderation staff to see what is going on so they can offer the best advise they can. It helps to keep the site organized and easier for everyone to use. 20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013. Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks. The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better. Final Dose 0.016mg. Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017 "It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general." Stephen Hawking Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted February 13, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 13, 2016 Hi Irving and welcome to SA, Finding out what happens to the brain when we take ADs helped me to understand why a slow taper is recommended here. These might help you too. Video: Healing from Antidepressants: Patterns of Recovery Brain Remodelling Also, slow tapering helps to keep the withdrawal symptoms to a minimum so that we can try to live as normally as possible. It's not about trying to tough it out. I recently attempted a drop from 100 mg to 50 mg of Pristiq and spend 2 weeks with an extremely foggy head and even had trouble typing. The bit out typing might sound trivial but I am a professional typist with a current speed of 70+wpm with 100% accuracy. My brain and my fingers just weren't making a connection. After I updosed to 75 mg within a few hours my head cleared and I was able to type okay again. As for what you can expect, nobody can say. You might find this Withdrawal Symptoms List interesting. There are some things on this list that people wouldn't even consider being related to AD WD in a million years. You might want to consider reinstating - this is the information on reinstating. Some else might be able to suggest whether you would go back to the last dose or try a smaller dose. CC * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment
nz11 Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 Welcome Irving. You wouldn't happen to be an author would you ? Been reading a book recently called the Emperor's new drugs by Irving Kirsch. It's been very informative. nz11 Thought for the day: Lets stand up, and let’s speak out , together. G Olsen We have until the 14th. Feb 2018. URGENT REQUEST Please consider submitting for the petition on Prescribed Drug Dependence and Withdrawal currently awaiting its third consideration at the Scottish Parliament. You don't even have to be from Scotland. By clicking on the link below you can read some of the previous submissions but be warned many of them are quite harrowing. http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651 Please tell them about your problems taking and withdrawing from antidepressants and/or benzos. Send by email to petitions@parliament.scot and quote PE01651 in the subject heading. Keep to a maximum of 3 sides of A4 and you can't name for legal reasons any doctor you have consulted. Tell them if you wish to remain anonymous. We need the numbers to help convince the committee members we are not isolated cases. You have until mid February. Thank you Recovering paxil addict None of the published articles shed light on what ssri's ... actually do or what their hazards might be. Healy 2013. This is so true, with anything you get on these drugs, dependance, tapering, withdrawal symptoms, side effects, just silent. And if there is something mentioned then their is a serious disconnect between what is said and reality! "Every time I read of a multi-person shooting, I always presume that person had just started a SSRI or had just stopped." Dr Mosher. Me too! Over two decades later, the number of antidepressant prescriptions a year is slightly more than the number of people in the Western world. Most (nine out of 10) prescriptions are for patients who faced difficulties on stopping, equating to about a tenth of the population. These patients are often advised to continue treatment because their difficulties indicate they need ongoing treatment, just as a person with diabetes needs insulin. Healy 2015 I believe the ssri era will soon stand as one of the most shameful in the history of medicine. Healy 2015 Let people help people ... in a natural, kind, non-addictive (and non-big pharma) way. J Broadley 2017 Link to comment
coldturkmama Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 Took me almost a month before withdrawal hit full force after quitting cold turkey. I remember thinking I'd won.....not so much. Paxil 20mg from 1998-2011 Paxil 40mg from 2011-2012 while experiencing poopout October 2013 quit cold turkey Oct-mid Nov 2013 great window Late November WD nightmare Windows and waves pattern Now: 28 months cold turkey...doing decent learning to deal with the windows/waves pattern fighting it every step of the way. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Took me almost a month before withdrawal hit full force after quitting cold turkey. I remember thinking I'd won.....not so much. Oh Jesus, did you stop any other medications within a few weeks of dropping the paxil or luvox? What were your symptoms? Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 Welcome Irving. You wouldn't happen to be an author would you ? Been reading a book recently called the Emperor's new drugs by Irving Kirsch. It's been very informative. nz11 No, my name isn't acutally Irving Kirsch, but he's really the first reputable doctor to campaign against the use of antidepressants. Check out the interview with him on 60 Minutes. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 This is a timeline of my taper and the withdrawal symtpms that followed. I'm going to update this every day if possible to hopefully help others in the future. I was on 50 mg of luvox and tapered down to nothing over the course of 8 weeks. Starting Dose: 50 MG Day 1: 37.5 Day 7: 31.25 Day 8: 25.25 Day 16: 22.25 Day 23:19.25 Day 30:13.25 Day 44: 10 Day 51:3 Day 59:0 **At All the doses above I felt depersonalization that began on the night after reducting my dose. this lasted for 3 days. I felt my insomnia worsen the night after each dose reduction that sometimes lessend after a week and sometimes didn't. DAy 16 to Day 30, I experienced an increase in suicidal thoughts. At 10 mg and below, I began to have trouble focusing my eyes for about 5 days after each drop in dose After Stopping Dose Day 1: Deprersonalization,insomnia-not any worse than when I dropped doses previously Day 2: Depersonalization, insomnia-not any worse than when I dropped doses previously Day 3: Sleep onset insomnia basically tripled, going from 1 hour needed to fall asleep to 3 hours-this could have been due to late night computer usage Link to comment
nz11 Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 Thanks Irving ...found it....here Check out the pharma propaganda at12.30. Thought for the day: Lets stand up, and let’s speak out , together. G Olsen We have until the 14th. Feb 2018. URGENT REQUEST Please consider submitting for the petition on Prescribed Drug Dependence and Withdrawal currently awaiting its third consideration at the Scottish Parliament. You don't even have to be from Scotland. By clicking on the link below you can read some of the previous submissions but be warned many of them are quite harrowing. http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651 Please tell them about your problems taking and withdrawing from antidepressants and/or benzos. Send by email to petitions@parliament.scot and quote PE01651 in the subject heading. Keep to a maximum of 3 sides of A4 and you can't name for legal reasons any doctor you have consulted. Tell them if you wish to remain anonymous. We need the numbers to help convince the committee members we are not isolated cases. You have until mid February. Thank you Recovering paxil addict None of the published articles shed light on what ssri's ... actually do or what their hazards might be. Healy 2013. This is so true, with anything you get on these drugs, dependance, tapering, withdrawal symptoms, side effects, just silent. And if there is something mentioned then their is a serious disconnect between what is said and reality! "Every time I read of a multi-person shooting, I always presume that person had just started a SSRI or had just stopped." Dr Mosher. Me too! Over two decades later, the number of antidepressant prescriptions a year is slightly more than the number of people in the Western world. Most (nine out of 10) prescriptions are for patients who faced difficulties on stopping, equating to about a tenth of the population. These patients are often advised to continue treatment because their difficulties indicate they need ongoing treatment, just as a person with diabetes needs insulin. Healy 2015 I believe the ssri era will soon stand as one of the most shameful in the history of medicine. Healy 2015 Let people help people ... in a natural, kind, non-addictive (and non-big pharma) way. J Broadley 2017 Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus apace41 Posted February 14, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 14, 2016 Merged topics as it's one intro thread per member. Each time you want to discuss something, just reply to this thread. Thanks, Karen Hi, I asked a completeley different question? Why would you merge these two completely different questions with different headings? That honestly makes no sense. Irving, Welcome to SA. The only real difference between the two questions Karen merged was one was asked prior to stopping and the other was asked afterwards. It is important for the site and for you that we keep all of the same information about a particular poster in the same place. Karen was just keeping things cleaned up. Hope you can appreciate that. Andy Sertraline 50mg and Clonazapam .375mg from 2000 -- symptoms of dizziness Spring 2012 increased to .5 Clonazapam and 100mg Sertraline -- no improvement Benzo microtaper from November 2012 to November 2014 (followed benzo sites "taper benzo first") Started Sertraline taper in December 2014 cut by 25mg to 75mg; 62.5mg 1/1/15 and 50mg on 2/1/15 Held at 50mg through April 5 to use liquid Reduced dosage in 10% or less drops from 50mg to 25mg -- at single tablet of 25mg on 10/5/15 Transitioned to all liquid for accuracy while tapering -- Horrible insomnia -- back to 25mg liquid and held until October 1, 2016 10/16 -- 11/18 tapered very slowly to 10.6mg. No real improvement and never really stable so updosed to 12.5mg (1/2 a pill) for convenience and long hold. After 8+ months of holding with no noticeable improvement decided to add .4ml of liquid Prozac (about 1.5mg) to see if that improves the situation Supplements, Magnesium, D3, Omega 3, curcumin, Valerian, 81mg Aspirin, L-Theanine, Vit. C, Link to comment
nz11 Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 IK have you had any thoughts about reinstating because that is one fast taper schedule you have advised of in the tapering threads. I just read it. It would be great if you could put it all into your drug signature Please put your withdrawal history in your signature to help the moderators. When should I expect to start sweating, shaking, and basically losing my mind? Thanks in advance. Wdl can be delayed for several months but after 23 yrs use my guess is maybe sooner rather than later. You really dont want to do this to yourself. I understand the desire to just tough it out but wdl has the ability to drop the strongest of wills to the floor. What can I expect in terms of withdrawal given the dose that I was on (50 mg) and the time I took to taper. How long will it take me to recover from the withdrawal effects? Sometimes i think English is a language that falls short in some areas and one of those is the selection of adjectives which are available . To describe something really bad in English we dont have a lot of words available there is generally just one word. It starts with H and ends in L .It has 4 letters. It can take years to recover from a too fast taper. Let me put this in perspective for you. I dont know if you have read any links given so far but you tapered off 50 mg in 2 months. If you followed the recommendations here for tapering it would take about 39 months to do that. Thought for the day: Lets stand up, and let’s speak out , together. G Olsen We have until the 14th. Feb 2018. URGENT REQUEST Please consider submitting for the petition on Prescribed Drug Dependence and Withdrawal currently awaiting its third consideration at the Scottish Parliament. You don't even have to be from Scotland. By clicking on the link below you can read some of the previous submissions but be warned many of them are quite harrowing. http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651 Please tell them about your problems taking and withdrawing from antidepressants and/or benzos. Send by email to petitions@parliament.scot and quote PE01651 in the subject heading. Keep to a maximum of 3 sides of A4 and you can't name for legal reasons any doctor you have consulted. Tell them if you wish to remain anonymous. We need the numbers to help convince the committee members we are not isolated cases. You have until mid February. Thank you Recovering paxil addict None of the published articles shed light on what ssri's ... actually do or what their hazards might be. Healy 2013. This is so true, with anything you get on these drugs, dependance, tapering, withdrawal symptoms, side effects, just silent. And if there is something mentioned then their is a serious disconnect between what is said and reality! "Every time I read of a multi-person shooting, I always presume that person had just started a SSRI or had just stopped." Dr Mosher. Me too! Over two decades later, the number of antidepressant prescriptions a year is slightly more than the number of people in the Western world. Most (nine out of 10) prescriptions are for patients who faced difficulties on stopping, equating to about a tenth of the population. These patients are often advised to continue treatment because their difficulties indicate they need ongoing treatment, just as a person with diabetes needs insulin. Healy 2015 I believe the ssri era will soon stand as one of the most shameful in the history of medicine. Healy 2015 Let people help people ... in a natural, kind, non-addictive (and non-big pharma) way. J Broadley 2017 Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 IK have you had any thoughts about reinstating because that is one fast taper schedule you have advised of in the tapering threads. I just read it. It would be great if you could put it all into your drug signature Please put your withdrawal history in your signature to help the moderators. When should I expect to start sweating, shaking, and basically losing my mind? Thanks in advance. Wdl can be delayed for several months but after 23 yrs use my guess is maybe sooner rather than later. You really dont want to do this to yourself. I understand the desire to just tough it out but wdl has the ability to drop the strongest of wills to the floor. What can I expect in terms of withdrawal given the dose that I was on (50 mg) and the time I took to taper. How long will it take me to recover from the withdrawal effects? Sometimes i think English is a language that falls short in some areas and one of those is the selection of adjectives which are available . To describe something really bad in English we dont have a lot of words available there is generally just one word. It starts with H and ends in L .It has 4 letters. It can take years to recover from a too fast taper. Let me put this in perspective for you. I dont know if you have read any links given so far but you tapered off 50 mg in 2 months. If you followed the recommendations here for tapering it would take about 39 months to do that. Hi, I'm on day 5. It is now taking me double to triple the amount of time to fall asleep. Other than that, I'm not feeling any withdrawal symptoms that are any different than what I felt each time I lowered my dose. I once went off a high dose of parante in about a month and it was the worst experience of my life. I had severe back pain, depression, and anxiety. I ended up in the ER. I literally couldn't focus my eyes for about a year. It took me about 18 months before I could even talk to people without gasping for air. In comparison to that experience, this has been really mild. I was on such a low dose of Luvox that it's probably not much of a major adjustment for my brain. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 Day 4 No Luvox: Nothing different from the withdrawal symptoms I felt while tapering. Took me over 2 hours to fall asleep. I usually fall asleep within an hour when not tapering Luvox Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus KarenB Posted February 14, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 14, 2016 Hi IK, I've moved topics you started in the Tapering and Symptoms forums to your intro thread because they were specifically about your situation. The other forums are for discussion about more general situations. I know it's a bit tricky when you are just finding your way around here - I had stuff moved when I first got here too. Karen 2010 Fluoxetine 20mg. 2011 Escitalopram 20mg. 2013 Tapered badly and destabilised CNS. Effexor 150mg. 2015 Begin using info at SurvivingAntidepressants. Cut 10% - bad w/d 2 months, held 1 month. Micro-tapering: four weekly 0.4% cuts, hold 4 weeks (struggling with symptoms). 8 month hold. 2017 Micro-tapering: four weekly 1% cuts, hold 4 weeks (symptoms almost non-existent). 2020 Still micro-tapering. Just over 2/3 of the way off effexor. Minimal symptoms, - and sleeping well. Supplements: Fish oil, vitamin C, iron, oat-straw tea, nettle tea. 2023 December - Now on 5 micro-beads Effexor. Minimal symptoms but much more time needed between drops. Symptoms begin to increase. 2024 April - Updosed to 6 microbeads - immediate increase in symptoms for 4 days. Decreased to 5 microbeads. 'The possibility of renewal exists so long as life exists.' Dr Gabor Mate. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 Hi IK, I've moved topics you started in the Tapering and Symptoms forums to your intro thread because they were specifically about your situation. The other forums are for discussion about more general situations. I know it's a bit tricky when you are just finding your way around here - I had stuff moved when I first got here too. Karen I don't think you understand what you are doing to be honest. I'm trying to post helpful information about a particular topic (luvox withdrawal) so that people in the future can use it as a reference point to understand their own symptoms and what they should expect. The only way for people to access that information in the future is by locating a specific heading that denotes the information that they are looking for. Unforutnately, you have removed this heading and this information can't be accessed by people in the future. Do you realize how many people you are ultimately denying access to helpful information? Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 Hi IK, I've moved topics you started in the Tapering and Symptoms forums to your intro thread because they were specifically about your situation. The other forums are for discussion about more general situations. I know it's a bit tricky when you are just finding your way around here - I had stuff moved when I first got here too. Karen Glad you are doing your part to ruin the internet for everyone Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Petunia Posted February 15, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 15, 2016 Hi Irving, I'm sorry you have been upset by having your posts moved, but we have a structure to the way we organize this site and it actually works well. Each person has one introduction topic, usually with their drug or specific situation in the title, so that comes up in searches. Your introduction topic is like one case study of one person in withdrawal from luvox with your details, history and updates all together in one place. This enables us to give you the best possible advice because we can take everything into consideration. You can use this thread as your ongoing journal to track progress, write about symptoms, ask questions and communicate with the community, add to it whenever you want. Its a good idea to bookmark it or follow it, so its easy to find again. If you start a new topic about something we already have a topic on, in symptoms or tapering, it will eventually be merged with our existing topic, so as to keep all the information together. If you are looking for an answer to a specific question or information about a symptom or supplement, the chances are, we have a lot of information about it already which you could benefit from. When you have a question or comment about a specific symptom, supplement or treatment, please search to see if we already have a related topic, we usually do. Then you can benefit from previously collected information and add to the discussion. This keeps the site organized with all available knowledge in one thread, easily accessible through searches. The search function on this site doesn't work very well. The best way to search this site for specific information is to use your favorite search engine. Type in survivingantidepressants.org then the symptom, treatment, supplement or information you wish to search for. If after searching, you can't find what you're looking for, please start a new topic. It would be great if you would put your drug and withdrawal history in your signature. Doing this helps people understand your context, it appears below each of your posts. Here are instructions for how to do it: http://survivinganti...your-signature/ When we have a few more details of your drug and tapering history, we will be in a better position to offer support and suggestions. Please stay in touch and let us know how you are doing. Petunia. I'm not a doctor. My comments are not medical advise. These are my opinions based on my own experience and what I've learned. Please discuss your situation with a medical practitioner who has knowledge of tapering and withdrawal...if you are lucky enough to find one. My Introduction Thread Full Drug and Withdrawal History Brief Summary Several SSRIs for 13 years starting 1997 (for mild to moderate partly situational anxiety) Xanax PRN ~ Various other drugs over the years for side effects 2 month 'taper' off Lexapro 2010 Short acute withdrawal, followed by 2 -3 months of improvement then delayed protracted withdrawal DX ADHD followed by several years of stimulants and other drugs trying to manage increasing symptoms Failed reinstatement of Lexapro and trial of Prozac (became suicidal) May 2013 Found SA, learned about withdrawal, stopped taking drugs...healing begins. Protracted withdrawal, with a very sensitized nervous system, slowly recovering as time passes Supplements which have helped: Vitamin C, Magnesium, Taurine Bad reactions: Many supplements but mostly fish oil and Vitamin D June 2016 - Started daily juicing, mostly vegetables and lots of greens. Aug 2016 - Oct 2016 Best window ever, felt almost completely recovered Oct 2016 -Symptoms returned - bad days and less bad days. April 2018 - No windows, but significant improvement, it feels like permanent full recovery is close. VIDEO: Where did the chemical imbalance theory come from? VIDEO: How are psychiatric diagnoses made? VIDEO: Why do psychiatric drugs have withdrawal syndromes? VIDEO: Can psychiatric drugs cause long-lasting negative effects? VIDEO: Dr. Claire Weekes Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted February 15, 2016 Administrator Share Posted February 15, 2016 Hello, Irving. We move your posts so we don't have to answer your questions multiple times in various places. Keeping your account of your tapering experience in one thread also saves you the trouble of recounting your entire recent history every time you start a new thread asking a question about your situation. This also keeps your tapering account together in one place as a kind of case history so other people can follow it in the future. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Mentor ang Posted February 19, 2016 Mentor Share Posted February 19, 2016 Hi Irving, how are you doing? I am worried about you, going off the drugs Cold Turkey. I did that, I tapered over 3 months, now I realise, 18 months later, that was a bad move........ but I am surviving! Trouble is, I was off the pills for about 6 months, before the horrors of Withdrawal happened, and it was too late, reinstating didnt work for me. If you feel rotten, you still have the option of reinstating a small amount to help you through............ do let us know how you are getting on. And most of all WELCOME!!!!! 1992 Dothiepin 375mg 8 weeks, exhaustion/depression. Serotonin syndrome, oh yes! seizures . Fell pregnant, 3rd baby, Nitrous Oxide, 3 weeks mental hospital pp psychosis. zoloft tegretol. Feb 1996 ct tegretol, tapered Zoloft 8 weeks. as (unexpectedly) pregnant. Steven died after 3 days.(Zolft HLHS baby). 98 had run in with Paxil, 2 tablets, 3 weeks taper, survived.2005..menopause? exhausted again. Zyprexa, mad in three days, fallout.... Seroquel, Effexor, tegretol, and 8 years of self destruction. Failed taper.Damn 1/4 valium... nuts again! .fallout, zoloft 100mg seroquol 400mg mirtazapine 45 mg tegretol 400mg. Mid 14 3 month taper. Nov 14 CRASH.Mid 15 .... 75mg seroquel, 3 x 1800mg SJW 2 week window end of December followed by 6 week wave5/2 68mg seroquel, 2.5 x 1800mg SJW::::20/2 61mg seroquel, 2.5 x SJW::: 26/2 54mg seroquel, 2 x SJW::::21/3 43mg seroquel, 1 x 2700SJW :::: 23/4 36mg seroquel 1 x 1800 SJW15/5 33mg seroquel, 1 x SJW:::: 28/5 30mg seroquel, 1 x SJW::::; 18/6 25mg seroquel 1/2 SJW::::, 11/7 21mg seroquel 1/2 SJW::, 26/7 18mg seroquel 1/2 SJW:::, 9/8 12mg seroquel :::, 16/8 6mg seroquel ;;;;, 12/9 0 jump. 23/9 3mg....., 27/9 0mg. Reinstated, 6mg, then 12mg............. LIGHTBULB MOMENT, I have MTHFR 2x mutations. CFS and issues with MOULD in my home. So I left home, and working 150km away during week, loving it. Oh was hard, panic attacks first week, gone now, along with the mould issues. Link to comment
Irvingkirsch Posted February 19, 2016 Author Share Posted February 19, 2016 Hi Irving, how are you doing? I am worried about you, going off the drugs Cold Turkey. I did that, I tapered over 3 months, now I realise, 18 months later, that was a bad move........ but I am surviving! Trouble is, I was off the pills for about 6 months, before the horrors of Withdrawal happened, and it was too late, reinstating didnt work for me. If you feel rotten, you still have the option of reinstating a small amount to help you through............ do let us know how you are getting on. And most of all WELCOME!!!!! Hi, I don't think I'm any worse off than I was when I was tapering down. Was there anything that changed fro you after you had been 6 months free of luvox. Did you stop any other substances at that point? Do you have bipolar at all? It took me 3 hours to fall asleep initially for about a week when it normally takes me about an hour. I had some waves of nausea for a couple days that were brief. That's about all I've experienced. I tapered from such a low dose and it clearly wasn't doing anything so I don't think it was much of an adjustment for my body. I once withrew from Parnate and it messed me up for like two years. I've gone off many drugs over the years and this has been the easiest experience. Link to comment
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