Claudius Posted August 23, 2011 Author Share Posted August 23, 2011 Just to be sure which site are you speaking of antidepressantfacts.com or is there another site? If so could you post a link thanks. Yes this is his site. I actually wrote him a mail last week but no reply until now. I think he is just finished with the matter... 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
stan Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 hello Claudius, as Altostrata said, i also do not believe the 4 years mark; what i believe is nerves receptors healing takes years, several years,i am near 29 months and see i will need many many months(to not say years) courage, maybe you are not far from your new homeostasis... for anxiety 12 years paxil - cold turkey 1,5 month - switch celexa 1 year taper; total 13 years on brain meds 67 years old - 9 years med free in protracted withdrawal rigidity standing and walking, dryness gougerot-szoegren, sleep deteriorate, function as have a lack of nerves, improving have been very little Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 23, 2011 Author Share Posted August 23, 2011 Thanx Stan, you are always supportive despite your own ongoing symptoms. Indeed we have to give it even more time. My fear is also to run out of financial supply. I get a fee from social security and must visit a doctor on a yearly base or so. I am afraid I will lose my credibilty by ignoring the medical circuit, although we know that they have no solution for us and most are in denial. NExt week I will visit another doctor, she is my niece, a GP and a kind person who knows my family well. I talked to her onw time about the issue and she was pretty negative about Seroxat. She lost her brother (my nephew) years ago who committed suicide after being "treated" for years for some "psychiatric disease". The last time I saw him he had gone very fat from the medications... I know she won't have the magic bullet but at least she will listen to me amd maybe be helpful in getting some medical recognition. My mother, who has been supportive all the time during my darkest times, tells me I should focus on the symptoms and how to get rid of them without delving again in the cause, but I think it is impossible to "treat" our symtoms without bringing all SSRI related history into the equation. Anyway I will tell her as much as possible, and if I make her more aware of the problem I already consider that as a plus. Maybe I will even visit a neurologist, not that I believe he has a solution but just to take away the possible accusement that I refuse to visit a doctor... Today I had a bad day, but strange wnough this night I am able to do some programming work for my client. So at least a positive spark again 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Maybe Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 Hey Claudius, I am sorry that you are having a bad time again. I can so relate. Yes, I am not as far out as you, but I also cannot see any major progess since my accupuncutre session more than a year ago. The good thing is, that you can have fun, that you can have a good time that cheers you up. As hard and unsatisfying this whole mess is, you also seem to have good moments. At leat your postings vary a bit. If I did not have those as well I would surely have given up long ago. And as you know people do recover even after 4 years. So please always keep that in mind End of 2008: Remeron 15mg for around 2 months. Unorthodox taper, no problems.End of August 2009: Lexapro 10mg for only 4 days. Panic attack after 3 pills. Severe gastro problems in the morning for 3 days after last pill. 2 weeks later strong w/d symptoms set in. Acute WD lasted around 3.5 years. I am feeling much better today, 5.5 years out, but still have some symptoms left. Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 Thanx MAybe for your kind words. And we are about in the same boat. I do not know what is worse, getting sick after only a few pills or after years of use. I did at least got benefit from it in the first 2 years of use... Yes I have better moments, and I know that when the torturous jolts will vanish, I will be able to pick up my life. But never thought it would take so many years. 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Maybe Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 You are welcome, Claudius I remember when I first got symptoms and read the package insert, which said something like "symptoms normally vanish after some weeks". And I thought it will end soon. How wrong I was... End of 2008: Remeron 15mg for around 2 months. Unorthodox taper, no problems.End of August 2009: Lexapro 10mg for only 4 days. Panic attack after 3 pills. Severe gastro problems in the morning for 3 days after last pill. 2 weeks later strong w/d symptoms set in. Acute WD lasted around 3.5 years. I am feeling much better today, 5.5 years out, but still have some symptoms left. Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 You are welcome, Claudius I remember when I first got symptoms and read the package insert, which said something like "symptoms normally vanish after some weeks". And I thought it will end soon. How wrong I was... OMG, after each time I got the torturous symptoms 6 weeks after quitting I re-read the leaflet telling me that 'withdrawal started within a few days and is over within 3 weeks."This shameless lie destroyed my life. If they had said: "some people can get severe withdrawal starting days or even weeks after quitting are required to taper down with at most 10% per month, using the suspension" I would have understood what happened and surely have done the right thing. I still cannot accept that the deliberate omission of this crucial informaton by GSK took years of my life, drove me to instanty and on the verge of suicide, costed me my job and thousands of bugs... and the criminals responsible for it are still impossible to sue. I will never ever forgive them. 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Maybe Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 Nor will I. still, nothing can be done about it. But the day of revenge will come, I am sure. When the public will get to know how dangerous these drugs are, which surely will be prooven scientifically in the years to come, there will be sues all over the place. And I have no doubt that the big pharma industry has withheld studies concerning the side and long term effects! End of 2008: Remeron 15mg for around 2 months. Unorthodox taper, no problems.End of August 2009: Lexapro 10mg for only 4 days. Panic attack after 3 pills. Severe gastro problems in the morning for 3 days after last pill. 2 weeks later strong w/d symptoms set in. Acute WD lasted around 3.5 years. I am feeling much better today, 5.5 years out, but still have some symptoms left. Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 25, 2011 Author Share Posted August 25, 2011 I really hope so, but it is already 9 years ago that BBC Panorama brought the dangers and addictive properties of Paxil to daylight. And the GSK criminals were publicly challenged. But somehow nothing happened, no regulating institute did anything and the crimes went on just as before. I still hesitate to issue a formal compaint against my doctor/medical practice. She is not the one who prescribed me the crap, but never explained me about WD and still denies the cause of my problems. My fear is that we have just all odds against us, I have spoken to many doctors and they just keep the ranks closed. I think I will issue the complaint one day, just to have evidence for the case that justuce will come one day. But the proof is on us, and that makes it so difficult. At least I feel like my wave is ending again, still hindered by the last symptom but feel at least human again and know that I will heal from this. But still more time to go, I hope to be better at 5-6 years... 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Maybe Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 I am definitely going to write a letter to the doc that prescribed me the drug. A formal complaint won't help I guess. In the end I am a responsible citizen, so I should have informed me on my own prior to taking the meds. My fault. As always, glad to hear you are doing better, Claudius. We are on the road and the road will come to a positive end in the future. End of 2008: Remeron 15mg for around 2 months. Unorthodox taper, no problems.End of August 2009: Lexapro 10mg for only 4 days. Panic attack after 3 pills. Severe gastro problems in the morning for 3 days after last pill. 2 weeks later strong w/d symptoms set in. Acute WD lasted around 3.5 years. I am feeling much better today, 5.5 years out, but still have some symptoms left. Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 25, 2011 Author Share Posted August 25, 2011 I am definitely going to write a letter to the doc that prescribed me the drug. A formal complaint won't help I guess. In the end I am a responsible citizen, so I should have informed me on my own prior to taking the meds. My fault. As always, glad to hear you are doing better, Claudius. We are on the road and the road will come to a positive end in the future. Surely not your or my fault. We did inform ourselves my reading the leaflet. The leaflet of Paxil ,just as the other SSRI's told us that is was not addictive. If they had told us that it is impossible to quit, surely we should not have taken it. We made the decision to take it based on lies. Besides we could have expected that the doctor works for us and not for the industry. Nor could we expect that a doctor would violate the Oath of Hippocrates, which orders doctors to never give a deadly substance to a human being. But I fear with you that it won't help. I already wrote a letter to my GP, with lots of evidence and articles, but her only reaction was that you can find anything on the internet and it does not prove anything. Because that letter was not a compkaint, she was not forced to do anything with it. In the form of a formal cimpaint, it must at least be handled in a formal way and they are forced to take it serious and verify the sources. I am still in doubt, my mother tells me to let the issue rest and move on. MAybe true, but at the other hand I feel victim of a huge crime and think I have the fullest right to fight for justice. But if there are no experts out there to help us, we are pretty helpless in this. At least one day we will be free of the symptoms and have the possibility to move on and ignore those craxy meds forever. And that makes us at least a bit stronger and wiser than before... 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted August 25, 2011 Administrator Share Posted August 25, 2011 Claudius, don't blame yourself. The pharmaceutical companies and their paid psychiatrist consultants lied to everyone, and are still trying to hide the adverse effects of these drugs. Do what you can to get the medical profession to pay attention. Writing letters may not seem like a lot, you may never get an answer, but the doctor will certainly remember an angry letter. Every little bit helps. 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
Claudius Posted August 25, 2011 Author Share Posted August 25, 2011 THanx Alto, my dilemma is that my mother, who really loves me and believes me, thinks I should stop lokking for medical recognition because the time is not ripe for it and it will probably take a generation before something changes... if ever. As I wrote before, next week I have an appointment with another GP, she is my cousin, knows my family well and is a kind and honest person. If she tells me she has never heared of this, I will believe her because she would surely not lie to me. I know she has no cure neither but I would liek to talk with a doctor who at least will take my story serious. My biggest fear until now, the danger of being forced to commit suicide because runout of financial supply ois probably over, I have supply for at least 1 year more and enough savings to ride it out another 2 years. And is the next 3 years bring no recovery, it will never come, but I know that something is happening in my body and healing occurs. I feel still pretty sick but completely different than 3 years ago. Thanx for your reactions and we are all survivors here! Love you all 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted August 25, 2011 Administrator Share Posted August 25, 2011 Claudius, it's a little premature to think about suicide when your money runs out in 2 years. A lot can happen in those 2 years. It's very possible your cousin will not have heard of prolonged withdrawal syndrome. Few GPs know anything about it, or other side effects of psych drugs. But at least she probably will treat you sympathetically. As for battling medicine, on this site we do that all the time! We write letters and e-mails. If you have the strength and concentration, please join us. It's the only way to make out issue known. 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
stan Posted August 25, 2011 Share Posted August 25, 2011 THanx Alto, my dilemma is that my mother, who really loves me and believes me, thinks I should stop lokking for medical recognition because the time is not ripe for it and it will probably take a generation before something changes... if ever. i think your mother is right and in your case i would follow her advices for anxiety 12 years paxil - cold turkey 1,5 month - switch celexa 1 year taper; total 13 years on brain meds 67 years old - 9 years med free in protracted withdrawal rigidity standing and walking, dryness gougerot-szoegren, sleep deteriorate, function as have a lack of nerves, improving have been very little Link to comment
btdt Posted August 26, 2011 Share Posted August 26, 2011 THanx Alto, my dilemma is that my mother, who really loves me and believes me, thinks I should stop lokking for medical recognition because the time is not ripe for it and it will probably take a generation before something changes... if ever. i think your mother is right and in your case i would follow her advices It may not be an easy run and it may not be all too successful the question is can you do nothing after everything you have learned and lived? Some people will be able to do nothing some will do a little and some will not be able to rest with it the way it is. We all take different paths but it will hit the fan sooner or later maybe. The thing that bothers me more than the indifference by the ones who should care is that we have a climate in the world today that not only allows this to exist but it pays handsomely. It is this climate that scares the **** out of me as I think it is the much the same as it was before ww2 and some of the greatest horrors man had known till then. Yep the climate terrifies me I cannot do nothing. then they came for me and there was nobody left to protest haunts me. yes I am a kids from a ww2 vet I know the stories. these drugs the effects the silencing just one part of it. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 26, 2011 Author Share Posted August 26, 2011 It may not be an easy run and it may not be all too successful the question is can you do nothing after everything you have learned and lived? Yes that is a point indeed. After all we had to bear and all we learned about these "meds", it really hurts to hear from you own sister that you are "stubborn", "always thinking knowing it better", or "should listen to doctors advice"... this really hurst me in my core. Indeed there is a parallel with WW2. Even in the early 30's, people warned about the rweal intentions of Hitler. Among them a Dutch writer, he committed suicide on 10 May 104, the day the Nazi's invaded the Netherlands. After 1945 everybody said "this never again". Auschwitz could never happen again. But in 1990 in Yugoslavia there were concentration camps again, with skinny people behind barbed wire... and the USA, the UK and the UN stood, looked and did nothing! And now a new war is going on, the war of the Big Pharma mafia and their worthless helpers. Maybe some of them thik they are doing something right, they are helping people. This time they do not use Zyklon B but SSRI's... slower but in the end even more painful! I think this is what we learned, take care for yourself, investigate whatever you can, and stay away from the medical circuit for all mental issues. And never ever turn to psychiatry. And for me is living in the Now a very big challenge, by not relating current or future events to the handful of terrible people I met but who had so much impact in the course of my life. 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted August 26, 2011 Administrator Share Posted August 26, 2011 I think everyone who comes to this site can congratulate himself or herself for being "stubborn" and an independent thinker. You can answer your sister that you're proud of that trait! Claudius, it may be that searching for treatment by doctors is taking up too much of your focus and causing you a great deal of frustration. This may be why your mother suggests giving it up. I went through that myself, I understand. It's like hitting your head against a brick wall. But you can change your focus put your anger and energy into educating doctors, and chip away at the wall. Sure, you'll have to be satisfied with chips, but at least you'll be doing something. 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
Claudius Posted August 26, 2011 Author Share Posted August 26, 2011 Thanx Alto, and indeed I am proud of being stubborn... I only regret that I was too late in being stubborn and kept on going to doctors to no avail and did not start investigating and learning about w/d on the -now infamous- "other site"... when it was too late for me to do the right thing. But I know am not the only one... I have spoken to many doctors, only one did at least not against me but hesitated to believe that my problems were still due to PAxil after 3 years off... and I am afraid that we are indeed a minority havong such big problems for so long and my subsequent quitting attemmpts and reinstatements did havoc on my CNS... The only reason I sill look for recognition is my ongoing fear to talk to doctors on behalf of the social security. It will not work for me when I state that I have no treating doctor and stay away from all doctors because they are all wrong on this... therefor if my cousin suggest visisting a neurologist for a brain scan I will maybe do that. Just to eliminate the suggestion that I do not want to get better... and that is a problem for many of us. I really hope that I will heal one day from this so I have finally the proof that I do not "need meds"... I know I repeat myself, but next week is 4 years after my last dose! And I am so eager to pick up a normal life but those darn neuro misery just does not go away 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
btdt Posted August 27, 2011 Share Posted August 27, 2011 Thanx Alto, and indeed I am proud of being stubborn... I only regret that I was too late in being stubborn and kept on going to doctors to no avail and did not start investigating and learning about w/d on the -now infamous- "other site"... when it was too late for me to do the right thing. But I know am not the only one... I have spoken to many doctors, only one did at least not against me but hesitated to believe that my problems were still due to PAxil after 3 years off... and I am afraid that we are indeed a minority havong such big problems for so long and my subsequent quitting attemmpts and reinstatements did havoc on my CNS... The only reason I sill look for recognition is my ongoing fear to talk to doctors on behalf of the social security. It will not work for me when I state that I have no treating doctor and stay away from all doctors because they are all wrong on this... therefor if my cousin suggest visisting a neurologist for a brain scan I will maybe do that. Just to eliminate the suggestion that I do not want to get better... and that is a problem for many of us. I really hope that I will heal one day from this so I have finally the proof that I do not "need meds"... I know I repeat myself, but next week is 4 years after my last dose! And I am so eager to pick up a normal life but those darn neuro misery just does not go away It is quite a trap isn't it I have decided that long ago I too went ct in 2007 I am actually getting close to the 4 year mark not as close as you... Nov 18 was my first non drug day. So three more months will be four years... we have come a long way in time if nothing else. It is difficult to live in the now when drugs we took in the past haunt our lives but put your best foot forward as things are happening now that need our attention peace is found in nature for me and so I see to it that I spend time and energy there. I hope you have found some things that make the now worth it for you this is the trick I think. Part of getting thru this is knowing in your gut your getting better and not buying into the original disorder crap nothing that went on in the past difines your future not even you original symptoms you are a completely different person now the operative word there being NOW you have changed not only have you lost much but you have gained a new strength you must have to make it this far. Know it and don't be too bothered by people who don't understand how could they. Like us they have been set up by society doctors and pharma to trust a system unworthy of our trust we know it they don't. We just have to keep keeping on and growing in ways we can while we heal we can still warn others and learn all we can about this issue and any other issues that peek your interest. We are living and that is a big deal even when we take it for granted. If you look back you will see how far you have come I know I can. Good luck to you search out things that make now worth it and read the power of now if you can... I just love that book. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted August 27, 2011 Administrator Share Posted August 27, 2011 I understand, Claudius, you do need a doctor to fill out the paperwork for social security. Perhaps your cousin will help -- if she can't do it, refer you to a colleague who will be supportive. 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
btdt Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 I understand, Claudius, you do need a doctor to fill out the paperwork for social security. Perhaps your cousin will help -- if she can't do it, refer you to a colleague who will be supportive. Another potential trap find a way out of it there has to be one. Roger Whitakers book Anatomoy of an Epidemic states that the social security costs due to mental health issues is going to break the US economy if there is not change. Maybe this is what it will take to bring this rooster home to roost. When there is no more money to pay social security or pay for the drugs ... withdrawal issues will really hit the fan in the US when people can't get their meds pharm will stop making money at least for ADs in the US. Sad but interesting idea. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 I doubt whether something will ever change, sometimes I think it's maybe true that such horrible and debilitating WD only hits a small fraction of the population. And we are just the unlucky few. And for the industry and medcial community, we are just calculated and accepted collateral damage. Just like for every surgical operation there is a change the patient will die. And still too amny report to get benefit from the drugs. Even I had benefit the fist 2 years and sometimes I even long back to the Paxil feeling, having lots of energy and no anxiety... but of course there is no going back. My mother yesterday suggested again if I stay unable to work due to the neurological stuff (tinglings and jolts) try a non-SSRI med like Amytriptiline, which some familiy member have used and does not seem to have the excruciating WD of Paxil. I am really scared and want to postpone this as long as possible.... 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
stan Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 My mother yesterday suggested again if I stay unable to work due to the neurological stuff (tinglings and jolts) try a non-SSRI med like Amytriptiline, which some familiy member have used and does not seem to have the excruciating WD of Paxil. I am really scared and want to postpone this as long as possible.... very close people who understand, regularly tell "you have been better on, than without today" "if you retake a small amount to see", so it is normal your mother tells you that, my family told me too;the years improvements are so long that they doubt at a time if they do not mistake, as i regularly think"if i am wrong?", because years in life is enormous, the situation is : we have no choice, it is a poison for our body who reject it; it is medical known, it cures nothing, it only masks symptoms (and what they not say: it often adds you new acute alterations) for anxiety 12 years paxil - cold turkey 1,5 month - switch celexa 1 year taper; total 13 years on brain meds 67 years old - 9 years med free in protracted withdrawal rigidity standing and walking, dryness gougerot-szoegren, sleep deteriorate, function as have a lack of nerves, improving have been very little Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted August 29, 2011 Administrator Share Posted August 29, 2011 Claudius, I can't see how amytriptiline will help withdrawal symptoms. You can't treat withdrawal as though it were depression. 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
Punarbhava Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 My mother yesterday suggested again if I stay unable to work due to the neurological stuff (tinglings and jolts) try a non-SSRI med like Amytriptiline, which some familiy member have used and does not seem to have the excruciating WD of Paxil. I am really scared and want to postpone this as long as possible.... Claudius........ I can only share my story but I do know of two others, off the top of my head, who have suffered similarly. I feel that you should engage in some serious research before considering ingesting a TCA. If you think Paxil was bad, the sedating TCA are even worse to WD from. They are very powerful ADs which, as Breggin states, metabolize into neuroleptics. To give an example of just how powerful they are: I had simultaneously C/T from Serzone (SSRI), a benzo, thyroid hormone and lithium. The WD were violent. I remained drug-free for 6 months but things only got worse. I was then prescribed Doxepin (50 mgs to start), which is a close cousin to Amytrip., both within the TCA category, and within 5 days the Doxepin dampened down the severity of the WD from all four substances. It acted like a sledge hammer to dampen down WD effects from the other drugs. So, that goes to show just how potent they are. I am currently in WD from Doxepin. BTW, I had developed tolerance to xanax, in the past, as well as the Doxepin and yet, as severe as C/T Xanax WD is known to be, Doxepin has been far worse and has taken much longer to recover from, despite the fact that I have tapered from it at a 10 percent rate. I didn't believe it was possible for a WD to be worse than C/T from xanax however, I'm living the reality of such. BTW, I have C/T off every class of AD (in the past) and Doxepin (TCA) is by far the worse. Paxil WD is close to TCA WD but it's not quite as potent in histamine properties however, still has significant impact on histamine (which is a neurotransmitter) which makes it more difficult to WD from than other SSRIs. Also, the sedating TCA target more neurotransmitters than many of the SSRI's. So much more I could write about this but I encourage you NOT to believe me but rather, to research to verify and/or refute some of the details I have shared. TCA or any other AD are not the solution to your current problem. If you have family member who has WD from a TCA without any problem that doesn't mean that it is less potent than Paxil. It simply means that they are in fortunate category of those who experience little or no problems C/T or WD from any psychotropic drug. I did have a friend who C/T from Amytrip and she did experience more problems (although she was still able to live her life fairly easily) than any other AD she had C/T from in the past. So, this is a case of someone who is NOT in the same category as we are, yet she did experience more problems coming off Amytrip. I do know many people who have C/T from SSRIs and even rapidly tapered from antipsychotics who hardly missed a beat. However, you, I and others, are not in that category and thus, trying to WD from a TCA is not going to be an easy feat for you if Paxil wasn't easy. Sedating TCA also produce more severe tingling, numbness and all kinds of severe skin sensations etc. etc. BTW, I have NEVER, ever had any brain zaps with any of my previous C/T WD experiences but I continue to experience brain zaps at 27 months off Doxepin. Also, the electric shocks in my heart that ran down my right arm into the pit of the palm of my right hand were far more severe than any electric shocks I experienced during C/T xanax WD. There are more examples that I could give but I believe I've presented sufficient at this time. (lol) So, Doxepin nor Amitrip. are NOT less toxic nor less damaging than SSRIs. If anything, they are MORE potent, more toxic, target more neurotransitter systems etc. etc. Just for clarification purposes, not all TCA are created equal. But that's a separate discussion. (lol) You will never, ever recover by introducing more psychotropics into your system. As discouraging as protracted WD is, the only hope of recovery is to remain drug-free. Punar To Face My Trials with "The Grace of a Woman Rather Than the Grief of a Child". (quote section by Veronica A. Shoffstall) Be Not Afraid of Growing Slowly. Be Afraid of Only Standing Still. (Chinese Proverb) I Create and Build Empowerment Within Each Time I Choose to Face A Fear, Sit with it and Ask Myself, "What Do I Need to Learn?" Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 Again thanx for your reactions Stan, Alto and Punar! Indeed I feel VERY reluctant to try whatever drug. And as you state, the big mistake doctors make is labeling our condition as a relapse which should be cured by more drugs. And we know that this is not the right answer. THe point my mother makes is that I should look for a pramgatical solution to get rid of the remaining symptoms to be able to resume work. She actually believes me that PAxil w/d is my culprit and has been very patient with me. And she knows I just so desperatly want to go to work again and not be depedent of the social secority system anymore, which luckily was on my side until now. But she does not go with me in dismissing the whole medical community. My father was a doctor and she still has contact with many doctor's wives and has full confidence in her GP. When she once talked about my case with her GP, he of course told he had never heared of this, although he admitted that all GP's has got a recent writing that those drugs should be precribed relucantly. He also said that when I would start again taking it, I should never stop them again. So no help from that man either although he has a good reputation and was even trained by my father himself... of course in a time that no SSRI existed. I know deep inside I will never be able to swallow any psyciatic drug anymore. My biggest concern is work, my life is no real hell anymore, emotionally I am much mroe stable but still extremely hindered by the very nasty neuro stuff, though things are still changing inside. If I would have any indication to need 1-2 years more, I would defintately hang on! Right now I am determined to give it even more time, financially I can ride it out 2 years longer without getting in real trouble. MAyhbe I must burn my savings and I would really regret that, but if the price is remiaing drug-free I would even burn my last penny for it Btw tomorrow is a strange anniversary for me... my last dose of PAxil was on 31 August 2007... so exactly 4 years ago!!! The WD started 6 weeks later and that is were my normal life ended. So I still consider myself as not yet 4 years in w/d... Sometimes I wonder whether I am really one of the worst cases of the site. Though I had one hell of a time and was on the verge of ending it all several times, I feel still better of than some others, I am able to take care of myself, do the housekeeping, eat ehatever I want, drive my car and go out with friends. Some people in w/d are not even able to to these things. It is just the jolts and eye twitching which are still sooo terrible... Again thanks for your ongoing support!!! I will never forget this. And when I am finally healed, I will give a big party and invite anyone here 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
btdt Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Again thanx for your reactions Stan, Alto and Punar! Indeed I feel VERY reluctant to try whatever drug. And as you state, the big mistake doctors make is labeling our condition as a relapse which should be cured by more drugs. And we know that this is not the right answer. THe point my mother makes is that I should look for a pramgatical solution to get rid of the remaining symptoms to be able to resume work. She actually believes me that PAxil w/d is my culprit and has been very patient with me. And she knows I just so desperatly want to go to work again and not be depedent of the social secority system anymore, which luckily was on my side until now. But she does not go with me in dismissing the whole medical community. My father was a doctor and she still has contact with many doctor's wives and has full confidence in her GP. When she once talked about my case with her GP, he of course told he had never heared of this, although he admitted that all GP's has got a recent writing that those drugs should be precribed relucantly. He also said that when I would start again taking it, I should never stop them again. So no help from that man either although he has a good reputation and was even trained by my father himself... of course in a time that no SSRI existed. I know deep inside I will never be able to swallow any psyciatic drug anymore. My biggest concern is work, my life is no real hell anymore, emotionally I am much mroe stable but still extremely hindered by the very nasty neuro stuff, though things are still changing inside. If I would have any indication to need 1-2 years more, I would defintately hang on! Right now I am determined to give it even more time, financially I can ride it out 2 years longer without getting in real trouble. MAyhbe I must burn my savings and I would really regret that, but if the price is remiaing drug-free I would even burn my last penny for it Btw tomorrow is a strange anniversary for me... my last dose of PAxil was on 31 August 2007... so exactly 4 years ago!!! The WD started 6 weeks later and that is were my normal life ended. So I still consider myself as not yet 4 years in w/d... Sometimes I wonder whether I am really one of the worst cases of the site. Though I had one hell of a time and was on the verge of ending it all several times, I feel still better of than some others, I am able to take care of myself, do the housekeeping, eat ehatever I want, drive my car and go out with friends. Some people in w/d are not even able to to these things. It is just the jolts and eye twitching which are still sooo terrible... Again thanks for your ongoing support!!! I will never forget this. And when I am finally healed, I will give a big party and invite anyone here I think it is in my profile I went on Amitriptyline for the treatment of chronic fatigue/fibromyalgia which I was diagnosed with AFTER I was on prozac for less than a wk for nerve pain in my leg. I think the chronic pain which went to many more places than my leg after prozac was withdrawal or more likely a severe adverse reaction to prozac. It did make me sleep which I had not done since I took the prozac. I can't say what would have happened if I did not go to the pain clinic get that diagnosis and start a TCA maybe I would have recovered in time and spared myself 18 years on more drugs and many more years of withdrawal. When I went of amitriptyline I was put directly on zoloft it was a bizarre time I was caring for my mother who was dying of cancer and had to fight off a constant urge to drive the car into a wall and end both our suffering. This experience left me thinking I was in need of mental health treatment it was not till years later I learned this thinking was a result of the zoloft. I could go on with a list of drugs and reactions and withdrawals that followed but I think the point I want to make is we will never know what would have happened if we did not take all the drugs we have taken but I for one want to know who I am without drugs. I don't know for sure if the damaged caused will ever truly heal but my gut tells me one thing I am not going to get healing by taking more drugs and causing further damage. At the end of the day it is really how much can you take sure the drugs may stop the pain you feeling but they will present a bill and you will have to pay it. You know in your gut I know you know because you said "I know deep inside I will never be able to swallow any psyciatic drug anymore." I know this too same as you. I long ago became broke homeless ect I will not bore you with details circumstances make it rough to heal but they do not lessen the resolve to stay drug free or reach out to other people like you who are faltering in their resolve to encourage them to fight off the beliefs of other people as to what you should do about your mental health/medication choices. I encourage you to stick to your guns to stay with your instinct as all these other people no matter how well meaning they may be are not the ones who will suffer the results of you choice. You alone will suffer so stand your ground and do what is right for you. See you at the party Could you imagine a party made up of people in withdrawal it had better be a list of people who have healed. I have had a few occasions I could not get out of anniversary for my sister things like that and nothing tells more loudly how bad it is like a party where you just want to leave and go home to bed. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
btdt Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Claudius, I can't see how amytriptiline will help withdrawal symptoms. You can't treat withdrawal as though it were depression. Alto it helped me sleep after a couple of years of not sleeping much after prozac I am not suggesting anyone take it as there is always fallout... but I think in my case it zonked me out so much I was mostly unaware of how messed up I was... yes I slept yest I desperately needed to sleep to restore my body and brain BUT I was so whacked out on only 10mg sleeping was my greatest pass time mostly I slept. I have two cousins on this particular TCA one has been on it for years and has started having bizarre psych reactions was actually put on and antipsychotic for a few days by her gp. I have done some research on this and suggested she get off. The other cousin was put on it for pain after a car accident and has only been on it a short time. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
btdt Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Claudius, I can't see how amytriptiline will help withdrawal symptoms. You can't treat withdrawal as though it were depression. Alto it helped me sleep after a couple of years of not sleeping much after prozac I am not suggesting anyone take it as there is always fallout... but I think in my case it zonked me out so much I was mostly unaware of how messed up I was... yes I slept yest I desperately needed to sleep to restore my body and brain BUT I was so whacked out on only 10mg sleeping was my greatest pass time mostly I slept. I have two cousins on this particular TCA one has been on it for years and has started having bizarre psych reactions was actually put on and antipsychotic for a few days by her gp. I have done some research on this and suggested she get off. The other cousin was put on it for pain after a car accident and has only been on it a short time. PS I don't know if you recall the thread on pp called sleep state misperseption ....It discussed the sleep disorders one person had iwowi it was her thread. Before I was put on TCA I had the sleep test she speaks of and was told I was asleep when I was awake I know off topic will stop here. Just saying Ads cause sleep disorders like you didn't know. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
btdt Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Again thanx for your reactions Stan, Alto and Punar! Indeed I feel VERY reluctant to try whatever drug. And as you state, the big mistake doctors make is labeling our condition as a relapse which should be cured by more drugs. And we know that this is not the right answer. THe point my mother makes is that I should look for a pramgatical solution to get rid of the remaining symptoms to be able to resume work. She actually believes me that PAxil w/d is my culprit and has been very patient with me. And she knows I just so desperatly want to go to work again and not be depedent of the social secority system anymore, which luckily was on my side until now. But she does not go with me in dismissing the whole medical community. My father was a doctor and she still has contact with many doctor's wives and has full confidence in her GP. When she once talked about my case with her GP, he of course told he had never heared of this, although he admitted that all GP's has got a recent writing that those drugs should be precribed relucantly. He also said that when I would start again taking it, I should never stop them again. So no help from that man either although he has a good reputation and was even trained by my father himself... of course in a time that no SSRI existed. I know deep inside I will never be able to swallow any psyciatic drug anymore. My biggest concern is work, my life is no real hell anymore, emotionally I am much mroe stable but still extremely hindered by the very nasty neuro stuff, though things are still changing inside. If I would have any indication to need 1-2 years more, I would defintately hang on! Right now I am determined to give it even more time, financially I can ride it out 2 years longer without getting in real trouble. MAyhbe I must burn my savings and I would really regret that, but if the price is remiaing drug-free I would even burn my last penny for it Btw tomorrow is a strange anniversary for me... my last dose of PAxil was on 31 August 2007... so exactly 4 years ago!!! The WD started 6 weeks later and that is were my normal life ended. So I still consider myself as not yet 4 years in w/d... Sometimes I wonder whether I am really one of the worst cases of the site. Though I had one hell of a time and was on the verge of ending it all several times, I feel still better of than some others, I am able to take care of myself, do the housekeeping, eat ehatever I want, drive my car and go out with friends. Some people in w/d are not even able to to these things. It is just the jolts and eye twitching which are still sooo terrible... Again thanks for your ongoing support!!! I will never forget this. And when I am finally healed, I will give a big party and invite anyone here "He also said that when I would start again taking it, I should never stop them again"What would be you option if you were to reach tolerance as I did taking Effexor? I also think tolerance was the reason I was put on zoloft I could not tolerate increasing the TCA so was switched. I read a report recently don't recall where that impramine has a 100% withdrawal reaction after a very short time of use. Just so you know. WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG Had a car accident in 85 Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89 Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above. One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking. As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/ There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in Link to comment
Claudius Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 OK I hear you, I just get desperate from the timeframe and the ongoing symptoms and heared today that my finacnial support will be probably drastically reduced from January 2012. So I feel the clock ticking now, still unable to work more than a few hours. My mother visited my sister and she again had asked if I really do not want to consult a psychiatrist for medicine advice... She is still on Paxil and did not even read the letters, articles from dr. Healy and others and site referrals I once sent to hear. It would almost be funny if it was not so deeply tragic to get such "advice" from your closest relatives... 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
Claudius Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Well I visited aonther GP yesterday, my cousin, and had a wonderful session! Basically we were on the same line. She listened carefully to my story and started to say that I am not deeply depressed or anxious so going back to an SSRI after 4 years off is no option. Her explanation for my problems is in fact the same as the one of dr. Shipko, neuropathic destabilisation triggered by the fast going off Paxil. She was not a fan of PAxil, she told me years earlier the tendency ws prescribing Paxil instead of Prozac because of the shorter half-life which was seen as a plus on those days. She had always been suspicious about PAxil/Seroxat and never prescribed it. She however did and still does sometimes prescribe Lexapro and saud that is was always possible to wean people off, sometimes but not always with the suspension. She in fact praised my intelligence and knowledge about the subject and will try to be suppportive in the coming time. Because my condition can in her view (and in mine) be labeled as Paxil-triggered neuropathy, we discussed the possibiblity of consulting a good neurologist. She told me about some heavy neurologic meds (with heavy side effects) which could be taken for limited time and could be helpful in "resetting" the nervous system. Of course I am pretty suspicious about this, she thought that the risks are low but I know that, however helpful she is, even she maybe underestimates the severity of Paxil w/d. In the end it was a very good conversation and maybe a step in the direction of medical recognition and at least an official second opinion from a doctor who does take this issue serious. Mentally I feel better today, only the heart/chest zaps are still very bad but when they are finally gone, the world is waiting for me 10 mg Paxil/Seroxat since 2002 several attempts to quit since 2004 Quit c/t again Oktober 2007, in protracted w/d since then after 3.5 years slight improvement but still on the road after 6 years pretty much recovered but still some nasty residual sypmtons after 8.5 years working again on a 90% base and basically functioning normally again! Link to comment
compsports Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Well I visited aonther GP yesterday, my cousin, and had a wonderful session! Basically we were on the same line. She listened carefully to my story and started to say that I am not deeply depressed or anxious so going back to an SSRI after 4 years off is no option. Her explanation for my problems is in fact the same as the one of dr. Shipko, neuropathic destabilisation triggered by the fast going off Paxil. She was not a fan of PAxil, she told me years earlier the tendency ws prescribing Paxil instead of Prozac because of the shorter half-life which was seen as a plus on those days. She had always been suspicious about PAxil/Seroxat and never prescribed it. She however did and still does sometimes prescribe Lexapro and saud that is was always possible to wean people off, sometimes but not always with the suspension. She in fact praised my intelligence and knowledge about the subject and will try to be suppportive in the coming time. BEcause my condition can in her view (and in mine) be labeled as neuropathy, we discussed the possibiblity of consulting a good neurologist. She told me about some heavy meds which could be taken foroa limited time and could be helpful in "Resetting" the nervous system. Of course I am pretty suspicious about this, she thought that the risks are low but I know that, however helpful she is, even she maybe underestimates the severeity of Paxil w/d. In the end it was a very good conversation and maybe a step in the deirection of medical recognition and at leasdt an official second opinion from a doctor who does take this issue serious. Mentally I feel better today, only the heart/chest zaps are still very bad but when they are finally gone, the world is waiting for me Hi Claudius, I am glad your visit with your cousin, the doctor, went well. It is nice to have validation for your condition, isn't it? However, I would also be very suspicious that heavy meds can reset the nervous system at little risk. In my opinion, that is like saying that taking heroin can help with symptoms of cocaine withdrawal. It also doesn't make any sense to me because when someone has a bad reaction to a non psych med, they're not given something similar to reset the system. CS Drug cocktail 1995 - 2010 Started taper of Adderall, Wellbutrin XL, Remeron, and Doxepin in 2006 Finished taper on June 10, 2010 Temazepam on a PRN basis approximately twice a month - 2014 to 2016 Beginning in 2017 - Consumption increased to about two times per week April 2017 - Increased to taking it full time for insomnia Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted September 2, 2011 Administrator Share Posted September 2, 2011 Very glad you found validation from your cousin, and she is going to help you. I also would be very hesitant to take other medications, unless the doctor is very, very familiar with treating withdrawal syndrome specifically. Otherwise, he or she would just be experimenting. 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
Moderator Emeritus Rhiannon Posted September 5, 2011 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted September 5, 2011 Well I visited aonther GP yesterday, my cousin, and had a wonderful session! Basically we were on the same line. She listened carefully to my story and started to say that I am not deeply depressed or anxious so going back to an SSRI after 4 years off is no option. Her explanation for my problems is in fact the same as the one of dr. Shipko, neuropathic destabilisation triggered by the fast going off Paxil. She was not a fan of PAxil, she told me years earlier the tendency ws prescribing Paxil instead of Prozac because of the shorter half-life which was seen as a plus on those days. She had always been suspicious about PAxil/Seroxat and never prescribed it. She however did and still does sometimes prescribe Lexapro and saud that is was always possible to wean people off, sometimes but not always with the suspension. She in fact praised my intelligence and knowledge about the subject and will try to be suppportive in the coming time. Because my condition can in her view (and in mine) be labeled as Paxil-triggered neuropathy, we discussed the possibiblity of consulting a good neurologist. She told me about some heavy neurologic meds (with heavy side effects) which could be taken for limited time and could be helpful in "resetting" the nervous system. Of course I am pretty suspicious about this, she thought that the risks are low but I know that, however helpful she is, even she maybe underestimates the severity of Paxil w/d. In the end it was a very good conversation and maybe a step in the direction of medical recognition and at least an official second opinion from a doctor who does take this issue serious. Mentally I feel better today, only the heart/chest zaps are still very bad but when they are finally gone, the world is waiting for me Nice to get such good support from a GP! I always love hearing stories like this, which are unfortunately so rare. Of course I agree with the others about taking any other neuro meds. Especially since you are finally noticing some consistent improvement. For which, by the way, I celebrate with you! WOO HOO!!! I think the fact that you are noticing some healing of the mental/emotional symptoms is a very, very good sign. I hope you don't give in to the pressures to take another med now which could undermine your progress so far. It seems to me this would be a bad time to do that, now that your system is finally showing signs of getting back into a healthy state. You don't want to throw yourself back into chaos now. You've got four years of healing behind you now, that has been hard work for your nervous system and brain, be gentle to them! Is it possible to work a little bit, a part time job, and keep your spending small, and maybe contribute just a little bit from your savings, to buy yourself time for more healing? You might find at this point that a small job would actually be helpful. A little bit of stimulation and challenge might actually be good for you. But not too much. What do you think about this idea? Started on Prozac and Xanax in 1992 for PTSD after an assault. One drug led to more, the usual story. Got sicker and sicker, but believed I needed the drugs for my "underlying disease". Long story...lost everything. Life savings, home, physical and mental health, relationships, friendships, ability to work, everything. Amitryptiline, Prozac, bupropion, buspirone, flurazepam, diazepam, alprazolam, Paxil, citalopram, lamotrigine, gabapentin...probably more I've forgotten. Started multidrug taper in Feb 2010. Doing a very slow microtaper, down to low doses now and feeling SO much better, getting my old personality and my brain back! Able to work full time, have a full social life, and cope with stress better than ever. Not perfect, but much better. After 23 lost years. Big Pharma has a lot to answer for. And "medicine for profit" is just not a great idea. Feb 15 2010: 300 mg Neurontin 200 Lamictal 10 Celexa 0.65 Xanax and 5 mg Ambien Feb 10 2014: 62 Lamictal 1.1 Celexa 0.135 Xanax 1.8 Valium Feb 10 2015: 50 Lamictal 0.875 Celexa 0.11 Xanax 1.5 Valium Feb 15 2016: 47.5 Lamictal 0.75 Celexa 0.0875 Xanax 1.42 Valium 2/12/20 12 0.045 0.007 1 May 2021 7 0.01 0.0037 1 Feb 2022 6 0!!! 0.00167 0.98 2.5 mg Ambien Oct 2022 4.5 mg Lamictal (off Celexa, off Xanax) 0.95 Valium Ambien, 1/4 to 1/2 of a 5 mg tablet I'm not a doctor. Any advice I give is just my civilian opinion. Link to comment
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