Justin332: Paxil withdrawal - scared and need advice

[powerback]

2 minutes ago, Justin332 said:

The best thing Dr. Tankersley said to me was:

 

”none of this is permanent, there is only one drug that caused irreparable damage to your brain and emotions, and that’s crystal meth. Nothing with SSRIs is permanent.”

Apologies J in advance but curiosity is at me here ,is he implying the crystal meth statement to you personally or in a general sense .

 

[Justin332]

8 minutes ago, powerback said:

Apologies J in advance but curiosity is at me here ,is he implying the crystal meth statement to you personally or in a general sense .

 

In a general sense. I have never done meth but I’m in a gay community where many of my friends have fallen victim to it and lost everything. 

[powerback]

1 minute ago, Justin332 said:

In a general sense. I have never done meth but I’m in a gay community where many of my friends have fallen victim to it and lost everything. 

Thanks J .its a very nasty drug from what I've read .

Well done on your progress . 

Take care .

[Downbutnotout]

2 hours ago, Justin332 said:

So it has been about 17 days since I’ve had sort of wave, or anxiety symptoms. Sleep has been easy to attain again, and I’ve comoletely stabilized and gotten back to work. My last day of symptoms was February 3rd. It was a pretty awful day but when i woke up the next day, all the burning, chest akathisia, depressive thoughts, al of it just left. It was like a switch went back on. I thought it might be only a window but i wasn’t manic like i was in previous windows. I thought it was different. I was right. 

 

I saw a new, cash only psychiatrist who has done some case studies on ssri withdrawal. He does believe that our brains do become very dependent on ssri, and after use of more than ten years you probably can’t come off without a massive withdrawal syndrome. He believes reinstatement always works, and that the fight or flight symptoms are more from a lack of serotonin that causes neurotransmitters to misfire than anything. 

 

He explained the following reason that we/i had such a meltdown. It isn’t much different from what altostrata says. 

 

1) nervous system is destabilized by withdrawal, making everything hypersensitive. 

2) reinstatement will make it worse, further destabilizing nervous system and making anxiety and physical symptoms worse

3) getting off gabapentin was a big mistake in mid January. 

4) drinking and Valium caused rebound anxiety. 

 

 

I bought into everything he said, and reinstated gabapentin at 200mg x 3 daily and 10mg Paxil. Now up to 20mg temporarily before i ween down after three mo this of panic free behavior. 

 

I stabilized exactly 40 days after reinstatement of Paxil. Nervous system settled down, and life is completely back to normal. 

 

Please keep in mind i no longer take Valium, trazodone, or ambien. 

 

I will be weening off gabapentin and going back down to 10mg Paxil over the next six months with his help, and will stay there for life. I am okay with that, and so thankful this period of my life is over. 

 

I hope this gives some of you hope, and i wanted to thank the many people on this board who were positive support through this ordeal. 

Good for you.  

[Altostrata]

Good to hear you're doing well, Justin. If you feel you can recommend your doctor, please add his or her contact information to our list at http://tinyurl.com/7cp8l8v

[ihpsdm]

21 hours ago, Justin332 said:

So it has been about 17 days since I’ve had sort of wave, or anxiety symptoms. Sleep has been easy to attain again, and I’ve comoletely stabilized and gotten back to work. My last day of symptoms was February 3rd. It was a pretty awful day but when i woke up the next day, all the burning, chest akathisia, depressive thoughts, al of it just left. It was like a switch went back on. I thought it might be only a window but i wasn’t manic like i was in previous windows. I thought it was different. I was right. 

 

I saw a new, cash only psychiatrist who has done some case studies on ssri withdrawal. He does believe that our brains do become very dependent on ssri, and after use of more than ten years you probably can’t come off without a massive withdrawal syndrome. He believes reinstatement always works, and that the fight or flight symptoms are more from a lack of serotonin that causes neurotransmitters to misfire than anything. 

 

He explained the following reason that we/i had such a meltdown. It isn’t much different from what altostrata says. 

 

1) nervous system is destabilized by withdrawal, making everything hypersensitive. 

2) reinstatement will make it worse, further destabilizing nervous system and making anxiety and physical symptoms worse

3) getting off gabapentin was a big mistake in mid January. 

4) drinking and Valium caused rebound anxiety. 

 

 

I bought into everything he said, and reinstated gabapentin at 200mg x 3 daily and 10mg Paxil. Now up to 20mg temporarily before i ween down after three mo this of panic free behavior. 

 

I stabilized exactly 40 days after reinstatement of Paxil. Nervous system settled down, and life is completely back to normal. 

 

Please keep in mind i no longer take Valium, trazodone, or ambien. 

 

I will be weening off gabapentin and going back down to 10mg Paxil over the next six months with his help, and will stay there for life. I am okay with that, and so thankful this period of my life is over. 

 

I hope this gives some of you hope, and i wanted to thank the many people on this board who were positive support through this ordeal. 

 

Thanks for the update Justin. After reading the posts here I've come to the conclusion that I will be on Effexor for life. I reinstated over a month ago and feel so much better. I just could not function at work with all of the withdrawal symptoms. I would rather not take a drug for the rest of my life but it's not worth ruining my life in order to get off this drug. I can't go through years of withdrawals and keep my job. I have a great job and a good life and I'm not going to throw that all away.

 

Getting off of Klonopin is what I really need to focus on now. I've been taking that for 15 years and this is the drug I should have been working on getting out of my life. I'm more worried about the long term effects of that drug as well as the possibility that this drug could be ripped away from me at any point since doctors are really cutting down on prescribing benzos. Now that I've stabilized on Effexor, I will start a micro-taper of Klonopin, which is going to be rough.

[Justin332]

I checked this site this morning and saw a few PMs asking how I’m doing. 

 

I am still doing very very very well since the 10mg of Paxil reestablished in my body February 5th. 

 

Its hard to even remember how I felt during my withdrawal syndrome months. In a messed up way, it makes me even happier now because i am so appreciative of life. 

 

Btw, i no longer take gabapentin, Valium, ambien, trazodone. None of it. 

 

It will get better. 

[Rosetta]

Hi Justin, 

I'm glad you are well.  What a relief.  It's wonderful that you are stable and working!!

Please consider this: you may want to do some research about tachyphylaxis.   That is when you reach tolerance and withdrawal happens even while taking the drug.  The best way to prevent it is to be proactive and wean off the drug prior to tolerance occurring.  I understand you've been on Paxil since 2012. I hope that after a long hold you will seriously consider weaning off Paxil so that you can have control over your WD.  That would be better than having it happen via tachyphylaxis when you are not prepared and can't control it by stepping down slowly.  

 

Rosetta

[DaveB]

2 hours ago, Justin332 said:

I checked this site this morning and saw a few PMs asking how I’m doing. 

 

I am still doing very very very well since the 10mg of Paxil reestablished in my body February 5th. 

 

Its hard to even remember how I felt during my withdrawal syndrome months. In a messed up way, it makes me even happier now because i am so appreciative of life. 

 

Btw, i no longer take gabapentin, Valium, ambien, trazodone. None of it. 

 

It will get better. 

 

Thanks for the update Justin, looks like all is well with you and that is great! I am jealous, but very happy for you.

[RachelSusan]

Congrats Justin.  This is really terrific.   I'm so very pleased for you.

Rachel

[Justin332]

On 5/31/2018 at 12:03 PM, Rosetta said:

Hi Justin, 

I'm glad you are well.  What a relief.  It's wonderful that you are stable and working!!

Please consider this: you may want to do some research about tachyphylaxis.   That is when you reach tolerance and withdrawal happens even while taking the drug.  The best way to prevent it is to be proactive and wean off the drug prior to tolerance occurring.  I understand you've been on Paxil since 2012. I hope that after a long hold you will seriously consider weaning off Paxil so that you can have control over your WD.  That would be better than having it happen via tachyphylaxis when you are not prepared and can't control it by stepping down slowly.  

 

Rosetta

I don’t agree with this at all. Feels almost like fear mongering. It’s well established that my brain cannot function without a low dose of Paxil. A psychiatrist experienced in protracted withdrawal syndrome told me this. 

 

Now youre saying that I should put myself in another withdrawal in the even the drug I’ve been taking for 19 years decides to not work all of a sudden?  That’s horrible logic. 

[Rosetta]

Justin,  

 

I'm sorry if you feel that way.  It was not my intention to fear monger.  I hope you will be fine, and that for you or doctor's advice works out. - Rosetta

[brassmonkey]

"Now youre saying that I should put myself in another withdrawal in the even the drug I’ve been taking for 19 years decides to not work all of a sudden?  That’s horrible logic. "

 

It may seem like horrible logic, but that's exactly how these drugs work and tachyphylaxis happens.  Once tachyphylaxis has set in the only way to get out of the situation is to very slowly reduce the dosage of the medication.  Any increase in dosage may produce positive results for a short period of time, but the tachyphylaxis will return and will return in a stronger state. Continued updosing will just make matters worse.  It takes a very long time to taper out of tachyphylaxis and can be very frustrating because there are very few positive results until a person is well into their taper. I'm very sorry you're finding yourself in this position because I've been there myself.  Please do a site search on tachyphylaxis and "poopout" there is a lot of information here from people who have gone through it.

[ihpsdm]

4 hours ago, Justin332 said:

I don’t agree with this at all. Feels almost like fear mongering. It’s well established that my brain cannot function without a low dose of Paxil. A psychiatrist experienced in protracted withdrawal syndrome told me this. 

 

Now youre saying that I should put myself in another withdrawal in the even the drug I’ve been taking for 19 years decides to not work all of a sudden?  That’s horrible logic. 

 

As someone who went through something similar as you, this was my reaction as well. You just went through hell, got stable and then the suggestion is to taper off again? That's advice I will not follow.

 

I think most of us who have taken these drugs for 15+ years understand that they may not be as effective as they once were. However, that's different than going through life altering withdrawals that leave you bedridden. I take Effexor and I've seen no way to effectively taper off this drug since it only comes in capsule form which makes microtapering impossible via the 10% rule impossible. I'll gladly take this drug for life just to avoid withdrawals that could cost me everything. Whether or not it's effective or not isn't the issue anymore since I no longer suffer from anxiety/depression due to changes in my life. That't the whole reason I've tried tapering to get off this drug in the past. 

[Altostrata]

5 hours ago, Justin332 said:

I don’t agree with this at all. Feels almost like fear mongering. It’s well established that my brain cannot function without a low dose of Paxil. A psychiatrist experienced in protracted withdrawal syndrome told me this. 

 

Now youre saying that I should put myself in another withdrawal in the even the drug I’ve been taking for 19 years decides to not work all of a sudden?  That’s horrible logic. 

 

Hi, Justin. Did Dr. Tankersley tell you your "brain cannot function without a low dose of Paxil"? What exactly did he say?

 

If he understands withdrawal, he will know that you are taking 10mg Paxil to stop withdrawal symptoms, not because your brain intrinsically cannot function without Paxil. That latter inference is your own belief in needing drug solutions talking.

 

If you wish, it's highly likely you will be able to taper off Paxil some time in the future -- but only very, very slowly as , having been severely injured, your nervous system will be sensitive to drug changes.

 

Tachyphylaxis may or may not occur. You will know it if you feel it. Whether you want to taper off is entirely up to you.

 

You were very fortunate in finding a doctor who knows anything about withdrawal syndrome. I was struck by this:

 

On 2/22/2018 at 10:06 AM, Justin332 said:

So it has been about 17 days since I’ve had sort of wave, or anxiety symptoms. Sleep has been easy to attain again, and I’ve comoletely stabilized and gotten back to work. My last day of symptoms was February 3rd. It was a pretty awful day but when i woke up the next day, all the burning, chest akathisia, depressive thoughts, al of it just left. It was like a switch went back on. I thought it might be only a window but i wasn’t manic like i was in previous windows. I thought it was different. I was right. 

 

I saw a new, cash only psychiatrist who has done some case studies on ssri withdrawal. He does believe that our brains do become very dependent on ssri, and after use of more than ten years you probably can’t come off without a massive withdrawal syndrome. He believes reinstatement always works, and that the fight or flight symptoms are more from a lack of serotonin that causes neurotransmitters to misfire than anything. 

 

He explained the following reason that we/i had such a meltdown. It isn’t much different from what altostrata says. 

 

1) nervous system is destabilized by withdrawal, making everything hypersensitive. 

2) reinstatement will make it worse, further destabilizing nervous system and making anxiety and physical symptoms worse

3) getting off gabapentin was a big mistake in mid January. 

4) drinking and Valium caused rebound anxiety. 

 

 

I bought into everything he said, and reinstated gabapentin at 200mg x 3 daily and 10mg Paxil. Now up to 20mg temporarily before i ween down after three mo this of panic free behavior. 

 

I stabilized exactly 40 days after reinstatement of Paxil. Nervous system settled down, and life is completely back to normal. 

 

Please keep in mind i no longer take Valium, trazodone, or ambien. 

 

I will be weening off gabapentin and going back down to 10mg Paxil over the next six months with his help, and will stay there for life. I am okay with that, and so thankful this period of my life is over. 

 

I hope this gives some of you hope, and i wanted to thank the many people on this board who were positive support through this ordeal. 

 

He corroborated what we were telling you. I wonder if Dr. Tankersley reads this site? Some psychiatrists do use it as a reference.

 

Looking through your Intro topic, I see we've done an excellent job supporting you in reinstating and coming back from severe withdrawal syndrome, even though you showed a lot of resistance towards what we were telling you and have a habit of self-medicating with random prescription drugs and bouts of heavy drinking. You're welcome.

[Justin332]

I was just looking back at some of the feedback on here, man some of you were nasty. You’re trying to help but come off as angry, miserable, negative people. 

 

Altostrata was especially bad and unhelpful. 

 

Anyways, a year post withdrawal and everything is still amazing on 10mg Paxil daily. Don’t fight it. It sucks that we are dependent on these drugs but some of us can’t get off the them. Why give yourself years of pain? Just take a small dose and move on. 

[Justin332]

On 6/14/2018 at 3:05 PM, Altostrata said:

 

Hi, Justin. Did Dr. Tankersley tell you your "brain cannot function without a low dose of Paxil"? What exactly did he say?

 

If he understands withdrawal, he will know that you are taking 10mg Paxil to stop withdrawal symptoms, not because your brain intrinsically cannot function without Paxil. That latter inference is your own belief in needing drug solutions talking.

 

If you wish, it's highly likely you will be able to taper off Paxil some time in the future -- but only very, very slowly as , having been severely injured, your nervous system will be sensitive to drug changes.

 

Tachyphylaxis may or may not occur. You will know it if you feel it. Whether you want to taper off is entirely up to you.

 

You were very fortunate in finding a doctor who knows anything about withdrawal syndrome. I was struck by this:

 

 

He corroborated what we were telling you. I wonder if Dr. Tankersley reads this site? Some psychiatrists do use it as a reference.

 

Looking through your Intro topic, I see we've done an excellent job supporting you in reinstating and coming back from severe withdrawal syndrome, even though you showed a lot of resistance towards what we were telling you and have a habit of self-medicating with random prescription drugs and bouts of heavy drinking. You're welcome.

This is especially BS. You did nothing but ask for information in a condescending tone. Pathetic. 

[Sottana]

In defense of the mods, they were only trying to help you out, man. The truth is, just because you haven’t hit “Poopout” in a year, doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future. I truly hope you never do, and hope low-dose Paxil helps you forever. Personally, I’ve known many people that have taken AD’s for a long time and none of them haven’t hit Poopout at least to some degree. Longitudinal studies simply haven’t been done on these drugs, but I’m sure in the future it’ll come out the tolerance is basically inevitable if you stay on long enough. Whatever your issue is with Alto’s tone, she’s helped a ton of people that were in truly dire situations. The information on this website is so valuable bc it simply isn’t available anywhere else. Psychiatrists won’t give it to you, and if you’re feeling hopeless, they will always have the same answer, more drugs. The process of withdrawal is brutal and not challenging, but it is one of hope and moving in a different direction. This forum provides an outlet to people, who up until this point, have felt a real absence of hope. So, I must say, I do take it a little personally when you attack Alto and the other mods on here as they’ve been such a lifeline to me. 

[Sottana]

Mods can be short and to the point, but it’s very much Bc they have sooooo many people asking for advice. So many people bombarding them with how horrible they are feeling and how to help ASAP. I don’t blame people at all, and I’ve done the same, but this site is done completely pro bono. You’ve gotta understand all of that.