FakeItTilYouMakeIt: Lexapro to Pristiq

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

18 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

Strongly recommend physical therapy instead.

 

I agree! I went to a chiropractor and learned some stretches and stuff. But their massage therapist had just quit that day. Waiting to return when they get a new one. 

My nuerologist also gave me a script for Requip for my RLS. I am going to put that into the drug checker.

[ChessieCat]

Looked up Requip out of curiousity:

 

What are the side effects of the drug Requip?

 

Less serious side effects may occur, such as:

• worsened RLS symptoms early in the morning;

and:

 

How does Requip work for restless leg syndrome?

 

Ropinirole is also used to treat restless legs syndrome (RLS). It may improve your sleep by decreasing the urge to move your legs and decreasing uncomfortable/unpleasant feelings in the legs. This medication works by helping to restore the balance of a certain natural substance (dopamine) in the brain.

[Shep]

FakeIt, thanks for fixing your signature. Well done. 

 

You may find this thread helpful:

 

Non-drug treatments for restless legs

 

Another tip - you have melatonin in your signature, but the dose is unclear. Please note that "less is more" when it comes to melatonin. Please see:

 

Melatonin for sleep

 

While dealing with the signature issues, it looks like you may have missed an important post that ChessieCat wrote which thoroughly describes her own method of reducing Pristiq. Her post on that is here. 

[Songbird]

8 hours ago, FakeItTilYouMakeIt said:

My nuerologist also gave me a script for Requip for my RLS. I am going to put that into the drug checker.

 

On reading your story, I'm seeing that a reaction to one med, a steroid, has led to more meds being added to treat the effects of other meds.  This is what we call the "med merry-go-round" and leads to a complicated mess.  The steroid caused elevated heart rate, so Ativan was prescribed.  Then Lexapro was prescribed for Ativan withdrawal.  The Lexapro most likely caused the RLS, so now Requip is being prescribed.  Can you see the pattern here?  There are natural treatments for RLS that could be worth trying before resorting to yet another med.

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

2 hours ago, Shep said:

FakeIt, thanks for fixing your signature. Well done. 

 

You may find this thread helpful:

 

Non-drug treatments for restless legs

 

Another tip - you have melatonin in your signature, but the dose is unclear. Please note that "less is more" when it comes to melatonin. Please see:

 

Melatonin for sleep

 

While dealing with the signature issues, it looks like you may have missed an important post that ChessieCat wrote which thoroughly describes her own method of reducing Pristiq. Her post on that is here. 

I'm glad my signature is finally accurate. 😀

Thank you for the RLS info. I have tried every remedy listed. I go through times when it is worse and better. Sleeping meds like unisom ir Tylenol PM definitely exacerbate it.  I'm trying to sleep with zero medication so it hasn't been a big issue, but with the sciatic pain it's come back pretty hard from tossing and turning. I absolutely hate prescription medications so I will not be taking the two I asked about now that we've researched them. 

 

I did see CCs post about weaning off Pristiq. I've even found a compounding pharmacy I can use when I am ready to reduce again. I'm just trying to figure out how long I should hold on the 25. 

 

In regards to the melatonin I would say I take 1mg or less if and when I do take it. I've heard even though it's natural it should not be used every night or long term. 

 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

2 hours ago, Songbird said:

 

On reading your story, I'm seeing that a reaction to one med, a steroid, has led to more meds being added to treat the effects of other meds.  This is what we call the "med merry-go-round" and leads to a complicated mess.  The steroid caused elevated heart rate, so Ativan was prescribed.  Then Lexapro was prescribed for Ativan withdrawal.  The Lexapro most likely caused the RLS, so now Requip is being prescribed.  Can you see the pattern here?  There are natural treatments for RLS that could be worth trying before resorting to yet another med.

Absolutely! My goal is to be completely med free asap (except my insulin).  Right now the AD is the only pill i take except supplements. I have no interest in adding anything permanently. I was just wondering if the Requip or Flexeril we're ok maybe once a week if the sciatic nerve pain became unbearable. I did take it once and slept well but felt horrible the whole next day. 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

Another question. I haven't found a definitive answer in the links.

I know when reducing or stopping an AD that the depression can become worse. 

When reducing, does one stay at the reduced dose until the depression goes away? And what if Im not even sure what I'm feeling is depression?  They say you lose interest in the things you used to love. Well, my issue is that I have a HUGE interest in the things I used to love. I want to be able to do them again, but because I feel so crappy, I can't. Or I can't enjoy them. When I was on Lexapro, I got a taste of depression and for me it was like confirmation that I am not and never was depressed. Yet, I can't get the old me back. Does that make sense? Has ANYBODY reading this felt that way? Is it because I just should not be on an AD? 

Is there anybody here that had previously used Ativan that can tell me if my off feeling is still Benzo withdrawal? 

Thanks. 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

5 hours ago, Songbird said:

 

On reading your story, I'm seeing that a reaction to one med, a steroid, has led to more meds being added to treat the effects of other meds.  This is what we call the "med merry-go-round" and leads to a complicated mess.  The steroid caused elevated heart rate, so Ativan was prescribed.  Then Lexapro was prescribed for Ativan withdrawal.  The Lexapro most likely caused the RLS, so now Requip is being prescribed.  Can you see the pattern here?  There are natural treatments for RLS that could be worth trying before resorting to yet another med.

 

You are absolutely correct about the merry go round. 

I believe the steroid probably caused the elevated heart rate. Which led to hospital which led to insomnia which the Ativan was prescribed for. When I stopped the Ativan I crashes and was given Lexapro which caused side effects so I was switched to Pristiq.... And so on.  Endless cycle. I am going to break it though.

[Altostrata]

We need to see your symptom pattern to address the "depression" issue. The word "depression" itself does not have much meaning. One can deal with emotional symptoms with non-drug means. What exactly are your symptoms of "depression"?

 

Please keep daily notes on paper about your symptoms, when you take your drugs, and their dosages.

 

Requip is yet another neuroactive drug. If you have been having adverse reactions due to neuroactive drugs, if I were you, I'd avoid adding other neuroactive drugs, or any other drugs unless you absolutely need them to maintain health.

 

Many people do better with fish oil and magnesium supplements, see
http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/36-king-of-supplements-omega-3-fatty-acids-fish-oil/

http://survivingantidepressants.org/topic/15483-magnesium-natures-calcium-channel-blocker/

 

A lot of people find them helpful. Try a little bit of one at a time to see how it affects you.

 

Magnesium in particular is good for so-called "restless legs", another formerly rare diagnosis upon which drug makers have capitalized to sell drugs such as Requip. Your "restless legs" might also respond well to leg stretches. This is another area where physical therapy might be better for you than a prescription.

 

[ChessieCat]

6 hours ago, Altostrata said:

Please keep daily notes on paper about your symptoms, when you take your drugs, and their dosages.

 

This is an example of how to report the information which Alto is requesting:

 

A diary, in chronological order, such as:
 
6 a.m. Woke and vomited
8 a.m. Took 2.5mg Lexapro
10 a.m. Had diarrhea
10:30 a.m. Ate breakfast
11:35 a.m. Got a headache, lasted one hour
12:35 p.m. Ate lunch
4 p.m. Stomachache
5 p.m. Took 2.5mg Lexapro
6 p.m. Ate dinner
9:20 p.m. Headache
10:00 p.m. Took 50mg Seroquel
10:20 p.m. Headache got worse
10:30 p.m. Fell asleep
2:30 a.m. Woke, took 3mg Ambien (NOT "took 1/2 tablet Ambien")
2:45 a.m. Fell asleep
4:30 a.m. Woke with headache

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

Day 8 of 25mg Pristiq.

Today was the best day I have had in six months!  It seems the side effects of cog fog and fatigue I have had since reducing my dose have lifted and I feel closer to being myself than I have since my whole journey started. 

I am not going to reduce yet though. I am going to talk with my doc about writing a prescription for a lower dose and having it compounded. While I know people in Australia have to jump from 50 and I've been on an AD for only five months, I still want to go slow. 

[Altostrata]

Please note you will have to take compounded Pristiq twice a day, as explained in Tips for Tapering Pristiq

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

56 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

Please note you will have to take compounded Pristiq twice a day, as explained in Tips for Tapering Pristiq

 

Got it. Thanks! 

I will be sure to discuss this with the pharmacy when I get the lower doses compounded. When I asked about it the first time he said he will add a time release additive so I would only have to take it once per day .  I'll be sure to double/triple check I am getting the right doses.

 

What I don't understand is, if Effexor and Pristiq are so similar as I've read so many places, then why is the therapeutic dose of Pristiq 50mg and the therapeutic dose of Effexor 150mg??  That just doesn't seem to make sense to me. Can someone explain?

 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

Zero symptoms today. It was a beautiful day.

[Songbird]

7 hours ago, FakeItTilYouMakeIt said:

What I don't understand is, if Effexor and Pristiq are so similar as I've read so many places, then why is the therapeutic dose of Pristiq 50mg and the therapeutic dose of Effexor 150mg??  That just doesn't seem to make sense to me. Can someone explain?

 

 

Desvenlafaxine (Pristiq) is the major metabolite of venlafaxine (Effexor).  That is, your body takes the venlafaxine and turns most of it into desvenlafaxine.  The rest of the venlafaxine is turned into minor metabolites that are not considered clinically active.  Dose equivalence seems to be a bit of a murky issue.  The equivalent of 50mg Pristiq seems to be anywhere from 75mg to 150mg Effexor.

[Altostrata]

Good to hear you're feeling better. '

 

The pharmacy additives to extend release of a drug may not be as effective.

 

On 7/3/2018 at 11:56 AM, FakeItTilYouMakeIt said:

What I don't understand is, if Effexor and Pristiq are so similar as I've read so many places, then why is the therapeutic dose of Pristiq 50mg and the therapeutic dose of Effexor 150mg??  That just doesn't seem to make sense to me. Can someone explain?

 

Much of this is explained in the links we gave you, which you should have read. We're all about self-care here. Please get used to using search on this site or consult Dr. Google to answer your questions.

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

16 hours ago, Altostrata said:

Good to hear you're feeling better. '

 

The pharmacy additives to extend release of a drug may not be as effective.

 

 

Much of this is explained in the links we gave you, which you should have read. We're all about self-care here. Please get used to using search on this site or consult Dr. Google to answer your questions.

Well there's some irony. Lol.

Family, friends, and my Doc say don't use Google. They say find a reputable support group for answers. I find one and they tell me to use Dr. Google to answer my question.  🤐

I apologise for asking a question I wasn't allowed to. Since my warning I have tried to be careful about what I ask. I don't  want to get in trouble  again or kicked off   i will look through the links again and use Dr. Google for more of an answer. As Songbird said, it seems to be a rather murky question; I did not see it discussed in any of the links (why, if they are the same medicine, there is such a broad difference in doses). Yes, I see that they are similar, etc. But I did not see an answer to my specific question. As I told Shep, I've read the links numerous times. 

Again, please accept my apologies for asking an unacceptable question. 

 

 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

Can you please explain "self care" Do you mean I need to find answers to my questions myself and not ask them here?  I just want to be certain what you mean. Thanks so much. 

[TheWayBack]

They mean you have to dig through all the information yourself and make your own decisions. This way you can't have hard feelings towards someone if their suggestions don't work out for you.

 

I must say that is definitely the way to go. There is truly a wealth on information on this site.

 

 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

1 hour ago, TheWayBack said:

They mean you have to dig through all the information yourself and make your own decisions. This way you can't have hard feelings towards someone if their suggestions don't work out for you.

 

I must say that is definitely the way to go. There is truly a wealth on information on this site.

 

 

 

Oh, I totally get what you're saying there to some degree.  example: if you use Dr. Google to ask about tapering from an AD, you'll mostly find "take half the dose for two weeks then quit".  So why would I trust Dr. Google for other answers?  

But the question I asked wasn't about what dose I'm taking or anything like that.  The question was if Pristiq and Effexor are made from the same ingredient, then why is the therapeutic dose of one 50mg and the therapeutic dose of the other three times as much.  I've yet to find that answer in any of the links here. Can someone share which link I would find it under??  

[Altostrata]

Songbird explained the difference to you. Wikipedia would have, as well.

 

Please stop complaining about the quality of the service. We'll give you guidance, but you will need to take responsibility for making your own decisions and to learn about the drugs you're taking. If you can't do that, you won't be able to manage your own taper.

 

You will also need to learn how to tell good information from bad information on the Web. We give you links that we think contain good information. If you don't read them, you will not be completely informed.

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

In no way shape or form did I mean for any of my statements to imply I was "complaining about the quality of service".

It seems every time I post, and especially if I ask a question I'm accused of not reading the links or I'm spoken to in a condescending manner.

It's very obvious I am not welcome or wanted here for whatever reason . . . . I guess you think I come across as bossy or something.

Nothing could be further from the truth, but perception is reality.

Please delete my account and remove my posts.

Thank you very much and God Bless every one of you here.  I hope your journey to healing is fast and painless.

 

[ChessieCat]

This site is "staffed" by unrostered volunteers who are experiencing their own withdrawal and life issues.  There are many new members joining each week as well as existing members who need urgent support.  There is much information already existing on this site and we try to teach the members how to find the information they need for themselves.

 

With regards to your question about the dose equivalence between Pristiq and Effexor, it doesn't really matter why.  The important thing is that you know that there IS a difference otherwise if you decided to switch you would probably think that you would take the same mg of Effexor as you are Pristiq.

 

11 hours ago, FakeItTilYouMakeIt said:

Please delete my account and remove my posts.

 

Please see:  if-you-wish-to-close-or-delete-your-account

[Altostrata]

Please read

 

 

[FakeItTilYouMakeIt]

Since my account cannot be deleted (as has been explained via pm) I thought I would post an update for future members who come across this thread.

I have been off Pristiq for approximately 10 days. I had some fatigue and a couple crying spells the first three days. I also had some headaches that went away with Excedrin. No brain zaps. 

I am living life as normal and just trying to put the whole journey behind me as best I can.  If there's one lesson I learned since coming home from the hospital in November it's that you have to look inside for answers, not outside. Asking a gazillion questions to people who don't know you and really don't truly care is pointless and futile. EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT and reading horror story online is only going to make you search for more answers and send you deeper down the rabbit hole. SA's attitude of "self care" and telling me to use Dr. Google hurt at first, but self care is the best advice in the world. The answers are in your own head and heart. Listen to your body and your spirit. 

I hope I am welcome to come back and post a success story in six months or so if things continue to go as planned for me. But like I told a few of you in PM, I now understand why there are so few success stories. Its NOT because there are more horror stories than success stories...it's because the thousands upon thousands of people who quit ADs without a problem have no reason to go online to discuss it. The only reason I was here asking questions is because I was on another site due to the Ativan use and I was told I could get some questions answered about the AD. Otherwise I never would have. I had such a horrible experience when I stopped prescribed Ativan that I assumed it would be the same for the AD.  Thankfully I was wrong. At least so far (knock on wood). 

Hugs to all.

FITYMI

[ChessieCat]

8 hours ago, FakeItTilYouMakeIt said:

I want to bump this post to the top again because it's the one that gave me the courage to taper and then stop Pristiq. It was a Godsend to talk with you in PM and receive hope that all will be well. I have now been off Pristiq for almost two weeks and had some fatigue, a few headaches, and a couple teary days. Every day seems to get better. I had zero brain zaps. 

Thanks again and God bless!!

 

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