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Doublespresso: will my brain recover from Seroquel?


Doublespresso

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Hello, my name is Eric and I'm 20 years old. Since around 12 years old, I've had anxiety and mild depression.

 

7 months ago, I went to a psychiatrist and was prescribed Seroquel XR for some weird reason, which I only later found out was an antipsychotic.

 

I took 300mg a day for 2 months, and became emotionally numb and basically dead inside. I decided to quit the drug, reducing the dose every 5 days and around a month later I was off it completely. It's been 5 months since I completely stopped taking the antipsychotic, but I still feel the same way. I feel disconnected from reality, completely apathetic about everything, emotionally numb and anhedonic. I am scared that the drug permanently damaged my brain. All the doctors I've seen since told me that it's impossible that the Seroquel is still affecting me in any way...

 

Has anyone here recovered from these antipsychotic-induced symptoms?

How long will it take if it's possible? It honestly feels like me brain has been irreversibly damaged...

Is there anything I can do to speed up recovery?

 

Thank you for your time.. I'm really desperate to return to my old self, the way I was before the Seroquel. Will I ever be 100% myself again?

 

 

Edited by ChessieCat
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  • ChessieCat changed the title to NAME CHANGE requested. Doublespresso: will my brain recover from Seroquel?
  • Administrator

Welcome, DE.

 

I am sorry that psychiatrist prescribed an absurd amount of Seroquel XR for you for no good reason. It seems you had a bad reaction to it. Emotional deadening is a very common side effect of Seroquel.

 

It can take many month for the nervous system to recover from a bad reaction to a psychiatric drug. This will be very gradual and frustrating and may occur in The Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

You will need to be patient and "fake it until you make it." Getting at least a half-hour of gentle exercise each day can help. How are you sleeping?

 

A lot of people find fish oil and magnesium supplements helpful, 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/

 

Try a little bit of one at a time to see how it affects you.

 

PS Adolescents are naturally moody and growing up can be hard.

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.

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Hey,

I sleep a lot (>10 hrs) and wake up feeling dead... I didn't see any noticeable improvement these last few months...

 

Do antipsychotics actually cause permanent brain damage like so many people claim? Or is it just really long drug withdrawal and in time it's possible to recover 100%?

 

I really can't live the rest of my life knowing that I permanently damaged my brain because of this stupid mistake...

 

Also I can't really find proper full 100% recovery stories from antipsychotics.

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi Eric, 

 

Welcome to SA from me too. I’m sorry you’re struggling so much. No, the antipsychotics don’t cause permanent brain damage, our brain has an amazing power to heal itself. Withdrawals can certainly be very long though.That’s the way our brains heal themselves, the windows and waves pattern. I’m glad you’re sleeping despite coming off the Seroquel so quickly. Most people coming off it have really bad insomnia. 

 

I’ve been tapering off Seroquel for many years, and have got many more to go. I started at 300mg, but I’m down to 7.25mg now. I’m only tapering by just over 3% now. It still surprises me how well you’re sleeping, that really is good. Sleep is needed for our brains to heal. I remember not taking my tablet one night and I didn’t sleep whatsoever. 

 

Wishing you all the best in your healing journey 💚

Seroquel. 2019:➡️ From 7.25mg to 5.80mg. 2020➡️5.60 to 4.80. 2021➡️4.60 to 4.0.  2022➡️3.95 to 3.55. 2023➡️ From 3.50 to 3.25.  2024➡️Jan15=3.20✔️ Feb19=3.15✔️ March26=3.10✔️May1=3.0✔️ June7=3mg✔️ July 15= 2.95✔️ This is NOT medical advice.Consult your doctor.

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Hey Carmie, thanks for the welcome.

 

Honestly, the only symptoms that bother me so much are the emotional numbness and the dissociation from reality.

I feel like these 2 are at the root of everything else. I couldn't find anyone who completely recovered from these 2 antipsychotic-induced problems, which really makes me wonder if it's some irreversible brain damage...

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Its WD not brain damage. I was on 300mg too.im gradually recovering. Windows and waves.you will heal dont focus on that.

 Russ

 

March-2017-Dec-2017 ativanCT /reinstated ativan 1mg tapered 2 months/June 2017-April 2018 zyprexa 10mg switched to seroquel 200-300mg in april 2018/dec-2017-present zoloft 100mg/ quit seroquel 200-300mg cold turkey May 6 2018 reinstated seroquel 100mg around May 25 2018 since then tapered to 50mg zoloft and 50 mg of seroquel presently other medications Testosterone cypionate 2oomg every 4 days

UPDATE -August 20 2018--october 20 2018 tapered off Testosterone/Nov 7 2018 --Dec 20 2018 Lamictal micro dose 2.50mg 1 1/2 weeks then reduced to 1.25 then fast tapered as it became paridoxial.nausea- racing thoughts- agitation and insomnia.

August 28 2018 to Present Cannabis indica micro dose PM bedtime only.

Presently Seroquel 37.5 mg bedtime /Zoloft 47mg morning

May 2018-Present Multivitamin/ Bcomplex/Vit C 1000MG/B12 1000MCG/Fish oils 2grams/

Jan 2019-Trace mineral liquid low dose

Update dec 2019 -29mg of zoloft tapering/Seroquel 37.5 holding/1 or 2  ativan 1mg a month as needed if that.

Black seed oil-caprylic acid-/b complex/b12/multi/D/E/melatonin

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi Doublespresso, 

 

Five months off the medication is really a short time, your brain will probably take a while still before it’s fully recovered. It’s taken some people many years after coming off meds before they recover, especially when they have tapered too quickly or have gone cold turkey. You will get there!

 

Sending hugs🤗

Seroquel. 2019:➡️ From 7.25mg to 5.80mg. 2020➡️5.60 to 4.80. 2021➡️4.60 to 4.0.  2022➡️3.95 to 3.55. 2023➡️ From 3.50 to 3.25.  2024➡️Jan15=3.20✔️ Feb19=3.15✔️ March26=3.10✔️May1=3.0✔️ June7=3mg✔️ July 15= 2.95✔️ This is NOT medical advice.Consult your doctor.

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I wasn’t taking Seroquel but it took me over a year before I started to improve after tapering to quickly from Effexor. The cognitive issues for me started shortly after my first dose of meds when I was about your age and lasted over one year post medication use. Your brain isn’t permanently damaged like others have said. Time is really what’s going to heal you. If your interested I can share what has helped me through this journey. 

Good luck

Citalopram: 2011

Sertraline February: 2013-November 2013

Escitalopram January: 2014-August 2014

Escitalopram November: 2014-January 2016

Venlafaxine: April 2016-January 2018 (8 month taper included)

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Hi.Dissociation and emotional numbness come often together.I’m withdrawing from Lexapro and currently i’m in the begining of the third month of withdrawal, these symptoms are here for me aswell as fatigue, muscle weakness, diziness, anxiety.Have you tried to do something about it? Do you go out, socialise?because this condition often does not go away on it’s own and needs the help of one to improve.I think the best way to get over it is to forget it and live your life, you need to retrain your brain somehow, this condition comes often with anxiety, so you must target the anxiety in order to rewire your brain.I can tell you from my experience because 1 month ago i wasn’t able to even socialise with my parents because of the anxiety and now i’m even going out with my friends despite the symptoms.I even drive, go places, like today i had a trip with my friends at 120 km away from my city and i drove there and back home.It’s getting better, but you have to gain control over the symptoms for it to improve.I know it’s hard, in the first weeks i was afraid to even go shopping, and now I can go anywhere.And don’t be afraid of stories of people who have it for years, don’t forget this “PEOPLE WHO CURED THIS DON’T SPEND TIME ON FORUMS LOOKING FOR ANSWERS”, because the cure is YOU and your will to live again.I’m sure you will get past this, just you make sure to take the right steps, you can’t just wait to to fade, it will not.Take control over it and see how it goes.If i did it, you can do it to.It’s hard at first, take it step by step

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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One quick tip for this.Get a friend, or a member of family who doesn’t know about your situatiom and talk to it normally.See how it goes.Then ask the person “does it seems like is something wrong with me?” I will tell you the answer.NO.because is still YOU, change your attitude, change your mindset, challenge yourself to do things, stop thinking about it so much.It will fade away when your brain realises that you are not in danger.It tends to fade really slow without you even noticing it.So stop thinking about it, just accept it as a part of you for now, because the more you search for answers and let it bother you, the more you prolong it.Just be yourself, get back in your activities, is nothing wrong with you.Prove it to your brain

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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I was surprised to challenge myself to drive from united kingdom back home, over a distance of 2600km in 2 days by car, and then i asked myself.How could i do that, if i was going crazy,  or it’s just my brain playing tricks on me? And then i realised i have the power to change things, we have the power to overcome it.100’s of people overcame it, why wouldn’t we??? I was reading stories of people who have it for years and years.Then i realised that people who have it for years, they just wait for the change to happen and complain about it every single say.You have it? I have it!LET’S CHANGE IT.Do you want your life back? It’s up to you.I want it, and I’m ready to overcome it, even if it takes time.We will do it.CHANGE COMES FROM US

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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  • 1 month later...

It's been so long since I stopped Seroquel and I still feel exactly the same! I feel completely dead inside, with no improvement at all. How is it even possible that my brain can recover at this point?? Everybody says I'm delusional for thinking that this is related to the drug, because I've been off it for more than half a year... How can I live knowing that I'll never be the same as before the drug?? I want my life back.... I've been reading a lot of stuff on the internet about how antipsychotics cause irreversible brain changes and shrink the brain and stuff like that... It's all I can think about, I feel permanently brain damaged and I don't know what to do... Any advice please I'm really hopeless and in pain

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  • Moderator

This is sounding like a pretty normal WD pattern.  Even if a person had only been on a drug for a short period of time the WD/healing can take a frustratingly long time.  If you haven't read through this thread I would highly recommend it.

 

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/17909-are-we-there-yet-how-long-is-withdrawal-going-to-take/

 

20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013.

Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks.  The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better.

Final Dose 0.016mg.     Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017

 

"It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general."  Stephen Hawking

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What are the top things I can do to speed up recovery as much as possible? I want to feel alive again so bad, I'm 20 years old these should be my most vital years 😕

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What is the recommended diet for withdrawal? I started taking magnesium (with b6) and fish oil. Other than that I've been vegan for the last 2.5 years, but I'm considering quitting veganism if that might speed up my recovery. Is there anything else I can do to speed up recovery?

 

One of the hardest things is that I don't know what to do with myself everyday. I don't enjoy anything and therefore can't even distract myself from this intolerable emptiness. I'm also obsessing over the possibility that I'm permanently brain-damaged and that I'll never recover, which makes me suicidal. I need to see some improvement, desperately... I tried many things, none helped (alternative medicine/therapies, raw diets, water fasting, etc.)

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How do I even know that this is withdrawal and I'm not just deluding myself like everyone around me says? How do I know that this isn't part of "Depression" or "OCD" or whatever other label doctors are giving me?? Am I supposed to just sit and wait a few years???

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2 minutes ago, Doublespresso said:

How do I even know that this is withdrawal and I'm not just deluding myself like everyone around me says? How do I know that this isn't part of "Depression" or "OCD" or whatever other label doctors are giving me?? Am I supposed to just sit and wait a few years???

I think that no matter how you feel mate you should do things, don’t wait it out, otherwise you will end up having a big deal depression

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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Just now, Kronos18 said:

I think that no matter how you feel mate you should do things, don’t wait it out, otherwise you will end up having a big deal depression

It's already here unfortunately.. I don't even know where or how to begin. I'm living with my parents, i have no job or friends (my girlfriend left me a couple months ago), and I'm extremely unmotivated... where do I begin..?

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Just now, Doublespresso said:

It's already here unfortunately.. I don't even know where or how to begin. I'm living with my parents, i have no job or friends (my girlfriend left me a couple months ago), and I'm extremely unmotivated... where do I begin..?

The brain has an excelent power of rewiring.Start by taking baby steps.this link might help you but keep in mind, is not a month job.Do this everyday, for now on in order to succeed.https://www.heysigmund.com/the-non-medication-ways-to-deal-with-depression-that-are-as-effective-as-medication/

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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And remember, don’t give up.You have a life worth living.find a job—>you will make friends there—> find a girlfriend, take your time, fall in love.Live your life

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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You have a lifec worh living mate.Your brain will like the changes.After a while, you will not push yourself to do things.You will just do them, because your brain adapts.You will not like sittng all of the time in the house.Socialising, exercising, love.All of them feed the brain with happiness.Take care.

Kronos

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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52 minutes ago, Doublespresso said:

Thank you, Kronos. Will keep updating once in a while

I would like to hear from you battling this thing.Depression is worse, i have withdrawal induced depression, dr/dp, lack of motivation, fatigue, diziness, tremors, anxiety, and more symptoms.But sitting in the house while withdrawing will make things a lot worse.Some people are like “ the pills damaged my brain, i will never be the same again”.Ok, the pills did do damage, but if you sit and wait it out, nothing will change.Do as little as you can, when you can.Avoid sitting alone, overthinking, train your focus muscle.Stop living inside your head, engage in conversations, go out, socialise.I tell you from experience, it works but in time.I lost all my socialising skills after quiting pills, i could barely hold conversations, and after 15 weeks of “Fake it till you make it”, as Altostrata said, I can joke, laugh, be around people, I can engage and keep conversations, you can fake it, your brain doesn’t know that you are faking it, so it will create new pathways, and you WILL actually make it, as your brain adapts.DON’T JUST WAIT IT OUT MATE, everybody heals, but why don’t you think everybody has a successful recovery story?Because somes are complaining and excusing instead of doing.It’s easy to say “i can’t get out, i’m too depressed”, so people like the easy way, but it’s hard to actually go out and enjoy, even if you will not enjoy it at first.It’s like you get a new job, it takes an amount of time to learn the skills, but you learn it.That is your brain creatung pathways to help you.So you can enjoy things and life again, but it will take a while.Meanwhile, do them.Cheers

Lorazepam -2 weeks-1 week 3 mg.4 days 2mg, 3 days 1mg. 13-27 November 2018

Lexapro -2 months-6 weeks of 10mg, 2 weeks of 5mg 27 November 2018-27 January 2019

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I would recommend eating eggs and meat until you get better.   Your brain needs proteins to heal.    I used to be vegan and then I got sick.   I am slowly crawling my way out on a non vegan diet.    

May 2018:  1 dropper liquid marajuana

june 2018. Trazadone ambien 10 mg

july 2018 seroquel 37 mg ambien 2.5mg lex 5

October 2018 taper seroquel added hydroxizine 25 mg

nov ambien taper lex taper 

dec 2018 off of lex off of phenibut

 

October 2018- added a lot of supplements.  night: 3mg melatonin Passion flower tincture valerian tincture lavender magnesium glycinate liquid gaba herbal blend Theanine 450 mg tryptophan 1.5 grams 

May 2019. Down to the following at night 

4-6 mg hydroxizine. 250 mg tryptophan (1/2 pill).75 mg melatonin pill .75 herbal blend pill magnesium citrate 

Feb 2020:Off all supplements and pills.

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  • Mentor
On 4/30/2019 at 1:07 AM, Doublespresso said:

What are the top things I can do to speed up recovery as much as possible? I want to feel alive again so bad, I'm 20 years old these should be my most vital years 😕

 

 

I’m sorry to hear you’re suffering so much. 

 

Have a look at the ‘symptoms and self-care’ section of the forum. There’s a thread there on anhedonia that might help you, and some other threads that cover other things you can do to help your recovery.

 

R

 = medication taken now

2007 quetiapine to March 2019 200mg

2019 quetiapine March to present 225mg 

2007 citalopram to present 40mg 
2018 March Abilify 5mg  
2019 Abilify February rapid taper over 3 weeks from 5mg to off

2019 March Clonazepam as required, taken very occasionally, then taken 0.5mg for 2 days 28th and 29th March, now phased out

2019 1st April reinstated Abilify 0.5mg / day 

2018 to 2020 Liquid B12 2g twice daily (diagnosed B12 deficiency) 

2020 July reduced quetiapine to 200mg

2022 October began taper of Abilify
 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Sup dude. From the sound you’re just suffering from withdrawal symptoms. Emotional bluntness can also be a side effect but now that you’ve been off it for 5 months, it’s definitely the former.

 

Quetiapine causes the brain’s grey matter to decrease in size but that’s something which they think only becomes serious after spending over 20 years on the stuff at a high dose.

 

i found that I suffered from emotional bluntness in my first year and a half on it but the side effects got a lot better for me thankfully. I know you’re probably suffering from WS as opposed to SE, but one thing I’d like to note is that it felt like I had to relearn how to respond emotionally to things. It’s like my mind forgot how to. I’d advise you to try to ease yourself back into how your life was before all this bs started so that your mind can relearn if it needs to (again, the relearning part is just a theory). It’s also possible that this whole episode’s left you with a bit of depression which is known to cause emotional bluntness. Now if you are a bit depressed, completing isolating yourself and spending your time worrying about your health isn’t going to help.

 

Really, just try to enjoy yourself. Don’t worry if you don’t really feel the way you think you should do at first, it’s a process that’ll take time. But of course the earlier you start down this path, the sooner you’ll be done with it.

 

get well soon  😊

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  • Administrator
On 5/2/2019 at 2:39 PM, Doublespresso said:

What is the recommended diet for withdrawal? I started taking magnesium (with b6) and fish oil. Other than that I've been vegan for the last 2.5 years, but I'm considering quitting veganism if that might speed up my recovery. Is there anything else I can do to speed up recovery?

 

One of the hardest things is that I don't know what to do with myself everyday. I don't enjoy anything and therefore can't even distract myself from this intolerable emptiness. I'm also obsessing over the possibility that I'm permanently brain-damaged and that I'll never recover, which makes me suicidal. I need to see some improvement, desperately... I tried many things, none helped (alternative medicine/therapies, raw diets, water fasting, etc.)

 

Emotional anesthesia is "normal" after going off psychiatric drugs. Numbing emotions and reactions is how they "work." This needs to wear off in your nervous system.

 

Do not sit around worrying and feeling doomed, That is a self-fulfilling script. The more you sit and worry, the worse you'll feel.

 

Please find some activities that will help your brain to heal, some gentle exercise or playing with animals or something that you find even slightly rewarding. That will help your nervous system recover -- but it will be very slow and gradual.

 

To help us out, follow these instructions Please put your drug and withdrawal history in your signature You may need to use a computer to do this.

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.

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  • Moderator Emeritus
On 5/2/2019 at 4:39 PM, Doublespresso said:

 

What is the recommended diet for withdrawal? I started taking magnesium (with b6) and fish oil. Other than that I've been vegan for the last 2.5 years, but I'm considering quitting veganism if that might speed up my recovery. 

 

 

 

We don't have a specific recommended diet for withdrawal, other than eating as healthily as you can and avoiding caffeine and alcohol.  Sugar can be very activating (cause anxiety).  With a vegan diet you're going to have difficulty getting B12, which is very important.  Kelly Brogan, M.D., who works with patients in antidepressant withdrawal, has reported good results with a diet containing lots of red meat (I know that sounds terrible to a vegan.)  

 

It would be better to take a magnesium supplement without B6.  B6 can be activating to people in withdrawal.  

Gridley Introduction

 

Lexapro 20 mg since 2004.  Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017.   

End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg 

End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg

End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg  

Oct. 30, 2020  Jump to zero from 0.025mg.  Current dose: 0.000mg

3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete.

 

Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements

Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium

Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium 

End 2021  year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg

End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg 

End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg

Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper.

Taper is 95% complete.

 

Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986.  Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg  

March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper

Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper

Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper.  Current dose as of Sept 25: 3.6mg

Taper is 95% complete.  

  

Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline


I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi Doublespresso,

 

You aren't permanently damaged, even though it certainly feels like it.

 

I'm 8 months off of olanzapine, and only recently am I just beginning to feel emotions returning. Barely re-surfacing, but they are there.


It takes time. 

 

The dissociation from reality you mention is something I'm going through every single day. It is temporary, I believe. A depersonalization. 

More time, and try not to stress about being permanently damaged. You're not. 

Shane.

Reason for Medication

Anxiety (money problems, future, lack of physical safety, dangerous environment) causing mild insomnia.

 

Summary    

2010 - Lexapro - (took one tablet (vomiting, tremors, high anxiety) stopped without any issues)

2013 - Cymbalta - (60mg daily for 7 months - cold turkey without any major issues aside from nausea/vomiting, "brain zaps" and dizziness)

2013 - Seroquel - (a low dose for roughly 1 month - weight gain of 20kg, cold turkey because of rapid weight gain without any issues)

2018 - September 4th - (Cymbalta 20mg for two days, stopped due to tremors & anxiety)

2018 - September 9th - (Olanzapine 2.5mg until October 3rd, then 5mg once, then back to 2.5mg once, then took random varying doses every day for a week from 2.5mg up to 5.0mg due to panic caused by the drug, then I attempted withdrawal Cold Turkey (recommenced at lower dose after 4 days of trying to withdraw Cold Turkey - I took 0.625mg every night until I finally successfully stopped cold turkey roughly one week later).

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Hey Doublespresso,

 

Patience is gonna be the hardest thing, but it does get better.  Your best years are ahead of you.

 

The wisdom and resources on this site are incredibly helpful and many of us are on this road, and many have walked it already.

 

Cheers

I am not a health professional - your actions are your own.  

Please do not seek tapering support via private message - "Any reason to hold is a good one"

My taper visualised as a graph   |   My intro thread

Backdrop:  2003 10mg olanzapine | 2004 2-3mg risperidone | end 2014 3wks aripiprazole

2015: olanzapine  10 -> 7½ -> 6⅔ -> 5mg  by crude pill cutter

2018:  Mar 5.00mg -> water titrated taper -> Aug2.5mg tablet and hold

Jan 2019 2.50mg water titration -> Jan 2020 1.214  -> Jan 2021 0.44 -> 2 Oct 0.205 ->3 Oct ZERO🥂

Jun 2023 💉150mg paliperidone "loading" depot shot, 100mg 1wk after Jul 100mg Aug-Dec 75mg/4wks

Jul 2023 2.50mg aripiprazole/day attempt to lower prolactin^

Jan-Feb 2024 cross taper off shots to 1mg risperidone

 

Ask not what you can do for your country, but what your country did to you"  -- KMFDM

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