Postive79: Three months post AD CT; HELP

[Postive79]

I’m new to this site, I’ve noticed many of your posts to be extremely helpful.  I haven’t posted my question/story yet; not knowing what I will get back. I was hoping you could post my questions on the best forum for advise/guidance. My timeline is below. Unfortunately found this site well after I CT 7 years of Lexapro. I’m just past my 3^rd month mark and feeling extremely unstable, down and overall irrational. The last three weeks have been brutal; my urge to go back to Lexapro have been popping up. I feel like I’ve broken myself…when on AD I wasn’t broken.

 

If you have time here are my questions:

 

Will thing start evening out? I know this is an unfair question but I’m grabbing at straw at this point.  

Do you recommend the Magnesium?

Do you recommend reinstating at any point?

Does ‘stability’ exist without AD?

 

 

2009-Citalpram 20mg

2010-Citalopram 30 mg

2013-10mg Escitalopram

2015-20mg Escitalopram

2016-30mg Escitalopram

2017-2019-20mg

August 2019-0

[Gridley]

Welcome to SA, Postive79,

 

Reinstatement of a very small dose of the original drug is the only known way to help alleviate withdrawal syndrome.  The only other alternative is to try and wait out the symptoms and manage as best you can until your central nervous system returns to homeostasis.  Unfortunately no one can give you an exact timeline as to when you will start feeling better and while some do recover relatively easily, for others it can take many months or longer.  

Reinstatement isn't a guarantee of diminished symptoms for everyone but it's the best tactic available.  You're just beyond the the time period where reinstatement predictably works, up to 3 months after last dose.  It might work or it might not.  We usually suggest a much smaller reinstatement dose than your last dose.  These drugs are strong, and when reinstating it is better to start with a small amount and increase if symptoms remain unbearable. Your system has become sensitized and If you take too much it may be too much for your brain and can cause you become more unstable.  

 

About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms. -- at least the first page of the topic

 

It takes about 4 days for a dose change to get to get to full state in the blood and a bit longer for it to register in the brain, so if it's working you should start to feel some relief with 7-10 days.  If you feel worse after reinstating, stop immediately.

 

If you decide you reinstate, I recommend reinstating 1mg Escitalopram.  The following link tell how to obtain the small dose you'll need for reinstating, either getting a prescription for liquid Escitalopram, making your own liquid or weighing tablets using the AWS Gemini-20 scale available on Amazon.

 

Tips for tapering off Lexapro (escitalopram)

 

We don't recommend a lot of supplements on SA, as many members report being sensitive to them due to our over-reactive nervous systems, but two supplements that we do recommend are magnesium and omega 3 (fish oil). Many people find these to be calming to the nervous system. 

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) 

 

Please research all supplements first and only add in one at a time and at a low dose in case you do experience problems.

 

Yes, there is stability without antidepressants.  I suggest you read through the success stories section of this site.  These are the stories of members who have tapered off AD's and are doing well.

 

This is your Introduction topic, where you can ask questions and connect with other members.  We're glad you found your way here.

 

 

 

 

[Postive79]

Thank you Gridley, I'll read through the success stories for sure. I've quickly learned days of ‘quick fixes’ are over😊. Your response is very appreciated. I’ll continue to read the success stories for motivation. Thanks again.

[Altostrata]

Welcome, Pos.

 

Why did you switch from citalopram to escitalopram?

 

Over the last 2 months, how has your overall symptom pattern changed?

[Postive79]

Hi Altostrata, 

 

I switch years ago from citalopram to Escitalopram due to heightened anxiety….I think. It’s been a number of years so I’m not 100% sure. I do know that it was my Phycologist at the time that changed prescriptions. That same doctor prescribed a 30 mg dose of Escitalopram; which I’ve read is a very high dose. I’m steering clear from these doctors; after years of just ‘drinking the kool-aide’ I’ve lost trust in their practices.