Mentor mstimc Posted October 20, 2020 Mentor Share Posted October 20, 2020 Hi All A lot of members post about dreadful physical symptoms and many are convinced these symptoms are permanent and/or unrelated to withdrawal. First, let me state there are few things worse than physical pain on top of anxiety and other WD symptoms. They are real. But maybe my recent experience will help put things in perspective. One of the ways my OCD manifests itself is health anxiety. Its something I deal with and try to manage daily. A few months ago, I started getting pains on my right side. No other symptoms (no digestive or urinary issues, normal blood tests, not fatigue or weight loss). My doctor diagnosed an old abdominal muscle pull exacerbated by poor posture and sitting around during the lockdown. I also have normal spinal issues associated with age that contributed to the posture issues. I did some physical therapy but it didn't help much. I also saw a Chinese Medicine doctor who did some massage and acupuncture. I felt a bit better but the pain persisted. My old OCD thinking patterns kicked in and I started looking for diseases to fit my symptoms. I thought I had everything from kidney or liver cancer to chronic abdominal wall pain syndrome. At times, I couldn't lie in bed on my right side. Today, I finally got an ultrasound exam and it turns out I re-injured a rib I cracked about 10 years ago in karate class. I and the radiologist think the aggressive Chinese massage is the culprit. When I expressed relief at finally knowing the source of the pain, the doctor said that's half the battle, and the pain should subside just from that. Other than that, there's not much to do but let it heal over time. Within a few hours of the ultrasound, my pain has decreased tremendously. I know I'll heal sooner or later (and no more Chinese massage)! My point is that pain isn't "all in our heads"--it can be and is very real. But obsessing about it makes it much worse. It can also freeze you in a pattern of expecting the worst and being afraid to find out what it really is. Most important, anxiety and WD will try to convince you that you'll never get better or you're on death's door. Its just not true. You can recover if you do some reality checking and take common sense steps to take care of yourself. Work on healing instead of proving to yourself you'll never get better. 3 Tim C Started Paxil for GAD in 1999 Unsuccessful taper attempt in 2006 Paxilprogress helped with a successful taper completed in 2009 Using therapy and CBT to manage my anxiety Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Emeritus ChessieCat Posted October 21, 2020 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted October 21, 2020 It's worthwhile getting things checked out if an issue persists. * NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA * MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: (6 year taper) 0mg Pristiq on 13th November 2021 ADs since ~1992: 25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq: 50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity) Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021 LAST DOSE 0.0025mg Post 0 updates start here My tapering program My Intro (goes to tapering graph) VIDEO: Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mentor mstimc Posted October 21, 2020 Author Mentor Share Posted October 21, 2020 6 hours ago, ChessieCat said: It's worthwhile getting things checked out if an issue persists. Yes, definitely. Once I had it checked I was very relieved. But I believe, sometimes, your anxious mind wants to hang onto a symptom despite medical evidence--the 10-pound ball as I've called it elsewhere. Then you convince yourself you'll never get better. That's the danger. Tim C Started Paxil for GAD in 1999 Unsuccessful taper attempt in 2006 Paxilprogress helped with a successful taper completed in 2009 Using therapy and CBT to manage my anxiety Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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