KarenUK Posted May 12, 2022 Share Posted May 12, 2022 Hi, Im 52 years old & from the U.K. I’ve been taking Paxil/Paroxetine for 20 years and in Feb 2022 I begin reducing my intake as I need to regain control of my weight which is so bad it’s affecting my health. Im hoping that coming off of Paxil will make it easier to lose weight. Ive been reducing by 5mg every 6 weeks but I’ve had (and still have) some awful physical and mental withdrawal symptoms that the medical professionals I deal with seem to find hard to believe. Im very unsupported and currently I feel really unwell and tempted to start taking 30mg daily again. This forum has been recommended by someone in a Facebook group. Link to comment
Moderator Onmyway Posted May 12, 2022 Moderator Share Posted May 12, 2022 1 hour ago, KarenUK said: Hi, Im 52 years old & from the U.K. I’ve been taking Paxil/Paroxetine for 20 years and in Feb 2022 I begin reducing my intake as I need to regain control of my weight which is so bad it’s affecting my health. Im hoping that coming off of Paxil will make it easier to lose weight. Ive been reducing by 5mg every 6 weeks but I’ve had (and still have) some awful physical and mental withdrawal symptoms that the medical professionals I deal with seem to find hard to believe. Im very unsupported and currently I feel really unwell and tempted to start taking 30mg daily again. This forum has been recommended by someone in a Facebook group. Hi Karen, I'm not at a computer now to offer more detailed advice and resources but please stop lowering your dose now. You are cutting by way too nuch - we recommend no more than 10% of your previous dose every 4 weeks. We can also talk about updosing if needed but that won't be by as much as you have are considering. What dose are you at now? When did you start having symptoms? OMW "Nothing so small as a moment is insurmountable, and moments are all that we have. You have survived every trial and tribulation that life has thrown at you up until this very instant. When future troubles come—and they will come—a version of you will be born into that moment that can conquer them, too." - Kevin Koenig I am not a doctor and this should not be considered medical advice. You can use the information and recommendations provided in whatever way you want and all decisions on your treatment are yours. In the next few weeks I do not have a lot of capacity to respond to questions. If you need a quick answer pls tag or ask other moderators who may want to be tagged. Aug 2000 - July 2003 (ct, 4-6 wk wd) , citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn, wellbutrin for a few months, trazodone prn Dec 2004 - July 2018 citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn (rarely used) Aug 2018 - citalopram 40 mg (self titrated up) September 2018 - January 2019 tapered citalopram - 40/30/20/10/5 no issues until a week after reaching 0 Feb 2019 0.25 xanax - 0.5/day (3 weeks) over to klonopin 0.25 once a day to manage severe wd March 6, reinstated citalopram 2.5 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 mg for sleep 2-3 times a week Apr 1st citalopram 2.0 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 once a week (off by 4/14/19- no tapering) citalopram (liquid) 4/14/19 -1.8 mg, 5/8/19 - 1.6 mg, 7/27/19 -1.5 mg, 8/15/19 - 1.35, 2/21/21 - 1.1 (smaller drops in between), 6/20/21 - 1.03 mg, 8/7/21- 1.025, 8/11/21 - 1.02, 8/15/21 - 1.015, 9/3/21 - 0.925 (fingers crossed!), 10/8/21 - 0.9, 10/18/21 - 0.875, 12/31/21 - 0.85, 1/7/22 - 0.825, 1/14/22 - 0.8, 1/22/22 - 0.785, 8/18/22 - 0.59, 12/15/2022 - 0.48, 2/15/22 - 0.43, 25/07/23 - 0.25 (mistake), 6/08/23 - 0.33mg Supplements: magnesium citrate and bi-glycinate Link to comment
Moderator Onmyway Posted May 12, 2022 Moderator Share Posted May 12, 2022 Dear @KarenUK, welcome again to SA. For starters, can you pls give us a list and timeline of all the drugs/supplements/substances you have taken as best as you can and especially the last couple of years. It will help us help you better. Here are some instructions. How to List Drug History in Signature - Introductions and updates - Surviving Antidepressants It is important to taper your drugs slowly - much slower than your doctor recommends. We recommend no more than 10% of your previous dosage every 4 weeks. Why taper by 10% of my dosage? - Tapering - Surviving Antidepressants Why taper? SERT transporter occupancy studies show importance of gradual change in plasma concentration - Tapering - Surviving Antidepressants You could also micro-taper for an even smoother (albeit slower) ride. The Brassmonkey Slide Method of Micro-tapering - Tapering - Surviving Antidepressants Here are links to some FAQs that many members have about tapering. If you would like to up your dosage, we recommend that you do that by a very small amount. Withdrawal destabilizes the nervous system and as a result it becomes sensitive to all kinds of drugs and supplements, so we recommend only small changes - additions or decreases. So if you want to increase your dosage, you'd go to your current dosage 1 or 2mg rather than go back to 30 mg. About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms - Symptoms and self-care - Surviving Antidepressants How to talk to a doctor about tapering and withdrawal? What to expect. - Tapering - Surviving Antidepressants Tapering and withdrawal take a long time but the goal here is to have an uneventful and symptom free withdrawal as possible. The links below will explain what psychiatric drugs do to the brain and what happens during withdrawal. The Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization - Symptoms and self-care - Surviving Antidepressants What is happening in your brain? - Symptoms and self-care - Surviving Antidepressants How psychiatric drugs remodel your brain - Symptoms and self-care - Surviving Antidepressants We don't recommend many supplements during withdrawal but many of our members find magnesium and Omega-3 helpful. However, they might not work for everyone, so try them one at a time so you can see if they cause worse symptoms and at small dosages. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/15483-magnesium-natures-calcium-channel-blocker/ King of supplements: Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) - Symptoms and self-care - Surviving Antidepressants Once you have read through these links please let me know if you have more questions. We are here to help, OMW "Nothing so small as a moment is insurmountable, and moments are all that we have. You have survived every trial and tribulation that life has thrown at you up until this very instant. When future troubles come—and they will come—a version of you will be born into that moment that can conquer them, too." - Kevin Koenig I am not a doctor and this should not be considered medical advice. You can use the information and recommendations provided in whatever way you want and all decisions on your treatment are yours. In the next few weeks I do not have a lot of capacity to respond to questions. If you need a quick answer pls tag or ask other moderators who may want to be tagged. Aug 2000 - July 2003 (ct, 4-6 wk wd) , citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn, wellbutrin for a few months, trazodone prn Dec 2004 - July 2018 citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn (rarely used) Aug 2018 - citalopram 40 mg (self titrated up) September 2018 - January 2019 tapered citalopram - 40/30/20/10/5 no issues until a week after reaching 0 Feb 2019 0.25 xanax - 0.5/day (3 weeks) over to klonopin 0.25 once a day to manage severe wd March 6, reinstated citalopram 2.5 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 mg for sleep 2-3 times a week Apr 1st citalopram 2.0 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 once a week (off by 4/14/19- no tapering) citalopram (liquid) 4/14/19 -1.8 mg, 5/8/19 - 1.6 mg, 7/27/19 -1.5 mg, 8/15/19 - 1.35, 2/21/21 - 1.1 (smaller drops in between), 6/20/21 - 1.03 mg, 8/7/21- 1.025, 8/11/21 - 1.02, 8/15/21 - 1.015, 9/3/21 - 0.925 (fingers crossed!), 10/8/21 - 0.9, 10/18/21 - 0.875, 12/31/21 - 0.85, 1/7/22 - 0.825, 1/14/22 - 0.8, 1/22/22 - 0.785, 8/18/22 - 0.59, 12/15/2022 - 0.48, 2/15/22 - 0.43, 25/07/23 - 0.25 (mistake), 6/08/23 - 0.33mg Supplements: magnesium citrate and bi-glycinate Link to comment
KarenUK Posted May 13, 2022 Author Share Posted May 13, 2022 Right now I’m on 20mg daily and my original dose was 30 mg. I’ve been tapering with guidance from a medical professional. It’s worrying that they have no idea of the correct way to do this. Link to comment
Moderator Onmyway Posted May 13, 2022 Moderator Share Posted May 13, 2022 Unfortunately it is not uncommon. Medical professionals refuse to believe that these drugs cause withdrawal, this intentional blindness allows them to keep prescribing these drugs. The vast majority of people here are suffering because of guidance by a medical professional. If your symptoms are too severe, you may updose by 1mg to see if that will make a difference. Because our systems are already in disequilibrium and sensitive to big changes, a large updose may make things worse. If that improves things but not sufficiently, you can increase by a bit more. Once you arrive at a better place, we will ask you to not make changes for a few months and when you are stabilized, you can start tapering by 10% or less every 4 weeks or making more frequent but smaller cuts. Not everyone can tolerate 10% (I am one of those people) but the majority of people can, so it's a good trial dose. Have a think about whether you want to updose after reading the links above and we can go from there. Please do remember to fill in your drug signature - it helps us advise you better as we don't have to go through your whole history every time. This gets more important as your thread gets longer. Hope you are feeling a bit better. OMW "Nothing so small as a moment is insurmountable, and moments are all that we have. You have survived every trial and tribulation that life has thrown at you up until this very instant. When future troubles come—and they will come—a version of you will be born into that moment that can conquer them, too." - Kevin Koenig I am not a doctor and this should not be considered medical advice. You can use the information and recommendations provided in whatever way you want and all decisions on your treatment are yours. In the next few weeks I do not have a lot of capacity to respond to questions. If you need a quick answer pls tag or ask other moderators who may want to be tagged. Aug 2000 - July 2003 (ct, 4-6 wk wd) , citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn, wellbutrin for a few months, trazodone prn Dec 2004 - July 2018 citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn (rarely used) Aug 2018 - citalopram 40 mg (self titrated up) September 2018 - January 2019 tapered citalopram - 40/30/20/10/5 no issues until a week after reaching 0 Feb 2019 0.25 xanax - 0.5/day (3 weeks) over to klonopin 0.25 once a day to manage severe wd March 6, reinstated citalopram 2.5 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 mg for sleep 2-3 times a week Apr 1st citalopram 2.0 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 once a week (off by 4/14/19- no tapering) citalopram (liquid) 4/14/19 -1.8 mg, 5/8/19 - 1.6 mg, 7/27/19 -1.5 mg, 8/15/19 - 1.35, 2/21/21 - 1.1 (smaller drops in between), 6/20/21 - 1.03 mg, 8/7/21- 1.025, 8/11/21 - 1.02, 8/15/21 - 1.015, 9/3/21 - 0.925 (fingers crossed!), 10/8/21 - 0.9, 10/18/21 - 0.875, 12/31/21 - 0.85, 1/7/22 - 0.825, 1/14/22 - 0.8, 1/22/22 - 0.785, 8/18/22 - 0.59, 12/15/2022 - 0.48, 2/15/22 - 0.43, 25/07/23 - 0.25 (mistake), 6/08/23 - 0.33mg Supplements: magnesium citrate and bi-glycinate Link to comment
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