ruthieboothie: managing symptoms of Paxil withdrawal years later

[ruthieboothie]

Hello all, 

 

Very excited to have found this forum and realize I am not "the only one." However, my symptoms years later are of a physical (not emotional/mental) nature, and while I have yet to go through more posts, I wonder if there are any members here who relate to the physical symptoms?

 

About me: I was on Paxil 20mg for about 2-3 years with generally good effect on my anxiety, but then I got to a plateau. My doctor wanted to switch me to a new medicine, and the new medicine was also supposed to help with migraines (I have suffered since I was a kid with migraines). I don't remember the name of the medication she wanted me to switch to, but she took me off of the Paxil cold turkey. No taper. Being young and not knowing any better, I didn't think twice or question it. I started the new medication the same day I ended the Paxil.

 

I was at a conference three days later when I suddenly couldn't look at the screen anymore, my computer, anything bright really without feeling like they were moving--which made me feel nauseous and lightheaded. I then went into a two-week-long migraine, the worst migraine I've ever had (as mentioned, I am no stranger to migraines). I couldn't eat or take medication due to the overwhelming nausea, the migraine would not abate, I couldn't read or look at screens, I had to put up blankets over my windows because the small amount of light peering through was too much. My doctor had zero helpful suggestions. My brother and boyfriend (bless them) suggested I smoke in case it helped with the nausea, which it did and finally I was able to take some medicine. A friend of mine who is a doctor suggested I supplement with fish oil, which I also found helped. 

 

Since then, my head has just felt off. I can't handle bright lights, I get easily motion sick, I have brain zaps, my migraines are triggered more easily, I continue to have issues with screens (not as bad as before, but I can still get the lightheaded/nausea feeling), I can't look at tight patterns such as checkers or gratings without seeing them move and feeling lightheaded/nauseated. I went to a neurologist who suggested fish oil as well as Migreleif (which has a good amount of magnesium), and while these helped with the migraines, it didn't help with the other issues. I did have my anxiety get to an unmanageable level a few years later, and my boyfriend pushed me to see a doctor, who put me on Prozac 20mg, to good effect. I do have periods of bad anxiety around what I consider anxiety-provoking events (like flying) but otherwise have been fine. It's the physical symptoms I can't deal with, which brought me here. 

 

Looking forward to reading everyone's stories and learning more!

[getofflex]

Hello, and welcome to SA.  We are a volunteer-run community of people who have been or are getting off of psychiatric drugs.  It sounds like you got these symptoms either from quitting the Paxil cold turkey, or else starting the new drug.  We will need more information from you before we can advise. What month and year did you cold turkey the Paxil?  What med did you start after you CT'ed the Paxil?  Are you still on the Prozac 20 mg?  If so, do you intend to taper off of this?  I'm trying to determine if your problems are caused by quitting the Paxil suddenly, or an adverse reaction to the Prozac. 

 

Can you please give us specific information in your signature about your drug history for all drugs you are on and have been on, especially for the past 18-24 months?  It would be especially helpful to have the details of your drugs in a concise vertical list (no symptoms), only drug names, specific dates (as best you can say for example early March if you don't recall the day) and dosages of each medication decrease or increase.  Use this format:

 

Drug name: date, dose, date, dose, date, dose…

Drug name: date, dose, date, dose, date, dose…

Etcetera

 

Please read the link below for instructions.  This will allow us to give you the best guidance.  

 

How to List Drug History in Signature

 

Here is some important information about how these drugs actually work.  This explains why we get symptoms from going off of these medications, and why it's so important to taper slowly and carefully, and be very cautious about changing our doses: 

 

How Psychiatric Drugs Remodel Your Brain

 

 

This helps you understand what withdrawal syndrome is: 

 

Video on Recovery from Psych Drugs

 

Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

 

Tapering is best done extremely slowly, and we generally taper by 10% of the current dose no more than once every 4 weeks, so that the reduction becomes exponentially smaller.

 

 Why Taper by 10% of my Dosage  

 

 

Here is a link with checklists of common WD symptoms: 

 

Dr Joseph Glenmullen Withdrawal Symptom Checklists

 

 

Here are some techniques to cope with symptoms: 

 

Non Drug Ways to Cope with Withdrawal Symptoms

 

Stability is really important when we are tapering off psych meds.  Please read the link about stability:

 

Keep It Simple, Slow, and Stable

 

 

We don't suggest many supplements, but 2 that many of us find helpful are magnesium and omega-3 fish oil. Here are the links for info about those. It is suggested to add one at a time, and start with a low dose to see how it affects you. 

Magnesium

Omega 3 Fish Oil

 

When we get more information, we can get a better idea of what is causing your problems here.  

[ruthieboothie]

Hi @getofflex

My drug history is already in my signature. The Prozac was started two years after the Paxil was ended, and I am still on Prozac. The drug she wanted me to switch to was stopped two days after I had started it (two days into ending Paxil cold turkey) because of the Paxil withdrawal symptoms, so I don't really consider that to be the cause of anything because there wasn't enough time for it to do anything. 

 

Hope that helps. 

[getofflex]

Thanks for the clarification.  It helps to know the dates.  

 

It sounds to me like the symptoms you are having, that started 3 days after you quit the Paxil cold turkey, are evidence that your brain is still working to heal from the CT of Paxil.  Often CT's take years to recover from, and Paxil is an especially hard drug to recover from. The only thing that will cure this is massive amounts of time, patience, and good natural self care.  The good news is, healing does come eventually, in time. 

 

Here are several threads of others' experiences with vision issues during withdrawal:  

 

Vision Symptoms: Floaters, Snow, Blurred Dimmed Vision, etc.

 

Loss of Vision, Eye Muscle Movement Problems, etc.

 

Spinning Wheels, Lights on Peripheral Vision at Night