Antecedent: Paxil 5 months, benzo 10 days

[Antecedent]

Hello everyone. I am new here. 

I was on Paxil since January 2022 until May. Paxil was prescribed for nausea and complete loss of appetite due to covid. (I am long covid sufferer. I still have symptoms). After my appetite came back and I put on extra 10kg I tapered paxil, reducing by 50% every week or so. (Doctor's advice). The first month was ok, occasional brain zaps and some previous side effects were reducing. Muscle pain lessened, libido increased. But after two months off I started having some new symptoms, like persistent lump in the throat feeling. My libido disappeared too. I started to have more anxiety and my appetite was worse again. I went to check the lump, but a gastroenterologist said it was globus histericus, I prescribed hidazepam (it's a benzo used in my country) for only ten days, a small dose. While I was taking it, it was ok, didn't help with anything though. But after I stopped it, my condition worsened significantly. Dizziness, nausea, sound and light sensitivity, panic, tachycardia, zero appetite, I am shaky, no concentration, have strange sensations in the body, terrible fatigue.

So my question is, can it be benzo or AD withdrawal or is it a relapse? My original long covid symptoms were: intermittent fever, nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite, anxiety. Nothing helped with fatigue and other symptoms but Paxil took away nausea and anxiety. But now it seems like I have my original symptoms and a lot more. Can a ten day course of benzos mess with the nervous system? Or I am in a relapse? Mo doctor is sure that it is a relapse and prescribed duloxetine. But now I am really scared to start another drug like that... 

[Shep]

Hi, Antecedent.

 

Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants.

 

On 10/6/2022 at 10:41 AM, Antecedent said:

Can a ten day course of benzos mess with the nervous system?

 

Yes, unfortunately, it can. And you can become dependent on it in 2 - 4 weeks. Please see:

 

FDA requiring Boxed Warning updated to improve safe use of benzodiazepine drug class

 

Does the lump in your thread feeling make it hard to swallow? This related symptom is common during withdrawal and is called dysphagia. Please see if this sounds like what you're going through:

 

Dysphagia : swallowing and throat problems

 

When did you take hidazepam? Please update your signature to include this drug and the dates you were on it. 

 

If it was within the past 2 - 4 weeks, you might be able to reinstate a small amount. Benzo reinstatements work best with in 2 - 4 weeks of coming off. 

 

You've been off Paxil since May, which is 4 - 5 months ago, depending on when in May you stopped. That may be too long for a reinstatement, however, I'm going to ask the staff who are more familiar with Paxil to weigh in. In the meantime, I'll leave you a few links to read and a video to watch:

 

About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms

 

 

What is withdrawal syndrome? 

The Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

How psychiatric drugs remodel your brain 

 

Healing from antidepressants. Patterns of recovery  video (4 minutes)

 

Questions:

 

• What dates did you take hidazepam? 
• Were Paxil and hidazepam the only psychiatric drugs you've ever been on? If there were others, please post the start and stop dates and the doses (also please add this to your signature). 
• Are you currently taking any medications for long Covid? If so, please list them. 

Please continue to use this thread to document your recovery and to ask questions. 

[ChessieCat]

Hi Antecedent,

 

Q:  Have you ever taken citalopram or Prozac / fluoxetine?  If yes, when, and did you have any issues with taking it?

[Altostrata]

Hello @Antecedent. To what condition might you be relapsing? Do you mean a return of covid? 

 

Paroxetine can be a very difficult drug to go off, and your taper was very short. It's very likely your symptoms are paroxetine withdrawal symptoms. Please look in the Symptoms and Self-Care forum for existing discussions about the symptoms you're having.

 

It appears that even though you couldn't feel it, hidazepam might have been doing something to alleviate paroxetine withdrawal symptoms. Hidazepam has an extraordinarily long half-life of nearly 4 days, so it's less likely you have withdrawal symptoms from stopping that.

 

When did you take hidazepam? Please add the information to your signature.

 

 

 

 

[Antecedent]

10 hours ago, Shep said:

 

 

Questions:

 

• What dates did you take hidazepam? 
• Were Paxil and hidazepam the only psychiatric drugs you've ever been on? If there were others, please post the start and stop dates and the doses (also please add this to your signature). 
• Are you currently taking any medications for long Covid? If so, please list them. 

 

Thank you so much for replying. 

I took hidazepam in the middle of September for ten days. 

Yes, that's the only psych drugs. 

For my long covid I am primarily taking supplements, like vit D, C, Mg, niacin etc. I don't take them everyday. I take them chaotically. I tried St. John's Wort for a few weeks in the summer but I felt worse. And my doctor prescribed me some theanine and tryptophan supplements this September too. 

10 hours ago, ChessieCat said:

Hi Antecedent,

 

Q:  Have you ever taken citalopram or Prozac / fluoxetine?  If yes, when, and did you have any issues with taking it?

No, I have never taken Prozac.

 

4 hours ago, Altostrata said:

Hello @Antecedent. To what condition might you be relapsing? Do you mean a return of covid? 

 

Paroxetine can be a very difficult drug to go off, and your taper was very short. It's very likely your symptoms are paroxetine withdrawal symptoms. Please look in the Symptoms and Self-Care forum for existing discussions about the symptoms you're having.

 

It appears that even though you couldn't feel it, hidazepam might have been doing something to alleviate paroxetine withdrawal symptoms. Hidazepam has an extraordinarily long half-life of nearly 4 days, so it's less likely you have withdrawal symptoms from stopping that.

I mean relapsing to my post covid state in July, Aug of 2021: terrible fatigue, fevers, no appetite and hunger, nausea, lightheadedness, anxiety which transformed into cancerphobia etc. 

Right now I have all of those except for fevers, plus no libido, dizziness is much worse, tachycardia,  no concentration, panic attacks, bright light and loud sounds are unpleasant, terrible lump feeling in the throat and esophagus. And some of them started after I stopped hidazepam. 

On Paxil I still had fatigue, occasional fevers. But it took care of nausea and anxiety. 

 

My doctor wants me to take mianserine before sleep and wants me to start Cymbalta. But now I am really scared to take new drugs. Before hidazepam I had some old and new symptoms, but I was somewhat stable. But the last 7-8 days I feel so much worse. Can't leave the house. My heart is racing after 10 minutes of walking. 

Is it better to wait or should I start the new drugs?

[Shep]

41 minutes ago, Antecedent said:

Is it better to wait or should I start the new drugs?

 

 

From what you've written, it sounds like you really don't want to start new drugs. We can't give you any advice on starting new drugs, as we're a site for coming off them. They haven't benefited your so far, so perhaps avoiding them is best. 

 

44 minutes ago, Antecedent said:

My doctor wants me to take mianserine before sleep and wants me to start Cymbalta.

 

Combining two antidepressants can lead to serotonin syndrome. Not sure why your doctor would do that, but unfortunately, this isn't uncommon. 

 

49 minutes ago, Antecedent said:

For my long covid I am primarily taking supplements, like vit D, C, Mg, niacin etc. I don't take them everyday. I take them chaotically. I tried St. John's Wort for a few weeks in the summer but I felt worse. And my doctor prescribed me some theanine and tryptophan supplements this September too. 

 

Did your symptoms get worse after starting theanine and tryptophan? 

 

Please take your supplements consistently - same time of the day and at the same dose. 

 

Some vitamins, such as vitamin D, can be stimulating to the nervous system. It's best to take those in the morning. For more, see:

 

Important topics about tests, supplements, treatments, diet

 

52 minutes ago, Antecedent said:

I took hidazepam in the middle of September for ten days. 

 

52 minutes ago, Antecedent said:

Right now I have all of those except for fevers, plus no libido, dizziness is much worse, tachycardia,  no concentration, panic attacks, bright light and loud sounds are unpleasant, terrible lump feeling in the throat and esophagus. And some of them started after I stopped hidazepam. 

 

Do you remember what day in September you stopped taking hidazepam? Do you remember what day(s) in September you started taking theanine and tryptophan? 

[Antecedent]

29 minutes ago, Shep said:

From what you've written, it sounds like you really don't want to start new drugs. We can't give you any advice on starting new drugs, as we're a site for coming off them. They haven't benefited your so far, so perhaps avoiding them is best.

 

Yes, I understand that. My main questions were: 1. Can a short term use of benzos hit your nervous system. And it seems, the answer is yes. 2. Can I still suffer some withdrawal symptoms after 4-5 months off paxil, and the answer is also yes. 

But my appetite/nausea problem seems to be the same as original before paxil, that's why I am scared that without an AD I won't be able to eat and function. 

29 minutes ago, Shep said:

Combining two antidepressants can lead to serotonin syndrome. Not sure why your doctor would do that, but unfortunately, this isn't uncommon.

 

Yes. I don't like it either. I will consult another doctor on Monday. 

29 minutes ago, Shep said:

Did your symptoms get worse after starting theanine and tryptophan?

No. No change. I guess I started them approximately around September 8, and stopped them after three weeks. Last dose of hidazepam was around Sep 27. And after 2-3 days my symptoms got significantly worse and were almost snowballing from there...

 

If I decide to start AD again, is it better to go back to Paxil in my case? Or try a different one?

[Altostrata]

8 hours ago, Antecedent said:

I mean relapsing to my post covid state in July, Aug of 2021: terrible fatigue, fevers, no appetite and hunger, nausea, lightheadedness, anxiety which transformed into cancerphobia etc. 

 

I'm sorry, we don't know anything about treating protracted covid syndrome here. 

 

It appears your doctor is trying to treat you with psychiatric drugs for those symptoms. We cannot advise you on this, we don't know anything about covid treatment. We cannot advise you on whether to go back on Paxil to treat post-covid symptoms. If you do, you will still have difficulty going off.

 

It appears you might tend to catastrophize or have health anxiety causing you to ruminate about health problems. You might see a psychotherapist or health counselor for this.

 

It's up to you whether you want go the psychiatric drug route or not.

[Antecedent]

12 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

It appears your doctor is trying to treat you with psychiatric drugs for those symptoms.

You are absolutely correct. After many months of searching for answers after the infection, I still couldn't eat or function. I was desperate. So the GI doctor prescribed Paxil. And it worked. After 1,5-2 months I was hungry again and was able to eat and gain weight. I was really happy. It also calmed down the anxiety. It's strange how my original symptoms came and went in waves too. On and off. I mean, it resembles AD withdrawal in many ways.  That's why I am so confused right now, because my appetite problem feels like a relapse, but sexual problems, numb emotions and lump in the throat appeared after I stopped Paxil.  And then hidazepam added more, like light sensitivity, bad dizziness, etc... 

 

21 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

It appears you might tend to catastrophize or have health anxiety causing you to ruminate about health problems. You might see a psychotherapist or health counselor for this.

 

It's up to you whether you want go the psychiatric drug route or not.

 

You see right through me))) 

I am really grateful for your opinion. I will consult another doctor, and then decide. Now I am afraid to make my condition even worse.

But after reading this website, now I know how to taper these drugs the right way. 

[Antecedent]

Another doctor prescribed me 60mg fluoxetine, starting from 20mg... 

Some doctors just don't care about their patients health... He thinks that I don't have long covid, and it's just depression... I am really disappointed  and don't know what to do... 

[Shep]

9 hours ago, Antecedent said:

Another doctor prescribed me 60mg fluoxetine, starting from 20mg... 

Some doctors just don't care about their patients health... He thinks that I don't have long covid, and it's just depression... I am really disappointed  and don't know what to do... 

 

You may want to seek out a holistic or functional medical doctor and see if you have better luck. But be careful about adding in even natural supplements, as that can be too much for a destabilized nervous system for many people dealing with psychiatric drug withdrawal. 

 

You may want to give yourself a few weeks of doing a lot of self care, eating a healthy high protein / low sugar diet, talking walks in nature, learning meditation and gentle yoga, etc and see if your symptoms resolve themselves. 

 

Sometimes the best medicine is mindful waiting and giving your mind / body time to heal on its own. 

[Antecedent]

11 hours ago, Shep said:

You may want to give yourself a few weeks of doing a lot of self care, eating a healthy high protein / low sugar diet, talking walks in nature, learning meditation and gentle yoga, etc and see if your symptoms resolve themselves. 

 

That's a good advice. I was trying it on and off during my long covid. But nothing consistent.  My case is complicated and confusing for me because I've been having symptoms after the infection and all of them resemble AD/benzos withdrawal too. It's been two weeks after hidazepam, it seems that dizziness, head pressure and light/sounds sensitivity, palpitations are less severe. Still there, but not as bad.  Trembling is gone too. 

[Antecedent]

O man... I am embarrassed to write, as I know the admins advised to stay off the meds. But I was feeling horrible and decided to try fluoxetine. I dissolved one capsule in water and took 2mg. In the evening I had a really strange episode, like I was drunk or confused, it was hard to think, like I wasn't myself, like half asleep or hard to remember what I just said. It lasted for several hours... It feels like I am losing my mind. Was it placebo effect panic attack because of anxiety or a reaction to just 2mg? The doctor prescribed to take 20mg.... My family forces me to take drugs. They think I need them. I've never felt like this ever.  It feels like a lot of new more "mental" symptoms pop up... 

[Altostrata]

It might have been the effect of the fluoxetine. Sorry, we cannot advise you on how to treat covid with antidepressants. We don't know anything about it. Needless to say, we're not enthusiastic about it.

[Antecedent]

On 10/14/2022 at 1:38 AM, Altostrata said:

It might have been the effect of the fluoxetine. Sorry, we cannot advise you on how to treat covid with antidepressants. We don't know anything about it. Needless to say, we're not enthusiastic about it.

 

Thank you for replying. Of course, the AD was prescribed for anxiety and loss of appetite, not for post-covid syndrome as such. 

I tried to reduce fluoxetine to 1 mg. I took it for several days. It was also recommended on this forum as a substitute for Paxil if someone decide to reinstate a low dose. I still had this strange groggy feeling in the evening after taking it. Maybe it's what people call derealization? I've never had it. So I stopped taking fluoxetine two days ago. I am scared to do more harm. But I think my lump in the throat/esophagus almost went away on the days I was taking 1-2mg of fluoxetine. (placebo effect??)

I really don't know what to do... my parents and doctors think that I need treatment with AD because all my symptoms are in my head and it can't be AD withdrawal or reaction after hidazepam. They think it's a relapse. My husband, who observes me everyday, says I should stop all psych drugs as now I have more symptoms, especially mental ones, which I've never had... 

 

In short, I was feeling better on Paxil, I could eat again and my anxiety stopped. After fast tapering Paxil, I had some mild wd like brain zaps for a short time. My libido increased briefly and my muscles stopped aching. But 4-6 weeks after stopping Paxil I started to feel worse: appetite got worse, fatigue increased, anxiety attacks. Honestly, it felt like I was slowly relapsing to my original post covid condition. But it was manageable. I still had better days, I could drive by myself, take short walks, eat full meals. Then I started to have this lump feeling in the throat, very unpleasant. After a while I went to check it. The GI doctor prescribed hidazepam because she thought it was due to anxiety.  And after ten days of taking it and then stopping, I feel terrible. Does it sound more like anxiety disorder relapse or AD withdrawal? 

 

[Altostrata]

Antidepressants such as fluoxetine are psychotropic drugs and have effects on the brain and nervous system. It's up to you to decide if these effects are beneficial.

 

9 hours ago, Antecedent said:

But I think my lump in the throat/esophagus almost went away on the days I was taking 1-2mg of fluoxetine. (placebo effect??)

 

As we advised, taking a little fluoxetine can reduce the withdrawal effects from paroxetine. We expect this small amount to have a small effect at first, then get stronger as fluoxetine ramps up over at least a couple of weeks. This supports your nervous system in recovering from withdrawal syndrome over months.

 

It seems that the small amount of fluoxetine was helpful. Up to you want you want to do now.

[Antecedent]

An update. 

I've been trying fluoxetine 1-2mg, but it made me groggy in the evening, something like derealization, very weird. It helped with the lump in the throat and pressure in the the esophagus. I dropped it after a week.

I also tried mianserin 5mg at night. It improved sleep and appetite, I think. But during the day I felt head pressure and I was feeling weird and not myself...I dropped it after a week too.

Now I am two weeks med free. I only take omega, vit D, and CoQ10. I think I am more stable. During October I've been housebound with a myriad of weird symptoms after taking hidazepam. (like being nauseated after 15min of standing or being dizzy after seeing bright lights or hearing loud noise). Now I can manage 20-30min gentle walk, a short drive to buy food (I even drove by myself once), doing some house chores. One day I could concentrate to watch 2 movies in a row (what an achievement, haha).  I can eat two-three full meals a day with no appetite, but no nausea either. Muscles feel stronger too. I still have tachycardia everyday, fatigue, bouts of fear, lump in the throat, terror or sadness out of the blue, no libido. But I feel better after stopping all drugs, I think.... And it seems this "hidazepam setback/crisis" has subsided.

Mind that I had loss of appetite, debilitating fatigue after Covid and before Paxil. But Paxil added new problems and hidazepam made me crash.

[Altostrata]

Good to hear you're doing better. Your system is in a vulnerable state, strongly recommend you not experiment with any more drugs.

[Antecedent]

I am so much worse again... don't know what to do. The last few days I can't eat, nausea and no appetite. It feels like a relapse. But now I have terrible mental symptoms, I am so scared all day, can't think clearly, dizzy, I feel like my memory is bad, I really can't focus on any distraction, it's hard to read or watch something. I think I am really depressed and out of it. The fatigue is terrible. It's hard to get out of bad. I really wouldn't want to take any drugs, but I can not function. And in my case I still don't know if it's Paxil damage, or It's just my health getting worse. I was really ill before Paxil too. My family is scared for me. I don't know how to live with this mental and physical torture. The majority of forum members were physically healthy before AD, and I had and still have an undiagnosed health condition  that looks like Long covid or CFS. I don't understand why I am getting worse and worse...It's been 5 months off Paxil. If I am getting only worse, it must mean it's a relapse for me? My old symptoms are back, and a lot of new mental ones are present. I am so lost... Sorry for posting this here. 

[brassmonkey]

Paxil has a reputation for being one of the hardest ADs to taper off of. The drug gets it claws in you quite quickly and doesn't want to let go. A long slow taper has plenty of ups and downs, but going CT is very challenging indeed. In either cast it takes a very long time to recover, but recovery does come.  It is very hard to distinguish between Long Covid and ADWD, the symptoms for both being quite similar. It appears that you may be suffering from both, and it is very hard to tell which is causing what symptom. In either case the cure is going to be lots of time.

 

Adding more drugs to the mix to try and mitigate the symptoms will, in the end, just make things worse. For the most part the supplements you are taking are fine. Except for the CoQ10, that is a psychoactive substance that works on serotonin and will negate the recovery your body is making. If you havent taken it for long, I would fast taper off of it and avoid it in the future.

 

If you haven't read it yet, I would suggest looking at this thread: Are We There Yet? How Long Is Withdrawal Going To Take? - Tapering - Surviving Antidepressants  it will give you a lot of information and understanding as to what is happening.

 

For only being five months into a CT it appears that you are doing pretty well. There are going to be a lot of ups and downs, windows and waves, but given plenty of time things will settle down and healing will happen.  There are a number of other members who have been or are going through the exact same thing I would suggest seeking them out for a shared experience.

 

 

[Antecedent]

40 minutes ago, brassmonkey said:

Paxil has a reputation for being one of the hardest ADs to taper off of. The drug gets it claws in you quite quickly and doesn't want to let go. A long slow taper has plenty of ups and downs, but going CT is very challenging indeed. In either cast it takes a very long time to recover, but recovery does come.  It is very hard to distinguish between Long Covid and ADWD, the symptoms for both being quite similar. It appears that you may be suffering from both, and it is very hard to tell which is causing what symptom. In either case the cure is going to be lots of time.

 

Thank you so much for your reply. Just reading a reply from the "veterans" and mods is really uplifting, like you're not alone. 

Perhaps, I am suffering from both, but it's statistically so improbable)) But some things are definitely due to the paxil - like loss of libido,  weird exaggerated reactions to stimuli, weird mental symptoms, like fear and terror that I have never felt before, that come out of nowhere and for no reason at all... sometimes I feel quite insane, I jump off my bed and pace my room... oh boy... But the fatigue and loss of appetite are my "old" symptoms.

 

49 minutes ago, brassmonkey said:

Adding more drugs to the mix to try and mitigate the symptoms will, in the end, just make things worse. For the most part the supplements you are taking are fine. Except for the CoQ10, that is a psychoactive substance that works on serotonin and will negate the recovery your body is making. If you havent taken it for long, I would fast taper off of it and avoid it in the future.

 

I understand this, but at my lowest it seems unbearable. I really feel tempted to ask my doctor to prescribe some more Paxil to try reinstatement... I know it's not the best idea.

I didn't know this about CoQ10... I take it because I have no energy and so fatigued all the time. It seems to give me a boost. I've been taking it for a long time, as it was recommended for long covid. 

56 minutes ago, brassmonkey said:

For only being five months into a CT it appears that you are doing pretty well. There are going to be a lot of ups and downs, windows and waves, but given plenty of time things will settle down and healing will happen.  There are a number of other members who have been or are going through the exact same thing I would suggest seeking them out for a shared experience.

Really? haha. It sure doesn't feel like it. The first 3-4 weeks after stopping Paxil I felt pretty great. Better even. My body was lighter, good mood, increased libido. The only WD symptom I felt - strange feeling in the head when I moved my eyes. It quickly went away. Then I started slowly getting worse, but it felt like my old symptoms were coming back, but I still had an appetite and could take 2km walks or drive to town no problem. Then in August I started to have a very persistent lump in the throat and pressure in the esophagus and chest. I thought it was just gerd or anxiety. I felt worse and worse until my GI doctor prescribed me a benzo at the end of September. I felt ok while taking it, but 2-3 days after stopping it - all hell broke loose. It was awful! All of October was hell. In November I had some improvements, could walk more, do gentle exercise for 15min, eat better, read a little, but never returned to pre-benzo time. I don't feel like myself since then. And several days ago it hit me again - nausea, racing heart, constant panic and terror, crushing fatigue, can't get out of bed, can't think clearly... I even hope that it's "just" WD... I can recover from WD eventually, not so much from worsened Long covid/CFS... 

 

I have a question. Can I take beta-blockers for tachycardia? It feels like POTS, my heart races when I stand up or do something physical. 

[Altostrata]

@Antecedent What might have triggered this setback? is it possible you have covid? Alcohol? Antibiotics?

[Antecedent]

31 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

What might have triggered this setback? is it possible you have covid? Alcohol? Antibiotics?

 

No, nothing like that. It began a week ago, there was an episode when I ate a larger greasy meal and immediately started sweating and felt dizzy, my heart was racing. Then I had several nocturnal panic attacks. And it was a week of PMS and I started my period... So overall, nothing major but maybe several factors combined.... It's hard to trace the triggers if there are any. My LC symptoms are always worse during periods too...   

[Altostrata]

You might have had mild food poisoning.

[Antecedent]

On 12/12/2022 at 3:17 AM, Altostrata said:

You might have had mild food poisoning.

 

No, no poisoning. 

 

I decided to try and reinstate a small dose of Paxil. Every day I've been getting worse and worse. It's hard to get up, I am nauseous, can't focus on anything and live in constant uncertainty about my symptoms. And where I live, I really need to have at least minimal functionality, I need to be able to eat, cook, drive to a gas station or a shop,  bring firewood and turn on a generator. My environment is really highly stressful. And If I were healthy before Paxil, I would definitely try to heal naturally  and wait it out. But I really need something to keep me going. I don't want to take these drugs but it was the only thing that was helping with some symptoms. 

I took two doses 1.25mg, I hope it will work for me...I just don't know what else to do.

[Altostrata]

Please let us know how you're doing.

[Phoenixmama]

they prescribed paxil for nausea ? this is scary... 

[Antecedent]

On 12/16/2022 at 9:50 PM, Phoenixmama said:

they prescribed paxil for nausea ? this is scary... 

 

The most interesting thing is that Paxil worked for my nausea. All tests showed nothing wrong with the gut or stomach. After stopping Paxil I began losing my appetite again and after a few months my nausea was back. 

 

On 12/16/2022 at 4:54 AM, Altostrata said:

Please let us know how you're doing.

 

I've been doing very poorly. I am mostly bedridden since the beginning of December. I was so desperate that I took two doses of 1.25mg paxil. But that week I felt so ill like I was dying, it was hard to stand up, I couldn't eat, POTS-like tachycardia, dizziness, muscle weakness, depression, a lot of crying, terror etc. Stopped paxil. 

I ended up going to a neurologist and she prescribed me 10mg of mianserin. I've been taking it for some weeks now. I am able to eat without appetite, it helps with sleep, but the sleep is heavy, and it gives me extra dizziness and drowsiness. Maybe I can stabilize on it. Overall, I feel like my health has deteriorated quite significantly if to compare with 1,5 years  ago... and honestly, I don't know if Paxil is to blame. Post viral and CFS patients can deteriorate without no rhyme or reason. I will be trying new immune treatments in the future to try to improve my health. 

 

Some symptoms have improved though: I don't have head pressure and lump in the throat anymore. Light and sound sensitivity is very mild now. 

The symptoms that are worse: fatigue! It's disabling. Can't drive, can't stand for more than 15-20 minutes. Muscle weakness (new, especially in the legs), no concentration or focus. Can't watch a movie or listen to music. Can't do house chores. 

 

I am very sad and confused because all of my symptoms can be explained by ME/CFS, post-viral illness. I really "hope" that it has something to do with ADs or benzos, and can improve with time. But at this points, it's hard to believe that... 

I am also down with the flu and high fever... 

[Phoenixmama]

When I have nausea I eat raw ginger , have you tried that ? Im

so sorry your suffering, sending you hugs 

[Altostrata]

On 1/6/2023 at 11:10 AM, Antecedent said:

I am also down with the flu and high fever... 

 

This can affect your symptom pattern.

 

If you feel your current dosage of mianserin is too strong, strongly suggest you discuss adjusting your dose gradually with your prescriber.

[Antecedent]

On 1/6/2023 at 11:58 PM, Phoenixmama said:

When I have nausea I eat raw ginger , have you tried that ? Im

so sorry your suffering, sending you hugs 

 

Thank you for your kind words.

I tried ginger and many kinds of anti-emetic meds, no real help. I have this symptom since July 2021, long before any ADs. Complete loss of appetite and hunger, everyday nausea. I had no relief until Paxil. But after stopping it, the symptom has returned. It's not a WD symptom. I still don't have any real explanation except for "long covid" or "ME/CFS". The same with fatigue. Honestly, at this point, the only things I can attribute to Paxil are mental, cognitive and emotional. All my physical symptoms are my  pre-AD symptoms now, only so much worse. 

 

On 1/8/2023 at 5:58 AM, Altostrata said:

This can affect your symptom pattern.

 

If you feel your current dosage of mianserin is too strong, strongly suggest you discuss adjusting your dose gradually with your prescriber.

 

Yes. Yesterday I had a red flushed face for many hours and today I am extremely restless pacing back and forth with "fake" adrenaline energy. I also got a steroid injection (betamethasone) that can mess with a lot of things. *sigh* 

 

My neurologist recommended to go off 10 mg mianserin by reducing in half and skipping doses, which I won't do. She thinks it's not doing anything really for the mood and anxiety, which is true. But it helps with the appetite. 

[Altostrata]

I'm sorry, we cannot help counsel you about treatment for your medical condition.

 

If you have been taking mianserin for more than a month, you would want to taper it gradually, perhaps by using a liquid preparation and oral syringe, to find the lowest effective dose. See 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

Combining tablets or capsules with liquid to taper

 

How to make a liquid from tablets or capsules
 
Using an oral syringe and other tapering techniques

 

Questions and answers about liquid medications

 

Please update your signature with your current drug information.

[Jilla]

On 12/11/2022 at 4:24 PM, Antecedent said:

 

No, nothing like that. It began a week ago, there was an episode when I ate a larger greasy meal and immediately started sweating and felt dizzy, my heart was racing. Then I had several nocturnal panic attacks. And it was a week of PMS and I started my period... So overall, nothing major but maybe several factors combined.... It's hard to trace the triggers if there are any. My LC symptoms are always worse during periods too...   

 

[Jilla]

Hi Antecedent!

I went off Paxil CT after being on it 13 years. Huge mistake. It can feel like hell indeed. I find that food can definitely trigger withdrawal symptoms. Eating too much, eating too many carbs in one sitting, eating certain foods. I had to purée all my foods for a while just to get food in me. I have started having some good days/weeks, followed by bad weeks. This is the pattern of healing apparently. Make sure when you are having good days you don’t overdo….that too can trigger a setback. Hang in there my friend…you’ve got this!

[Antecedent]

47 minutes ago, Jilla said:

Make sure when you are having good days you don’t overdo….that too can trigger a setback. Hang in there my friend…you’ve got this!

 

Thank you for reading my story and reassurance. I really hope we can heal. But I am in a really bad shape since December. I can't really overdo, even if I wanted to... my fatigue is now so severe that I am bedbound most of the day. I can only get up to go to the bathroom or to the kitchen. Some days I can take a very short and slow 15 min walk outside. 

 

At this point I think I don't really have WD anymore, but rather worsening of my illness (maybe due to taking Paxil and tapering too quickly or due to taking a benzodiazepine) 

But the cascade of symptoms started right after stopping hidazepam, so I definitely feel that psych med are indeed very destabilizing, WD or not WD. 

And it's really confusing, as a lot of Long covid and ME/CFS symptoms are the same as WD. 

My "waves" started 2-3 months after going off Paxil. Several bad days at first. Then 10-14 bad days. Then 3 weeks in October. And now almost 8 weeks since December. The worst of all. It seems that my crashes are becoming longer and more severe. Pure torture. Some days I at least can focus enough to watch a movie, and some days reading 10 min seems like a difficult task. I am at loss. I don't really know if I should stay on this forum, but I just think that maybe my thread might be helpful for people with LC, CFS and other post-viral conditions. 

 

[Antecedent]

An update: I tapered mianserin (fast taper as I wasn't taking it for a long time). It wasn't doing anything really helpful, except increasing appetite and improving sleep a little. 

 

I was prescribed escitalopram and decided to give it a try, since I was so bad I was barely walking. 

And on 5mg I felt at least some relief and improvement in physical symptoms: I can eat, I can slowly walk 1 km some days, do easy house chores and manage a short drive. My muscles feel a little stronger. It didn't do anything for brain fog and concentration, crying spells, terror, severe anxiety and bouts of depression. I also had side effects: headache during first few days, I wake up sweating in the morning, I have uneasy feeling and restlessness, especially when I tried 10mg for a week. Really bad tension and restlessness, unable to distract myself or watch a movie on 10 mg. So I went back to 5mg and I really hope to stabilize at some livable level of symptoms. 

 

I am so sorry I am jumping around with the drugs, I realize that it's not recommended on this site. And I do know that nobody can help me treat or ease Long Covid or CFS with ADs. The past two months were really hard and debilitating for me. I had no functionality whatsoever. I just want to see if I can stabilize or improve in case some of my symptoms or worsening of health are indeed due to Paxil PAWS.