smatt Posted January 27, 2023 Share Posted January 27, 2023 About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son (Dr never said exactly why, I think they thought Citalopram was pooping out, but I was postpartum at the time) - had a small issue for a week or so with the transition, but I was ok after that. 2021 - Found a healthy diet, healed my gut some, decided to try to go off Sertraline again. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. Didn't do well, found a FB support group, per their recommendation, reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. I now need help with knowing if I'm truly stabilizing and, from there, I have some supplements that I should NOT be on at the same time as Sert, but I'm stuck on them for the moment until I stabilize, I'd like help knowing how to go about weaning those (or what to talk to my practitioner about at least). https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted January 28, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted January 28, 2023 (edited) Welcome to SA, smatt. To start, could you create a drug signature ? You could adapt what you wrote in your current post, editing it down to just drugs, dosage changes and dates. This will appear under all your posts and will help the moderators. Please use this link: Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature. Reinstatement isn't a guarantee of diminished symptoms for everyone but it's the best tactic available. The time period where reinstatement predictably works is up to 3 months after last dose, and we usually suggest a much smaller reinstatement dose than your last dose. Please read: About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms. -- at least the first page of the topic Reinstatement dosages are tricky. The 3mg dose was clearly too much, and 2mg and 1mg might also have been too much. What date did you go to 2mg? How are you doing now? Have you noticed any improvement since the 2mg reinstatement? Are your current symptoms similar to what happened when you were at 3mg? What supplements are you taking? For future reference--meaning when the time comes that you have stabilized on your reinstatement, which can take several months, and are ready to taper--we recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dose every 4 weeks. Why taper by 10% of my dosage? Once you answered my questions, we'll be in a better position help you. This is your introduction topic -- the place for you to ask questions, answer my questions, record symptoms, share your progress, and connect with other members of the SA community. I hope you’ll find the information in the SA forums helpful for your situation. I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but I am glad that you found us. Edited January 28, 2023 by Gridley Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Aug 26: 4.0mg Taper is 95% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs. Link to comment
smatt Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 Thanks for the reply. I'm glad to have found your forum, it has been useful before I could join even. On 1/28/2023 at 4:07 PM, Gridley said: Reinstatement dosages are tricky. The 3mg dose was clearly too much, and 2mg and 1mg might also have been too much. What date did you go to 2mg? How are you doing now? Have you noticed any improvement since the 2mg reinstatement? Are your current symptoms similar to what happened when you were at 3mg? I reinstated with 1mg on Dec 8, 2 days after the major withdrawal symptoms first happened. I don't have many notes from that day, but I seemed to start sleeping better and my appetite was improving that week, but towards the end of that week, I was still having a few sleeping issues, so I went up to 2mg on Dec 15. I have notes that I slept better that night. I was still trying to regulate all my supplements at hat time too and I tried taking more magnesium a few days later, which ended up being too much for me (I slept awful from that, was up going to the bathroom all night). And, looking back, I should have stayed steady after that, but then I tried to go to 3mg on Dec 21, and as mentioned, I slept awful that night and had increased anxiety and SI that day. I went back to 2mg on Dec 22 and have been there since trying to stabilize. At first, I seemed to be sleeping better and improving overall, but that has stagnated over the past few weeks here. Basically, I haven't had any solid blocks of sleep (at least 3 hours) since Jan 15. Since then, I've been lucky to get maybe one or two stretches of 2 hours of sleep at at time and the rest of the night I wake up about every hour or so, sometimes less. I can sleep most of the night, but I'm not getting REM sleep. I hate that I can't tell what's helping or hurting lately and I thought at first that the 2mg was helping me, but now I'm wondering if it's hurting more than helping. Could it be that I'm on too much Sertraline now? Should I try to decrease it soon (a very tiny amount, I wouldn't want to drop too fast again)? My current symptoms aren't what it was like on 3mg (I was awake most of that night), but I was only there for one day so it's hard to say. Supplements (it's a long list, I was on most of them before the major withdrawal symptoms in December and before my last dose in Sept): Magnesium L-Theronate and Magnesium glycinate small amount of a magnesium lotion before bed Methyl multivitamin Iron Vit D Iodine w/zinc and selenium Methyl B12 with folate Probiotic Pregnenolone DHEA Herbal tincture with schisandra berry, reishi mushroom, ashwagandha root, and blue vervain The last 3, esp the last 2, are the ones I'm most concerned about - I didn't realize when I started taking them that they could mess with my serotonin levels. I wouldn't have chosen to take them had I known. However, since I can't say for sure if they are what's causing the issues, I've held steady on them for the time being as well while I'm trying to give my body time to stabilize. I've also tried several homeopathic remedies to help with depression, anxiety, vertigo, and sleep issues (the sleep one I've just started so I'm waiting to see if that helps). They seem to help to some extent, I think they'd help more if I weren't in this weird limbo of stabilizing or not. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted February 5, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 5, 2023 55 minutes ago, smatt said: Could it be that I'm on too much Sertraline now? Should I try to decrease it soon (a very tiny amount, I wouldn't want to drop too fast again)? My current symptoms aren't what it was like on 3mg (I was awake most of that night), but I was only there for one day so it's hard to say. You could go down a bit and see how you feel. Finding that magic spot is tricky. 55 minutes ago, smatt said: Magnesium L-Theronate and Magnesium glycinate I found mag threonate to be extremely activating (bad for sleep). I bought mine from Mercola and remember it was advertised for mental acuity, which really is not what you need. 55 minutes ago, smatt said: Methyl multivitamin Eliminate. Too many ingredients causing who knows what plus lots of activating B -- bad for sleep. 55 minutes ago, smatt said: Methyl B12 with folate Another B. 55 minutes ago, smatt said: Pregnenolone DHEA Herbal tincture with schisandra berry, reishi mushroom, ashwagandha root, and blue vervain A lot of supplements causing who knows what. I found ashwaganda to be extremely activating. If I were you, I'd simplify my whole supplement situation. Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Aug 26: 4.0mg Taper is 95% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs. Link to comment
smatt Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 I agree on simplifying the supplements. I should do all of that slowly though, right? Like just one at a time? And I didn't realize Magnesium L-Theronate could be activating, I've been taking that in the evenings, should I switch that out for the Mag glycinate? Thanks! https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
smatt Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 5 hours ago, Gridley said: You could go down a bit and see how you feel. Finding that magic spot is tricky. Also, adding to my confusion with Sertraline, I find that in general, I'm more depressed/anxious feeling throughout the daytime, towards the evening, those symptoms fade, but the vertigo gets worse. If I hadn't had other symptoms get better after restarting it, I would think it's hurting more than helping. But since I did get a bit better, I'm having a hard time telling if my body just needs more time to stabilize or if I should try to change the dosage at the moment or not. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
smatt Posted February 8, 2023 Author Share Posted February 8, 2023 On 2/5/2023 at 3:07 PM, smatt said: I agree on simplifying the supplements. I should do all of that slowly though, right? Like just one at a time? And I didn't realize Magnesium L-Theronate could be activating, I've been taking that in the evenings, should I switch that out for the Mag glycinate? Thanks! I tried switching to Magnesium glycinate in the evenings the past 2 nights. Yesterday morning I had more anxiety than usual and then last night I slept a little worse than usual and had a bit more anxiety overnight. Any further thoughts? Should I go back to Mg L-Threonate? @Gridley On 2/5/2023 at 1:15 PM, Gridley said: On 2/5/2023 at 12:18 PM, smatt said: Methyl B12 with folate Another B. As for this, I'm not sure if it's activating or not for me. I was tested actually just a week before my major withdrawal issues happened and I was pretty low on B12. I may consider stopping this at some point, but not yet. On 2/5/2023 at 3:07 PM, smatt said: I agree on simplifying the supplements. I should do all of that slowly though, right? Like just one at a time? I'm still not sure how to go about simplifying my supplements? I assume only one at at time and as slowly as possible? https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted February 8, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 8, 2023 @smatt If the threonate agrees with you better than the glycinate, then stay with it. I didn't do well with the threonate, but that's me. If you do decide to simplify your supplements, then do it gradually, one at a time and slowly. That way you'll have a better idea of what's causing what, now and for the future. Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Aug 26: 4.0mg Taper is 95% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs. Link to comment
smatt Posted March 1, 2023 Author Share Posted March 1, 2023 Since I last posted, I settled on what seemed to work for magnesium (adding a glycinate in after my lunch) and my symptoms got better for about a week, but then I got sick and my period came and it's been a rough time mentally. I've been feeling really depressed and sometimes anxious. I still have vertigo that gets worse as the day goes on. And I'm now wondering if I maybe need to try to go up on my dose of Sertraline again? I miss feeling "normal" and only had a small glimpse of it for a week or so. Or do I just give this all more time? Is there any chance of working my way back up to a "normal" dose of Sertraline (like 25mg) or is that unlikely to help at this point? Feeling really lost in all of this right now. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
smatt Posted March 7, 2023 Author Share Posted March 7, 2023 @Gridley Is there any further advice you (or other admins) would have for me on my last post? I've also been wondering if maybe I need to increase my magnesium again. I tried changing the timing of taking my different magnesiums this week (I was thinking that maybe the l-threonate was causing the sleep issues, so I moved that to after lunch and my glycinate to after dinner) and it's not changed anything. So yesterday I tried taking all my magnesium for the day before about 1 (again to see if that was causing the sleep issues) and that backfired - I slept worse last night than I have in a while. I'm going back to what I was doing today. But it all made me wonder if I'm still not getting enough magnesium overall because it did help me sleep a bit better after I first increased it about a month ago. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted March 7, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted March 7, 2023 On 3/1/2023 at 11:00 AM, smatt said: And I'm now wondering if I maybe need to try to go up on my dose of Sertraline again? I miss feeling "normal" and only had a small glimpse of it for a week or so. Or do I just give this all more time? Is there any chance of working my way back up to a "normal" dose of Sertraline (like 25mg) or is that unlikely to help at this point? The purpose of reinstatement isn't to eliminate withdrawal symptoms but to make them tolerable. I would stay at 2mg. You have a different brain and nervous system from when you were on 20 and 25mg Sertraline--sensitized and accustomed to much smaller doses-- and I don't think the higher doses would be a good idea or a workable goal. The fact that you did badly on 3mg bears me out on this. Too much Sertraline can overwhelm your "new" brain and make matter much worse. When you felt "normal" that was a window (a good period in withdrawal). It will come again--and again--as your system stabilizes. I know that windows are great and make all the difference. I love them. But going back to a high dose of Sertraline isn't the way to make them happen. Please read: The Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization 3 hours ago, smatt said: But it all made me wonder if I'm still not getting enough magnesium overall because it did help me sleep a bit better after I first increased it about a month ago. All I can say is to keep working with the magnesium to see what works best for you. And this may change as time passes. Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Aug 26: 4.0mg Taper is 95% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs. Link to comment
smatt Posted May 25, 2023 Author Share Posted May 25, 2023 Since I last posted, I've had a few longer windows where I feel more "myself" (yay for that), but my sleep is still awful. I'm ususally awake every hour or so throughout the night, sometimes getting a 2- or 3-hour stretch, but it's not consistent. My worst nights, I'm awake every hour or less and have a harder time falling back asleep, especially after about 3am. I'm pretty certain my cortisol is messed up. I took at test back in November, about a month before the withdrawal symptoms began and my cortisol was flat all day, so I'm pretty sure back then it was spiking overnight and it's probably only stayed the same or gotten worse since then with all the stress of withdrawal. My naturopath has recommended either CBD or phosphatidylserine. I'm wary of taking more supplements, but then I might be willing to if it really would help me get back to a normal night's sleep. I've searched this forum about the phosphatidylserine - it seems like it might help reset cortisol, but I still am iffy on a new supplement. Any further thoughts from anyone here? https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
smatt Posted June 15, 2023 Author Share Posted June 15, 2023 @Gridley It's been a little while again since I have been on here, but wondering yours (or any admins) thoughts on my last question in my last post? Also, how will I know when I'm steady enough to start dropping my 2mg of Sertraline? I'm really wanting to start tapering it soon, but not sure how "steady" I should be first? https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/28502-smatt/ About 2004 (don't remember exact year) - took Lexapro for maybe a month, didn't want to stay on it then, went off without much problems Feb 2013 - Started Citalopram for probable PMDD (never officially diagnosed) Summer 2017 - Tried to go off Citalopram, following Dr's quick taper, reinstated just a few weeks later. Summer 2018 - Was switched by Dr to Sertraline 100mg after birth of 2nd son 2021 - Found a healthy diet, decided to try to go off Sertraline. Dropped to 50mg in fall 2021 minor issues, but did fine with that drop Feb 2022 - dropped to 25mg, did ok enough with the drop (hindsight - I should have held there much longer) - followed Dr's short taper again to try to go off the 25mg. March 2022 - reinstated with 20mg of liquid Sertraline. I did ok with that after a few weeks. I still didn't realize how much I NEEDED to slowly taper and tapered much too fast over summer of 2022 Sept 2022 - took last dose of Setraline (1mg) in late Sept Dec 2022 - Hit major withdrawal symptoms in early Dec, decided to try a reinstatement with a low dose of Sertraline - started with 1mg, moved up to 2mg the next week. Tried to go to 3mg, ended up with adverse reactions that day (increased anxiety, SI, couldn't sleep that night), went back down to 2mg the next day and have held steady there since. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Gridley Posted June 16, 2023 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted June 16, 2023 @smatt I'm taking a break from moderating due to surgery. I'm sorry I can't help you right now. Gridley Introduction Lexapro 20 mg since 2004. Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017. End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg Oct. 30, 2020 Jump to zero from 0.025mg. Current dose: 0.000mg 3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete. Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium End 2021 year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper. Taper is 95% complete. Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986. Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper. Current dose as of Aug 26: 4.0mg Taper is 95% complete. Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotic, zinc, melatonin .3mg, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase, L-Glutamine, milk thistle, choline I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. It is information based on my own experience as well as that of other members who have survived these drugs. Link to comment
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