Giuly88:Having bad withdrawal from escitalopram

[Giuly88]

Hi, I am currently suffering from severe generalised muscle spasms. I’m just over two months into escitalopram withdrawal and tried to reinstate twice the suggested small amount of 0.25 but had neuropathy flaring up again  as a result (tingling and burning) so I stopped. At the moment my major most debilitating symptom is muscle spasms on by back, neck, face, trunk, abdomen, gluteus, calves that come and go. I also have waves of tension headaches particularly on the right side of my head, mild nausea and stomach bloatiness. Sleep is better with vivid dream but disturbed by the constant muscle tension. Any advice and help is much appreciated.

 

I don’t want to take any muscle relaxants as they affect the CNS. I’m using magnesium gel, take magnesium as tablet, using camomile tea but they don’t help much.
 

Thank you so much for all your support ❤️ 

 

Giuliana

[Shep]

@Giuly88 Are you currently off all drugs? 

 

It may be a matter of riding out the symptoms as best as you can. Eat healthy, avoiding caffeine, alcohol, sugar, and processed foods. Drink plenty of water. Take a walk in the sun when you can. 

 

Some of the stomach issues may resolve with an elimination diet. You can read about that here:

 

Digestive problems: Nausea, Diarrhea, Bloating, GERD

Food sensitivities
 
Gluten Sensitivity Vs. Celiac Disease Vs. Gluten Intolerance...
 
Histamine food intolerance

 

Elimination or exclusion diets for reactions to food (food intolerance)

SCD/GAPS/Paleo Diets
 
Probiotics and gut health

 

Very gentle yoga and stretching may help with the muscle issues. You can find gentle, restorative yoga on YouTube. 

[Giuly88]

Hi Shep, thank you so much for your quick response. Yes I’m currently off all drugs however I’m now willing to reinstate as I have got no other options. The only concern is: will my debilitating muscle spasms and jitteriness/inability to relax ease if introduce say 1.00 mg escitalopram? I just don’t want to make it any worse that already is. 

 

Thank you for your support.

 

Giuliana

[Shep]

22 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

The only concern is: will my debilitating muscle spasms and jitteriness/inability to relax ease if introduce say 1.00 mg escitalopram?

 

I don't know, Giuly. This is in your signature for the most recent changes you've made:

 

Quote

Beginning of January 2023 stopped escitalopram for 1 day then 2.5mg for the next day. Developed  discontinuation symptoms reinstated it at 2.5 for 1 week and 1.5 for the following week then stopped. 

 

You've been all over the place with the dose of this drug over the past few months and you never gave the reinstatement enough time to work. 

 

When you asked about reinstating back in February, we recommended not going any higher than 0.25 mg.  The reason for keeping the reinstatement so low is because your nervous system has likely already started adjusting to not having the drug in your system. If you take too high a dose, your system may hyper-react to it. You may want to re-read your thread and the links provided.

 

If you do reinstate, since it's now 3 months since you stopped, you definitely don't want to take anything higher than 0.25 mg. You may want to aim for a lower dose than that. And you'll need to give the reinstatement enough time to work. 

[Giuly88]

Thank you Shep for your reply. Will continue as I am then. Thank you for your precious advice and support 🙏 x

[Altostrata]

Hello, @Giuly88 How are you doing?

[Giuly88]

6 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

Hello, @Giuly88 How are you doing?

Hi Alto,

Thank you for your message.

 

Yes well I’m 3 months into escitalopram fast taper withdrawal and well my symptoms relate to muscles.

 

I have intermittent spasms on my hands, arms, abdomen, back and jaw clenching/Bruxism but they come and go depending on what I do, whether I stand, sit. I seem to be sleeping better.

 

My hands curl into a fist particularly when at rest, in bed and on awaking in the morning and also I have body vibrations/tremors that I notice when laying down. They do seem to be dystonia  reactions and I am worried they won’t resolve although I did see little improvement with some short windows.

 

No sure what to make of it but my legs and arms feel heavy as if their are sinking /digging into the floor when standing or into the bed when lying down.

 

I wonder and concerned whether these symptoms will resolve in time.

 

I appreciate any enlightening suggestion or advice.

 

Giuliana 

 

 

[Altostrata]

How has your symptom pattern changed over the last month?

 

What do you mean by spasms?

 

24 minutes ago, Giuly88 said:

My hands curl into a fist particularly when at rest

 

Please explain more about this. How often does it happen, how long does it last, do you have any control over it?

[Giuly88]

15 minutes ago, Altostrata said:

How has your symptom pattern changed over the last month?

 

What do you mean by spasms?

 

 

Please explain more about this. How often does it happen, how long does it last, do you have any control over it?

Hi Alto,

 

No I don’t have control over this as I can only rectify by consciously opening my hand. It happens randomly when I stand, sit but mostly when I sleep and wake up.
 

What I mean by spasms is that for example my abdomen muscles get rigid or expand uncontrollably when I sit at rest and also my hands muscles get tight, my legs calves twitch and the same goes for my back muscles that get rigid and tensed.

 

These various muscles don’t always play up at the same time. It seems that these contractions move from one body part to another although the trunk muscles seem to play up the most. 
 

I sometimes have belly dancer (chorea) symptoms on my abdomen.

 

The jaw clenching is a fairly new symptom that started around a week ago and can be very painful with cheeks tending up.

 

 

 

[Shep]

19 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

The jaw clenching is a fairly new symptom that started around a week ago and can be very painful with cheeks tending up.

 

Do you have a night guard? A night guard can be very helpful for protecting your teeth if you're grinding them when your jaws clench up. You can get a night guard from your dentist or a cheaper version is available in many drug stores.

 

Facial tics, jaw, tongue muscle tension and pain, bruxism, teeth clenching, TMJ

 

19 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

What I mean by spasms is that for example my abdomen muscles get rigid or expand uncontrollably when I sit at rest and also my hands muscles get tight, my legs calves twitch and the same goes for my back muscles that get rigid and tensed.

 

 

Gentle stretches can be helpful for tight muscles. You can find easy yoga for beginners videos on YouTube. Even just placing your feet up the wall can be relaxing. Please see:

 

Legs Up The Wall - Foundations of Yoga video (6 minutes)

 

Regardless of your age, the gentle yoga for seniors can be great for folks dealing with a destabilized nervous system and tense muscles.

 

Yoga For Seniors | Slow and Gentle Yoga video (28 minutes)

 

If you're able to tolerate magnesium, you can take warm baths with epsom salts to help relax the muscles. Please see:

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker

 

Doing gentle stretches when you wake up and before you go to sleep can be very helpful for keeping your muscles relaxed. 

 

Please note these suggestions may not directly end the type of dystonia symptoms you're describing, but over time, they can help with the muscle tension that's caused by this symptom and help with overall relaxation of the nervous system. 

[Giuly88]

On 5/18/2023 at 10:32 AM, Shep said:

 

Do you have a night guard? A night guard can be very helpful for protecting your teeth if you're grinding them when your jaws clench up. You can get a night guard from your dentist or a cheaper version is available in many drug stores.

 

Facial tics, jaw, tongue muscle tension and pain, bruxism, teeth clenching, TMJ

 

 

Gentle stretches can be helpful for tight muscles. You can find easy yoga for beginners videos on YouTube. Even just placing your feet up the wall can be relaxing. Please see:

 

Legs Up The Wall - Foundations of Yoga video (6 minutes)

 

Regardless of your age, the gentle yoga for seniors can be great for folks dealing with a destabilized nervous system and tense muscles.

 

Yoga For Seniors | Slow and Gentle Yoga video (28 minutes)

 

If you're able to tolerate magnesium, you can take warm baths with epsom salts to help relax the muscles. Please see:

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker

 

Doing gentle stretches when you wake up and before you go to sleep can be very helpful for keeping your muscles relaxed. 

 

Please note these suggestions may not directly end the type of dystonia symptoms you're describing, but over time, they can help with the muscle tension that's caused by this symptom and help with overall relaxation of the nervous system. 

Thank you Shep for all your advice. I have experienced some little improvement of my muscle symptoms in that they move from one body part to another and also sometimes they reduce in intensity.

 

Do you think this is a sign that healing is slowly taking place?

 

Also, I had a look at your glorious and courageous success story but could not find any detail about the symptoms that you experienced?

 

Did you have any muscle tightness/spasms so that that could add to my hopes?

 

Thank you for your previous support and advice on this.

 

Giuly88

[Shep]

16 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

Thank you Shep for all your advice. I have experienced some little improvement of my muscle symptoms in that they move from one body part to another and also sometimes they reduce in intensity.

 

Do you think this is a sign that healing is slowly taking place?

 

Yes, the fact that the symptoms are reducing in intensity is a good sign. And even the morphing and waning and then reappearing is also a sign of healing because healing happens in a nonlinear, ebbs and flow way. So what you're writing is a typical pattern that we see as people taper and recover. 

 

16 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

Also, I had a look at your glorious and courageous success story but could not find any detail about the symptoms that you experienced?

 

Here is the link to my Benzo Forum Thread, where I detailed my symptoms as they were happening -  Shep's Journey

 

16 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

Did you have any muscle tightness/spasms so that that could add to my hopes?

 

My symptoms were mostly mental in nature. My physical symptoms were mainly GI related. I didn't have a lot of muscle tightness. But I've been active in yoga for about 25 years, so that definitely helped. I would recommend doing gentle stretches or some easy yoga for a few minutes several times a day to keep your muscles as loose as possible. Warm baths with epsom salts (if you can tolerate magnesium) are also good. 

 

This symptom will pass in time. 

[Giuly88]

Hi Shep,

 

Thank you very much for your response.

 

I’m unfortunately in a very bad state particularly with the abdominal contractions and generalised muscle twitches and pain and I know this is all my fault as I did not previously persevere with the reinstatement owing to fear.

 

I stopped escitalopram mid February so it is now just over 3 months. Because my spasms are extra pyramidal symptoms And not just the regular/most common symptoms, I’m concerned whether reinstatement would ease these symptoms. 
 

Since withdrawal is uncharted, did you have cases in the past where muscle spasms were eased by reinstatement at all?

 

I’m between a rock and a hard place at the moment but I’m suffering anyway although sleep has come back.

 

Thank you 

 

Giuly88

 

 

[Shep]

21 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

Since withdrawal is uncharted, did you have cases in the past where muscle spasms were eased by reinstatement at all?

 

I’m between a rock and a hard place at the moment but I’m suffering anyway although sleep has come back.

 

We've seen symptoms improve with reinstatements, including muscle spasms. It's really individual. You could reinstate at a very tiny dose, as mentioned earlier. If it helps, great. If it doesn't, you can stop. But please give it enough time to see if it works. It takes about 4 days for the nervous system to register the reinstatement and a week or longer for the nervous system to adjust. 

 

 

 

[Giuly88]

Hi everyone,

 

I’m 5 months off and although most of my symptoms have gone for the moment. I am left with very debilitating and painful muscle spasms on my back, rib cage and torso with a fluttering intermittent rhythmic movements.

 

I wonder whether anybody has their muscle  contractions resolved after reinstatement.

 

Any advice is much appreciated.

 

Giuly88

[Altostrata]

Hello, @Giuly88 I moved your post here because it was overlooked in the other forum. Yes, we suggest low-dose reinstatement for physical withdrawal symptoms.

[Believer]

Hi @Giuly88,

Answering your question to me on Grateful’s page, here on yours.

 

Yes, the jerks in my stomach, arm and leg have significantly reduced over the last year. They aren’t completely gone, but happen far less often and the intensity has greatly reduced.

 

I slowly continue to lower my dose.

 

Mine started after I received my second Covid vax, they aren’t related to my antidepressant withdrawal. Regardless of the cause, I believe it is related to a disregulated nervous system and that it will continue to improve.

[Giuly88]

10 minutes ago, Believer said:

Hi @Giuly88,

Answering your question to me on Grateful’s page, here on yours.

 

Yes, the jerks in my stomach, arm and leg have significantly reduced over the last year. They aren’t completely gone, but happen far less often and the intensity has greatly reduced.

 

I slowly continue to lower my dose.

 

Mine started after I received my second Covid vax, they aren’t related to my antidepressant withdrawal. Regardless of the cause, I believe it is related to a disregulated nervous system and that it will continue to improve.

I apologise Believer for asking the question in the wrong thread. I’m so bad with using threads and I don’t know how to tag either or select the relevant section for quoting, dear me 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️.

 

I’m pleased to hear yours has diminished greatly. It is such a debilitating purely physical symptom. I can’t believe the covid vaccine did this to you.

 

Thank you for your answer. My whole trunk is on fire with tightening, squeezing, clenching, lots of pain involved. It cycles round.

[Believer]

Not a big deal, this forum isn’t like others and takes some getting used to.

 

I have tingling and squeezing/jerks, they have lowered in intensity and duration.  With time, yours should too. Unfortunately it may take longer than you’d like. Hang in there and try not to worry about it. Hard, I know.

[Giuly88]

53 minutes ago, Believer said:

Not a big deal, this forum isn’t like others and takes some getting used to.

 

I have tingling and squeezing/jerks, they have lowered in intensity and duration.  With time, yours should too. Unfortunately it may take longer than you’d like. Hang in there and try not to worry about it. Hard, I know.

Thank you Believer x

[Giuly88]

@Rosetta @LostRunner @WiggleIt @LotusRising @Believer

 

I hope you are all well.

 

I have an update. 
 

I has now been 11 month since my FT and although many symptoms have subsided I still have the torso spasms and jerks together with muscle tightness in different places that cycle round.

 

I have to hope that these symptoms resolve soon and I try to ignore them although it is so hard. 
 

Wigglelt hope life is good for you. You know sometime ago you were telling me about the abdominal jerks having subsided for you. Do you recall how long you had them for?

 

Thank you for reading this and healing vibes and much love to all of you 💕❤️

[Believer]

Hi Giuly88,

This is great news, it is a sign of healing!

I have had abdominal, arm and leg jerks for coming up on three year, but they have significantly reduced over the past six months and are now primary only happening upon waking. I also had diaphragmatic spasms that forced my breath out, while resting. I haven’t had any for a couple months now. I know they can be disturbing, but I encourage you to try not to focus on them. Your CNS is working hard to stabilize. And it is happening, you’ve already seen some symptoms subside. Yea!

Have hope that your body will continue to heal.

 

[Giuly88]

3 hours ago, Believer said:

Hi Giuly88,

This is great news, it is a sign of healing!

I have had abdominal, arm and leg jerks for coming up on three year, but they have significantly reduced over the past six months and are now primary only happening upon waking. I also had diaphragmatic spasms that forced my breath out, while resting. I haven’t had any for a couple months now. I know they can be disturbing, but I encourage you to try not to focus on them. Your CNS is working hard to stabilize. And it is happening, you’ve already seen some symptoms subside. Yea!

Have hope that your body will continue to heal.

 

Thank you Believer,

 

I’m very pleased that your symptoms are subsiding 😊.

 

You know when you say about the CNS stabilizing do you think this is true even in my case being drug free? I mean I have not reinstated so my brain is trying to heal without stabilizing on anything.

 

Sorry I’m just being so paranoid right now 🤦🏽‍♀️.

 

 

[Believer]

For sure. True, your brain is stabilizing….. getting used to not having the drug affecting it. You are experiencing it by having many of your other symptoms subside. Give it time.
 

Have you read this? 

[Giuly88]

11 minutes ago, Believer said:

For sure. True, your brain is stabilizing….. getting used to not having the drug affecting it. You are experiencing it by having many of your other symptoms subside. Give it time.
 

Have you read this? 

Thank you Believer. 
 

What I worry is that my abdominal muscles are so sore and stinging because all they are doing is moving, clenching, pulling and squeezing. There have been improvements but will my muscles recover from this trauma, my muscles have never gone through this before not even after an intense workout at the gym in the past.

 

On a totally different note, I hope and my best wishes for your health as I read in your thread you experienced a heart attack no long ago.

 

Have a very good rest and as you know lots of anti inflammatory food such as oil fish, turmeric, ginger, olive oil, artichokes, fennel, blueberries, avocado.

 

Thank you so much your support Believer.

 

Much love and healing vibes ❤️
 

[Believer]

Hi 

I often told my husband I should at least get six packs abs for all the abdominal jerking I’ve had, no such luck. 🤣

Thank you for the well wishes, thankfully I have not had a heart attack, just a bad ADR to the Covid shot during the middle of my taper.

 

You take care too. You’ll get to the other side.

 

[LotusRising]

7 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

 

I has now been 11 month since my FT and although many symptoms have subsided

@Giuly88

 

It's great to hear that you've had a lot of symptoms go away   I hope you're reassured by this? 

 

My muscle symptoms aren't as bad anymore, shorter in duration and much less intense. 

[LotusRising]

2 minutes ago, Believer said:

I often told my husband I should at least get six packs abs for all the abdominal jerking I’ve had, no such luck.

@Believer

 

Haha, I couldn't help but laugh at this. I thought the same might happen to me, but no such luck!

Edited January 10 by LotusRising

[Giuly88]

10 hours ago, LotusRising said:

@Giuly88

 

It's great to hear that you've had a lot of symptoms go away   I hope you're reassured by this? 

 

My muscle symptoms aren't as bad anymore, shorter in duration and much less intense. 

Thank you LotusRising ❤️

[Giuly88]

10 hours ago, Believer said:

Hi 

I often told my husband I should at least get six packs abs for all the abdominal jerking I’ve had, no such luck. 🤣

Thank you for the well wishes, thankfully I have not had a heart attack, just a bad ADR to the Covid shot during the middle of my taper.

 

You take care too. You’ll get to the other side.

 

Thank you Believer ❤️

[Giuly88]

@Believer @LotusRising

 

My back is killing me it is so tight weak and can’t support itself when I sit up. If I make the effort to try sit up then my back tightens up really badly. How can this be possible. 
 

Did you both experience this and went away? I never had this before basically if it is not the abdomen it is the back that contracts,  they alternate, take in turns depending on the position that I hold.

 

On a lighter and uplifting note, it is very sunny in the UK ☀️. A crisp wintery day. It snowed two days ago so the landscape is still white coated with ❄️.

 

Have a pleasant day ladies 💕

 

 

[LotusRising]

4 hours ago, Giuly88 said:

Did you both experience this and went away? I never had this before basically if it is not the abdomen it is the back that contracts,  they alternate, take in turns depending on the position that I hold.

 

@Giuly88 

 

I did experience this, and for me it was in my low back. It affected my ability to move around and I think other muscles had to compensate, so I'm now working with a physiotherapist to correct the imbalances. For me, the best I could do was apply heat for temporary relief - I lived on an electric heating pad for a long time. Also, some yin yoga poses would help while it was tight, though admittedly, it was again only temporary relief.

 

Have you tried acupuncture? It seems to help my jaw area where I have one muscle that always seems to tighten up. I think I am getting slow, sustainable relief from this.

 

I'm glad you got some sun there! It's my understanding that this is not characteristic? We are heading into a deep freeze right now, with temperatures expected to drop to -34 celsius. It's very cold!! Fortunately, we still see a lot of sun even with the change in weather ☀️

[Believer]

I used a heating pad alternating with ice. Mostly heat. On my legs I used a roller bar, similar to a rolling pin, lightly. I also did easy stretches, stretching too much made it worse. And ibuprofen. Yes, it went away for me, when I do get a flare, it is minor and rare.
 

Yea for sun, we’ve been pretty grey and rainy, but we did get our first dusting of slush this morning.

 

 

[Giuly88]

Thank you @LotusRising @Believer

 

I have tried acupuncture however I don’t like the needles, I find them uncomfortable so I’m always hyperaware and can’t relax.

 

I do use heating pads occasionally, they have helped in acute when the pain was unbearable.

 

It seems that from both your experiences all this tightness and jerks should go. 
 

Here is picture of the stunning sunset that I have been lucky to witness this afternoon when I was waiting for my son in front of his school.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LotusRising]

@Giuly88

 

Very nice! I love that you're appreciating the little glimmers  

 

1 hour ago, Giuly88 said:

have tried acupuncture however I don’t like the needles, I find them uncomfortable so I’m always hyperaware and can’t relax.

I was like this too! I had a lot of anxiety about how my body would respond and when I expressed this to the practitioner, she went slow for me. I have no issues now and my jaw is so relaxed afterward. It took time though.

[Giuly88]

On 1/10/2024 at 7:08 PM, LotusRising said:

@Giuly88

 

Very nice! I love that you're appreciating the little glimmers  

 

I was like this too! I had a lot of anxiety about how my body would respond and when I expressed this to the practitioner, she went slow for me. I have no issues now and my jaw is so relaxed afterward. It took time though.

Thank you LotusRising. ❤️