chicken Posted April 5, 2017 Author Share Posted April 5, 2017 Update for April 2017....Just a little over a month now drug free....got down less than .1mg and stopped. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Mentor Happy2Heal Posted April 5, 2017 Mentor Share Posted April 5, 2017 wow congratulations!! how are you feeling? PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME PRIVATE MESSAGES, thank you. pysch med history: 1974 @ age 18 to Oct 2017 (approx 43 yrs total) Drug list: stelazine, haldol, elavil, lithium, zoloft, celexa, lexapro(doses as high as 40mgs), klonopin, ambien, seroquel(high doses), depakote, zyprexa, lamictal- plus brief trials of dozens of other psych meds over the years started lexapro 2002, dose varied from 20mgs to 40mgs. First attempt to get off it was 2007- WD symptoms were mistaken for "relapse". 2013 too fast taper down to 5mg but WD forced me back to 20mgs June of 2105, tapered again too rapidly to 2.5mgs by Dec 2015. Found SA, held at 2.5 mgs til May 2016 when I foolishly "jumped off". felt ok until Sept, then acute WD hit!! reinstated at 0.3mgs in Oct. 2106 Tapered off to zero by Oct. 2017 Doing very well. Nov. 2018 feel 95% healed, age 63 Jan. 2020 feel 100% healed, peaceful and content PRESENT DAYS: Loving life! ❤️ with all it's ups and downs Link to comment
chicken Posted April 6, 2017 Author Share Posted April 6, 2017 wow congratulations!! how are you feeling? I'm feeling well..no problems....praise the Lord! In school now and working toward another degree.. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Hopefull Posted April 7, 2017 Share Posted April 7, 2017 Congratulations Chicken! Well done! DRUG HISTORY: November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction). January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey). January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering. October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg. September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed. September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised. February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. Link to comment
marie123 Posted April 7, 2017 Share Posted April 7, 2017 This is so great Chicken. It shows we really need to go down to the tiny doses to become med free. Congrats and continued healing. Marie 10/13--10/14 Ambien. Started tapering 1/14 Jumped 10/14. Done. 3/14 7.5 Remeron still taking this. 2/14 75 Trazodone - Tapered by dry cutting all the way down. 1/16 4 mg Trazodone - Jumped. Bad mistake. Got hit with late withdrawal 6 weeks later. Reinstated. 4/16 Reinstated 1 mg, updose to 2 mg Trazodone 2/19 .04 Trazodone. Walked off. Done. 10/3/19 Started 7.5 Mirtazapine taper cut to .073 gram weight, pill weighs .076 4/5/20 New Mirtazapine Taper - Compound Liquid 7.35 mg April '20, 7.25 mg May, 7.05 mg June, 6.99 mg June, 6.78 mg July, 6.57 mg Aug, Sept 6.35 mg, Sept 6.24 mg, Sept 6.21 mg, Oct 5.99 mg, Oct 5.90 mg, Oct 5.70 mg. 1/11/21 6.05 mg Messed up taper due to syringe change. Must remember the 1 ml syringe contains 1.5mg! 1/16/21 5.99 mg 2/21 5.75 mg, 3/21 5.6 mg, 4/7 5.45, 4/14 5.30, 5/12 5.15, 5/25/21 4.99 mg, 6/29 4.87 mg, 7/14/21 4.74 mg, 8/5 4.62 mg 8/17 4.5 mg, 8/30 4.38 mg,9/16 4.26 mg,10/9 4.14 mg, 10/23 4.05 mg, 11/6 3.96 mg,11/17 3.87mg.***Jan 22 Liquid was changed/couldn't tolerate***Changed back to pills. Feb 22/3.9 mg, 2/17/22 3.8 mg, 3/23 3.7 mg, 4/7 3.6 mg, 5/10 3.5mg,6/10/22 3.4 mg, 7/4 3.3 mg, 7/25 3.2 mg, 8/20/22 3.1 mg, 9/15 3 mg, 10/8/22 2.9 mg., 12/15 2.8 mg, 1/6/23 2.7 mg, 2/16/23 2.6 mg, 3/9 2.5 mg, 4/4 2.4 mg, 4/29/23 2.3 mg, 5/26 2.2 mg, 6/22/23 2.1 mg, 10/14 2 mg, 11/12 1.9 mg, 11/28 1.8 mg , 12/14/23 1.7, 12/31/23 1.6 mg, 1/20 1.5 mg, 2/6/24 1.4 mg, 2/12 updose 1.5 mg, 3/27/24 1.4 mg. Taking multi-vitamin, vit. D, cholestoff, psyllium husk, and fish oil. Link to comment
chicken Posted April 7, 2017 Author Share Posted April 7, 2017 Thank you Hopeful and Marie.... I was able to get off the zyprexa and tranxene quickly, faster than what is recommended but I kept it slow with the AD. ADs have been the problem "child" for me. Slow is what it takes... My advice is live your life and not concentrate on the taper too much...just DO IT and then one day it will be over and you will be off of the drug. 1 Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Moderator brassmonkey Posted April 11, 2017 Moderator Share Posted April 11, 2017 Hi Chicken-- congratulations on being a month drug free, way to go. And congratulations on taking on getting another degree, best of luck with that. 20 years on Paxil starting at 20mg and working up to 40mg. Sept 2011 started 10% every 6 weeks taper (2.5% every week for 4 weeks then hold for 2 additional weeks), currently at 7.9mg. Oct 2011 CTed 15oz vodka a night, to only drinking 2 beers most nights, totally sober Feb 2013. Since I wrote this I have continued to decrease my dose by 10% every 6 weeks (2.5% every week for 4 weeks and then hold for an additional 2 weeks). I added in an extra 6 week hold when I hit 10mg to let things settle out even more. When I hit 3mgpw it became hard to split the drop into 4 parts so I switched to dropping 1mgpw (pill weight) every week for 3 weeks and then holding for another 3 weeks. The 3 + 3 schedule turned out to be too harsh so I cut back to dropping 1mgpw every 4 weeks which is working better. Final Dose 0.016mg. Current dose 0.000mg 04-15-2017 "It's also important not to become angry, no matter how difficult life is, because you can loose all hope if you can't laugh at yourself and at life in general." Stephen Hawking Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus SkyBlue Posted May 30, 2017 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted May 30, 2017 Hi chicken, saw your post on another thread and read in your signature that you are now psych-med free! Congratulations!!! 2020: After 18+ years (entire adult life) on Paxil, a dangerous doctor-led "taper" in 2015, and four years tapering off the last 1 mg thanks to SA and the Brassmonkey slide, I AM COMPLETELY FREE OF PAXIL! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Forever. 2021: Began conservative, proper, CNS-respecting taper of Zoloft, led by the only expert on me -- me. Making own liquid. 5-10% plus holds. 2022: Holding on Zoloft for now. Current dose 47 mg. Hanging in, hanging on. Severe protracted PAWS, windows and waves. While I may not be doing "a lot" by outside standards, things are graaaaadually getting better. Yoga (gentle to medium); walks; daily breath practice; nutrition, fruits/veg; nature; water; EastEnders (lol); practicing self-compassion, self-care; boundaries; connection; allowing feelings; t r u s t ing that I, too, will heal. (--> may need to be reminded of this.) "You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story." - Baylissa Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted May 30, 2017 Administrator Share Posted May 30, 2017 Very happy to hear you're doing better. I added our cheerful "here comes the sun" symbol ☼ to the title of your Intro topic, to show you're recovering. Please continue to let us know how you're doing. I hope you will add your story to our Recovery Success Stories eventually! This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
chicken Posted July 19, 2017 Author Share Posted July 19, 2017 Hi all. Just stopping in again to say hello. I'm not on here much anymore. To Altostrata, Skyblue and brassmonkey. Thanks for replying to my thread. I see the forum was updated and I was not getting messages to my email when someone replied. Alto...I plan to add my success story after I've been off meds for a year. Just want to make sure...LOL. I'm still off meds and doing well. I'm starting a new intern job now. I'm 40+ going to school, still working my other job part time and looking after my mom. Life is good even if the future seems uncertain after I get out of school. Not a lot of jobs in my area and because of my mom, I cannot relocate at this time. I don't think about what I went through with the meds much anymore. As you move on it seems to fade. But, I do not hesitate to warn others if they are thinking about taking these meds. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I hope everyone is improving, even if it is slow. 1 Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
DaveB Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 15 hours ago, chicken said: Hi all. Just stopping in again to say hello. I'm not on here much anymore. To Altostrata, Skyblue and brassmonkey. Thanks for replying to my thread. I see the forum was updated and I was not getting messages to my email when someone replied. Alto...I plan to add my success story after I've been off meds for a year. Just want to make sure...LOL. I'm still off meds and doing well. I'm starting a new intern job now. I'm 40+ going to school, still working my other job part time and looking after my mom. Life is good even if the future seems uncertain after I get out of school. Not a lot of jobs in my area and because of my mom, I cannot relocate at this time. I don't think about what I went through with the meds much anymore. As you move on it seems to fade. But, I do not hesitate to warn others if they are thinking about taking these meds. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I hope everyone is improving, even if it is slow. Hi chicken, I read your story and it gives me hope. I am just wondering, after 10 years on Prozac, how did you determine you couldn't take SSRIs anymore? I have tried to reinstate SSRIs since my Zoloft cold turkey and not sure if any are going to work. Just wondering what your experience was with SSRIs the 2nd time, and if that means I need to look at something else. 2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016. January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro. March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off. June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs October 1st - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018) November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs Link to comment
chicken Posted July 24, 2017 Author Share Posted July 24, 2017 On 7/20/2017 at 0:00 PM, Utah49er said: Hi chicken, I read your story and it gives me hope. I am just wondering, after 10 years on Prozac, how did you determine you couldn't take SSRIs anymore? I have tried to reinstate SSRIs since my Zoloft cold turkey and not sure if any are going to work. Just wondering what your experience was with SSRIs the 2nd time, and if that means I need to look at something else. I found out when I tried to take them again that it kindles and causes insane anxiety. I cannot take them at all anymore. Tried several times. This is why I reluctantly tried a tricyclic. I was able to taper the tricyclic slowly and finally get off this stuff. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
DaveB Posted July 24, 2017 Share Posted July 24, 2017 2 hours ago, chicken said: I found out when I tried to take them again that it kindles and causes insane anxiety. I cannot take them at all anymore. Tried several times. This is why I reluctantly tried a tricyclic. I was able to taper the tricyclic slowly and finally get off this stuff. I am wondering if the SSRIs I have been taking are kindling and causing my crazy anxiety. Did you find you couldn't tolerate them at all for even a couple of days? Or that after significant periods of time on them the anxiety never subsided? 2008 - October 28th, 2016: Zoloft 50 - 150 mgs, settled on 50mgs from 2011 - 2016. January 23rd - March 1st 2017: Zoloft 50mgs, direct switch to Lexapro. March 1st - May 1st 2017: Lexapro 10 mgs, down to 5mgs for a week, then off. June 1st - July 31st 2017: Paxil 20mgs, Lyrica 600mgs August 1st - September 30th 2017: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs October 1st - November 12th 2017: Paxil 60mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs November 12th, 2017 - September 4th 2018: Paxil 40mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs September 4th - September 27th: Paxil 30mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs September 28th - November 7th: Paxil 20mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs (Also Testosterone Therapy started in June 2018 and ended in November 2018) November 7th 2018 - February 22nd 2019: Paxil 10mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs February 22nd 2019 - April 17th: Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin 1mgs April 17th - Now: Zoloft 25mgs, Zyprexa 2.5mgs, Klonopin .5mgs Link to comment
chicken Posted August 5, 2017 Author Share Posted August 5, 2017 On 7/24/2017 at 7:44 PM, Utah49er said: I am wondering if the SSRIs I have been taking are kindling and causing my crazy anxiety. Did you find you couldn't tolerate them at all for even a couple of days? Or that after significant periods of time on them the anxiety never subsided? When retaking the SSRI it caused anxiety almost immediately after the drug got into my system...within hours. After that happened more than once I refused to try SSRI again. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
samanthaelizabeth Posted February 21, 2018 Share Posted February 21, 2018 (edited) On 05/06/2014 at 4:31 AM, chicken said: Also, one of my biggest fears is what if something happens in life and I can't get the drug? Do any of you ever worry about a job lose or natural disaster which may prevent you from getting your drug for an extented period of time. How would anyone cope? I may be paranoid but what if something catastrophic happened to the U.S. and the vast majority of the population couldn't get their medications of any kind. I'm sure it would be chaos. I'm having to trust in the Lord Jesus to help me though all these what if's. If something happened and I couldn't get my drug I would get suicidal just like I did this time in withdrawal. The extreme anxiety never went away. I guess I worry to much, hence the anxiety. This is one of my fears as well especially the way this world is going... Edited February 21, 2018 by ChessieCat changed font colour from red Ativan Mid April 1999-to end of May 1999 ( COLD TURKEY and flushed them down the toilet) I went through hell for 3 months-I had no idea what was happening to me there was no information on the internet about this drug) Zoloft 200mg 1999 to 2017 Wellbutrin 2015 6 months Started having exterme anxiety-quit taking switched back to Zoloft ( I have quit about 6 jobs from this time0 Klonopin .5-1.0 of and on for two months (tapered off in Dec-Jan) 15 mg Remeron 2012-presnt **Started tapering down Zoloft 12/?/17 12/09/17 down to 50mg; 12/12/17-12/14-17 Zoloft 100mg; 12/16/201712/19 -Zoloft 150mg; 12/20/17-01/06/18 Zoloft 200mg; 01/07/18-01//18/18 Zoloft 180mg 01/18/18-present Zoloft 200mg February 2018-Copaxone 40mg (3 times a week shots) (for Multiple Sclerosis)2/17/18 begin transition to liquid 200mg magnesium, fish oil Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus elbee Posted February 21, 2018 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 21, 2018 I asked this question of my psychiatrist early on. He said without the meds, most likely I would become an alcoholic or drug addict. And looking back I think he was right. I like to think though that I would have survived that rough road and found a way to recovery. And perhaps if I had never been put in the meds (psych drugs), I would have found my way to recovery sooner. AND, yes I get the fear of taking away the one thing that seemed to numb my panic attacks into submission. There really are no clear answers with this stuff, except for me to continue the healing path I find myself on now. 2 cents. My suggestions are not medical advice. They are my opinions based on my own experience, strength and hope. You are in charge of your own medical / healing / recovery choices. My success story | My introduction thread ZOLOFT FREE - COMPLETELY DRUG FREE 4/28/2019! - total time on 28+ years BENZO FREE! 4/7/2018 - total time on 27+ years REMERON FREE! 12/11/2016 - total time on 15 months Caffeine & Nicotine Free 2014 / 2015 - smoked for 28 years Alcohol Free 4/1/2014 - drank for 30 years Link to comment
Hopefull Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 Hi Chicken, How are you doing these days? I hope that you are well. Hopefull. DRUG HISTORY: November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction). January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey). January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering. October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg. September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed. September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised. February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. Link to comment
chicken Posted August 7, 2018 Author Share Posted August 7, 2018 On 6/24/2018 at 11:20 PM, Hopefull said: Hi Chicken, How are you doing these days? I hope that you are well. Hopefull. Hopefull, Just checking in and saw your post. I'm now a year and a half with no meds. So far everything is still good. I hope you are doing well. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
chicken Posted August 7, 2018 Author Share Posted August 7, 2018 Just doing a check in. I've been off meds for a year and a half. Everything is well and back to normal. After the 2 year mark, I plan to write the success story. I don't think about the meds much anymore unless I see something in the news or hear someone speak about SSRIs. Hang in there everyone, when you do recover, it will eventually become a distant memory. 1 Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Hopefull Posted August 7, 2018 Share Posted August 7, 2018 1 hour ago, chicken said: Hopefull, Just checking in and saw your post. I'm now a year and a half with no meds. So far everything is still good. I hope you are doing well. I am so glad to hear from you Chicken. It is fantastic to hear that you are doing and are feeling well . I am doing ok. Still tappering from Mitrazapine. I am down to 0.125mg and I hope that I will come off, by the end of the year. I can't wait to be in your shoes. Take care, Hopefull. DRUG HISTORY: November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction). January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey). January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering. October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg. September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed. September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised. February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. Link to comment
chicken Posted August 7, 2018 Author Share Posted August 7, 2018 8 hours ago, Hopefull said: I am so glad to hear from you Chicken. It is fantastic to hear that you are doing and are feeling well . I am doing ok. Still tappering from Mitrazapine. I am down to 0.125mg and I hope that I will come off, by the end of the year. I can't wait to be in your shoes. Take care, Hopefull. This is great Hopefull. Wow, you are getting to a very low dose. It's good to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hang in there, you will arrive. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Hopefull Posted August 7, 2018 Share Posted August 7, 2018 47 minutes ago, chicken said: This is great Hopefull. Wow, you are getting to a very low dose. It's good to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hang in there, you will arrive. Thank you , Chicken. It is very much appreciated. You have certainly come along way too. I remember the early days being extremely difficult and you also had your share of difficulty. But now, you are back to your normal self, and it is an aspiration to others going through the same thing. Keep us posted. Best wishes, Hopefull. DRUG HISTORY: November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction). January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey). January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering. October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg. September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed. September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised. February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. Link to comment
chicken Posted February 6, 2019 Author Share Posted February 6, 2019 Haven't checked in a long while. Just seeing how everyone is doing. If I make it to March....it will two years I've been free. Hang in there people. 1 Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus SkyBlue Posted February 6, 2019 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted February 6, 2019 That is great news, Chicken. How are you doing? 2020: After 18+ years (entire adult life) on Paxil, a dangerous doctor-led "taper" in 2015, and four years tapering off the last 1 mg thanks to SA and the Brassmonkey slide, I AM COMPLETELY FREE OF PAXIL! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Forever. 2021: Began conservative, proper, CNS-respecting taper of Zoloft, led by the only expert on me -- me. Making own liquid. 5-10% plus holds. 2022: Holding on Zoloft for now. Current dose 47 mg. Hanging in, hanging on. Severe protracted PAWS, windows and waves. While I may not be doing "a lot" by outside standards, things are graaaaadually getting better. Yoga (gentle to medium); walks; daily breath practice; nutrition, fruits/veg; nature; water; EastEnders (lol); practicing self-compassion, self-care; boundaries; connection; allowing feelings; t r u s t ing that I, too, will heal. (--> may need to be reminded of this.) "You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story." - Baylissa Link to comment
Hopefull Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 10 hours ago, chicken said: Haven't checked in a long while. Just seeing how everyone is doing. If I make it to March....it will two years I've been free. Hang in there people. Hi Chicken old friend, It is always fantastic to hear from you. The time sure flies by. It sounds like you are doing great, 2 years after you stopped taking AD's. Take care, Hopefull. DRUG HISTORY: November 2013- Zoloft, ( Bad reaction). January 2014 - March 2014 Seroquel.( Quit Cold Turkey). January2014- Mirtazapine, I was taking 15mg at one stage, reduced to 7.5mg, Pgad reactions to Mirtazapine. Doctor kept increasing it to 37.5mg, until July 2014. No improvement, experiencing panic attacks, on 37.5 mg. I had enough by October 2014. Began tapering. October 2014- Started tapering Mirtazapine from 37.5mg. September 2015- Down to 4mg of Mirtazapine. Crashed. September 16th- Up dosed to 5mg. Held this dose for almost 5 months. Stabilised. February 2016- Began tapering again. From 5mg to 4.5mg of Mirtazapine. (Rocking the boat, again)! Lol. Link to comment
chicken Posted February 15, 2019 Author Share Posted February 15, 2019 Skyblue and Hopefull, Thank you for your response to my thread. I'm still doing great. I try to check in every so often to see how everyone is doing. I hope you are doing well and things are getting better. Prozac 1999-2009 quit semi cold turkey. 2012 Placed on Seroquel 25 mg, Tranxene (Clorezepate) 3.75 mg 3x a day, Remeron 30 mg for anxiety/akathesia. Weaned off Seroquel and Tranxene .to Remeron 15 Mg. In May 2014 tried quitting Remeron at its lowest dose. Had severe withdrawals.Reinstated Remeron at 30 mg by doctor. August 5 2014 entered hospital. Doctor pulled the Remeron and bridged it to Pamelor (Nortriptyline) 40mg and Zyprexa 2.5mg.After removing the Remeron all my bad symptoms went away and I am stable. 9/11/14 - 7.5 mg tranxene, 40mg Pamelor, Zyprexa 2.5mg 12/29/14 - 20mg Pamelor, 1/6/15, 7/31/15 3.5mg, 8/10/15 3.2 mg, 9/15/15 2.2mg, 10/15/15 1.8mg (Feb 2016 - 1.4mg Pamelor only - OFF OF TRANXENE AND ZYPREXA SINCE DEC 2014 BENZO FREE Since 2014. Nortrityline (Pamelor) .8mg Aug 2016 March 2017 DRUG FREE Link to comment
PH1 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Thanks for checking in, Chicken. Glad to know you continue to do well! 2010: Escitalopram (Lexapro) 10 mg. Mirtazapine (Remeron) 15 mg. 2011: Tapered Mirtazapine: 5 month successful taper. Then tapered Lexapro: 4 month successful taper May 2011 to August 2017: No medications, full recovery September 6, 2017: started Mirtazapine (Remeron) 15 mg - due to severe sudden insomnia (I believe caused by statin use) November 16, 2017: started Escitalopram (Lexapro) 10 mg January 1, 2018 to October 30. 2020 -- 34 month taper off of Mirtazapine 15 mg to 0.00 mg June 16, 2018: Started slow taper of 10 mg Escitalopram (Lexapro) Current (mgai): 0.23 mg Escitalopram Supplements: Fish Oil, Curcumin, bio active B vitamins, zinc, magnesium glycinate, Vitamin D, Vitamin C, saffron, citrus bergamot, ashwagandha "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34 Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted September 10, 2019 Administrator Share Posted September 10, 2019 Chicken made us the gift of a success story here Now, as is our custom, I'm closing this topic. Please congratulate Chicken in her success story topic. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
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