☼ Wildflower0214 Effexor WD and PTSD

[Wildflower0214]

 

 

This scares me. Do you ever doubt your own recovery because of watching herI

I am concerned about her recovery, but I don't really think there are any significant similarities in our situations. I quite frequently am concerned about my recovery as well, but not because of her situation. Does that make sense?!

Yes. It does.

[Wildflower0214]

JDM, sounds like you are on the right track toward getting your issues under control--especially the bowel thing. I tried to be especially watchful the other day when my akathisia was really bad, and the following day (yesterday) when it was much better. I was somewhat constipated the day it was bad, and was much better yesterday. I remember thinking once before that my akathisia seemed somewhat better when I was able to move my bowels, but I think the reverse is probably true--that the akathisia actually causes the constipation issue--at least in my case. Hope your issues continue to get better!!

Yes, I believe things are moving in a positive direction.

[Wildflower0214]

Positives:

 

I was able to sit at the dr for over two hours. Miracle

 

PA I saw was a woman! Didn't want a man for urology.

 

She was nice and listened to me.

 

Got a smaller catheter. No more hospital for garden hose evacuation.

 

When they did bladder scan, I was empty!! And I feel like I have voided several times since! Yay!

Still have tickle, but what is really important is that my bladder be empty.

 

No infection when they tested me!

 

At dr with my mom who we thought had the flu, but then woke up with severe rash. Shingles? But walk in clinic said they didn't think so.

 

But, at least we got in. Hopefully no shingles.

[LoveandLight]

Sounds very positive. Very good

[btdt]

I have had both bowel and bladder problems and shingles lol... some of us are just magnets for crap I guess.  Both of these are very common is withdrawal from antidepressants every withdrawal site will have countless stories about both.

[luv2knit]

Sounds good!

[Wildflower0214]

Sounds very positive. Very good

Lots of stuff going well in the midst of chaos. Lol

[Wildflower0214]

Sounds good!

Agree!

[Wildflower0214]

I have had both bowel and bladder problems and shingles lol... some of us are just magnets for crap I guess. Both of these are very common is withdrawal from antidepressants every withdrawal site will have countless stories about both.

Ya, I hope it's not shingles. :-/ she has a huge rash and felt flu like. Derm says it's not, but who knows

[Wildflower0214]

I think unless I'm here posting about positive stuff, I gott stay away for a bit.

 

It's feeding fear. Not beneficial.

[LoveandLight]

Good idea maybe think I need to do same x

[Wildflower0214]

Good idea maybe think I need to do same x

Hope it helps us improve. Ruminating destroys faith for better to come.

[chicken]

I think unless I'm here posting about positive stuff, I gott stay away for a bit.

 

It's feeding fear. Not beneficial.

JDM,

 

This is why I've been away from this board for a few months. It will get you down.

 

I know so many people who gotten off ADs and more drugs sucessfully who never post to the boards.

My aunt was hospitalized twice, put on Paxil, Klonopin, Seroquel and who knows what else for over ten years. She tapered off, definately not according to the rules here. She is 62 and has been drug free for years.

My coworker is now in her 60's, and had been on multiple ADs most of her life. She is now AD free. My pastor took Paxil for about 1o years, now drug free.

My friend is has been on Effexor for years. She is now tying acupuncture and it is working wonders for her. She plans to come off effexor but I don't know when.

 

Anyway, I just wanted to post some positive for you. These positives have helped me a lot.

 

I agree we must not feed fear. I have a bad habit of doing that. I may have to leave the board again for a few months

[Wildflower0214]

 

 

I think unless I'm here posting about positive stuff, I gott stay away for a bit.

 

It's feeding fear. Not beneficial.

JDM,

 

This is why I've been away from this board for a few months. It will get you down.

 

I know so many people who gotten off ADs and more drugs sucessfully who never post to the boards.

My aunt was hospitalized twice, put on Paxil, Klonopin, Seroquel and who knows what else for over ten years. She tapered off, definately not according to the rules here. She is 62 and has been drug free for years.

My coworker is now in her 60's, and had been on multiple ADs most of her life. She is now AD free. My pastor took Paxil for about 1o years, now drug free.

My friend is has been on Effexor for years. She is now tying acupuncture and it is working wonders for her. She plans to come off effexor but I don't know when.

 

Anyway, I just wanted to post some positive for you. These positives have helped me a lot.

 

I agree we must not feed fear. I have a bad habit of doing that. I may have to leave the board again for a few months

Ya, I think my WD has been pretty rough, but I think too much info is just too much. I have enough information now to know I'm not losing my mind and that this will eventually pass. I know now what is happening to me. I believe God gave me this information. But, I think there comes a time to just quit talking about it, not forever, but for a while. Give it a break, or it just consumes u. Your whole life becomes WD. And it you read my thread, there are some days where that is what it is all about, because I'm sick. But not everyday. I refuse to give it every day. I just refuse.

I believe that God changes things, and that having Him is a game changer. And I believe it is time for me to take my leave for now.

 

Thanks for the response. Hope u are well and moving forward.

 

Be well.

[luv2knit]

Best of luck, JDM.  I wish you much healing!!

[crazykatie]

JDM,

 

So happy to hear that you are changing your thinking towards focusing on the positive. Rely on God a lot. Instead of watching tv in bed, I just pray until I fall asleep. My spirituality has been a very positive force in my recovery. You can pray anytime. No reason, just acknowledge. I wish you much happiness ahead.

[LoveandLight]

Good reminder to pray..praying is a lovely comfort blanket.

[Wildflower0214]

I'm starting to get bored. I don't know if this is a good sign maybe? I feel like I need more to do outside myself, but can't commit to being anywhere on a regular basis.

[luv2knit]

Definitely sounds like a step in the right direction!!

[Wildflower0214]

Definitely sounds like a step in the right direction!!

How are u??

[luv2knit]

Same as usual--back and forth... Trying to hang in there. Today has been bad, though:(

[btdt]

It is well known there is no treatment, so it's not like the right doctor will be able to do anything for her.

 

There will never be a treatment for a drug reaction the medical community refuses to acknowledge not ever.  

An old saying from wise person...

the truth is the truth even if nobody believes and a lie is a lie even if everybody believes it.... 

If no doctor believes here and not tests can prove it why would a cure ever be found... it would appear the first step would be to believe the patient and then look for a test that could prove it I am sure one could be developed eventually IF the patient was first believed.

Sending people to a psychiatrist to deal with medical issues no doctor or the medical industry in general does not want to deal with has become the thing to do ...old blame the victim trick.. must be all in the patients head.  We could believe they believe this or we could think such patients are sent for drug therapy at the hands of a psychiatrist which will ... not only destroy her memory of the events and her past but make her less believable as she has been dx with a mental disorder.  We know a phych dx takes away our humaness in the eyes of the general population ... adds just enough doubt that we are discredited when we try to tell our stories.  

So we could think of psychiatric intervention when medical things go wrong as a reprogramming place where the doctors get to save face and never come to terms with the fact they are damaging their patients... send them off to the junk pile over at the shrinks office... never to be heard from again in the real world. 

 

ok that is bleak and I do not believe every doc sees it this way but I in my gut also sure that there are doctors and or administrators in the know that understand all the ins and out of this know exactly what they are doing by pushing a medically damaged person off to the psychiatrist... bet insurance companies know it too ...sure would keep costs of medical malpractice and drug damage litigation down. 

 

The more I learn the more cynical I become... sorry if I am bursting any bubble for folks here but the more you study the more you will see.... I do wish you peace tho I know it is hard to get. 

[btdt]

PS 

your daughters recovery pattern of about 1.5 years getting better to back sliding sounds like my recovery from Ads I also had two reactions to antibiotics during that time. 

 

Things appear to be getting better then back it comes... around and around. 

[luv2knit]

No worries, btdt--Not even thinking of sending her to a psychiatrist. She has definite physical issues, as do thousands of others on the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity boards. It is getting very difficult, though, to deal with her relapse and my Zoloft withdrawal (main symptom akathisia) at the same time. Her fiance keeps insisting she go to the doctor. We have been through this--it does no good. The doctor just shrugs at the fact she has a body temp of 97.0 or lower and a resting pulse of over 100 frequently. It varies, and I'm trying to avoid a permanent solution (over medicating) to a hopefully temporary problem. Things usually do get better with most people, but not by throwing any medication available at it. Plus, right now, I cannot handle the trips to the doctor just to prove there is something wrong, when I know they will just say what they said before. A cardiologist actually told her it was hormones, and the heart rate was fine unless it was in the 200 range. Idiot! A doc told me years ago you stand up and pass out at 140... And her hormones were checked and were fine.

[btdt]

I find it interesting that both these drugs take so long to recover from I wonder if they have anything in common we don't yet know or understand... not saying pharma don't know but they dont' tell us anything. 

 

These "thousands of others on the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity boards"  do they get better without intervention...too in time.. is it a complete recovery or long drawn out like some of us?

[btdt]

did a quick google... 

https://www.facebook.com/FluoroquinoloneToxicity

http://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/experts-top-antibiotic-carries-hidden-side-effects-not-listed-on-the-label

 

At the last link.. search the page for mitochondria... 

Prozac and a few other ssri drugs were known to cause damage to the mitochondria in humans several years ago as a lot of the ssri snri drugs we use today were not yet invented the old report I found 5 or so years ago could not have included newer drugs.  I would not be surprised to find other types of Ads have the same effect... many statin drugs have been found to cause the same sort of damage... if your interested you can find that at spacedoc.com or org... he was a doctors who worked for NASA who was affected and started research to figure that one out.. I was on a statin too.. will never take them again... or a quinoline... 

 

Seems it could that the common thread is damage to the mitochondria... I have made other posts about this sort of damage on paxilprogress.and here

 

 it was a post talking to a lady about mitochondria damage that was the last post I made on pp... it got me banned... that and the argument about it this lady named ... will fill in when I recall.. Anne... said she had been dx with mito damage and thought that was the cause of her fibro... and she seen a doc in the UK who said it was from ssri drugs... and she was being treated... so I about lost my nut when I heard from her as I thought I had found something to heal me maybe... but her and my posts from that day were all deleted... and I was banned I don't know if she was or not.  

[btdt]

I had no idea there were sites about quinolines and that they cause the same damage till I read you post... I can't take them.. that I know

[Wildflower0214]

Well,

 

Had about a week span of getting to bed around 9:30 and waking around 5:30. A couple of those nights I didn't even wake up. But, most of them I woke up several times. But, this is a HUGE improvement for me.

 

Last night, I woke up at 2am. So I slept about four hours. Which I'm not going to complain about, given I've had completely sleepless nights. Last night I woke up with the very physical anxiety, plugged into generator feeling, hot/cold sweats, restless, and felt like I drank a pot of coffee.

 

Also, voiding bladder, but feel the tickle like I need to go, combined with PGAD. Uncomfortable. GI issues are now turning into something that seems like irritable bowel. I've never had a problem with going too much, but that is now the new occurrence in my life.

 

Also, yesterday got dry mouth so bad, barely had enough spit to swallow, and my sinuses felt like the Sahara, which gave me a sinus headache. I refuse to take anything. So I use a hot compress. It seems to work.

 

Most annoying symptom that has stuck around are body sensations: creepy crawly, burning, shocks, or just feeling like my nerves are so sensitive that if my shirt rubs a hair on my arm while trying to fall asleep, it makes me jolt.

 

Just got up to let dog in and felt like I may pass out. I have had this before, but, it's been years. I was diagnosed with POTS when I was 16. Also, have had waves of nausea lately, that's a new one.

 

Also cog fog like hell! Along with what feels like neuro depression. Dark thoughts. The cog fog has gotten to the point I may have to give my mom power of attorney, because I can't remember anything and can't handle all of my own affairs at this point.

 

I believe this new wave of symptoms may have been brought on by two things

1) I got myself freaked out about the Ativan I'm still on, and possible disasterous outcomes.

2) my mother, watching me go through this ordeal decided to dose herself down by 50% from her citalopram without me knowing. During this time she got shingles. She and I live together. I have been very open with her telling her if she wants to dose down to wait until I'm better and I will help her taper by 5% or so. She has seen me suffer, and I can't for the life of me figure out why she is so stubborn and did that. Anyways, she has had emotional problems since and has awful vertigo now, and I'm concerned she may not stabalize again. She reinstated original dose about 5 days ago. And, the thing is I didn't know any better, she DOES!!!!! And it puts stress on me with her being sick and for lack of better words it pisses me off she did this to herself and now expects sympathy for being bullheaded.

 

She has been very supportive of me. I love her dearly. And if she were just sick, that's fine! But, she did this to herself. And she had plenty of information to know better. She has had ten months of watching me and I talk with her a lot about the info I find here.

[Wildflower0214]

Was going to try and stay out of these forums, but honestly the world is lonely, no one gets this. It's not their fault. But, this is the only community I have that gets it. So, I'll just try to stay away from the scary stories on here. Reading those has NOT added to my healing. Now I know better. My responsibility to filter.

[jen84]

JDM, I have been reading through your posts.. You are having a pretty rough time, and I totally feel the same way about reading all the posts and feeling even more scared. Im glad you are sleeping, I cant imagine not being able to sleep... I have had no problem in that department. Anyways, if you are looking for any kind of inspiration, I would recommend reading this post...  MrAnxious - 3 months off Effexor Xr (6 years on) It took me a long time to read through the whole story, and had to quit because it was depressing. Once you get to the end though, its totally worth it. It really gave me lots of hope. Just make sure to read to the end.

 

I am really feeling lonely as well, I tend to isolate myself when I am feeling in the dumps, which only lasts for a few hours, so I guess I am functioning pretty good. All the people I talk to about this dont really get it. My mom gets some of it, and has been a huge help, but other people just look at me like im crazy. I know they are trying to understand, but when they have that look on their face of confusion, I feel bad for bombarding them with my pity party. My sister came off effexor a few years ago, and just found out last night she had withdrawal symptoms too, i will try to find out more from her today. She was on them for 2 years, so not as long as I was, but it might be an inspiration to hear her story. I have also reached out to a local depression support group, but have not heard back yet. 

 

Anyways, I just wanted to share MrAnxious's story with you, as I have found it very inspiring. 

[luv2knit]

JDM, glad you were able to sleep better. I had two nights with practically NO sleep. Last night, I also actually got more sleep than I have since this whole withdrawal thing started!!

 

btd--yes, (fluoro)quinolones cause mito damage. I'm not real clear on whether this happens to everyone. We had a guy on the boards who was doing "research", but he was very negative--insisting no one ever gets better (not true), and no one could really get him to reveal his credentials. We had a group of about 50 go to D.C. in May, trying to raise awareness. They spoke at a meeting of the Senate Health Committee. This guy was one of the key speakers. Don't really know if he hurt or helped us. The fluoroquinolones were also originally developed for chemotherapy. There are people who have been through chemo, though, that don't have the damage FQ's cause. Quite a few recover to 90% to 95%, and then some relapse, like my daughter did. Some don't get that much recovery, and some die or commit suicide. d*ck Decent (part-time keyboard player for the band Def Lepard) died in 2012, after a 2-year battle. The boards are on FB, and are mostly closed groups.

[luv2knit]

That should have been btdt. I'm on my phone... It's raining here and internet is out

[luv2knit]

... and Idk why that changed d*ck Decent's name like that... Lol

[luv2knit]

... and Idk why that changed d*ck Decent's name like that... Lol

[luv2knit]

...and Idk why my phone changed d*ck Decent's name like that... Lol

[luv2knit]

...and Idk why my phone changed d*ck Decent's name like that... Lol