Ibid

Cathy--There were three bouts of this thing and the three major symptoms, which I mentioned before. They didn't all clear up at the same time, but I remember best the first onset of constipation and flank pain, which hit me very suddenly in the middle of the night. The urinary issues came a bit later. After a few days I took a laxative, although my PA didn't want me to, so that symptom cleared up before the flank pain. The urinary symptoms came and went, but I'd say each of the "episodes" of multiple symptoms lasted about a week and were about a month apart, although the last one might not have hit for about two months. But your question, I think, is how long from beginning to end and I'd say three or four months. By the way, the AD from which I was withdrawing was Remeron and the symptoms I'm telling you about began about three months after I was completely off the drug. I had tapered off, but felt so few symptoms that I stopped completely before i should have. I'll also tell you that my "flank pain" was more like a really bad muscle cramp in the kidney area that would last for a few hours and then return after a few hours. It would be excruciating if I lay on my back so I had to sleep in a chair. (It would hurt on one side at a time, two episodes on the left and once on the right). What you've described sounds different, so go figure--but no doctor has been able to explain why such pain should be accompanied by constipation or urinary problems. They alternated between saying I had kidney issues and that it was "neuromuscular." This was a few years ago and i haven't thought much about it lately, so my ability to be specific about the duration of the problems isn't what it might be. Anyway, I've rambled a bit, for which I apologize. I don't know, of course, if this was caused by withdrawal, but since it hasn't returned I'm inclined to believe it was (doctors shrug their shoulders, etc.). I don't want to say I'm glad you have this, but it is true, I think, that misery loves company. If you want to ask more about my experiences, feel free. I'll do my best to get my memory to regurgitate that wretched time. I want to repeat: ask one or more doctors to check you out. Maybe your doctor will have a better idea what it's about than mine did. All my best. I'll be thinking about you.

Hi, Cathy4. i had constipation, flank pain, and urinary problems all at the same time too. (See my post on, I think, page 2 of this thread.) I still think it had to do with withdrawal, but doctors still roll their eyes. Actually I had such bad pain in my sides that I had to sleep sitting up for a week or so. [Then it came back a few weeks later, then again; three times total.) The good news is that this was a few years ago, it went away fairly soon, and it hasn't returned. Your symptoms may, of course, have a totally different cause, but good luck. Do get this checked out medically. I hope your issues are as transient as mine.

I forgot to mention that, although being obsessed with political events has made me crazy, most withdrawal symptoms are in remission. Some trouble sleeping through the night. Election campaign has made that worse but hasn't brought on the symptoms that were bothering me months and years ago (see signature). Thanks for the kind words, NZ. Had no intention of bringing politics into SA, although I don't consider what's going on as "just politics." I do that on Facebook, though, and follow certain FB pages all to religiously.

Sorry I haven't kept you informed. Things aren't so good right now, as I mentioned in tonight's post on NZ11's page.

Funny, I haven't contributed to SA for a while, but here it is around midnight and I decide to check in. And when I go to New Content, what is the absolute first post I find but something you sent to me a few months ago. Good to see your posts, recycled, original, or whatever. I must tell you that I'm so frightened and anxious (that's just me, I'm afraid) of the election that I've resorted to sleep meds again. And to thoughts of death. Add destruction of my hard-earned mental health to you-know-who's raping our hard-won civilization (emphasis on civil), such as it is. I think I now understand what it must have felt like to be a humanely-inclined German around 1930 or 1935. I understand New Zealand is lovely in November. Sorry to meander off-topic. Peace to all SAers. And to all of good will. Sorry I haven't kept up.

Hello, Santino. Thanks for visiting my intro page. I'm doing quite well and hope you are too. I'll visit your intro soon and see how you're doing. Hope your taper is going well. To give a quick look at my withdrawal and "recovery," I'm pretty much back to normal except for sleep difficulties, which haven't changed much since my last post. The other symptoms I mention in my signature haven't recurred. I definitely need to write a more detailed update (maybe the "success story" that's been requested) and will do so soon. Right now I'm so preoccupied with the insanity of American presidential election campaign that I can't get myself to write much. I've threatened to reinstate either mirtazapine or bourbon whiskey if things turn out badly . (Not seriously.) My shrink urges mirtazapine, but right now I'm getting by with the occasional lorazepam and/or indica vapors. My only advice is one you will hear all over this site: slow and steady. From your signature I see you're going slowly. My mistake, I think, was to go from 2 mg mirtazapine to none at all. My worst symptoms happened a month or two after I was completely free of the drug. Follow the 10 per cent (or less) rule! My best to you on your path to freedom from AD's.

Just read this http://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/silence-very-important-our-brains, which suggests that substantial periods of silence help the process of brain cell regeneration. So maybe these kinds of sensitivity (to sound especially) are telling us something about what our brains need to recover from WD. If true (and it is based only on animal data), the ability to embrace silence, or to block out noise, has to be one of the benefits of meditation and other methods of separating ourselves from the cacophonies of everyday life.

Down and dirty is good. Average high temp of 95F and a bad back will take the good out of gardening, though. Walking is dirty enough for the globally warmed southern U.S. p.s. My garden really needs work and I'd gladly overcome the heat issue. The back is something else.

I used to work on a suicide prevention hotline. Counselors are usually quite well-trained and empathetic. And they're certainly able to refer you to the best source(s) of help. Your concern about being forced into a hospital is something a suicide counselor can help you with. Most important, they will not rat you out to the authorities. Here's a link to the suicide crisis service for the central coast: http://fsa-cc.org/suicide-prevention-service/. Here is phone information: 24-Hour Suicide Crisis Line Toll-free: 1-877-663-5433 (ONE LIFE) Local: 831-458-5300 Serving Monterey, Santa Cruz, and San Benito Counties Good luck, Jetan. There's plenty of help out there. Don't feel alone!

I'm thinking of getting a smartphone just so i can play.

I certainly felt that way, but sensitivity to both social stimulation and noises have gotten much better. Not back to normal, but better. Hope time heals your issues, Help777.

Maybe the mods can move this too. So glad to hear this and thanks for posting it. I do this too, quite often lately. But time passes much more quickly than I think it's passing so I must have conked out. And I feel pretty rested usually. Having been reading about sleep deprivation and dementia I've often worried about insomnia. Your EEG makes me feel better.

I was on mirtazapine for about 15 years and my withdrawal torments are documented in my signature and intro (link in signature). Off mirt since March 2015. Recently I've realized that I gained about 25 pounds during the time on AD's and in the two years since my mirt taper got below 15 mg/day I've lost those 25 pounds, quite effortlessly. (I also quit drinking 2 years ago and had tended to attribute the weight loss to that. Who knows? [i was not a real problem drinker but liked my cocktail and a glass or two of wine every night.]) Like Ang, my blood pressure had gone up (about 140/80) and medication was being discussed. Since neither mirt nor alcohol are part of my life, BP has been about 122/70 and cardiologist is applauding. Of course he thinks it's the booze, not the mirt. The why doesn't much matter to me. At age 71 there are plenty of other issues to fret about. Like, you know, whether to friend Babs on Facebook.

Dateline NBC did a segment on this topic and pretty much concluded that kids on powerful psych meds was not good. Nice of them to say so, but it was worth watching and the link will show you some of it.

I tapered mirt for about a year and a half and seemed to have no wd symptoms at all. I jumped at about 1.5 mg/day and then the wd began. See signature. I wish I'd continued tapering on the 10% rule till I'd gotten down near zero. Don't assume that doing OK when on a very small dose means you'll also do OK on none at all. My example may not apply at all; I was on it for about 15 years and was sometimes on 30 mg, though only briefly. By the way, I was originally given mirt for sleep, same as you. In about a year sleep became difficult again. So what did my shrink do? Added lorazepam to the cocktail. I still haven't gotten off that. I doubt your taper will be a difficult or painful one, but if it seems to be going well, don't get overconfident the way I did. Good luck.