grace2002 Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Please read my signature profile. Thanks in advance for your support and suggestions! Medication History: 22 years of SSRI's, Zoloft 100 mg titrate up to 200 mg qd 20 years, to Cymbalta 60 mg qd 1.5 years, return to Zoloft 200 mg qd for few months then to Paxil 60 mg qd. Wellbutrin 150 SR qd added about 4 years ago. Increased to 150 SR bid a few months ago. Clonazepam 0.5 mg qd titrate up to 1.0 mg daily over 20 years. Have been supplementing with another .25 to .50 mg of clonazepam daily as needed for withdrawal symptoms to function at work. Taper History: DC'd Paxil after a short taper of alternating 60 mg and 30 mg for a few days, 30 mg qod for a few days to off when ran out 09/01/15. Current Medications: 10/5/15-Wellbutrin-SR 150 mg bid, clonazepam 1 mg hs and .25 - .50 mg during day prn to function at work with withdrawal symptoms. Supplements: Nutrilite Perfect Pack (multivitamin, minerals, phytonutrients, fish oil), probiotic, MSM 2 capsules daily and titrating up. MSM 4 capsules daily. Updated 11/17/2015. Other pertinent medical history: Major Depressive Disorder with anxiety, alcoholism in remission 13+ years. Former recreational drug user. Perimenopausal. Drug Interactions per Drugs.com: Moderate bupropion clonazepam Applies to: Wellbutrin XL (bupropion), clonazepam Excessive use of clonazePAM, or abrupt discontinuation following long-term use, may occasionally trigger seizures in patients taking buPROPion. Talk to your doctor before using these medications together if you have any questions or concerns. It is important to tell your doctor about all other medications you use, including vitamins and herbs. Do not stop using any medications without first talking to your doctor. No other interactions were found between your selected drugs. Link to comment
calithebold Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Hi Grace2002 Welcome to SA. I'm sorry you have been experiencing such scary symptoms. I'm sure a mod will be with you soon. Just wanted to welcome you and let you know you are in the best place. Many people have suffered what you are experiencing. You are in my thoughts. All medications:: Xanax (1995-96), Aropax (1995-96), Mellaril (1997-2000), Efexor (1997-2002), Seroquel (2000-now), Lithium Carbonate (2000-now), Avanza (2002-05), Epilim (2005), Seroquel-XR (2000-now), Zyprexa (2002-14), Raberprazole (2000-now prn), Crestor (2009-15), Gabapentin (2009-12), Lamictal (2010-now), Abilify (2011-now) Lyrica (2012-now), Diazepam (2010-now prn), Saphris (2014), Respiridone (2014), Chlorpromazine (2014) Neulatil (07/2016) Current medications: Lithium Carbonate 750mg; Seroquel-XR 600mg, 800mg 04/16, 600mg 04/16, 400mg 04/16, 200mg 04/16, 400mg 04/16, 500mg 04/16; Lamictal 250mg 200mg150mg 04/16; Lyrica 300mg; Abilify 20mg 30mg 11/15 Zoloft 25mg 04/16 ceased after a week due to severe suicidal thoughts; Seroquel 25mg prn; Diazepam 40mg CT Jan 2013, 5mg occasionally, (massive med changes in April 2016 due to a hospital admission). Supplements: Fish oil 4000mg, Magnesium 100mg , Niacinamide 1000mg, Slippery Elm 800mg , B12 1000mcg, Zinc 50mg, B6 100mg, Vitamin D 2000IU, Calcium 1200mg, P5P 100mg, Vitamin C 2000mg, Vitamin E 400IU Link to comment
grace2002 Posted October 4, 2015 Author Share Posted October 4, 2015 Thank you Calithebold! I would also like to report some positive things that have been happening: 1. I have feelings again! Yes, they are spinning out of control at times right now but they are still with me! I have experienced rage (lots of that), fear, empathy, tears of joy and tears of frustration, gratitude, spiritual connectedness, sexual desire (thought that was gone forever). I have been in a downward spiral of nothingness the last 4-5 years. I will take a crying jag. The rage not so much but it's something! 2. I don't feel the need to isolate all the time! I tend to be introverted and need my time alone to "recharge". I like to have 1 day a week when I don't have to leave the house at all if possible and can just "putz" around the house. This works best for me. Today was that day. But yesterday after a full days' work, I went to a social gathering and to another friend's house after that. I wanted to go and not hide out at home. My trend the past several years has been home, work, home, work...blah, blah, blah. 3. I have some motivation around the house! The past 6 -12 months especially, I have given zero f***s about doing any housework, yardwork (I was an avid gardener), laundry, cooking, or anything else. I was still pretty motivated at work but not outside of that. I finally mowed my back yard a few days ago (or jungle) after many weeks of ignoring it. Today I shampoo'd carpets in the house and did some laundry. I even have a few fall decorations out. 4. I am not up all night and sleeping all day until I have to get up for work. I do work 2nd shift generally but I have been waking up on my own much earlier and getting a few things done before work or just enjoying some peaceful coffee time. I have been able to go to bed at a decent time. 5. I am spending much less time online. I have no clue what is going on on my Facebook page and I dont care! I haven't been on a major Netflix binge in a while (I am not judging anyone else...believe me). I want to DO stuff. This is a miracle for me. 6. Music. I want to listen to music again. I have some terrible days, terrible hours...but I can see some light. I hope you can too. Medication History: 22 years of SSRI's, Zoloft 100 mg titrate up to 200 mg qd 20 years, to Cymbalta 60 mg qd 1.5 years, return to Zoloft 200 mg qd for few months then to Paxil 60 mg qd. Wellbutrin 150 SR qd added about 4 years ago. Increased to 150 SR bid a few months ago. Clonazepam 0.5 mg qd titrate up to 1.0 mg daily over 20 years. Have been supplementing with another .25 to .50 mg of clonazepam daily as needed for withdrawal symptoms to function at work. Taper History: DC'd Paxil after a short taper of alternating 60 mg and 30 mg for a few days, 30 mg qod for a few days to off when ran out 09/01/15. Current Medications: 10/5/15-Wellbutrin-SR 150 mg bid, clonazepam 1 mg hs and .25 - .50 mg during day prn to function at work with withdrawal symptoms. Supplements: Nutrilite Perfect Pack (multivitamin, minerals, phytonutrients, fish oil), probiotic, MSM 2 capsules daily and titrating up. MSM 4 capsules daily. Updated 11/17/2015. Other pertinent medical history: Major Depressive Disorder with anxiety, alcoholism in remission 13+ years. Former recreational drug user. Perimenopausal. Drug Interactions per Drugs.com: Moderate bupropion clonazepam Applies to: Wellbutrin XL (bupropion), clonazepam Excessive use of clonazePAM, or abrupt discontinuation following long-term use, may occasionally trigger seizures in patients taking buPROPion. Talk to your doctor before using these medications together if you have any questions or concerns. It is important to tell your doctor about all other medications you use, including vitamins and herbs. Do not stop using any medications without first talking to your doctor. No other interactions were found between your selected drugs. Link to comment
tgirl Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 Hello Grace, I just wanted to say hello and welcome to S/A A mod should be on shortly to help you. In the meanwhile you should read windows and waves. You have found a wonderful place, and a lot of awesome people to support you. Best wishes, Tgirl April 2014 remeron 45mg. June 2014 abilify 2.5 remeron wasn't working so abilify was then added September 2014 woke up with anxiety x 100!!!! Pdoc then took me from 45 to 7.5 within a month and took abilify from 2.5 to 0 Currently Remeron 7.5 Vitamin d 5,000 iu taking for about 3 years October 2014 added fish oil/omega 3 1000 mg per day Levothyroxitine 100 10 years or so Dec 2014 started tapering 10% every 10 days-no problems. August 2015 down to 0.1 mg Woke up with severe anxiety-sleep issues-racing thoughts-depression. 9/9/15 up dose 1 mg. Link to comment
Moderator brassmonkey Posted October 4, 2015 Moderator Share Posted October 4, 2015 Hi Grace-- welcome to the group. I admire your determination, and I'm sorry to hear that you're having such a rough time. What you are experiencing is Withdrawal Syndrome and as you're finding out it is no fun at all. After being on these drugs for 21 years coming off of them is going to be a slow tedious process that must be done carefully, otherwise what you're experiencing will be just the tip of the iceberg. Think of it as removing a trellis from the garden, You can just grab the trellis and yank it out and the plants end up torn and in a heap on the ground. Or you can slowly untangle the plants a bit at a time and remove the trellis a stick at a time and you end up with a with plants standing nearly upright and looking beautiful. What is withdrawal syndrome? About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms Why taper by 10% of my dosage? Thank you for including your history in a signature block it really is helpful. If you would add the doses you were on and details of how you came off of the drugs it would help even more. 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
Administrator Altostrata Posted October 4, 2015 Administrator Share Posted October 4, 2015 Welcome, Grace. It sounds like you have good times and bad. Increased irritability is a withdrawal symptom. What is your symptom pattern relative to when you take your drugs? Please put ALL the drugs you take in the Drug Interactions Checker http://www.drugs.com/drug_interactions.html and copy and paste the results in this 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
grace2002 Posted October 6, 2015 Author Share Posted October 6, 2015 Per Admin request: Thank you for the suggestion. Good to know Interactions between your selected drugs Moderate bupropion clonazepamApplies to: Wellbutrin XL (bupropion), clonazepam Excessive use of clonazePAM, or abrupt discontinuation following long-term use, may occasionally trigger seizures in patients taking buPROPion. Talk to your doctor before using these medications together if you have any questions or concerns. It is important to tell your doctor about all other medications you use, including vitamins and herbs. Do not stop using any medications without first talking to your doctor. No other interactions were found between your selected drugs. I have also updated my signature to include medication history, taper, current meds and what I feel is other relevant history. Thank you for the tapering information. I realize I came off the SSRI very quickly. It was a "out of medication and money so do it" situation. I do not want to add back in if I can possibly avoid it. As I am still on Wellbutrin and Clonazepam, I am hoping I can muddle through. I am finding the agitations seems to hit about 4-5 hours after I wake up. Possibly when the clonazepam is fully wearing off? I am currenlty taing both Wellutrin at bedtime. Not sure if it would help to split this up. I do not want to use extra clonazepam unless needed but maybe I should be proactive and take a small dose before the agitation hits. ALL SUGGESTIONS WELCOME! I awoke today in great spirits, day off, did some yoga, had coffee, few things around the house. Made a phone call for my daughter to make some payment arrangements and just crashed! They were not nasty with me or anything. Set up payment plan. Just got EXTREMELY agitated following the conversation and as has been the case, could not shake it. Felt very out of control/on the edge for several hours. Developed some nausea and skin itching...not extreme. I had planned on going to an AA meeting but decided to "take to my bed" in everyone's best interest. Have taken night meds (Wellbutrin and Clonazepam) and feeling much better. I hope this is not TMI but it helps me and I will share it for that reason: I have found that sexual release (alone or with my sig other) instantly relieves my agitation. Also talking with one who understands and loves me unconditionally and doesn't try to advise or tell me to "calm down" helps me immensely. For me it seems that processing these feelings immediately is part of "correcting" these neural paths or whatever is out of whack. I feel quite fragile right now, as if my lifetime stress level has been reached and I just cannot deal with any unnecessary stuff. ie: my daughter is 22 years old and could have taken care of this bill situation. It is difficult as she is used to me being her rock but right now I just cannot. I must take care of myself. Thankfully she is understanding though it is a rough transition. Thanks for the responses, welcomes and suggestions. Good night. Medication History: 22 years of SSRI's, Zoloft 100 mg titrate up to 200 mg qd 20 years, to Cymbalta 60 mg qd 1.5 years, return to Zoloft 200 mg qd for few months then to Paxil 60 mg qd. Wellbutrin 150 SR qd added about 4 years ago. Increased to 150 SR bid a few months ago. Clonazepam 0.5 mg qd titrate up to 1.0 mg daily over 20 years. Have been supplementing with another .25 to .50 mg of clonazepam daily as needed for withdrawal symptoms to function at work. Taper History: DC'd Paxil after a short taper of alternating 60 mg and 30 mg for a few days, 30 mg qod for a few days to off when ran out 09/01/15. Current Medications: 10/5/15-Wellbutrin-SR 150 mg bid, clonazepam 1 mg hs and .25 - .50 mg during day prn to function at work with withdrawal symptoms. Supplements: Nutrilite Perfect Pack (multivitamin, minerals, phytonutrients, fish oil), probiotic, MSM 2 capsules daily and titrating up. MSM 4 capsules daily. Updated 11/17/2015. Other pertinent medical history: Major Depressive Disorder with anxiety, alcoholism in remission 13+ years. Former recreational drug user. Perimenopausal. Drug Interactions per Drugs.com: Moderate bupropion clonazepam Applies to: Wellbutrin XL (bupropion), clonazepam Excessive use of clonazePAM, or abrupt discontinuation following long-term use, may occasionally trigger seizures in patients taking buPROPion. Talk to your doctor before using these medications together if you have any questions or concerns. It is important to tell your doctor about all other medications you use, including vitamins and herbs. Do not stop using any medications without first talking to your doctor. No other interactions were found between your selected drugs. Link to comment
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