Roxyrich: adverse reaction to prozac

[Colonial]

Yes, and because it did work the first time for you, it's not your "fault" it didn't work the second.

It's just one of those things.

 

I was just trying to piece together why the reaction happened, and secondary drugs around the time of the reactions seem to keep popping up.

 

 It's possible if you weren't already percolating a problem with the steroids the awful reaction wouldn't have happened.

 

I'm just trying to point out how complicated these things can be, so you're NOT blaming yourself for drinking coffee.

 

If it's a tension headache, maybe an epsom salt bath?

[Farout]

Deep down, I know that a part of me took the tablets because my apparent need for them made my husband feel guilty for leaving me to deal with everything to do with my son's condition alone.  It was a dramatic and entirely inappropriate 'and now just look what's happened!!!'

How's that for karma biting someone squarely in the bum?

 

Even so, I know it's not my fault.  I wasn't warned about the risk I was taking.  The dr acted like pristiq and ativan were just mild helpers that pretty much everyone took from time to time.  She told me, with a giggle, that I needn't be worried about addiction, but if I was, could I save whatever is left (from the 100 ativan she prescribed) for her because they are brilliant.

 

Even so, I don't think it's her fault.  To get to the real people at fault you'd have to look at (among countless other factors) the information withheld in clinical drug trials, the bias created when the only entities with funds to research this properly has a financial interest in the outcome, the fact that the scientific and medical communities continually refuse to acknowledge this bias, the constant proliferation of the universally debunked 'chemical imbalance' theory feeding the medical model, and the blinking DSM writers continually expanding the definitions of mental illness to include normal reactions to difficult life experiences!

 

Heal well, don't ruminate.  You did what you felt was best with the limited information available to you.  You have every right to feel let down and angry, just not at yourself.

[Roxyrich]

Awoke with a little panic this morning, I know people get this a lot but a first for me.

Went to the docs yesterday, for my sick note. I explained all my symptoms, and he agreed that it was going to take some time to recover.

He also put a name to my hunger problem. He said immediately when I mentioned it , it was reactive hypoglycemia due to stress.

I think it's probably related to excess cortisol.

He's a good doctor who agreed that further use of drugs would probably not help me.good in a way ,but it means there's no help.

[Roxyrich]

Thanks farout.

[Colonial]

Praying for you know.

[Roxyrich]

Felt some positive emotions today, but I kinda have to control myself, because I know it can change quickly. I always seem to be on guard. Just want time to pass. Trying my best to do normal things when I'm able, I hope it helps healing.

[Colonial]

Yeah, gotta get the important stuff done while you can.  I try to make any important decisions while I'm feeling better and just let the auto pilot guide through the waves.

[Roxyrich]

I was bad today, so went for a long walk.seemed to help a little.

Yeah, autopilot.

[AliG]

 Roxy . Nothing wrong with that . Whatever works for you . Well done . Anything that helps.  keep it up . 

You're getting there.

Ali

[Roxyrich]

Hi farout, I've been reading your thread, and see,even this far out you had some nasty waves. my question is , when you had that 4 month window, did it feel like you'd healed, or did you know it was just a window. I'm no where near yet , but I worry that I'll one day start to feel better, start back at work, then bam , back in.I don't think I could take it.

Hope your still doing well, rich.

[Colonial]

"...but I worry that I'll one day start to feel better, start back at work, then bam , back in.I don't think I could take it..."

 

 

One day at a time, buddy!  And yes, you will get through it. Off to pray for you now! 

(And I have the CUTEST prayers!)    

[Roxyrich]

I'll say a prayer for you tonight too.

[Farout]

Hi Roxy, the important thing to remember is that the really nasty wave was caused by a reaction to some antibiotics. It was a type (different brand name) that I had spent two days in hospital after a reaction in my mid-20s, so it's hardly surprising that it threw me a loop last year, when my CNS was already knocked of balance.

 

Yes, I did feel that I was healed... Or, to be more accurate I had pretty much forgotten the WD process so didn't give it much thought either way. I was in a mild wave before I took the antibiotics and, because it had been a while, it took a bit to figure out what it was. It wasn't like the early times though, it was more like a mild depression and some of that 'evil nostalgia' that people talk about. It was nothing like the early days.

 

I regret not posting here in the early days so that other people in the situation can see the contrast. I was in hell then. I know what you are going through. I am not going through it any more.

 

I have been in a mild wave in the last few days. Nothing to write home about, some bristling background anxiety and the odd intrusive thought. Around 30 minutes of derealisation on Tuesday - then a lot of physical symptoms. I carried on with life as usual. I would never have been able to do that three months out.

[Farout]

As for whether you could take it if it did happen - your withdrawal brain will do its best not to let you appreciate this but YOU ARE COPING. Look at what you are having to put up with and you are fighting back and coping! If you have to, you will do it again.

 

The thing with the waves as they go on is that you have a better term of reference. You still think in real time and you are still irrational. Thoughts like 'I've been like this forever' will come in and they will seem real. But you will have that objective memory of your window to think back on and tell yourself 'no. I remember that I had a nice time earlier/yesterday/last week'. In that moment you might not be able to recall the feeling of being happy and relaxed but you can remember that, objectively, you were and so be reassured that it will come back.

The clear blue sky at the end of the tunnel is one of the things that makes waves very different from the early days.

[Roxyrich]

Thanks farout, it means a lot to me to have your advice.

I don't have any reference to your earlier account, but mine was after the initial reaction to prozac, I felt really bad, and as weeks passed I started having windows and waves, but for the last 2 weeks my sleep isn't as good and I just seem to have waves with odd parts of the day where I feel ok.

I guess my question is, is this gonna get a lot worse before it gets better.

I'm sure you remember how scary this is.

Once again, thanks farout.

[Colonial]

Great post, Far out!

 

How you doing so far today, Roxy?

[Roxyrich]

Not too bad. only annoying thing now , after I eat, I get fatigue. It's been happening for a couple of days now.and as soon as I get hungry it lifts.it also has a heavy dull feeling in my head .not sure what to expect next.

How are you.

[Colonial]

Yeah, if I eat anything I get the "foggy head". 

 

The morning wasn't too bad,just some foggy head onandoff after eating.

But the last 45 minutes my body is kinda spinning, legs go numb,difficulty swallowing and anxiety,hard to think.

Just another day here in paradise.

[Roxyrich]

We would make good spies.can you imagine the torture we could endure, if we were caught.

Hope your ok col.

I'm off to bed.

[Colonial]

Now you know why prisoners of war have that "look" for the rest of their lives.  God bless them and each of us too!  Rest well buddy!

[Colonial]

How's my favorite fellow spy today? 

[Roxyrich]

Felt ok most of the day, flu like symptoms into the evening . slept good, but awoke this morning, jittery and dizzy.

I guess this is it for the foreseeable future.

Just plodding through the day's.

I see on your thread , you're pretty much the same.

Hope you feel better soon.

[Roxyrich]

Yesterday afternoon hit hard,awful wave,had to eat all the time, just to feel ok.felt like flu till around 8.30 pm. Slept ok till 4am then wide awake.

Today has been good, a definite window. But all I've done all day is worry

About money issues , just shows, when you aren't suffering, real worries come back.now nervous about tomorrow.

Does anyone know when acute phase ends and next phase begins.

[Colonial]

Unfortunately that's different for everyone.  But even if your out of the acute phase, you will still have days or hours where the suffering may seem as bad. Again, it's looking at blocks of time instead of any one day or week. It's not easy to tell while you are in it. You will start to see patterns after the fact. 

 

And I really don't know anything about Propranolol or how that is interacting.  Multiple drug cases are hard to figure, especially when you start another drug to counteract the reaction.

[Roxyrich]

I had a really good day, yesterday, but I'm back in it today.

It's really frustrating, when you know how good you can feel.

I know it takes time to heal , but what about now , it's so hard to be positive. I can't imagine when things could start to improve.

Does anybody know if sunlight can hurt you.yesterday it was in my eyes a lot and I hardly slept ,with pain behind my eyes. hope I'm not sensitive to it.

[Colonial]

"...I had a really good day, yesterday, but I'm back in it today. I know it takes time to heal , but what about now , it's so hard to be positive. I can't imagine when things could start to improve..."

 

 

If you had a really good day yesterday,  you are starting to improve and you're further along than a lot of us!  That really is great news!  I'd give anything for one really good day.  

 

Just don't over do it physically on the good days.  Your body is trying to heal and if you over do it the symptoms can come back or be worse than they would have been.  It's your bodies way of saying it can only do one thing at a time

 

And yes, sometimes I wouldn't be able to be out in the sunlight.  You can be sensitive to it for awhile until your system settles down.

[Roxyrich]

Thanks col.are you feeling better.

[Colonial]

Yes, some improvement the past 2 days.  Still some time in the afternoon when I feel like I may die.  Very hard to explain.

[Roxyrich]

I hope you feel better soon.

[Roxyrich]

Feeling anxious today, can't settle down.

I think I prefer fatigue to this.

I shouldn't complain, I've had 3 ok days. I guess that's over.

Can't get more than about 3 hours sleep in a wave .

I noticed I ate fish today, and my symptoms increased, this isn't the first time this happened, I wonder if it is too activating. Same thing with bananas.

[Roxyrich]

This is getting really tiring. I just can't see an end to it.

I feel so weak and exhausted, how do people get through months feeling like this. I'm finding it difficult to find hope, and I know that others have done this but I don't know how.

Sorry for the negativity, just praying for an end to it.

[Farout]

It IS exhausting. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Think back to your three better days. There will be more and they will get better still.

[Roxyrich]

I think I could handle my symptoms better, if I could sleep after 4am.

I sometimes have a 5 minute nap in the afternoon, but I wake with raised heart rate .I guess this is cortisol.

How long before this calms down?

This is why it's so hard, no time line, just keep going.

[Colonial]

(...I noticed I ate fish today, and my symptoms increased, this isn't the first time this happened, I wonder if it is too activating. Same thing with bananas...)

 

 

It's always interesting why a certain food or foods would cause a problem.  Neverheard of a fish problem before. Was there anything else with or on the fish?  Like a certain condiment, or the way it was prepared?  Was it the same type of fish?  Same time of day?  Your in England, right?  Was it JUST fish?  Or was it your famed "fish and chips", with all the vinegar, and other concoctions?

 

(...I think I could handle my symptoms better, if I could sleep after 4am....)

 

Not sleeping is the worst.  Yes, your cortisol is way up.  You're not adding any caffeine, or chocolate, beer or sugar right?  Those will make it worse.

 

Oh, how I envy your 3 "ok" days!    Is this the first time you have had a window that long? And remember not to overdue it physically on your good days.

 

 Are you staying hydrated?  Even a low level of chronic dehydration will make all your symptoms worse.  This is especially important, to remember to drink plenty of clean water, especially when we aren't eating as much.

 

Your body needs A LOT of water to heal itself.  Just make sure it's plain water and not mixed in with God knows whatever additive that could make you worse

 

Praying for you now...

[AliG]

 R .     You're doing well if you can sleep up to 4am  !  LOL.  Yes . It's cortisol .  Unfortunately , there's not much you can do with that . Try deep breathing  and/ or  meditation, and have a read through these links : 

Sleep problems - that awful withdrawal insomnia

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/33-waking-with-panic-or-anxiety-managing-cortisol-spikes/?hl=%2Bwaking+%2Bpanic

Ali

[Roxyrich]

The fish was a microwave meal , probably not the best , but I have tried our famed fish and chips, and that was also bad for symptoms. that was probably the longest I felt ok the three days, and before that it tended to be 1 day windows. I know I should be glad to get windows but I felt so bad yesterday, it makes me question how long.

Today is an ok day , low symptoms, just tinitus, dizziness and zero motivation.

I need to go back to work, but I'm just not well enough. very frustrating.