Blondiee1915: 3 months off lexapro - does it get better?

[MRothbard]

Hey Blondie,

 

Fellow Lexapro victim here. I know exactly how it is. i don't blame you for reinstating a little bit, it is not easy getting off these things. Please stay in touch.

[Gridley]

On 6/11/2019 at 8:47 AM, Blondiee1915 said:

 

 

.  This has been a very long road for me and I still have to taper a few meds but remaining hopeful 

 

I've got a few to go myself.  We will make it!

[Alice1]

On ‎6‎/‎10‎/‎2019 at 6:47 PM, Altostrata said:

unless you're having an adverse reaction to Xanax, I'd reduce it last.

 

I agree ….

[Blondiee1915]

Hi everyone -

 

I am off buspar now for about two months  (no major WD thankfully).  I am still on Luvox keeping steady but I am growing concerns with Xanax.  I have been taking Xanax twice a day 0.125 am and 0.125 pm.  

 

For the past few days I messed up my dosing schedule bc I think I took my Luvox twice on night and it gave me insomnia so one day I didn’t take Xanax bc I didn’t want to be more sleepy.  The next day I only took it once.  I am noticing awful headaches and feeling hot when the temperature is chilly.  Some weird blurry vision and more detachment.  Does it sound like Xanax WD? I never experienced hot flashes ever and now I am feeling more hot out of nowhere and this awful headache.  I am only 33.  

 

@ShepI really want off Xanax ASAP what would you recommend as my taper? Can I shave pills or weight scale? I don’t want to make liquid.  I do think that Luvox is helping my anxiety bc now I don’t get this crazy panic feeling and I would rather reduce Xanax first then Luvox.  I have been on SSRI for such a long time and when ready I want to taper it Very slow vs Xanax 7 months or so and petrified of dependence and interdose WD.  Any advice is greatly appreciated.  

[ChessieCat]

4 hours ago, Blondiee1915 said:

For the past few days I messed up my dosing schedule bc I think I took my Luvox twice on night and it gave me insomnia so one day I didn’t take Xanax bc I didn’t want to be more sleepy.  The next day I only took it once.  I am noticing awful headaches and feeling hot when the temperature is chilly.  Some weird blurry vision and more detachment.  Does it sound like Xanax WD? I never experienced hot flashes ever and now I am feeling more hot out of nowhere and this awful headache.  I am only 33.  

 

You double dosed one drug and missed a dose of another.  It sounds like that is what is causing the symptoms.  It might take a few days for things to settle.  Stay patient and calm and use non drug techniques to get through the discomfort.  When we panic we can make bad decisions.

[Blondiee1915]

Hi @ChessieCat -

 

You are probably right, the double dose messed me up.  I do think however that messing with Xanax doses created some additional issues as well.  I really want to start the taper with xanax but scared it will back fire me if done wrong.  Maybe I need to give it more time.  I started therapy and stepped up my meditation.  

[ChessieCat]

Doing either of those things can cause issues.  And you did both.  Because of this I wouldn't be changing anything for at least 2 weeks.  It's better to start from a stable foundation than to risk tapering too soon.

[Frogie]

Hi:

 

 I just stopped by to see how you are doing?

 

Hope well😊

 

Take care,

 Frogie xx

[Blondiee1915]

Hi @Frogie !

 

Sorry I just saw this.  I am doing okay.  Some days better than others, but overall not too bad.  Still have fatigue and dizziness and dp/dr but in just learning to live with these feelings and continue on.  
 

I finally started Xanax taper and I am on 0.25 now for a week (from 0.375) so far some sweating, anxiety, anger, increased dp/dr and fatigue but I’m telling myself this too shall pass. 
 

I am also on Luvox still 200 CR which does help me with anxiety.  I can walk my dog now without having panic attacks, go to work without having panic attacks.  Sit at dinner in a restaurant without having panic attacks.  But it’s not all that simple as I have a bunch of other symptoms and some side effects.  
 

My hope and plan is to get off the Xanax wait to stabilize and then attempt a very slow tape of Luvox.

 

On a personal note things are still going well with bf and we are planning on moving in soon 🙂

 

hope you are doing okay.  I will stop by on your page to see what you are up to 🙂🙂
 

Edited February 21, 2020 by apace41
Fix typo

[apace41]

Hi, Blondiee,

 

Good to see some progress, however you got there.

 

I fixed a typo in your post -- restaurant was "restarting" -- undoubtedly a brilliant autocorrect thing.  Hope you don't mind.

 

Best,

 

Andy

[Frogie]

6 minutes ago, Blondiee1915 said:

Hi @Frogie !

 

Sorry I just saw this.  I am doing okay.  Some days better than others, but overall not too bad.  Still have fatigue and dizziness and dp/dr but in just learning to live with these feelings and continue on.  
 

I finally started Xanax taper and I am on 0.25 now for a week (from 0.375) so far some sweating, anxiety, anger, increased dp/dr and fatigue but I’m telling myself this too shall pass. 
 

I am also on Luvox still 200 CR which does help me with anxiety.  I can walk my dog now without having panic attacks, go to work without having panic attacks.  Sit at dinner in a restaurant without having panic attacks.  But it’s not all that simple as I have a bunch of other symptoms and some side effects.  
 

My hope and plan is to get off the Xanax wait to stabilize and then attempt a very slow tape of Luvox.

 

On a personal note things are still going well with bf and we are planning on moving in soon 🙂

 

hope you are doing okay.  I will stop by on your page to see what you are up to 🙂🙂
 

Hi!

 

Sounds like you are starting to feel better. That’s great news! It’s nice to be able to go to a restaurant and “enjoy” yourself.

 

Good luck with the Xanax. That’s what I’m doing right now and it’s so different than my Lexapro taper. Not fun in a different way, but I’m on a lot more that you.

 

How exciting with the bf.  You deserve happiness 😊

 

Keep me posted. Love to hear from you.

 

Take care,

 Frogie xx

[Blondiee1915]

@apace41 thank you Andy 😊 I don’t mind at all 

 

@Frogie you will be fine Frogie! As they say slow and steady wins the race.  Thank you so much, we all deserve happiness ❤️

[Frogie]

23 minutes ago, Blondiee1915 said:

you will be fine Frogie! As they say slow and steady wins the race.  Thank you so much, we all deserve happiness ❤️

Yes we do all deserve happiness. But you deserve it the most. I know what a difficult time you’ve been through ❤️

[Blondiee1915]

@Frogie you are so sweet you almost made me cry (a good cry) thank you for being so kind ❤️❤️❤️

[Frogie]

13 minutes ago, Blondiee1915 said:

@Frogie you are so sweet you almost made me cry (a good cry) thank you for being so kind ❤️❤️❤️

I’m glad I could make you feel good.❤️❤️❤️
 

[Terry]

11 hours ago, Blondiee1915 said:

My hope and plan is to get off the Xanax

It looks like you don't take xanax every day.  Do you have any problems with interdose withdrawal?  How long have you been tapering it?  I will need to do this after I'm through with sertraline and am just wondering about other people's experiences.

 

Thanks, Terry

[Blondiee1915]

Hi Terry -

 

I was not taking Xanax daily at first, but eventually due to daily panic attacks I started to take it daily (for about a year now) I was doing 0.125 in the am 0.125 at noon, eventually I started getting interdose withdrawal - headache in the morning and general feeling of not feeling well in addition to my symptoms. So I added 0.0625 (quarter of 0.25 Xanax ) in the evening and that helped my interdose symptoms.  Now I am down to 0.125 am .0625 noon and 0.0625 evening and holding here.  Next step would be to cut my am dose .... 

 

My psychiatrist thinks this small dose should not be an issue to taper and my WD will be more of mental and not necessarily physical (which I am not sure I agree with).  He is working with me and said we will go slow if needed.  I am cutting the pills now but I am not sure what to do once I get to 0.0625 three times daily.  I don’t want to make liquid it sounds like too much work, but it might be necessary.  My psychiatrist also thinks that slow tapers can be bad and it’s almost like ripping the bandage slowly ... I guess I will just listed to my body and go from there ....

 

When will you start your taper? Do you take it once a day? 

[Terry]

11 hours ago, Blondiee1915 said:

When will you start your taper? Do you take it once a day? 

I can't start my xanax taper until I've finished the sertraline.  I divide my xanax dose by cutting 0.25 tabs into quarters.  I take .0625 at 7AM,  .125 at bedtime and .0625 at around 3AM on one of my frequent bathroom trips.  Sometimes I take half of my bedtime dose in the afternoon if I'm experiencing anxiety. 

 

When I start my taper I plan to do it as a liquid.  Either I will make dilutions from tablets or request a prescription of liquid xanax.  The sertraline I take is a liquid, and (to me at least) is much easier to measure than cutting and weighing tablets.

 

I wish you the best on your journey!

[Terry]

I had an ankle block plus sedative for my foot surgery on Feb 4;  was prescribed oxycodone, celebrex, and hydroxyzine for after surgery, only took a few, then relied on tylenol.  For the bronchitis I was given z-pak and prednisone.

 

I'm wondering if the increase in WD symptoms I'm experiencing is a result of my surgery and bronchitis and the drugs I've had to take.  Before my surgery things were pretty much WD normal for me.  But now, in addition to still feeling sick from the bronchitis, I've had a return of some old WD symptoms. 

 

Any thoughts?

 

 

[apace41]

5 hours ago, Terry said:

I'm wondering if the increase in WD symptoms I'm experiencing is a result of my surgery and bronchitis and the drugs I've had to take.  Before my surgery things were pretty much WD normal for me.  But now, in addition to still feeling sick from the bronchitis, I've had a return of some old WD symptoms. 

 

Always so hard to say "what causes what" during this process.  Could it be the meds?  Sure.  Could it be the surgery?  Sure.  Could it be several other things?  Sure.

 

Makes it very frustrating as cause and effect are frequently not obvious.  And, in addition, even if nothing changed it might be your time for a "wave". 

 

Bottom line, Terry, nobody can tell you for sure, but if you baseline WD Normal was pretty well established, if you stay the course there is high likelihood you get back there soon enough.

 

Best,

 

Andy

[Blondiee1915]

Guys help.  I might be pregnant (very early) to be confirmed by blood test but urine is positive.  What do I do???? I am on Luvox 200 mg extended release and Xanax 0.125 mg.  Primary is concerned about Luvox I’m scared 😟 

[Altostrata]

How long have you been taking 200mg Luvox? Please update your signature.

 

Did you tell your doctor you intended to get pregnant when you were prescribed 200mg?

[Blondiee1915]

Hi Alto,

 

It was not a planned pregnancy.  I am calling tomorrow to see how I should proceed.  I have been at 200 for about 3 - 4 months.  I am sorry about the signature.  I will update it tomorrow when I am on my laptop I can’t do it from my phone.  

[Frogie]

Hi:

 

Just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing?

 

Hope well.

 

Take care,

 Frogie xx

[Blondiee1915]

Hi Frogie! 
 

thank you for checking in on me  

 

I am doing okay! I am off Xanax for about 2 months now.  And I cut down on Luvox from 200 to 100 mg.  I am experiencing some residual anxiety, dp/dr, but overall I am doing okay all things considered.

 

I am 13 weeks pregnant and everything seems to be going well! I worry over babys health due to my use of meds.  But it is what it is and hopefully one day I will be off.  I just hope and pray that it will be a healthy baby.  

 

I started seeing a chiropractor for some low back pain and neck.  And I’m noticing if I go consistently my anxiety is not as intense.  
 

how are you? Hope all is well! 

[Frogie]

On 7/21/2020 at 12:01 PM, Blondiee1915 said:

Hi Frogie! 
 

thank you for checking in on me  

 

I am doing okay! I am off Xanax for about 2 months now.  And I cut down on Luvox from 200 to 100 mg.  I am experiencing some residual anxiety, dp/dr, but overall I am doing okay all things considered.

 

I am 13 weeks pregnant and everything seems to be going well! I worry over babys health due to my use of meds.  But it is what it is and hopefully one day I will be off.  I just hope and pray that it will be a healthy baby.  

 

I started seeing a chiropractor for some low back pain and neck.  And I’m noticing if I go consistently my anxiety is not as intense.  
 

how are you? Hope all is well! 

That is awesome that you were able to get off of Xanax and cut the Luvox. Anxiety is a normal wd symptom. 

Congrat's on the baby! That is wonderful!!!

So happy for you

Take care,

Frogie xx

[Frogie]

On 7/21/2020 at 12:01 PM, Blondiee1915 said:

Hi Frogie! 
 

thank you for checking in on me  

 

I am doing okay! I am off Xanax for about 2 months now.  And I cut down on Luvox from 200 to 100 mg.  I am experiencing some residual anxiety, dp/dr, but overall I am doing okay all things considered.

 

I am 13 weeks pregnant and everything seems to be going well! I worry over babys health due to my use of meds.  But it is what it is and hopefully one day I will be off.  I just hope and pray that it will be a healthy baby.  

 

I started seeing a chiropractor for some low back pain and neck.  And I’m noticing if I go consistently my anxiety is not as intense.  
 

how are you? Hope all is well! 

I’m so glad you were able to taper off the Xanax. How are you feeling since being off?

 

Congratulations on your pregnancy. A new bundle of joy!

 

 I went to a chiropractor for a while a couple of years ago and I felt less anxiety also. I hope it continues for you.

 

I’m doing ok. Will be done with my taper soon, then the healing can begin.

 

Please keep me posted on how you’re doing. 
 

Take care,

 Frogie xx

[Blondiee1915]

Hi friends! 
 

I have not been on in some time now, I figured I will give an update.

 

I am off Xanax completely (4 months now).  And I am doing okay.  I also reduced Luvox from 200mg extended release to 90mg extended release (beads counting).  My plan is to go down to 50mg before the baby comes.  I really want to breastfeed, but I am scared of hurting the baby.  I have an appointment to discuss my options in 2 weeks, so will see what I will ultimately decide on.

 

I am still working from home and it has helped me tremendously.  I started going in once a week and it is going well so far.  I focus on the baby now and try to keep that as my mind set whenever I feel anxious.  I believe being in a safe home environment and not in a busy office helped my nervous system to relax and somewhat desensitize .  I still struggle with fatigue and dizziness and of course detachment, but it does feel more manageable.  I am not sure if this is because of my attitude change, pregnancy hormone, drug reduction and ability to work from home but I take it.  I walk my dog twice a day and have very little anxiety.  I run errands and go to busy supermarkets and feel thankfully okay without intense urges of panic and escape.  I am very thankful for that.

 

Since moving in with my now husband (I got married too!), I don’t stay in bed like I used to.  Seeing my husband up early doing things around our apartment motivates me to get up do and do things around the house, and at the end of the day I feel accomplished and more of a normal human doing daily work stuff which is actually nice.  I remember days where I was in bed the whole weekend missing on life and feeling worry for myself.  Now I just get up (even if I am tired) and I just push myself to do little things around the house, go for a small walk with my dog etc etc.  I do think this change in the environment helped me with my anxiety.  Now instead of worrying about anxiety and waiting when I will get better I tell myself it’s no longer about me, and I focus on doing things that I can and getting ready for the baby 👶🏻.

 

I did a recent cut from 100mg to 90mg I do feel more detachment, but I know what it is now and I am learning to accept it.  It helps.  
 

Baby is coming in 3.5 months and I cannot wait to meet him 🥰🥰🥰.  
 

I will make sure to check in more often.

 

love,

blondiee 

[Shep]

Thanks for posting an update, Blondiee. And congratulations on getting married! 

 

You sound really good. 

 

[Frogie]

What an awesome post.

 

Congratulations on getting married! Such wonderful news.

 

Please keep us updated how you are doing and when the baby arrives.

[Blondiee1915]

Thank you Frogie and Shep! 
 

I am doing relatively well.  I have two more months until my baby is here.  Some fatigue and tiredness, but not too bad.  Being home helps me for sure. 

My biggest now is restless/crawling sensations in my feet and hands at night when laying down.  It is so bad, it wakes me up.  With little sleep I get more of my symptoms which is not good.  I had these crawling restless sensations prior to pregnancy but it was never this bad.  Has anyone heard anything of this kind? What helps is when I get up and move around.  As soon as I lay down sensations come back.  My blood work looks normal (I thought maybe some deficiencies), my obgyn is useless.  Don’t know where else to turn 

[ChessieCat]

If you do an internet search for:

 

site:survivingantidepressants.org crawling skin

 

it will bring up posts where other members have mentioned that sensation.  From what I found there are quite a lot of  members who have experienced the same thing.

[Blondiee1915]

Thank you @ChessieCat

[Frogie]

@Blondiee1915

 

Do you have a baby report? I can’t wait to hear😊

[Blondiee1915]

Hi Frogie!

 

Thank you for checking in on me! I have the most beautiful baby boy! He is 11 weeks old today and is getting bigger and bigger day by day.  Being a mother is so rewarding, I had no idea my life was empty until I met him.  Thankfully he is healthy and happy. We do struggle with sleep (he is always up and can go hours without napping), but I am hoping with time it will improve.  He giggles, moves his little body to music, and gives me smiles.  Labor part went well too.  I was worried about epidural and meds in my system, but I recovered pretty quickly - up and walking the next day. I am thankful for that.

 

I am down to 80mg of Luvox from initial 200mg (summer 2019).  And I am doing well.  Being home and not having the stress of going to work reduced my anxiety tremendously.  I walk daily with my dog and the baby and don’t even think about being anxious.  Change in living situation definitely helped me.  And now it shifted to being more worried about the baby than myself.  I have to go back to work next month so I will see how I do.  But really hope things will be stable.  
 

Question for moderators.  Can SSRIs cause nightmares in infants? A week ago I decreased Fluvoxamine from 90 to 80.  Coincidentally this week my baby started screaming in his sleep.  It only happened 3 times but it makes me wonder if reduction is the cause (I get funky dreams when I reduce).  It is the saddest thing, he screams in his sleep.  He only stops when he wakes up.  

[Frogie]

Hi @Blondiee1915!

 

Congratulations on your new baby boy! I’m so happy everything went well with the pregnancy and delivery. New life is so rewarding and I know exactly how you feel about not being empty anymore. 
 

I have two boys. My first one slept from 7 pm to 7 am coming home from the hospital. I thought something was wrong with him lol... the second didn’t sleep like yours. I would just hold him and rock him all day/night just so he’d sleep a little. But it will eventually get better. Just hang in there. 
 

I hope you do well going back to work. 
 

I’m really glad you’re doing well overall. And again, congratulations once again!

 

Take care,

 Frogie xx