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Maridou: Tapering Luvox while still in benzo withdrawal


Maridou

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Hi !

 

I am now two years off klonopin.  I used it for 13 years.  I still now suffer from nerve pain : numbness, buzzing, tingling, burning, pins and needles burning sensation in limbs.  But this condition worsens as I started Tapering Luvox last spring.  The condition is now so bad that I can't sleep. I also have to deal with muscle pain all over.  I really think tapering the SSRI increased that benzo protracted withdrawal related nerve pain symptoms.  I had an MRi which is normal. Not sure if I should continue to taper the SSRI or take a break.  I am currently half way through...Outside the nerve pain, I haven't noticed other symptoms ! So taking a break ?  But if it takes years anyway before nerve pain goes away, this might just be a waste of time stopping to taper Luvox.

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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Hi !

 

I am now two years off klonopin.  I used it for 13 years.   Tapered on a 2 year period. I still now suffer from nerve pain : numbness, buzzing, tingling, burning, pins and needles burning sensation in limbs.  But this condition worsens as I started Tapering Luvox last spring.  The condition is now so bad that I can't sleep.   I really think tapering the SSRI increased that benzo protracted withdrawal related nerve pain symptoms.  I had an MRi which is normal. Not sure if I should continue to taper the SSRI or take a break.  I am currently half way through(from 100 mg to 60 mg)...Outside this increase in the nerve pain, I haven't noticed other new symptoms out of all those related to benzo !

 

So ? taking a break ?  But if it takes years before the nerve pain goes away, this might just be a waste of time to delay the Luvox taper...

 

Just for info :  Other Benzo withdrawal symptoms left after two years : muscle pain, tinnitus, insomnia, eye pain, joint pain, constant hot flashes (currently in menauposis  but this symptom worsen by both SSRI and Benzo taper), head pressure, intolerance to exercise, general malaise like flu like symptoms.

 

I am planning to start Hormone Therapy in order not to have  to suffer from the hot flashes and other symptoms all intertwined with those of withdrawals.

  •  

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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Hi Maridou. A mod will be along in a bit to give you the introduction information soon. But as I'm also on the SSRI/Benzo combo, I was curious how much klonopin you were on?

Current daily meds. Citalopram 2.5mg morning. Diazapam 1.5mg evening, Propanalol 40mg split 4x10mg throughout day.

 

Recent meds. Fluoxetine 20mg began 24th Nov 2017, CT on 4th December on medical advice due to bad Akathisia. Citalopram 10mg began on 13th Dec 2017, tapered to 2.5mg by 20th Dec 2017 on medical advice. Diazapam 2mg began on 6th Dec 2017 cut to 1.5 mg on 26th Dec. Propanalol 40mg began on 13th Dec. Zopiclone 3.75 mg began 13th December, used maybe 5 times then quit.

 

Previous history. Tricyclics, Fluoxetine or Citalopram for periods of 6mo to 2yrs over last 25 years. Probably 5 yrs in total. No significant ill effects.

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Around 1mg.  But I switched to Lorazepam during the last two years.  I started the taper at 1.5 mg ativan.

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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  • scallywag changed the title to Maridou: Tapering Luvox while still in benzo withdrawal
  • Moderator Emeritus

Maridou -- Welcome to Surviving Antidepressants (SA)

 

Thank you for taking the time to create an introduction topic for yourself.  This is  the place for you to ask questions, record symptoms, share your progress, and connect with other members of the SA community.  Please post questions and updates about your situation here so all your information is in one place.

 

Please tell us more about your

  • 2-year taper from klonopin, as best as you can remember it. 
    -- and --
  • taper from fluvoxamime (luvox): what was your starting dose, when did you decrease and to what dose, what is your current dose.
  • experience with lorazepam: when you started it and at what dose, when you decreased and to what dose, the date and mg of your last dose.

Thanks for creating a signature. It will be even more helpful to moderators and other members if you update it  with the taper details I requested. :)

 

I agree with your assessment that your symptoms are probably the result of combined decreases in 2 drugs (clonazepam and fluvoxamine). You may have seen these links in other introduction topics. I encourage you to read/view them to understand how and why back-to-back tapers might cause problems:

How your brain responds to psychiatric drugs - aka "Brain remodeling"

Youtube video, 4 minutes: Healing from antidepressants

 

I hope you'll consider holding at your current fluvoxamine dose for a while. You've given your CNS (central nervous system) quite a workout and it may be time for some rest and recovery.

 

Do you notice a pattern in your symptoms? Please keep notes on paper of your symptoms and the times of your dose(s). This post has a useful format for a daily log:

Take notes of doses and symptoms.

 

I hope you'll find the information in the SA forums helpful for your situation. I'm sorry that you are in the position that you need the information, but am glad that you found us.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.
1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results

Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to  0.0 mg  Aug. 12; details here


scallywag's Introduction
Online spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet

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Can't find where to change my signature ???  And by the way thanks for your reply !

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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Ok good. Found it !

 

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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  • 4 months later...
  • Administrator

How are you doing, Maridou?

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.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Last February I noted in a personal file  that things were improving especially with regards to nerve pain.  Here I go back to square one !  Burning, tingling don't let me days and nights.  Worst in hands and feet but also calf down  and elbows down.  Plus my feet started to hurt back.  Even the shower has started again to feel like needles on my feet.  I am now 27 months off Benzo.  I have noticed I have been more active lately.  Don't know if that could explain this rebound in symptoms.  But of course I am still tapering Luvox...  I am now at 52 mg.  This taper is certainly not helping !  I am now scared to continue with it considering this could be the explanation in this rebound of nerve pain..  Depression is under control for now keeping myself very busy.  Not that many persons are conforting us by telling outloud  they got rid of this persistent problem.   Some ex Benzo users still complain about nerve pain many years after (I'm also a Benzobuddies).  Should I stop tapering Luvox until I am completely rid of this nerve pain ?  And what if it still takes years to go away ?  If it does...
 
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this.

Édouxxx

 

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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  • Administrator

Hello, Maridou. Could be your nervous system is saying "too much" after a recent decrease in Luvox. Perhaps it's time for another hold?

 

It could be a micro-taper would be best for you, rather than a 10% decrease per month. See

 

Micro-taper instead of 10% or 5% decreases

 

The Brassmonkey Slide Method of Micro-tapering

 

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.

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Thanks for your quick reply.  I absolutely do agree to go slow (I was at a 5 % decrease pace), much slower if needed. But isn't it actually prolonging the agony ?  Are we really healing along the way ? Or has the system need to be cleared up from drugs to really get better.  What I am trying to say is are we kind of in a "tolerance withdrawal zone" as we lower our dosage ? Or is it that each step completed allows to properly function with the new  and reduced amount of medication that is given ?

 

As an administrator hearing lots of stories, have you had benzo users got rid of their nerve pain even after years of discontinuaion ?  And nerve pain for the AD users ?  Do some of them suffer nerve pain for years on ?

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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  • Administrator

No, it's not prolonging the agony. You're lowering your drug burden. Each step allows your nervous system to re-adapt and to back to normal.

 

However, if going off Luvox directly is not practical -- you've had a high amount of difficulty -- you might consider The Prozac switch or "bridging" with Prozac

 

This carries its own risks. You have to decide how much you want to go off Luvox.

 

Yes, people do recover from withdrawal-induced nerve pain, but it can take a very long time.

 

Many people do better with fish oil and magnesium supplements, see
http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/36-king-of-supplements-omega-3-fatty-acids-fish-oil/

 

http://survivingantidepressants.org/topic/15483-magnesium-natures-calcium-channel-blocker/

 

These can calm physical symptoms. The effect is subtle, but it can give you some relief. A lot of people find them helpful. Try a little bit of one at a time to see how it affects you.

 

 

 

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.

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Thanks for being there for us ! I have already been taking those even before tapering,  I noted somewhere on this site the possibility that Potassium might help with nerve pain.  I might give it a try.  It feels like a whole life dedicated to manage drugs and their effects...

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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Allostrata, Since Luvox has a short half-life, would it be helpful to take my dosage in two different intakes (half morning, half night ?)

Took several SSRi over the last 17 years.  Currently on luvox.  Also free of 14 years of Benzo use (mainly klonopin) as of Feb 05, 2016.  Benzo for GAD, Panic Disorder, Chronic Pain. Started Benzo after multiple  surgeries that dramatically increased pain and anxiety.  Took Rivotril about 10 years : Ativan 2mg for 3 years. It took me two years to taper.  Benzo free since Feb 2016. Still experiencing withdrawal symptoms...

 

Take AD Luvox went up to 125mg.  Started to taper mid August 2017 using a scale. As of Jan 2018,  holding around 60 mg

 

It is difficult to taper.  I would suspect already being in Benzo withdrawal not helping !  The worst being nerve pain, muscle pain and insomnia increasing as Luvox dosage gets lower.  Menauposis is also in the way.  Hot flashes since  March 2017.  Planning to start Hormone Therapy.

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