serrj: Paxil

[bhasski]

serrj,

Paxil is very difficult to withdraw from. 

I know from my end how severe it could be.. 

You need to be patient and observe your reinstatement pattern. Write the pros and cons here and ask experienced people here. Cold turkey is not an answer. 

 

Trust me as a fellow Paxil sufferer and not get into decision of the time you are off - which I got caught into and many others ?

It has taken a lot of time and I am still suffering.

 

Skip my rant and reread the first para. I just want to convey that more.

 

Bhasski

[Miko789]

 Serrj,

 

paxil is the most a/d to withdraw,

 

it took me 3 years to taper from 10mg to 0mg and  you tapered  it in 7 months, its too fast.

 

You need to have patience and my best advice I can give you is to  find a quiet place to taper

Miko

[serrj]

Small update on my situation: 

 

• Insomnia is not so severe as it was, but it gives no relief. I sleep 2-3 hours, then I wake. Then again 2-3 hours of sleep. And I have a feeling that I'm not entering deep sleep at all, only REM. Dreams mostly are ok, nothing special. But some nights I have nightmares. I tried Seroquel 25mg some nights. It make me sleep better, but I don't like feeling it gives me next morning. I try to avoid it.
• Strange pain in whole body (mostly limbs), which is hard to describe. I had it in the past, as a part of situational anxiety. For example when I'm in airplane (I have aerophobia), or when I'm worrying too much about something. Now I have this pain mostly 24/7, even is there is no reason to worry. I've not found anything yet, that will give me relief from this pain. I don't even know if there is a name for this pain.
• Emotional numbness. I feel nothing. Cannot cry. Cannot feel positive emotions to my parents, my wife and two beautiful parrots. 
• Anhedonia. This is self-explanatory. I hear music that I used to love and can't enjoy it. I feel no interest to activities I used to like. I don't enjoy my 205HP Ford Fiesta ST anymore.  My collection of drones collecting dust on a shelf. Most activities I do daily (morning routine, drive, work, cook, clean, bath) are "robotic"/zombie-like. I do them because I know how to do them. I learned in past.
• Hypochondria and self-diagnosing: oh yes, I have all possible mental illness, including but not limited to: treatment resistant depression, borderline personality , schizoaffective  and bipolar disorders. All of them simultaneously. 

Is it a life? I wish I'd better had cancer, seriously. 

I see pdoc every week. She insist I should up my Paxil to 30mg/day. I don't want to. 

 

Current Meds: 

• Paxil: 6.7 mg/day (yes, I upped dosage by 1.7mg to see if there any difference. No difference so far.)
• Seroquel: 25 mg/2-3 times a week before sleep
• Oxazepam: 5mg PRN (mostly at night to return to sleep)

Suppliments: none

 

Any advice highly appreciated.

[serrj]

What are the most common signs of bad reaction on reinstatement? I made a mistake and  reinstated on higher dosage Paxil after being 2 weeks off.  I did not had immediate bad/adverse reaction but my situation is very far from stable. Most physical symptoms are gone (heart rate and appetite normalized). But my head is total mess: daily mix of pretty nasty emotions, anxious flashbacks from the past, poor concentration and memory issues. Also anxiety that comes and go in waves every few hours. And of course insomnia.

Is it wise for me now to taper a little bit back and see how it will go? I'm on 6.7 mg now.

[SkyBlue]

On 5/2/2018 at 8:31 AM, serrj said:

 I made a mistake and  reinstated on higher dosage Paxil after being 2 weeks off.   

Is it wise for me now to taper a little bit back and see how it will go? I'm on 6.7 mg now.

 

Hi serjj,

 

Had you gone to 0mg Paxil for two weeks, then accidentally updosed?

 

Or had you been taking 5mg and accidentally took 6.7mg?

 

 

[serrj]

12 hours ago, SkyBlue said:

 

Hi serjj,

 

Had you gone to 0mg Paxil for two weeks, then accidentally updosed?

 

Or had you been taking 5mg and accidentally took 6.7mg?

 

 

 

Hi @SkyBlue, 

both statements are wrong. 

I've been on 2.5mg last few months, then stopped taking it for 12 days. After 12 days I reinstated on 5mg/day, due to intense withdraws (insomnia, panic, depression,...). I updosed to 6.7mg few days ago.  I'm on 5th week of reinstatement and things don't go well so far .

[apace41]

Hi, Serrj.  I have not been following your thread until now but wanted to chime in with some thoughts.  As you already know, your original taper was not really much of a taper and your second effort wasn't all that much better.  Not your fault but just stating the facts.

 

It is not a surprise, therefore, that you brain is, in your words, a "wreck".   I think that reinstatement was the right approach but now the burden is on you to try to sit tight and let the reinstatement take hold.  After all these fluctuations it is unreasonable to think you will stabilize in short order.  It is most likely going to take some time for your body to adjust to the new level and find homeostasis at that level.  That means you are likely to continue to have symptoms and be uncomfortable.  Thus, you will be tempted to shift your dose up and down as you have.  The problem is that serves only to confuse an already battered and bruised brain and nervous system.  You need to simply stay where you are for the foreseeable future and do your best to practice self-soothing techniques to try to get by, day by day, as your brain adjusts.  

 

Whether you choose 5mg or 6.7mg at this point is probably not a huge issue, rather, the important part is committing to staying at whatever level you choose for an extended period of time in the hopes that you stabilize at that level.  Also, please add the updose to 6.7mg to your signature.

 

Best of luck and keep us posted.

 

Best,

 

Andy

[Songbird]

Hi Serrj, I agree with Andy (Apace41), please just hold at your current dose for a good while to let your system have some time to sort things out.   Andy is right that when you're feeling bad, you feel the need to "do something" to fix it, but in this situation you need to resist the temptation to change something.  Please try your best to be patient.

 

I know it's hard, but it sounds like you do get some windows at some points during the day.  I don't believe you have bi-polar, the mood swings, "waves" and "windows" are very common in SSRI withdrawal.  During the bad parts of the day, try to remember that the good windows can come again.  It does sound like you have had some significant improvements since your reinstatement, so that is a very good sign.

 

Regarding the emotional blunting - please remember that the real you is still in you.  I think of it like the sun - when there are clouds covering the sky, the sun has not gone away, it is still there, you just can't see it at that moment.  Later, the clouds disperse and you see the sun again.  The love you have for your family is still there, even if you are not able to feel it just now.

 

You are getting some sleep, which is also a good sign, even if it isn't perfect and you wake during the night or don't feel it is deep enough.  Getting 2-3 hours then another 2-3 hours sounds like a significant improvement since your earlier reports of sleep issues, when you were getting only 1-2 hours per night using temazepam.  If you do resort to using Seroquel for sleep, please take the minimum effective dose.  If you are feeling hungover from 25mg, then try cutting it in half and take 12.5mg.  Of course, it's better if you don't have to use it.

 

Please keep us updated.

[Madeleine]

Yes, as the others said just stay at one rise and stabilize.  It’s important to stay positive.  Try not to worry. Have faith that you will get better.  

 

With very best wishes, 

 

 

[jolena]

Hi Serrj,

I hope you feel better soon, and your symptoms will lessen a bit.

I can not give you advice, because I have no idea what is best.

It seems that Paxil does not work the same way it does for me.

 

I can only give you my own experience, which is not the same as yours.

For me, Paxil is not a bad medication, because it normalized my severe depressive states.

When I am severely depressed I loose 2 pound of weight a day. I cry and my whole body shivers and shakes and zooms weird. I look scared the whole day.

I cannot work, just do things to get through the day. I try to keep my schedule, sleep, eating at set times. I can eat only small portions. Take one hour walk every day, or two times a day.

This is when paxil saved me. Going outside, keeping the normal sleep and eat times, and getting lots of hugs from my husband. Then after two weeks I would normalize a bit and gain the weight back.

 

Take care, and I hope you feel better soon.

You are not alone, even if your story is different than mine.

 

Kind Greetings,

Jolena

 

[serrj]

I think it's time for a small update. I'm doing better now. Ups and downs here and there but much more stable then at the beginning. 

No more agitation and suicidal thoughts. I'm functioning again. My sleep pattern is improved, not perfect, but I'm satisfied with it. 

But now I have long road ahead tapering from 2 medications instead of one. I'm currently on 7.5mg Paxil and 25mg Seroquel daily.

 

 

 

[Gridley]

Could you please update your signature to show your current medications?

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

[Madeleine]

 

On 5/28/2018 at 9:19 AM, serrj said:

I think it's time for a small update. I'm doing better now. Ups and downs here and there but much more stable then at the beginning. 

No more agitation and suicidal thoughts. I'm functioning again. My sleep pattern is improved, not perfect, but I'm satisfied with it. 

But now I have long road ahead tapering from 2 medications instead of one. I'm currently on 7.5mg Paxil and 25mg Seroquel daily.

 

 

 

Thank you for the update.  Yeah, I am so glad to hear you are doing better! !! I had thought of you -- and even prayed for you 🙂    Don't worry that you are on two medications.  Now that you have armed yourself with all the information here, when you are at some point ready to taper off them in the future, you know how to get off them safely and how to minimize withdrawals.   Slow and steady wins the race. 

And, don't give sleep too much thought. It's good to sleep well, of course,  -- but  nobody has perfect sleep -- everyone has some periods with ups and downs in their sleep pattern in their life, so just take things as they come and have faith! 

With very best wishes, 

M.

[serrj]

Debilitating depression returned :(

Dark doomed thoughts, food is tasteless, everything around seems grey and colorless.. 

[CloudyToday]

Hi serrj,

I know this is a very old post but just wondering how you are doing.