Steve61: Dosulepin withdrawal

[Steve61]

1 minute ago, powerback said:

Up ,down down down,up down ,up down and so on steve .

I was under no iliusion it was my silver bullet to start with.the new year just simply needs to bring a change .

I noticed some binge eating creeping back in ,at least it not drink .

Take care 

But do you thinks it’s slightly, better or worse since the change or just different ?

[powerback]

5 minutes ago, Steve61 said:

But do you thinks it’s slightly, better or worse since the change or just different ?

Ye different ,my body is in bits ,I got out walking the other day ,but last year I was hiking ,so its a progressive decline physically all year . 

There is some what of a positive mood change but it can change like flicking a light .I believe the extreme anxiety has my muscles under tension ,its getting painful.

We keep trucking hey .just got my food shop delivered,oh the simple things that can excite me these days lol.

Take care.

 

[Steve61]

3 minutes ago, powerback said:

Ye different ,my body is in bits ,I got out walking the other day ,but last year I was hiking ,so its a progressive decline physically all year . 

There is some what of a positive mood change but it can change like flicking a light .I believe the extreme anxiety has my muscles under tension ,its getting painful.

We keep trucking hey .just got my food shop delivered,oh the simple things that can excite me these days lol.

Take care.

 

Take care PB. I’m going to my retreat now. We keep supporting one another and we will do okay. It’s hard but not impossible. We will get there PB. Thank you my friend for all the support you have given to me. It’s appreciated. 👍👍

[Carmie]

Hi Steve, 

 

Thanks for popping around to my thread. I hope that pill box continues to be helpful, and I hope you’re coping okay. 

 

Sending hugs🤗

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Steve61]

Time for an update , I think. Tapered a small amount on 2nd Jan. it was less than than 10% . About 7.5% but it certainly threw my body into a wave. More physical than mental. I was okay until about the fourth day and then I was wracked with aches and pains . Yesterday was particularly bad. I had the aches, pains, exhaustion plus dizziness and I felt nauseous. I ended up going back to bed in the afternoon. My moods have suffered as well but not as bad as my physical symptoms. I have been ill tempered and I was nasty to my partner one day but I have done a lot of apologising and luckily she is very understanding.

 

Anyway because of the sickness last night I ended up taking a couple of travel sickness pills. Something that I normally try to avoid doing.  I slept really well. I have been having trouble with my sleeping since the last cut. Sleep is one of the areas that is most affected by this whole withdrawal process. The travel sickness pills must have helped to calm me down because I slept over 8 hours.  I just hope that they don’t delay the healing process of my brain.There always seems something to worry about !!

 

Thanks Carmie. The pillbox has been in use every night since you advised me to get one. Don’t want the added complications of missed doses etc. Last time that happened it really sent me into a wave.

 

 

 

 

[powerback]

You ok Steve .

do you get out to your meetings . 

 

[Carmie]

So sorry to hear you’re having a rough time Steve, 

 

Next time you taper maybe just taper by 4% to 5%. That’s all I can do now. I hope you stabilise soon, Sending hugs🤗

 

[Steve61]

@powerback @Carmie  Thanks to both of you for popping by. I’m sorry it’s taken a few days for me to reply but I have felt rough. Yesterday was a little better and today better still. I am lucky in that I do get windows and as I progress through this taper, they seem to get more defined. The waves are rough, physically and mentally but they always pass and when the windows come ,they are good. I feel good. I am beginning to think that the waves feel so bad because it is such a contrast now to my windows. When I am the middle of a window I am beginning to feel differently than I have in a long, long time. Not drugged. The me that I am supposed to be.Then I taper or mess up with my dose and a wave comes along. The windows sustain me through the waves though. I love that feeling of compassion when I am in a window. My ad certainly numbed that emotion. It numbed a lot of things and my emotions are coming to the surface now. I went to see the new Stan and Ollie film yesterday . My father was a big fan and  I grew up watching them and grew to love them myself. I could have cried all the way through the film. It just made me so emotional watching something that was such a big part of my childhood. I know it’s not normal and it is to do with my wd’s but I don’t mind that part of this journey. It’s just my emotions coming to the surface. My ‘numbness’ disappearing.

Steve

 

 

[ChessieCat]

9 hours ago, Steve61 said:

Hi CC. One of the areas that I am most affected by wd is sleep. Especially falling off to sleep. Do you find the counting method beneficial ?

 

I've only just started to use it.  The problem I have is that after getting up for a bathroom visit I find that I can't still my mind.  It seems to go in to overdrive and then it can bring on a bit of anxiety.  That's why I started listening to audios on my mp3 and would be awake for at least another hour, and often dozing off with it still on.  The trouble is that it would sometimes then rouse me up again.  I realised that I might be creating a bad pattern for myself and have tried to not listen to the mp3 but my thoughts would always start again so after reading about the backwards counting I decided to try that instead of the mp3.  It does seem to be helping.

 

Sleep problems - that awful withdrawal insomnia

[ChessieCat]

I just decided to google about counting backwards for sleep and found this:  when-counting-sheep-doesnt-work-try-this-word-game-to-fall-asleep

 

"When you are lying awake, unable to fall asleep, traditional advice says to count sheep. But if you find yourself still sleepless after counting livestock, try this sleep trick backed by cognitive science on how to purposefully scramble your thoughts until you can fall asleep.

 

Canadian cognitive scientist Luc Beaudoin calls his solution “cognitive shuffling,” or serial diverse imagining. It’s a technique where you play a word game to shuffle your thoughts into random images and words to encourage your brain to fall asleep."

 

Basically it is thinking of a word, eg bird, and picturing it 🐦

[Steve61]

@ChessieCat Thank you. I will try it. 

[thecowisback]

the link doesn't work in europe  i'll do a google search for the other phrases 😀

[thecowisback]

https://mysleepbutton.com/support/do-it-yourself-cognitive-shuffle-sdi/

[Steve61]

@thecowisback Thank you for taking the time to find the link for me.  Little acts of kindness mean a lot to me. I appreciate it very much.

[thecowisback]

i hope it helps - i'm going to try it tonight ☺

[powerback]

You Ok steve ,I hope your doing ok .

We surf them waves 🏄‍♂️,not fun all the same .

Take care .

[Carmie]

Hi Steve, 

 

How are you doing with your sleeping? Did you try any of the cognitive sleep games? Have you had any breakthrough windows? Hope you’re coping okay, sending hugs🤗

[Steve61]

Thanks for popping by, it’s appreciated @Carmie @powerback. This has been the worst wave so far. I tapered on Jan 2nd snd I’ve  never felt properly well since. A couple of times I have had better days snd thought that I was coming out of it only to be plunged back into the wave, worse than before. It’s been physical as much as mental. Aches, pains, exhaustion, noise sensitivity and the heartbeating  high up in my chest sensation. As if my heart is almost in my mouth and beating so hard. I lay in bed last night snd it felt as if my whole body shook with every beat. Sleeping has been a big problem. I’m waking up 6 or so times a night so my sleep is very disturbed and then Im tired all day and napping for an hour in the day. Ive had to stop exercising which I love to do because of the feel good factor after I’ve done them but there’s no way I can do them at the moment. It takes me all my efforts to get out of bed ! I think that because of all this disruption that Im feeling a little depressed as well. 

 

So, just hanging in there waiting for this to pass. Waiting for a window.....

[pinkfairy]

So sorry your in a wave steve.

just popping by to say you aren’t alone.

Even though you can’t see it.Your doing amazing.

 

Always remember nothing in life stays the same.All seasons pass & this storm will one day be a distant memory.

 

you will emerge a brand new you.Wiser stronger & an appreciation for life what you could only dream of.Keep on keeping on 

take care pink xxx

[Steve61]

10 minutes ago, pinkfairy said:

So sorry your in a wave steve.

just popping by to say you aren’t alone.

Even though you can’t see it.Your doing amazing.

 

Always remember nothing in life stays the same.All seasons pass & this storm will one day be a distant memory.

 

you will emerge a brand new you.Wiser stronger & an appreciation for life what you could only dream of.Keep on keeping on 

take care pink xxx

Thanks PF. Your words of encouragement are much appreciated. This wave seems never ending !  I know deep down that you are right. Everything passes...

[powerback]

40 minutes ago, Steve61 said:

Thanks for popping by, it’s appreciated @Carmie @powerback. This has been the worst wave so far. I tapered on Jan 2nd snd I’ve  never felt properly well since. A couple of times I have had better days snd thought that I was coming out of it only to be plunged back into the wave, worse than before. It’s been physical as much as mental. Aches, pains, exhaustion, noise sensitivity and the heartbeating  high up in my chest sensation. As if my heart is almost in my mouth and beating so hard. I lay in bed last night snd it felt as if my whole body shook with every beat. Sleeping has been a big problem. I’m waking up 6 or so times a night so my sleep is very disturbed and then Im tired all day and napping for an hour in the day. Ive had to stop exercising which I love to do because of the feel good factor after I’ve done them but there’s no way I can do them at the moment. It takes me all my efforts to get out of bed ! I think that because of all this disruption that Im feeling a little depressed as well. 

 

So, just hanging in there waiting for this to pass. Waiting for a window.....

Yikes steve ,all you can do is hang on .the not getting out of bed is hard for someone that likes to exercise ,ive been forced to rest the last 6 months ,do your best to accept it [I know its impossible] but we do use up  energy fighting it .

Make sure to get fluids into you ,we can forget certain things while in the worst of it .

Take care mate .

 

[Steve61]

8 minutes ago, powerback said:

Yikes steve ,all you can do is hang on .the not getting out of bed is hard for someone that likes to exercise ,ive been forced to rest the last 6 months ,do your best to accept it [I know its impossible] but we do use up  energy fighting it .

Make sure to get fluids into you ,we can forget certain things while in the worst of it .

Take care mate .

Thanks mate. Yeah, I think that all my energy is going into withdrawals at the moment. Nothing left for lifting weights etc. Even going for a walk can wear me out. I just feel exhausted. It’s definitely the most severe physical symptoms that I’ve  had so far. The thumping heart beat high in my chest is frightening but I’ve read others on here have had that symptom so I’m not thinking that I am having a heart attack or anything. This site is invaluable for the info and insight from people who are going through or have been through withdrawals. It just reassures me that it is withdrawals.

[powerback]

44 minutes ago, Steve61 said:

Thanks mate. Yeah, I think that all my energy is going into withdrawals at the moment. Nothing left for lifting weights etc. Even going for a walk can wear me out. I just feel exhausted. It’s definitely the most severe physical symptoms that I’ve  had so far. The thumping heart beat high in my chest is frightening but I’ve read others on here have had that symptom so I’m not thinking that I am having a heart attack or anything. This site is invaluable for the info and insight from people who are going through or have been through withdrawals. It just reassures me that it is withdrawals.

Im noticing more chest issues since the switch but nothing major ,I tend to ignore it because ive asthma and put everything down to that .

Put lifting weights out of your head for months ,focus on healing so to get back to it .there's a difference in this  mindset .

I believe I was doing way too much when I was able ,I believe this snapped back on me big time the last 6 months or a year.

🙏

 

 

 

[pinkfairy]

5 hours ago, Steve61 said:

Thanks PF. Your words of encouragement are much appreciated. This wave seems never ending !  I know deep down that you are right. Everything passes...

I am right there with you & your welcome!

 

Just hold on & breathe if needs must take it 5 mins at a time 

xxx

[Carmie]

Hi Steve, 

 

Just checking in to see how you’re faring.💚

[Steve61]

5 minutes ago, Carmie said:

Hi Steve, 

 

Just checking in to see how you’re faring.💚

Not great, Carmie. Sleeps really bad. I get off to sleep but then I wake up 6 or 7 times through the night. Then I wake up up feeling crap and I’m full of aches snd pains etc. The slow pounding heart is the most weird thing though. It feels like my heart is up in my throat. I have a blood pressure monitor that also checks heart rate. It varies from about 68 bpm which is about normal down to 33 bpm which is way too low. The funny thing is that, when I was on my full dose of my ad, my bpm was always very high. Around the 100 bpm mark.  

 

Just hanging in there Carmie, waiting for some stability.

[Carmie]

Hi Steve, 

 

I’m so sorry you’re not getting much letup with the symptoms. It’s a waiting game, isn’t it? When you eventually stabilise, which you will, don’t go down by 7.5% this time. Try 5% or maybe even less, like 4%. That’s what I do. If I went down by 7.5% I would be in severe waves too. 

 

Doing the Brassmonkey slide or microtapering would be another option. Take care.💚

[powerback]

be safe and take care Steve 🙏.

Dam stormy waves hey .

👍.

[ChessieCat]

Brass Monkey Slide

Micro-taper instead of 10% or 5% decreases
Rhi's "Start Small, Listen to Your Body" Taper Plan

[Steve61]

Thanks for the info and advice. I must admit that the thought of tapering in tiny amounts and the length of time it will take to be drug free fills me with dread. I know that I have to be patient but micro tapering could take years !! I don’t know......

[ChessieCat]

The way to look at it is that any reduction in the amount of drug/s we are taking is better for our body.

 

Please simplify your drug signature.  We need to be able to see your drug history at a glance without reading through it to get the information.  Leave out all the details, it just makes it harder for us to see the information we need.  Thank you.  You can always paste the current information into a post and add a link to it in your signature.

 

For the last 2 years we need:

 

Drug Name:  date, dose; date, dose; etc

 

Anything older than 2 years, just a summary.

[Steve61]

@ChessieCat Okay will do. The last 2 years are straightforward. I have only been on my ad - Dosulepin. 

[Steve61]

Well, this wave is definitely the worst and the longest that I’ve had. I’ve been lucky in the fact that I have had little periods yesterday and a couple of days before that when I felt almost normal but they don’t last and then I’m back to exhaustion and the pounding slow heartbeat. Noise sensitivity is horrendous. I’m sitting here , hearing every noise that next door makes and feeling that I could go around with a big hammer !!  I won’t, I know it’s wds . So I will put some earplugs in.  I just seem so sensitive to everything now. Noise especially but also exercise and supplements. I’ve always enjoyed exercise so that’s a big one for me. I gave up on supplements a while ago. Even Omega3 filled me with anxiety.  I’m just going to wait to stabilise. No intention of tapering again any time soon. 

[FarmGirlWorks]

Hey @Steve61, sorry to hear you're in a rough wave. Warm thoughts and one day at a time, my friend.

[Steve61]

2 hours ago, FarmGirlWorks said:

Hey @Steve61, sorry to hear you're in a rough wave. Warm thoughts and one day at a time, my friend.

Thank you FGW. It’s appreciated. One day at a time is good advice. Acceptance as well. This too will pass. All those things. This waves a long one though .......

[eymen23]

Hi Steve,

 

Sorry to hear you’re in a long wave, but feeling near normal is always encouraging, even if just briefly. Let’s hope you get some more stability soon! 

 

I understand what you mean about the neighbours. Sometimes with my symptoms I’m more aware of stimulus around me and can get frustrated. Ear plugs sound like a great idea. Several deep breaths can also help to feel less overwhelmed.

 

If I ever feel light sensitive, I will often shut my eyes completely and lie down. Of course we can’t always shut our eyes, but I have done this on public transport before, I just pretend I’m dozing off.