100001abc: Withdrawal or relapse

[100001abc]

Hi guys, im 20 years old and was on citolpram for almost 2 years (20 mg)

about 3 weeks ago i stopped cold turkey. i was getting brain zaps for about a week but none of my symptoms were that bad

only in the last couple of days i havent been able to get to sleep much, ive been in a terrible mood, incredibly angry, almost raging inside, and now im very emotional and feel numb and just terrible in general. and constantly ruminating 

im not sure weather im having a relapse of depression or if im going through withdrawal 

im not keen on starting anti depressants again but the symptoms might be too unbearable

can anyone shed any light on this 

 

 

[ChessieCat]

Hi abc and welcome to SA,

 

What you are experiencing are withdrawal symptoms from stopping your drug too quickly.  Dr Joseph Glenmullen's WD Symptoms Checklist

 

The only known way to relieve withdrawal symptoms is to reinstate a smaller dose (than you were taking 3 weeks ago) of the same drug you were taking.  After stabilising, which might to several months, you could then taper.  SA's recommended tapering protocol is no more than 10% of the current dose followed by a hold of at least 4 weeks to allow the brain to adapt to not getting as much of the drug.  This is because the brain becomes physiologically dependent on the drug.  Not physically like caffeine or nicotine.  What is Withdrawal Syndrome?   Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

Please do not start taking 20mg as it may be too much after being off for 3 weeks.  It is better to try a small amount and increase by small amounts than to take too high a dose.

 

Please carefully read Post #1 of this topic and let us know if you would like to reinstate.  About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms

 

I had a similar experience when I reduced my dose of Pristiq from 100mg to 50mg.  I suffered extreme cog fog for 3 weeks and go to the point where I was unable to type.  Thankfully I found SA and they suggested increasing my dose.  I took extra Pristiq and about 4 hours later I was able to type again and the brain fog was lifting.  After stabilising I have been following SA's tapering protocol and have only experienced mild withdrawal symptoms.

 

Is it withdrawal or relapse?  Or something else?

How do I know it's withdrawal and not relapse?

 

Tips for tapering off Celexa (citalopram)

 

This is your own Intro topic where you can ask questions and journal your progress.

[100001abc]

thanks for the help! feeling a bit better

still a few problems with sleeping but just gotta battle through it!

withdrawal is NO JOKE PEOPLE

[ChessieCat]

You are welcome.  I'm glad you are feeling a bit better.  Did you updose?

 

To help us out, please create a drug signature, dates, drugs, doses (include increases and decreases) - no symptoms or diagnoses.  Please update whenever you make a change.  This allows the mos to see your drug history at a glance.  Thank you.  Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

[100001abc]

just a quick update. quit 20mg citolapram cold turkey in late june and been on 0mg since

starting to feel better. no suicidal thoughts in a while. bad sleeping patterns. can be quite tired all day and not much motivation

but getting moments where things are starting to feel better. not much anxiety and starting to feel good.

my advice is to come off of anti depressants! it may be hard at first but its worth it!

i think a couple of the most important things during recovery are sleep and food! sleep it off! eat it off!

[Carmie]

9 minutes ago, 100001abc said:

just a quick update. quit 20mg citolapram cold turkey in late june and been on 0mg since

starting to feel better. no suicidal thoughts in a while. bad sleeping patterns. can be quite tired all day and not much motivation

but getting moments where things are starting to feel better. not much anxiety and starting to feel good.

my advice is to come off of anti depressants! it may be hard at first but its worth it!

i think a couple of the most important things during recovery are sleep and food! sleep it off! eat it off!

 

Glad you’re starting to stabilise a bit 10001, 

 

Good to hear your suicidal thoughts are gone. Glad you’re feeling better. One of these days all of your symptoms will be gone. 

Amazing how you’re doing so well after going cold turkey. It certainly isn’t advised. Slow n steady is the way to go. I’ve been cold turkeyed in the past n it was horrific. I definitely wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. 

 

Im tapering slowly n still getting symptoms. 

 

Again, I’m glad to hear you are doing better.

 

Have a happy day☀️☀️☀️