GatoNegro: I need help to taper off Fluoxetine and Risperidone

[GatoNegro]

Hello everybody I feel lucky to have found this site . It turns out I was prescribed fluoxetine and risperdal 12 weeks ago (June 14th) . I've been on these pills for 11 weeks ... I started with fluoxetine 20mg  then quickly was told to lift to 40 mg , and Risperidone  1mg  .... I went to my 2nd appointment 2 weeks ago and I told the doctor I wanted to come off these pills as I feel that the fluoxetine is giving me apathy syndrome (I feel so unmotivated even to get out of bed) but he said it cant be because of the fluoxetine . Therefore , he suggested I stick with the treatment and lift the fluoxetine dose to 80mg and gave me a new prescription . I lift the dose to 60 mg  ( I took 60 mg for 10 days ) I switched to Fluoxetine 40 mg today by my own decision and then I finally made up my mind about coming off . I called the doctor and asked him for help to give me instructions how to taper off safely but he said I'd need to book a new appointment which would be pricy . What I'd like to do is taper off from both the Fluoxetine 40 mg and the Risperdal 1mg . I'd really appreciate if I were given tapering advice for these drugs since I want to be free from these drugs . Could anybody please help me ? How many weeks would it take me to come off ?

[Gridley]

Hello, GatoNegro, and welcome to SA.  Apathy is a common effect of antidepressants, as one of their main actions is to blunt the emotions.  

 

You have made a lot of dose changes in a short time.  Before you begin to taper, I would hold at 40mg for a couple of months to stabilize.  If you are feeling stable at that time, you can begin a slow, safe taper of the Fluoxetine.

 

At Surviving Antidepressants, it is recommended that a person taper by no more than 10% of their current dose with at least a four week hold in-between decreases.  The 10% taper recommendation is a harm reduction approach to going off psychiatric drugs.  Some people may have to taper at a more conservative rate as they are sensitive to even the smallest drops.

  

Before you begin tapering what you need to know

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

Brain Remodelling

 

The following link gives you specific information about tapering fluoxetine:

 

Tips for tapering off Prozac (fluoxetine)

 

Since you've been on these drugs for a short time, it's possible--but not definite since some people are very sensitive-- you can taper a bit faster.  In the link, "Why taper by 10% of my dosage,"  are instructions about experimenting to see if you can tolerate a faster taper.   Unfortunately, it may take longer than you expect.  

 

We don't recommend tapering more than one drug at a time.  If you run into problems, it would be difficult to isolate which drug taper is causing the problem.  We recommend tapering "activating" -- anxiety-causing-- drugs like SSRI's first, while leaving sedating drugs like the antipsychotic Risperdal in place until you finish the first taper.  

Taking multiple psych drugs? Which drug to taper first?

 

You should be aware that doctors know nothing about safe tapering or withdrawal from psychiatric drugs.  

 

This is your introduction topic -- the place for you to ask questions, record symptoms, share your progress, and connect with other members of the SA community.  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 I am glad that you found us.

 

Edited September 6, 2018 by ChessieCat
corrected link for multiple psych drugs

[GatoNegro]

Thanks for your advice Gridley , I hope I can be free from Fluoxetine in the near future ... Could anyone else give me more feedback please ? 😢

[ChessieCat]

I've updated the link for this topic:  Taking multiple psych drugs? Which drug to taper first?

[PoetJester]

Hio Gato

 

i had the apathy syndrome for years as well on zoloft and zyprexa, in fact, the only way i could get out of bed in the afternoon was to keep my refrigerator stocked with ice cream sandwiches or glazed donuts or chocolate chip cookies- something sugary, or else i would just lay there when i awoke without the urge to get out of bed.  It was even difficult to do something so small as changing the channel on the remote control for the television. 

 

 it felt like i had no will power and even the smallest things took a huge amount of effort to motivate myself to do.  it was like this for 8 years.  i hardly ever left my apartment during that time except to get groceries once a week.  when i stopped the pills, i had energy again to do things only my sleep became terrible, i went from 15 hours a day of sleep to 3 or 4 and often none, which is a torment of it's own, so it was kind of a trade off in  a way.

 

Poetjester

 

 

[GatoNegro]

Hello PoetJester , how long has it been since you quit Zoloft ? Are you totally free from antidepressants now ...Id like to know more about your story

[PoetJester]

Hey Gato

 

no, i am not on any anti-depressants at the moment, although i have started taking ambien cr the past few months because my sleep was so poor that i was almost too weak to leave my apartment.  i had quit zoloft and zyprexa in early 2014 and felt better about myself and had more energy, but traded that for serious sleep issues and poor sleep quality-   mostly just depressed vivid dreams, shallow sleep and constant nightmares which lead to cognitive problems, fatigue (as opposed to the pill lethargy) and eventually stomach problems.   i have some serious digestive issues now, a possible gastric fistula or stomach blockage and feel miserable most of the time and have also lately developed balance issues.  i don't do a whole lot these days, although once or twice a week i bike out to local golf courses and hunt golf balls that i sell online as a source of income besides my govt check.  my support system isn't very much- i live alone and without friends and  my immediate family doesn't seem to care or really understand what i am dealing with health-wise and  the doctors i have seen haven't shown much care or concern either which makes everything much more difficult.

 

Poetjester

[GatoNegro]

Hey PoetJester , it's good to know you're free from the antidepressants , in spite of the issues that you are still having , feel lucky to be free from the antidepressants . I hope I can be free from these pills in the near future , I have made an appointment this upcoming week with the psyquiatrist to ask him how to taper off . I live with my family , I have no job , no friends and I feel as well lonely cus I feel my family cant fathom what I'm going through . Lately I get tired so easily and wake up feeling lethargic ...The apathy feels as if my head and my body had to bear an extra weight to function ... I only hope I can be free from this someday , I also hope the doctor is understanding with my decision to taper off as I suspect he will suggest switching from prozac  to another antidepressant like zoloft or paxil , but I dont want to switch  I just wish to be free from prozac . 

[PoetJester]

yeah, it's difficult.  when i was on zoloft and zyprexa, i would sleep 6am to 3pm and then only be awake for 3 hours (mostly just to eat and watch tv) and then i would take a "nap" from 6pm to 11pm or midnight and then do it all over the next day.  i mostly only thought about when i was going to sleep again.   i was so lethargic on the pills that one winter evening (i live in Minnesota which is the coldest state besides Alaska in the US) i tried to go for an evening walk.  Once in a while, i went on 4 mile night walks (it was about the only thing i really enjoyed while on the pills but i only went on these walks once a month or so).  Anyways, by the time i got to the end of the apartment driveway for the walk, i was so tired that i wanted to crawl up into a snowbank and go to sleep.  i only made it about 100 feet from the front door of my apartment before i had to turn around.  i would try to stop the pills every 2-3 months, but after a two or three days without the pills, the insomnia and nausea would get bad and i would start taking them so i wouldn't feel sick and also be able to sleep.

 

the no job thing is pretty common with the pills.  i talked to someone else on facebook who has been on an anti psychotic for years and has never been able to work, and it's happens a lot.  i counted up my employment record in the 15 years i was on zoloft and zyprexa and it equaled only about 1 year of full time work, including the last 8 years where i only volunteered at a thrift store for 30 hours.   i was dependent on my parents those years too.  they lived 3 miles away and would pick me up once a week to get groceries and for me to do my laundry at their house and i would use their internet, too, since i didn't have a computer.  most days i didn't even step foot outside my apartment.     i hated not feeling independent, but there's not a lot you can always do about it on these pills.

 

i did have a lot more energy when i quit the meds and began walking 5-6 miles every day for months and lost a lot of weight i had put on from the pills (i was very thin when i started the drugs and looked pregnant and had a lot of weight in face, by the end) but the sleep problems are terrible.  i have something called hypnagogic hallucinations, where i begin to dream as soon as i close my eyes.  it's terrible and you have to pull yourself awake even if you are exhausted, because they are depressing things you see when close your eyes.  sometimes they do go away for people though, so it's not hopeless.

[GatoNegro]

Thanks for replying to this thread PoetJester ... I hope you have a better future without the antidepressants . My best wishes .