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anxiousgal: one month fast taper off of Lexapro - so nervous and jittery


anxiousgal

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Hi all,

 

I have been on different antidepressants for at least 20+ years due to a bad panic attack that put me in a state of constant anxiety and panic when I was 27 years old.  Before that, I had never had any issues with anxiety. Needless to say, I had no choice but to go on AD's since I couldn't be on benzos 24/7. They have helped somewhat over the years but I am now at the point where I'd like to give my brain a rest. I did a trial of Trintellix but the side effects were too much to handle. So before I jump onto another AD (that I'm always terrified may not work for me anyway), I thought I'd give it a go without anything to see if I am strong enough on my own. I had been at a dose of 15mgs and came off of it almost 4 weeks ago. First couple of weeks were bad because I felt terribly depressed and extremely irritable. that seems to have leveled off a bit but the worst of my symptoms are anxiety and nervousness. I can't seem to shake this inner nervousness which of course starts the vicious cycle of GAD and panic since my brain wonders if it's permanent withdrawal or if I am just not able to function without the meds. Part of me knows it's withdrawal but part of me wonders if I just need these meds to survive. I have Klonopin to help but have become tolerant to it and don't want to keep increasing the dose. I'm thinking of asking my doctor about Gabapentin. I have tried supplements but they are useless. I wish there was something to help! Has anyone come off of antidepressants and dealt with the nervousness and GAD leading to panic? Did you stick it out? This is a scary place to be in only because I don't know when and if it will end. It makes me want to go back on meds! I don't want to reinstate at this point and I may have even have a rejection of the Lex since that happened to me years ago when I tried to reinstate Zoloft. My body completely rejected it and it took months to recover the aftermath.

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  • ChessieCat changed the title to anxiousgal: one month fast taper off of Lexapro - so nervous and jittery
  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi anxiousgal and welcome to SA,

 

SA recommends tapering by no more than 10% of the current dose with a hold of about 4 weeks to allow the brain to adapt to not getting as much of the drug.    Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

It would be best not to take the Klonopin.  You can become dependent on them in a very short time.

 

Changing drugs is generally not recommended.  You can still experience withdrawal symptoms from the drug your brain has adapted to and start up / side effects / adverse reaction to the new drug.  You won't know what is causing any issues.

 

When we reduce the drug we can experience withdrawal symptoms.  Dr Joseph Glenmullen's Withdrawal Symptoms

 

The only known way to reduce withdrawal symptoms is to take the drug that your brain has adapted to.  Please do not take the last dose you were taking.  It will probably be too much for your nervous system and might make things worse.  Your brain will have already made some adaptations during the time you have been off.  The longer you leave it the less chance there is of reinstatement being successful.    The idea of reinstating isn't to get rid of withdrawal symptoms completely but to bring them to a bearable level.

 

SA recommends reinstating a small amount and if needed increasing by a little bit more.  It is better to do this gradually so that you don't end up taking too much of the drug.  Please read Post #1 of this topicAbout reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms

 

It takes about 4 days for a dose to get to full level in the blood and a bit longer for it to register in the brain.  You will need to stay as calm and patient as possible and try not to panic.  When we panic we can make bad decisions.  We have members who have panicked and have increased by too much and/or too soon and made things worse.

 

This topic has links to various drugs and they explain how to get the dose you need:  Important topics in the Tapering forum and FAQ

 

We can suggest a dose for you to reinstate.  Before we can do this we need to know your drug history.

 

Please create your drug signature using the following format.   Keep it simple.  NO diagnoses or symptoms please - thank you.

  • details for last 2 years - dates, ALL drugs, doses
  • summary for older than 2 years - just years and drug/s

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature

 

 

This is your own introductions topic where your can ask questions about your own situation and journal your progress.

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Here's some additional information which might help you to understand what is happening:

 

Recovery isn't linear it happens in a Windows and Waves Pattern

 

Withdrawal Normal Description


When we take a psychiatric drug, we are adding chemical/s to the brain.  The brain then has to change to adapt to getting the chemical/s.  It might have to change something to do with A and then once that change has been made it affects B so another change has to be made and so on down the line.  It is a chain reaction, a domino effect.

 

The same thing happens when we take the drug away.  That's why it's possible to experience such a vast array of withdrawal symptoms, and they can change, and be of different intensity.

 

are-we-there-yet-how-long-is-withdrawal-going-to-take

 

These explain it really well:

 

Video:  Healing From Antidepressants - Patterns of Recovery

 

 

On 8/31/2011 at 5:28 AM, Rhiannon said:

When we stop taking the drug, we have a brain that has designed itself so that it works in the presence of the drug; now it can't work properly without the drug because it's designed itself so that the drug is part of its chemistry and structure. It's like a plant that has grown on a trellis; you can't just yank out the trellis and expect the plant to be okay. When the drug is removed, the remodeling process has to take place in reverse. SO--it's not a matter of just getting the drug out of your system and moving on. If it were that simple, none of us would be here. It's a matter of, as I describe it, having to grow a new brain. I believe this growing-a-new-brain happens throughout the taper process if the taper is slow enough. (If it's too fast, then there's not a lot of time for actually rebalancing things, and basically the brain is just pedaling fast trying to keep us alive.) It also continues to happen, probably for longer than the symptoms actually last, throughout the time of recovery after we are completely off the drug, which is why recovery takes so long.

 

AND

 

On 12/4/2015 at 2:41 AM, apace41 said:

Basically- you have a building where the MAJOR steel structures are trying to be rebuilt at different times - ALL while people are coming and going in the building and attempting to work.

It would be like if the World Trade Center Towers hadn't completely fallen - but had crumbled inside in different places.. Imagine if you were trying to rebuild the tower - WHILE people were coming and going and trying to work in the building!  You'd have to set up a temporary elevator - but when you needed to fix part of that area, you'd have to tear down that elevator and set up a temporary elevator somewhere else. And so on. You'd have to build, work around, then tear down, then build again, then work around, then build... ALL while people are coming and going, ALL while the furniture is being replaced, ALL while the walls are getting repainted... ALL while life is going on INSIDE the building. No doubt it would be chaotic. That is EXACTLY what is happening with windows and waves.  The windows are where the body has "got it right" for a day or so - but then the building shifts and the brain works on something else - and it's chaos again while another temporary pathway is set up to reroute function until repairs are made.  

 

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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  • Moderator Emeritus

We strongly encourage members to learn and use non drug coping techniques to help get through discomfort and tough times.

 

Understanding what is happening helps us to not get caught up with the second fear, or fear of the fear.  This happens when we experience sensations in our body and because we don't understand them we are scared of them and then start to panic.

 

This document has a diagram of the body explaining what happens in the body when we become anxious:

 

https://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/docs/AnxietySelfHelp.pdf

 

 

Audio FEMALE VOICE:  First Aid for Panic (4 minutes)

 

Audio MALE VOICE:  First Aid for Panic (4 minutes)

 

Non-drug techniques to cope

 

dealing-with-emotional-spirals

 

Dr Claire Weekes suffered from anxiety and learned and taught ways of coping.  There are videos available on YouTube.

 

Claire Weekes' Method of Recovering from a Sensitized Nervous System

 

Audio:  How to Recover from Anxiety - Dr Claire Weekes

 

 
Resources:  Centre for Clinical Interventions (PDF modules that you can work through, eg:  Depression, Distress Intolerance, Health Anxiety, Low Self-Esteem, Panic Attacks, Perfectionism, Procrastination, Social Anxiety, Worrying)
 
On 4/28/2017 at 4:03 AM, brassmonkey said:

 

AAF: Acknowledge, Accept, Float.  It's what you have to do when nothing else works, and can be a very powerful tool in coping with anxiety.  The neuroemotional anxiety many of us feel during WD is directly caused by the drugs and their chemical reactions in the brain.  Making it so there is nothing we can do about them.  They won't respond to other drugs, relaxation techniques and the like.  They do, however, react very well to being ignored.  That's the concept behind AAF.  Acknowledge, get to know the feeling involved, explore them.  Accept, These feelings are a part of you and they aren't going anywhere fast. Float, let the feeling float off as you get on with your life as best as you can.  It's a well documented fact that the more you feed in to anxiety the worse it gets.  What starts as generalized neuroemotinal anxiety can be easily blown into a full fledged panic attack just by thinking about it.

 

I often liken it to an unwanted house guest.  At first you talk to them, have conversations, communicate with them.  After a while you figure out that they aren't leaving and there is nothing you can do to get rid of them.  So you go on about your day, working around them until they get bored and leave.

 

It can take some practice, but AAF really does work.  I hope you give it a try.

 

 

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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gabapentin is horribly addictive, and I mean your body needs it or else.  seizures are in the cards.  I have ransacked the internet and I have read the serious druggies on reddit say the withdrawal is the worst of all,  worse than heroin, and speed combined one commenter said. 

it is a horrible drug that should only be used on an extremely short term basis.  it can helpful to alcoholics just to get over the worst.

 

many years ago given sinequan for depression bad reaction so tiny dose of meleril to balance... quit after a year or so c/t

years pass no drugs

reg doc had me try all of the  a/d bc of upset due to divorce.  couldn't handle any.  took klonopin to sleep .5 mg  2003

taper klonopin

hooked on tramadol accidentally. 2006-2008 husband had migraines and took them like candy. so i became dependent too.  c/t  2008

diagnosis of porphyria after years of symptoms,  then toxic event made me really ill.

 

gabapentin 300mg every 3 hours , 6x day.

propranolol   180 mg  6x / day

since 2012

clonazepam prescribed as 1 mg / day  but beginning to take more to deal with withdrawals and sleeplessness

 

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Hang in there. It will get better. Be kind to yourself and just keep telling yourself you are strong. Your body knows how to handle this but it will take time. 

I also did a too quick withdrawal from Lexapro but I'm finding meditation is my best crutch. 

I use an app called Insight Timer. 

Take each day at a time. 

Best wishes to you. 

Lexapro 10MG

Almost continually for 25 odd years 

Reduced to 5MG beginning July 2018-  end August 2018

August 2018 til now off completely 

 

 

 

 

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Thanks for the replies, I really appreciate it! I will set up a drug signature once I am calmed down enough to think clearly. I think I am in a state of panic due to reading through some of the posts on this site. I came across someone's post and was reading through it and saw that she had committed suicide due to her horrific withdrawal issues. Her name was Bluebalu. I read all of her posts and saw that she was on an antipsychotic like I was until recently (mine was Abilify), and took some sort of barbituate to help her sleep and it had a severe adverse reaction in which she could not recover from. It has scared me immensely. Not good for someone who has a panic disorder like I do! I am so freaked out that I'm not sure how to calm down. I have always thought these meds to be safe and now I am fearful that they may not be. All I wanted to do was find others that I could get support from while dealing with my yucky withdrawals so I could get back to baseline. Now I feel worse than I did before I even started medication. I have done cognitive therapy and read so many books on the subject of anxiety and panic but none of it has helped. My brain seems wired to be anxious so anything scary regarding medication just makes it worse. I have a fear of fear and I thinks it's the worst type of disorder to have.

 

I'm thinking many members on this site may not have the same problem as I do. It seems like many can ride out withdrawals and go off meds indefinitely. I'm not so sure I can do that. I really want to but when I was on meds, I was living my life and not obsessing over how I was feeling. I'm seeing a new doctor tomorrow to see what she thinks. I don't want to be a lifer on meds but I may have to be. Each time I come off, I spiral. They help so many yet so many want to call them "poisonous" or "evil". Maybe for them but not for everyone. I guess what I have now learned is if I ever want to come off meds, I need to taper slowly. That is truly one thing doctors don't emphasize. I don't want to reinstate my Lexapro for fear of an adverse reaction like I had when reinstating Zoloft a month later. I survived but it took several months and was a very scary period. I may go back to another med I've used in the past hoping it will work and then at some point try to slow taper from that. I'm a mess once again. :(

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Oh and I wanted to say that I've actually been off Lexapro almost three months, not one. Since I couldnt handle the Trintellix my doctor wanted me to try, I cold turkeyed that after 3 weeks and just stopped. It's been a month since that happened.

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  • Moderator Emeritus

AG,

 

There are some tragic cases here and on other sites online, but the vast majority of people don’t find themselves in such dire straights and go on to live good lives.

 

We never know exactly what another person is going through. There are many things going on for people outside of drug reactions and withdrawals that may aid or worsen the situation.

 

When I’m feeling anxious, I avoid reading too much on here and focus on using techniques like distraction, mindfulness etc. Try not to get caught up in triggering posts, no good comes of that. 

 

Take care :) 

PLEASE NOTE:  I am not a medical professional.  I can only provide information and make suggestions.

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Blubalu's situation was complicated.  You need to aware that the members who are on this site are here because they are experiencing difficulties getting off their drug/s.  As I've said elsewhere, when we are well we don't stay in the hospital.  The same here.

 

But we do have some members who have written their success stories in this forum:

Success stories: Recovery from withdrawal

I've done a search of the above forum for Abilify.

 

Edited by ChessieCat

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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  • Moderator Emeritus

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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  • Moderator Emeritus

You had a bad reaction to reinstating Zoloft because you went on the full dose. Doctors don't know of any different way. If a person suffers from adverse reaction they even up the dose believing more is better.

 

What we advise here after being off the drug for 3 months is reinstating only  1 mg of your original drug to minimise the chances of adverse reaction which you describe. After 20 years of being on drugs our brains need to regrow themselves through very slow removal of drug. I wouldn't advise toughing this out because it takes a lot more time and suffering than we can imagine.

 

Give yourself time to get informed but not scared. We do recover but we have to be very informed and smart about it.

Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2

2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013)

Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 
1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg.
2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg
went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days after
reinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours
28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr  2015 1 mg,  25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64  Xanax     9 month hold

24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26

Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic 

I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. 

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7 hours ago, anxiousgal said:

Thank you for all the information ChessieCat!

 

there is tons of good info here, but it can be overwhelming. take your time. 

 I especially encourage you to read at least one success story as I think you need it. 

best of luck to you and welcome to the forum. 

Currently taking Ramapril (blood pressure) 5 mg twice a day

Omeprazole 10 mg AM and 20 mg PM  (the taper has gone nowhere after the first cut)

Famotidine   once a day (and I still needs tums sometimes)

magnesium 200 mg at night

as of yesterday 2 fish oil capsules "EPA-DHA 1000"

 

off Lexapro as of 5/2018  - last dose had been 5 mg every other day for a couple years

 

highest dose had been 20 mg at which point I was diagnosed with Bipolar II, which went away when I cut the lexapro down to 15 mg. 

 

I spent years on Paxil before Lexapro (can't remember dose), briefly on Effexor and Abilify and others I have forgotten. in fact, when I was diagnoses with BPII I was put on all kinds of things which made me feel so bad I stopped them cold turkey within maybe 3 or 4 weeks, thank goodness. since then I've known these pills were terrible and I weaned down the Lexapro with zero help or support over I'm not sure how many years. 

 

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  • Administrator

Welcome, AG.

 

How often do you take Klonopin? What is your daily drug schedule? What antipsychotic are you taking, at what dosage and for how long?

 

A single panic attack more than 20 years ago does not mean you will have panic attacks throughout your life. However, breakthrough, rebound, and interdose anxiety and panic are rather common side effects of benzos. Such symptoms can also be from drug-drug interactions, inconsistent dosing of psychiatric drugs, and switching and stopping too fast.

 

Mot likely, your current state is from coming off a drug or drugs too fast. We need to see your history to identify which ones.

 

It is unlikely you have anything in common with Bluebalu other than perhaps some drug overlap. Were you searching for reports of suicide?

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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  • 1 month later...
  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi anxiousgirl, 

 

How are you doing? Can you please answer Alto’s questions. Thank you. 

 

Sending hugs🤗

Been on APs, benzos, ADs and opiates, for chronic pain. Had Akathisia in the past that made me suicidal. Still on Seroquel. 2019:➡️ March10=7.25mg ✔️ April17=7.0✔️ June5=6.75✔️ July14=6.50✔️ Aug28=6.25✔️ Oct10=6.20  ✔️ Oct21=6.0✔️ Dec16=5.80 ✔️ 2020➡️ Jan 21=5.60 ✔️ April2=5.40 ✔️ May29=5.20 ✔️ Aug14= 5.0 ✔️Sep29=4.80✔️2021➡️ Jan31=4.60 mg✔️ April24=4.40mg✔️Jul17=4.30mg ✔️ Aug 28=4.20 ✔️ Oct 11=4.15✔️Nov1=4.10 ✔️ Nov21= 4.05✔️ Dec13= 4mg ✔️2022 ➡️ Jan8=3.95✔️ Jan31=3.90✔️ March2=3.85 ✔️ April4=3.80 ✔️ June16=3.75✔️ July26=3.70✔️ Sep2=3.65✔️ Oct21=3.60 ✔️ Dec8=3.55✔️2023➡️ Jan 26=3.50✔️ March 17=3.45✔️ June12=3.40✔️ July30=3.35✔️ Sep14=3.30✔️ Oct31=3.25✔️This is NOT medical advice.Consult your doctor.

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