JSRagman: hi all

[JSRagman]

Hi all,

A little about me. About fifteen years ago I had some depression issues and was put on Effexor for about a year. I grew tired of being disconnected and decided to quit cold turkey. I suffered through brain flashes for about a week but came out the other side ok. About six years ago I went on Setraline because of some traumatic events that took place in my life at the time. Over that time I have slowly gained weight. I have always had a weight issue all my life but about ten years ago exercised and dieted and lost about 80 pounds. After struggling with the weight coming back and my BP souring I spoke with my doctor about my health and we decided to try and ween me off straight up. I was ok for a couple of weeks but started becoming very angry and agitated and had brain flashes that were overwhelming. I ended up back on full dose. So we then tried weening me off by lessoning the dose of Sertraline while talking Wellbutrin at the same time. The Wellbutrin did relatively nothing for me and I started getting agitated and some times would break out crying for no reason on top of the brain flashes. When I almost got fired from my job because I became so aggressive and mean, I ended back up on my full dose of Sertraline again. My weight and bp are still completely out of control and now that im older (51) than I was when I was previously heavy I can hardly breath getting up to go to the bathroom sometimes. Im determined to kick this drug once and for all to try and lose weight again. My demeanor is good and the drug does the job but its not worth not being able to tie my shoes without becoming winded. I found this place via Reddit and decided to join up to share my experience and see others. 

[SkyBlue]

On 2/27/2019 at 4:26 PM, JSRagman said:

 I found this place via Reddit and decided to join up to share my experience and see others. 

 

Hello and welcome to SA. 

 

To help us out, can you please fill out a drug signature using these instructions: https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/18343-please-put-your-withdrawal-history-in-your-signature/

Please list any drug changes in the last 2 years especially. 

When had you cold-turkeyed the Effexor? Was that a while back?

 

Are you wanting to come off the Sertraline now via slow tapering? 

 

Again, welcome. 

 

[JSRagman]

Thanks for the welcome.

 

When had you cold-turkeyed the Effexor? Was that a while back? - Yes, Mid 2001 or so.

 

Are you wanting to come off the Sertraline now via slow tapering? - Im attempting to. Skipped my first one yesterday and woke up this morning wobbly and it seemed like every noise of the house and my truck running in the garage was going straight through my head. Im going to have to go to skipping half a one once a week I guess. Sertraline is waaay harder to stop than Effexor was by far.

[ChessieCat]

Hi JS and welcome from me too,

 

Thank you for creating your drug signature.

 

3 hours ago, JSRagman said:

Skipped my first one yesterday

SA recommends tapering by no more than 10% of the current dose followed by 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?

 

When the drug is taken away too quickly we can get withdrawal symptoms:  Dr Joseph Glenmullen's Withdrawal Symptoms

 

Please DO NOT skip doses to taper.  The brain likes consistency.  Please take the same dose, at about the same time, every day.  Skipping Days vs Every Day Dosing Graph

 

Please take your dose (100mg?) every day.  It may take a few weeks for you to stabilise because you have skipped a day before you can start to taper.  Please read the information I am providing so you can understand what is happening and why it is important to reduce slowly.  I will provide some more information in the next post will hopefully help you to understand why.

 

This topic explains how to get the dose you need:  Tips for tapering off Zoloft (sertraline)

 

Tapering Calculator - Online

 

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

[ChessieCat]

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.