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Lauraf1978: Prozac withdrawal


Lauraf1978

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I was on 40 mg of Prozac for something like 10 years (I can’t remember exactly when I started it) and made the decision to taper off. My med provider directed me to drop down to 30mg for a week, then 20 for a week, 10 for a week and then stop. This seemed to go very well, I didn’t notice any symptoms and no change in my mood.

Suddenly, I started to feel some brain zaps, I’d say a week after discontinuing the medication. Over the last 2 weeks I’ve had the brain zaps increasing in frequency, plus fatigue, muscle aches, dizziness, almost feeling fluish, plus some low level sadness and irritability. From what I’m reading here, it seems like I tapered off way too quickly. 
Today I felt like such garbage I decided to take 10mg, really out of desperation. I put a call into my med provider to see what she recommends but am open to any other opinions or experience with this! 
Thanks in advance.

2009-october 2019 40 mg Prozac 

2012-October 2019 lamictal (can’t remember dose)

Start dates are approximate 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Welcome to SA, Lauraf1978.

 

Unfortunately, doctors know nothing about tapering, withdrawal or reinstatement.  10mg might be an appropriate reinstatement, though if I would have recommended 5mg and worked up from there if 5 didn't work.  Over the three weeks of your rapid taper, your body got somewhat accustomed  to the lower doses, and it's important not to overwhelm your system.  10mg is the maximum I would recommend.

 

How are you feeling?  How many days have you taken 10mg?  Sometimes you'll get a fairly immediate improvement, other times there's a gradual improvement over the following days.  It takes about 4 days for a dose change to get to full state in the blood and a bit longer for it to register in the brain.

 
If you're feeling worse, I would drop down to 5mg.  Please read:
 
About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms. -- at least the first page of the topic
 
It's a good idea to keep daily notes on paper to record how your reinstatement is going.
 
Once you've stabilized on the reinstatement, which can take several months, you could taper off.  We recommend tapering no faster than 10% of current dose every four weeks.

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?
 
This is your Introduction topic, where you can answer my questions, ask your own questions and connect with other members.  We're glad you found your way here.

 

Gridley Introduction

 

Lexapro 20 mg since 2004.  Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017.   

End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg 

End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg

End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg  

Oct. 30, 2020  Jump to zero from 0.025mg.  Current dose: 0.000mg

3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete.

 

Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements

Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium

Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium 

End 2021  year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg

End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg 

End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg

Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper.

Taper is 95% complete.

 

Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986.  Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg  

March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper

Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper

Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper.  Current dose as of Feb. 22: 7.6mg

Taper is 90% complete.  

  

Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotics, zinc, melatonin .3mg, anti-candida, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase


I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice but simply information based on my own experience, as well as other members who have survived these drugs.

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Thanks for the reply! Today is my second dose of taking 10mg and I feel minimal improvement.

I was emailing with the prescriber last night, and she gave me the option of reinstating at 10mg, or she could prescribe an anti nausea medication for the next few weeks.  🤔 I told her I wished nausea was my only symptom! I’m so glad I found this group, because I don’t have much confidence in this persons ability to help me.

I told her I to call in prozac AND anti nausea. I also told her if a tablet exists, that I could cut into smaller pieces for super slow tapering, I would prefer that. I guess I will see what’s waiting for me at the pharmacy.

Thanks again.

2009-october 2019 40 mg Prozac 

2012-October 2019 lamictal (can’t remember dose)

Start dates are approximate 

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  • Moderator Emeritus
43 minutes ago, Lauraf1978 said:

d I feel minimal improvement.

That is encouraging.  Let's see how things progress over the next week.  If things are tolerable at that point, you would wait several months before beginning a taper.  At that point, we can talk about the methods of tapering in the "tips for tapering Prozac" link I sent you.

 

Gridley

Gridley Introduction

 

Lexapro 20 mg since 2004.  Begin Brassmonkey Slide Taper Jan. 2017.   

End 2017 year 1 of taper at 9.25mg 

End 2018 year 2 of taper at 4.1mg

End 2019 year 3 of taper at 1.0mg  

Oct. 30, 2020  Jump to zero from 0.025mg.  Current dose: 0.000mg

3 year, 10 month taper is 100% complete.

 

Ativan 1 mg to 1.875mg 1986-2020, two CT's and reinstatements

Nov. 2020, 7-week Ativan-Valium crossover to 18.75mg Valium

Feb. 2021, begin 10%/4 week taper of 18.75mg Valium 

End 2021  year 1 of Valium taper at 6mg

End 2022 year 2 of Valium taper at 2.75mg 

End 2023 year 3 of Valium taper at 1mg

Jan. 24, 2024: Hold at 1mg and shift to Imipramine taper.

Taper is 95% complete.

 

Imipramine 75 mg daily since 1986.  Jan.-Sept. 2016 tapered to 14.4mg  

March 22, 2022: Begin 10%/4 week taper

Aug. 5, 2022: hold at 9.5mg and shift to Valium taper

Jan. 24, 2024: Resume Imipramine taper.  Current dose as of Feb. 22: 7.6mg

Taper is 90% complete.  

  

Supplements: multiple, quercetin, omega-3, vitamins C, E and D3, magnesium glycinate, probiotics, zinc, melatonin .3mg, anti-candida, iron, serrapeptase, nattokinase


I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice but simply information based on my own experience, as well as other members who have survived these drugs.

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  • Altostrata changed the title to Lauraf1978 Prozac withdrawal
  • Administrator

Hello, Laura, how are you doing? It takes a week or so for 10mg Prozac to reach full effect.

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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Hey thanks for checking in! While I don’t feel “100%” I feel SO MUCH better. Like a functional human being again.

Turns out (if anyone else was wondering) prozac does come in scored 10mg tablets (expensive! with insurance, I paid $20 vs like $2 for the capsules). I’m gonna be hanging out at 10mg for a while, but the tablets will be helpful when I’m ready to step down again.

❤️

2009-october 2019 40 mg Prozac 

2012-October 2019 lamictal (can’t remember dose)

Start dates are approximate 

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In 2016, I tapered rapidly off of 20 mg of Prozac, 300 mg of Wellbutrin and 100 mg of Trazadone.  I suffered terribly and finally decided to go back on 10 mg of Prozac to relieve the symptoms and stabilize my nervous system.  I felt much better and decided to stay at that dose for a few months and then taper slowly from there.  I ended up staying at 10 mg for a year and then got liquid Prozac so I could taper more slowly with tiny syringes I bought on Amazon.  I tapered 10 mg in 10 months, which is faster than the 10% rule recommended by Peter Breggin and the moderator of this website.  I was not easy, but it was much more doable than the rapid taper.  

 

It has now been 15 months since my last dose of 1/2 a ml of liquid Prozac and I feel better than I ever thought possible.  I have been following the nutritional recommendations  of Chris Masterjohn of chrismasterjohnphd.com for methylation and they have really helped a lot.  I eat liver once a week  (gross but effective), eggs almost every day, and I supplement with glycine (Bulk Supplements) that I get from Amazon.  I also eat 5-10 servings of vegetables every day.  I’m a firm believer in the power of nutrient dense foods to heal our bodies.  

 

Hang in there.  Keep working to figure it out and you will find your recovery.  I hope this helps you.

Paxil 25 mg — January 2010 — June 2012

 

Wellbutrin 300 mg — December 2012 — September 2016

Prozac 20 mg — December 2012 — September 2016

Trazadone — 100 mg December 2012 — September 2016

 

10 mg Prozac — October 2016 — November 2017

25 mg Trazadone — October 2016 — present

 

8 mg Liquid Prozac November 2017 — present

 

 

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  • ChessieCat changed the title to Lauraf1978: Prozac withdrawal

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