panic27 Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Okay this may be a long shot, but has anyone here had a spinal tap done during or after withdrawal? Reason I'm asking is that I did have one and the lab result came back with very high protein levels. Now it seems no one can give me a straight answer as to what that means. So I'm thinking, maybe it has something to do with withdrawal? I'm kinda hoping that's it and not any of the things I read on google. If not.. Who knows, maybe I'm the first to document actual brain damage from SSRI use. Citalopram: Started late 2016, dose increased every few months up to 30mg June/july 2018: mental breakdown August 2018: dropped 30 -> 20mg. put on lorazepam 3x0.5mg September 2018: dropped 20 -> 10mg. brief switch to effexor, then back to citalopram 10mg. dropped 10 -> 6mg October 2018: brief switch to wellbutrin, then reinstated citalopram 4mg. started tapering more gradually. April 2019: switched 0.25mg lorazepam -> 2mg diazepam. July 2019: mental breakdown. jumped off 0.6mg citalopram. January 2020: last valium dose (0.5mg) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icequeen Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 This is very interesting. I’m not surprised at all. Did they say anything about what they thought it might indiicate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panic27 Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 They literally said it was "probably nothing" and just to get back on psych meds. The results I got were protein level 1.3g/l (above 0.44 is abnormal), albumin ratio 26.0 (above 5.7 is abnormal). From what I gather on google, a high albumin ratio means my blood-brain barrier has broken down. I don't know exactly what that entails but I guess it might explain why I'm so hyper-sensitive to even simple things like caffeine. I suppose I shouldn't be eating certain foods too but I have no idea which ones. Citalopram: Started late 2016, dose increased every few months up to 30mg June/july 2018: mental breakdown August 2018: dropped 30 -> 20mg. put on lorazepam 3x0.5mg September 2018: dropped 20 -> 10mg. brief switch to effexor, then back to citalopram 10mg. dropped 10 -> 6mg October 2018: brief switch to wellbutrin, then reinstated citalopram 4mg. started tapering more gradually. April 2019: switched 0.25mg lorazepam -> 2mg diazepam. July 2019: mental breakdown. jumped off 0.6mg citalopram. January 2020: last valium dose (0.5mg) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Onmyway Posted December 10, 2019 Moderator Share Posted December 10, 2019 30 minutes ago, panic27 said: They literally said it was "probably nothing" and just to get back on psych meds. The results I got were protein level 1.3g/l (above 0.44 is abnormal), albumin ratio 26.0 (above 5.7 is abnormal). From what I gather on google, a high albumin ratio means my blood-brain barrier has broken down. I don't know exactly what that entails but I guess it might explain why I'm so hyper-sensitive to even simple things like caffeine. I suppose I shouldn't be eating certain foods too but I have no idea which ones. I wonder if we all (or many of us) have these issues in WD and we never find out because we haven't done the test. Interesting thing to research. I'd email the docs involved in WD (Healy etc) and see if they know anything about this or whether they've seen it before. Why did they do a spinal tap on you? What did they suspect you had? "Nothing so small as a moment is insurmountable, and moments are all that we have. You have survived every trial and tribulation that life has thrown at you up until this very instant. When future troubles come—and they will come—a version of you will be born into that moment that can conquer them, too." - Kevin Koenig I am not a doctor and this should not be considered medical advice. You can use the information and recommendations provided in whatever way you want and all decisions on your treatment are yours. In the next few weeks I do not have a lot of capacity to respond to questions. If you need a quick answer pls tag or ask other moderators who may want to be tagged. Aug 2000 - July 2003 (ct, 4-6 wk wd) , citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn, wellbutrin for a few months, trazodone prn Dec 2004 - July 2018 citalopram 20 mg, xanax prn (rarely used) Aug 2018 - citalopram 40 mg (self titrated up) September 2018 - January 2019 tapered citalopram - 40/30/20/10/5 no issues until a week after reaching 0 Feb 2019 0.25 xanax - 0.5/day (3 weeks) over to klonopin 0.25 once a day to manage severe wd March 6, reinstated citalopram 2.5 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 mg for sleep 2-3 times a week Apr 1st citalopram 2.0 mg (liquid), klonopin 0.25 once a week (off by 4/14/19- no tapering) citalopram (liquid) 4/14/19 -1.8 mg, 5/8/19 - 1.6 mg, 7/27/19 -1.5 mg, 8/15/19 - 1.35, 2/21/21 - 1.1 (smaller drops in between), 6/20/21 - 1.03 mg, 8/7/21- 1.025, 8/11/21 - 1.02, 8/15/21 - 1.015, 9/3/21 - 0.925 (fingers crossed!), 10/8/21 - 0.9, 10/18/21 - 0.875, 12/31/21 - 0.85, 1/7/22 - 0.825, 1/14/22 - 0.8, 1/22/22 - 0.785, 8/18/22 - 0.59, 12/15/2022 - 0.48, 2/15/22 - 0.43, 25/07/23 - 0.25 (mistake), 6/08/23 - 0.33mg Supplements: magnesium citrate and bi-glycinate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panic27 Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 I had double vision and optic disc swelling. They suspected intracranial hypertension and wanted to check the pressure, which did end up being elevated but not significant enough to require treatment. The lab test was just routine and they weren't looking for anything in particular. Citalopram: Started late 2016, dose increased every few months up to 30mg June/july 2018: mental breakdown August 2018: dropped 30 -> 20mg. put on lorazepam 3x0.5mg September 2018: dropped 20 -> 10mg. brief switch to effexor, then back to citalopram 10mg. dropped 10 -> 6mg October 2018: brief switch to wellbutrin, then reinstated citalopram 4mg. started tapering more gradually. April 2019: switched 0.25mg lorazepam -> 2mg diazepam. July 2019: mental breakdown. jumped off 0.6mg citalopram. January 2020: last valium dose (0.5mg) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icequeen Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 I and some others have been suspecting breakdown of the blood-brain barrier in many of us worst cases with severe neurological problems who don’t recover. I have been evaluated for ALS twice during these years because my symptoms resemble that. Please, if you can find time and strength, email Dr Healy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts