Neoisdaone: Protracted Withdrawal

[Neoisdaone]

Hi, I’m new to this site. Eight years ago, I tapered as directed by my Doctor from Celexa (he had switched me from Paxil), but the taper was too fast. 
I began feeling extreme neck pain, constant brain zaps, irritability, crying spells, flu-like symptoms, ringing in my ears, noise sensitivity, anxiety, migraines, and more. 
I was so hell-bent on being drug-free, that I white-knuckled these symptoms in hope they would eventually subside. They never did. After 7.5 months of misery, I decided to reinstate to Prozac in hopes of easing my symptoms. However, they never did.

 Currently taking 25mg Pristiq, 2mg Abilify, and 300 mg GABA.

 It has been hell trying to get off of the Abilify. The goal is to get off of all these drugs.

Fast-forward eight years, and the extreme neck pain developed into chronic back pain & inflammation. I am disabled & can’t work at the moment due to all the physical pain, as well as from PTSD, depression, & anxiety.
I am 49 years old, and I was completely healthy before the withdrawal. 
Do these protracted withdrawal symptoms ever go away, or am I screwed for life?

Any advice, guidance, support, feedback & direction would be greatly appreciated.

 Thanks for reading my story.
 

[Erell]

Welcome to SA Neoisdaone

 

1 hour ago, Neoisdaone said:

Eight years ago, I tapered as directed by my Doctor from Celexa (he had switched me from Paxil), but the taper was too fast. 
I began feeling extreme neck pain, constant brain zaps, irritability, crying spells, flu-like symptoms, ringing in my ears, noise sensitivity, anxiety, migraines, and more. 
I was so hell-bent on being drug-free, that I white-knuckled these symptoms in hope they would eventually subside. They never did.

 

What you experienced was antidepressant withdrawal.  The symptoms you described are typical of withdrawal.

 

What is withdrawal syndrome.

 

When we take psychiatric medications, the CNS (central nervous system) responds by making changes over the months and years we take the drug(s). When the medication is discontinued, the CNS has to undo all the changes it made. Rebuilding the neurotransmitter production and reactivating the receptor and transporter cells takes time -- during that rebuilding process symptoms occur. 

 

1 hour ago, Neoisdaone said:

They never did. After 7.5 months of misery, I decided to reinstate to Prozac in hopes of easing my symptoms. However, they never did.

 Currently taking 25mg Pristiq, 2mg Abilify, and 300 mg GABA.

 It has been hell trying to get off of the Abilify.

 

I'm a bit confused about your drugs history :

 

 

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1 hour ago, Neoisdaone said:

 It has been hell trying to get off of the Abilify.

 

What was your start dose ?

Are you tapering now?  If so, at what rate?  We recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dose every four weeks :

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

 

1 hour ago, Neoisdaone said:

Do these protracted withdrawal symptoms ever go away, or am I screwed for life?

 

You're not screwed for life : every testimonies here show us that symptoms do fade. However, it can be very slow and gradual.

Please read these topics to help you understand better what is happening : 

 

1. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/17909-are-we-there-yet-how-long-is-withdrawal-going-to-take/

 

2. https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/82-the-windows-and-waves-pattern-of-stabilization/

 

 

 

 

 

Well, this is a lot to read for now : please take the time and feel free to ask all the questions you might have.

 

This is your Introduction topic, where you can ask questions and connect with other members.  We're glad you found your way here.

 

Take care ❤️

[Neoisdaone]

Hi @Erell, thank you for taking the time to read my intro & offer suggestions, I really appreciate it! 
So regarding Abilify, the Doctor had me up to 20mg at one point. The thing I have noticed with my body is that the withdrawal symptoms kick-in during the lower dosage reductions. So I was able to comfortably reduce Abilify over a period of several months.
It is when I got to 5mg & below that I started getting high physical anxiety, especially in the afternoons, excessive dry mouth, and constant eye twitching!
These symptoms severely affected my ability to work!

 So we upped it back to 5mg. Then went to 4mg. Again over several months.

Now currently at 2mg. 
I also want to thank you for offering some hope about recovery. I do feel very low & defeated because I live in constant chronic  pain. I have seen a Rheumatologist who with I’m now on my 3rd different biologic med  trying to reduce the pain in my neck, lower back, knees, and elbows. None of those meds have worked either. It’s almost hopeless!

 She claims it’s psoriatic arthritis, knee rheumatoid arthritis, & ankylosing spondylitis. But nothing seems to work! And the x-rays show some arthritis, but not at the level of pain that I am suffering from!

 So, do you know of other people going through withdrawal with chronic pain symptoms? Could you please provide more info on chronic pain recovery? Again I was 100% physically healthy before the withdrawal. Now I’m a wreck!
It has been 8 years since the Celexa withdrawal (9 years since the Paxil CR withdrawal), and I see no end to the suffering in sight. 
So I came to this website looking for answers & for support. I appreciate people like yourself & AltoStrata who try to help people with no hope like myself who have gone through hell with SSRI withdrawal. 
Thank you again & have a great day.

 

 

[Altostrata]

Welcome, Neo.

 

Why did you choose to decrease Abilify? What times of day do you take your drugs, at what dosages? Do you feel better or worse at any particular times of day?

[Neoisdaone]

Hi AltoStrata, thanks for your reply! I really appreciate you & this website you have created!

 

So my Doctor had prescribed Abilify as a supplement to the Pristiq because nothing was working. These meds stopped working for me a long time ago.

I also want to be 100% drug-free. I don’t want to depend on meds anymore, especially after all the damage & suffering I’ve been through!

 

I take the meds first thing in the morning:

2mg Abilify

25mg Pristiq

300mg Gabapentin.

I usually feel worse in the late afternoon. 

So I’ve been on 2mg Abilify now for about 3 months. There is no lower dose, and the pill is very tiny so I don’t think I’ll be able to cut it in half.

I want to get off of it in the next month or so if possible. 
 

After 8 years of chronic pain & arthritis, any suggestions that you can make? I’ve been seeing a Rheumatologist for 4 years but it’s not helping!

 

 Thanks again & have a great weekend!

 

Neo

[Altostrata]

It could be your symptoms are adverse effects from one of the drugs you're taking, my guess is Pristiq. However, since you take them all at the same time, it's impossible to tell.

 

What effect does Abilify have on you? Can you gradually move it later in the day, by an hour each day?

[Neoisdaone]

The Doctor had suggested I take the 2mg Abilify in the morning.
Previously when I was on 4mg, I would take 2mg in the morning & 2mg at night.

 

The Abilify has zero positive effect in me.
The Doctor at one point had me at 20mg, more than a year ago, and has reduced it to 2mg now. It is at low doses that I get harsh withdrawal symptoms.

 
I seem to be reacting negatively to the Abilify. When the Doctor had decreased it from 2.5mg to 0mg, I started having high physical anxiety, dry mouth, and constant eye twitching. I’ve just become extremely sensitive to all these meds.

 

I can move up the Abilify I one hour each day as you suggest. Up until what hour do you suggest I move it up to? 
 

And, have you heard of ssri withdrawal causing inflammation, arthritis, and chronic pain? It’s been eight years since my Celexa withdrawal in 2012 which was when I started to fall apart. I’m 49, so this all started when I was only 41. 

 

[Neoisdaone]

So I started IOP (Intensive Outpatient Therapy) this week for Depression & Social Anxiety. Doing a lot of group therapy & individual therapy.

 As previously mentioned, I was on 2mg Abilify, a medication that wasn’t working for me, but at the same time, very hard to taper down from.

This Monday I started to cut the 2mg pill in half, so I’ve begun taking a 1mg pill daily.

This is a tiny pill, so it’s basically impossible to cut it into any smaller pieces. 
I’ve begun feeling excessive dry mouth & more tiredness since last night. I will keep you all posted on my progress here. 
I am still taking 25mg Pristiq & 300mg GABA, and that will not change until I’m done with the Abilify.

 Also, if anyone has heard or has experience with chronic pain, arthritis, and inflammation that began after ssri withdrawal, please advise. Thank you.

 

[Altostrata]

Did you separate your drugs as suggested May 30?

 

Taking them separately is a way to find out if your adverse effects are from any of the drugs you're taking. As I said, I suspect Pristiq.

 

It's also kind of ridiculous to take all of them together. It's possible if you took gabapentin later, it would help your afternoon symptoms.

 

You might be interested in Tips for tapering off aripiprazole (Abilify)

 

 

[Neoisdaone]

Hi, thanks for your reply.

I did move up the time for the Abilify as you suggested.

I may also move up the GABA to the afternoon as you are suggesting.

 

I still think it could be Abilify withdrawal because I have not moved up or down from the 25mg Pristiq in almost 2 years, but whenever I try to lower the Abilify, that’s when these symptoms kick in.

I appreciate your quick reply, and I am going to check out the link you provided to taper off Abilify.
Take care & be well! 🙏🏼

[Altostrata]

What times of day are you taking each of your drugs, and their dosages?

 

How many times have you tried to go off Abilify? It's not surprising you get symptoms when you make a 50% cut.

[Neoisdaone]

Yes, I’ve tried twice unsuccessfully to taper off of Abilify.
Previous attempts were from higher doses (1st time from 5mg to 0mg, and 2nd time from 2.5 to 0).
This time trying to go from 2mg to 1mg to 0mg.
I definitely hear you that it’s still a 50% decrease. 

I’m taking Pristiq 25mg & GABA 300mg at 8am & Abilify 1mg at 4pm. 

[Altostrata]

You reduced to 1mg Abilify on Monday, correct? When did you start to feel what you interpret as Abilify withdrawal?

[Neoisdaone]

Yes, I reduced to 1mg Abilify on Monday 6/8. 
I began experiencing severe dry mouth last night (6/10), and some chronic fatigue. No eye twitching so far though which is good. 

[Altostrata]

Abilify has a very long half-life. These symptoms might go away in a couple of weeks.

 

Please let us know if there are any significant changes in your symptoms.

[Neoisdaone]

Thank you, I really appreciate it! 
I will definitely update with any changes.🙏🏼

[Altostrata]

I would not make another drug change until those withdrawal symptoms go away -- at least a month.

[Neoisdaone]

Today is Day #9 since I went from 2mg to 1mg of Abilify. I’m just reporting where I am with withdrawal symptoms.

 

Since yesterday Day #8, the physical anxiety (heart racing) has significantly increased. I’ve also felt extremely sleepy for the past 5 days. It’s a weird feeling of being extremely sleepy & extremely anxious at the same time.

Also feeling random muscle twitches on my legs, dry eyes & blurry vision, as well as pretty severe case of dry mouth. 
Symptoms worsen as the day progresses.

 

I’ve read that symptoms may peak at this mark. So I’m trying to hang on to see if I can make it to the 14-day mark. If symptoms persist or worsen, I may have to return to 2mg. This is my 3rd attempt trying to come off Abilify. I would hate to feel like I failed again. 
Will report again to update.

[Altostrata]

Yes, that's why we urge people to taper slower. Repeated withdrawal failures tend to make the next time even more difficult.