Marieke: protracted withdrawal after 23 years of citalopram, now on clomipramine 150 mg, dare not taper

[Marieke]

Hi, I used citalopram 30 mg for 23 years. Because of recurring apathic behavior, psychiatrist advised getting off Citalopram in steps of -5mg per 2 weeks. First 15 mg no problems, from 15-10 Mgs I became scared, panicking. Psychiatrist advised going back to 30 Mgs in a few steps. But that dindn’t help and within a few days to a week I experienced hell. Protracted withdrawal. Old dosage of citalopram 30 Mg didn’t help. Psychiatrist advised 30 mg of oxazepam, then 75 Mg after a few weeks and finally 105 Mg after a few more weeks. Psychiatric hospital for 6 weeks, Citalopram was stopped, Oxazepam was tapered back to 55 Mg. Still hell. Second psychiatric hospital for 6 weeks, Oxazepam was stopped and Clomipramine 150 mg was started. Still hell. After a few months of Clomipramine 150 Mg I came back from hell. Still a lot of symptoms, but I can manage now. Got my life back. Should I try to get off Clomipramine or keep using it for the rest of my life to stay out of hell? 

Edited October 28, 2020 by Gridley

[Gridley]

Welcome to SA, Marieke.

 

To give members the best information, we ask them to summarize their medication history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly.  A list format is best.  Just list the drugs in your post, plus dates, doses and rates of taper and whether you cold-turkeyed.  Also the date you started the Clomipramine.  You'll need to use a computer rather than a phone.

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

 

Unfortunately doctors know nothing about safe tapering or withdrawal, and your doctor tapered you off the Citalopram too fast, causing withdrawal.

Yours is an all-too-common situation, in which doctors don't recognize withdrawal (because they don't believe it exists) and then throw a lot of drugs at you.  

 

What is withdrawal syndrome.

 

Daily Checklist of Antidepressant Withdrawal Symptoms (PDF) 

 

42 minutes ago, Marieke said:

After a few months of Clomipramine 150 Mg I came back from hell. Still a lot of symptoms, but I can manage now. Got my life back. Should I try to get off Clomipramine or keep using it for the rest of my life to stay out of hell? 

 

Neither right now.  You need to stabilize on the Clomipramine for a while.  Then, when you're feeling in good shape, you can decide whether you want to taper.  Some people stay on their drug, some taper part way off to reduce their drug burden for general health reasons, and some taper all the way off.  If you do taper, we recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dose.

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

 

We don't recommend a lot of supplements on SA, as many members report being sensitive to them due to our over-reactive nervous systems, but two supplements that we do recommend are magnesium and omega 3 (fish oil). Many people find these to be calming to the nervous system. 

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) 

 

Add in one at a time and at a low dose in case you do experience problems. Get supplements that ae single ingredient (not mixed with other types of supplements).

 

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