Jennings: down in a hole

[arbor]

Hi @Jennings  Glad things are going smoothly in spite of tiredness.

3 hours ago, Jennings said:

I'm going to start my Lamotrigine taper soon.

Geeod news.  Best of luck!

Arbor

[Jennings]

Monthly Update - January 2023

 

I've decided to start my Lamo taper in May 2023.  I found a compounding pharmacy and am going to go down 1 mg a month until I hit 10 mg.  I'm at 25mg now, so it will take 15 months.  Once I hit 10mg I will reassess.  I've come too far to slip now.  I'll never speed up but I will slow down if I feel that I'm reaching the cusp.  I can live with mild to moderate withdrawals.  They suck but I can gut it out.  Severe withdrawals are what I imagine Hell is like.  Severe withdrawals for eternity with no escape.

 

Anyways, I've started to meet up with some people from my old social circle.  I think it helps.  Just no alcohol.  

 

I'm able to watch TV and listen to music again.  Slowly but surely that has come back.

 

I hope everyone is doing the best they can.

[arbor]

Hi @Jennings       So glad you're doing better and best of luck on your Lamo taper.  

Arbor

 

[Jennings]

Monthly Update - February 2023

 

I will be starting my taper in May 2023, going down 1 mg a month to start.  I believe I can go down for 15 months, which will put me at 10mg, and then hold for a while.  I am predicting that I will be able to go down to 5mg and then it will start to get tough.  Time will tell.

 

Really good month, I can listen to or watch whatever I desire now.  If you're bad right now, and believe me I was insanely bad, you can get out of it.  I'm not 100%.  I'm about 75 or 80 of what I was.  Some of that could also be age.  The biggest problem is energy.  On weekends I can sleep 12 hours.

 

Anyways, on a side note, I had a friend contact me who I haven't hung around with for many years.  We were really good friends at one time.  He had heard about what happened to me and wanted some advice since he was also going through the same type of thing currently.  Same old story, doctor told him to take it for minor stress, said he could take it forever.  Now it's 15 years later and he's been on the med merry go round for the last 2 years.  He is currently on Zoloft. Seroquel, Olanzipine and a benzo.  With all that he's barely keeping it together.  I sent him here and at least armed him with the knowledge of what's going on.  When he told me his side effects and described his issues, it sounds like a Surviving Antidepressants greatest hits.  

 

I was a little let down that he still is deciding to take the meds route.

 

For every one of us here I guarantee there's hundreds or thousands more going through it and they don't know what's happening to them.  

[arbor]

Thank you for your update @Jennings.  Best wishes to you.

Yes, so true.  A lot of gaslighting and "medical spellbinding" going on.

Arbor

[Jennings]

March - May 2023 Update

 

I haven't updated in a while.  I've been doing really well, the best since I first started a psych med.

 

So I went on vacation out of the country, first time since this all began.

 

I've been running and lifting weights again.  I still need to lose about 10 pounds but I'm in really good shape.

 

I have started reaching out and seeing friends and family I haven't seen in a long time.

 

This would be a success story if I wasn't on Lamotrigine.

 

I decided I needed to start tapering.  So I went to a compound pharmacy and I am now getting the Lamo at 24mg, down 1mg from the 25mg.

 

I am going to hold for 6 weeks and then drop again.

 

I hope every one is doing the best they can.

[arbor]

This is wonderful news @Jennings  I'm encouraged and thanks for keeping us posted🌞

[Jennings]

June 2023 Update

 

Even going down 1 mg on the Lamo has given me minor withdrawal symptoms.  

 

These are not the ones I had during protracted withdrawals.  

 

The main issues I'm having is interrupted sleep and losing my temper.  I'm generally a calm person.

 

These are very minor and are not interrupting my life.

 

I still plan to drop another 1 mg in 5 weeks.

 

 

[Jennings]

July 2023 Update

 

I've now dropped to 23mg of the Lamo.

 

I stabilized pretty quickly after the last quote.

 

My sleep is still a little interrupted but I've always been a light sleeper.  I feel like my current sleep pattern is similar to how it was before psych meds.

 

I plan on doing my drops every 6 to 8 weeks from now on.

 

I hope everyone is doing the best they can.

[Jennings]

I got slammed this time, just from the drop from 24mg to 23mg.

 

I started to get anxiety right after the drop and then that subsided and I went right into my withdrawals.

 

I'm getting the parathesia in my wrists and ankles, I'm also wired and tired.  It sucks but I'm still getting my duties done.

 

I hope this will all go away soon.

 

 

[arbor]

I'm so sorry that you're getting slammed @Jennings  I hope it will go away for you soon, too.  Arbor

[Jennings]

@arbor Thanks, I haven't been this bad in a while.  Not cool.  It's no where near as bad as early cold turkey withdrawal.

[arbor]

Sending best wishes @Jennings and hopes that your symptoms are improving.

[Jennings]

August 2023 Update

 

I'm still not back to normal but I'm better than I was the last two weeks.

 

I'm losing more weight somehow.  That seems to happen to me when I'm in withdrawals.

 

If I don't right myself I will hold until i feel better, I don't want to keep going and completely destabilize myself.

 

I hope everyone else is doing the best they can.

[Jennings]

September 2023 Update

 

It's been a wild month.  I had one bad week at the end of August but I leveled out after that.  

 

It's amazing how when you're in a wave you feel like you always have and always will be in one.

 

Im now down to 22mg of Lamo.

[Jennings]

October 2023 Update

 

I'm now down to 20mg Lamo, things are smooth.

 

I'm fasting for 20 hours a day, doing cardio every day, and lifting 5 days a week.

 

I'm also eating healthy.  

 

If I do all these things my withdrawal almost vanishes.

 

If I slip then it comes back but never as bad as it was.

 

Peace 

[Jennings]

Nov-Dec 2023

 

I'm holding until I get back from a vacation April.

 

I'm not trying to rush this and fingers crossed, things have been pretty good.

 

I'm really busy and my life has been really stressful however I'm dealing with everything fine.

 

I do still get withdrawal symptoms but they are minor and no problem at all.

 

Peace

[Jennings]

January 2024

 

I now feel as if I'm over 90% of the issues I've had with my past issues caused by meds:

 

Adverse Reaction to Effexor (October 2014)

Klonopin Taper (December 2019)

Lexapro Cold Turkey and Withdrawal (November 2020)

 

I can't believe it's almost 10 years since that horrible day when I took Effexor due to minor stress that I happened to mention to my doctor during my yearly physical.

 

I trusted him and took it that night and my life forever changed.

 

This isn't a success story because I'm still on Lamotrigine 20mg.  I will resume my taper in May, going down 1 mg a month until I hit 10mg.

 

I understand it's a long road ahead and that I need to be disciplined.  I also know if I slack or go too fast I'll end up back where I was.

 

No alcohol, no weed, exercise, meditation, and NO bad food.  Lots of water.

 

I hope everyone is doing the best they can.

[Jennings]

The lower I go the more I need to eat healthy to feel well.  

 

Also, I've been off Klonopin for 4 years after taking it daily for 5, so I guess that's something.