annaeatsfresh: Buspirone withdrawal

[annaeatsfresh]

I was put on Buspirone by my PCP, 10mg as needed. About 1.5 months later, I met with a psychiatrist who upped me to 20mg. Two weeks later, he increased me to 40mg. Almost 1.5 months later, he had me on 60mg. At 60mg (max dosage), I went crazy and couldn't stop panicking or having irrational thoughts, realized it was the buspirone, and (reading that it had no withdrawal effects), brought myself down way too fast. I went from 60mg --> 30mg in the span of three days. I ended up in the ER for suicidal ideation. I then held at 30 for a month. After that, I spent about 1 week on 25mg, 5 days on 20mg, and a few days on 15mg, 10mg, and 5mg, before stopping. Extremely rapid taper, possibly justified due to adverse reaction. 

 

This was my first time taking psych meds, and I was completely missing the symptoms and side effects I was getting from this drug. I thought I was having weird symptoms (diarrhea, extreme panic, difficulty concentrating, intrusive thoughts) because of reliving my past during talk therapy. 

 

I have been in a depressed fog since going to the ER, nearly two months ago. On the max dosage, I lost feelings for my partner (whom I love deeply) nearly overnight, but they have been super kind and supportive, although I have had a lot of difficulty being in the relationship with feelings gone and my thoughts going all over the place. I was set to begin a Master's program this month, but I can no longer go. I feel like a skeleton of my former self - I was adventurous, social, and nonchalant, and nothing really bothered me. I went on the buspirone because I was having anxiety for a period, but I'm afraid I won't return to my normal self. 

 

Every night I have vivid dreams, some of which worsen the SI. Muscle twitching, reflexes, and lately night sweats make sleeping difficult. I wake up in the mornings with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Additionally, I feel like I have almost no emotions, and I can't enjoy food or sleep. Nothing seems to be helping this process - exercise, acupuncture, reading. I'm really terrified that I may have permanent damage from the drug, or that these withdrawals will make me not the same anymore. 

 

Is there any hope that things will get better?

 

 

 

[getofflex]

Hello, and welcome to SA.  We are a peer owned and run forum of people who have been or are getting off of psychiatric drugs.  It sounds like you had a paradoxical reaction, perhaps from too high of a dose of the Buspirone.  60 mg is a very high dose.  When a drug goes paradoxical, it means that the body is fighting hard to fight the drug, and the drug does the opposite of what it is supposed to do.  

 

First of all, can you please give us specific information about your drug history for all drugs you are on and have been on, especially for the past 18-24 months?  It would be especially helpful to have the details of your drugs in a concise list (no symptoms), only drug names, specific dates (as best you can say for example early March if you don't recall the day) and dosages of each medication decrease or increase.  Please read the link below for instructions.  This will allow us to give you the best guidance.  

 

How to List Drug History in Signature

 

Here is some information about how these drugs actually work.  

 

How Psychiatric Drugs Remodel Your Brain

 

 

This helps you understand what withdrawal syndrome is: 

 

 Video on Recovery from Psych Drugs

 

What is Withdrawal Syndrome?

 

What you describe sound like psych drug withdrawal symptoms.  Here are some threads about symptoms: 

 

Dr Joseph Glenmullen Withdrawal Symptom Checklist

 

 

 

Also, as we are recovering, we suggest keeping things slow, simple, and stable. This is extremely important. 

 

Keep it Simple, Slow, and Stable

 

 

When we recover, there are times of feeling OK mixed in with times of feeling bad.  This is called windows and waves.

 

Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

Here are some techniques to cope with symptoms: 

 

Non Drug Ways to Cope with Withdrawal Symptoms

 

 

We don't suggest many supplements, but 2 that many of us find helpful are magnesium and omega-3 fish oil. Here are the links for info about those. It is suggested to add one at a time, and start with a low dose to see how it affects you. 

Magnesium

 

Omega 3 Fish Oil

 

On 8/8/2021 at 11:13 AM, annaeatsfresh said:

I went crazy and couldn't stop panicking or having irrational thoughts, realized it was the buspirone,

Can you please explain what you mean by "going crazy"?  What specifically were your symptoms while on the Buspirone besides panicking and irrational thoughts?  How was your sleep at the time? 

 

A possibility would be to reinstate a very small dose of Buspirone to try to alleviate your symptoms.  First we will need to see more about your drug history as requested above.  The following link explains more about reinstatement.  

 

About Reinstating and Stabilizing to Reduce Withdrawal Symptoms

 

Please take your time to read all the information above.  Feel free to ask any questions.  Yes, there is hope that things will get better.  The brain is highly complex, and it takes a lot of time and patience for healing to happen.  Go to the home page, and check out the success stories about halfway down.  These give me a lot of hope when I'm feeling discouraged. 

Edited August 9, 2021 by getofflex

[annaeatsfresh]

21 hours ago, getofflex said:

Can you please explain what you mean by "going crazy"?  What specifically were your symptoms while on the Buspirone besides panicking and irrational thoughts?  How was your sleep at the time? 

I noticed that I started waking up in the middle of the night, sometimes multiple times, to pee, which is never something that happened before the Buspirone. I was having vivid dreams and nightmares, and I noticed diarrhea which I never had before. 

 

By going crazy, I mean I would be constantly crying, and I started getting visual images that made me panic  -- the images were extremely disturbing (sexual acts with people I knew).

[getofflex]

The standard dose for an adult is 15 mg of Buspirone 3 times per day.  It would help a lot if you would give us your drug signature as described in my previous post, so we can help you.  Thank you.  

[annaeatsfresh]

Thank you. At the highest dosage, I was taking 60mg (30mg twice per day). I am concerned about my symptoms. I know Buspirone is not an SSRI, but has some similarity in action. I am also extremely sensitive to medications in general.

 

Additionally, buspirone is not known to cause sexual dysfunction, but this has been my experience since being on the highest dosage and tapering off. 

[getofflex]

Thanks for creating a concise and easy to read drug signature.  🙂

 

You could possibly try a  very small reinstatement to help lessen withdrawal symptoms.  We start small, because we want to avoid the danger of kindling, which can happen if you reinstate too high.  Try a reinstatement of 2 mg daily, taking 1 mg twice per day.  This thread will tell you how to measure a small dose of buspirone.  Then, when you have stabilized on a reinstatement, you can carefully and gradually wean off of that. If you are hit suddenly with hard wave of intense symptoms, stop the reinstatement right away.  Here is a thread about reinstatement.  

 

About Reinstating and Stabilizing to Reduce Withdrawal Symptoms

 

This explains different ways of measuring your dose.  I would suggest using liquid.  You can make a liquid yourself, or have a compounding pharmacy make one for you.  

 

Tips for Tapering and Measuring Buspirone

 

Please let me know what you decide. Good luck, and hang in there.  This get better eventually with time and patience.  

Edited August 12, 2021 by getofflex