Kachna: Lexapro discontinuation syndrome

[Altostrata]

Thanks, Kachna.

[Kachna]

Hi guys, just wanted to check if what i am experiencing is still a withdrawal.

I have difficulty getting up on the morning. First 30 minutes is fetting used to and then i am cranky, with feeling sick. And headaches, tension headaches that come and go and i also feel dizzy.

Tension headaches (head pressure) almost permanent. Rarely does it go away. I feel sick, with stomachache, i swaet a lot.

I am still taking a very loe dosis of st johns wort. Still tapperig. This is my fourth month after i quit lexarpo, is it still withdrawal or should O worry and have more medical ups?

Last time my blood rests showef high ferritine due to iron injections and crp 6. Thanks in advance

When i take magnesium now and fish oil i feel sick

[Altostrata]

It's very possible you are still experiencing withdrawal symptoms. It can take many months for them to go away.

 

If taking magnesium and fish oil make you feel sick, take less of them.

 

Perhaps you are taking too much iron?

[Kachna]

Hi Alto, i had iron infusions. Since then i have had these headaches, conneced with withdrawal. My body i guess does not like excessive iron level. My ferritine is about 400 and limit for a female is 150. It will slowly go down, at least i was told so.

What bothers me now are the headaches and head pressure that cause neusea and here I am not sure if this is still withdrawal. ?

Of course i am being told that all side effects should be gone by now.

And i am not sure if such a low dosis of st johns wort can still destabilise nervous system that much and cause these headaches.

I had an MRI done of my head done in may and it was all ok.

Could these headaches still be from lexarpo and st johns wort now? Thank you

[Altostrata]

I don't know, there are too many things going on.

 

I would certainly continue to go off St. John's Wort, to reduce the number of factors. It can be increasing your symptoms.

[Kachna]

I am now on 2 drops 3 times a day. And what is the doctor saying - quit, it is such a low dosis. I am just worried it will give me same ride as lexarpo.

I know, patience.

[Meimeiquest]

Kachina, What made you need iron infusions? Have you read Wikipedia (sadly, my level of scientific journal) on ferritin and then on crp? Maybe it is all from the inflammation of withdrawal? Good luck!

[Kachna]

Meimeiquest, hi

My ferritine level was extremely low, 7. Normal figures start at 20 or more .

My gp was worried that it can make me feel low. I have bad experience with iron tablets . I was told that infusions will be tje safest and the fastest way to rise the ferritine.

Crp 6 is not bad as well i was told. These are figures done 3 weeks ago. Normally crp level should be up to 5, some laboratories up to 10. SeriousPraxis Kieselgasse Inflamations start above 20-30 . With severe bladder infection i had 87. Pneumonia is about 100. I also thought headaches can come from inflamation and asked for one more blood test.

I am so lost with this and fed up with doctors misunderstanding all the side effects and withdrawal .

[Kachna]

When u ask the doctor about inflammation she says that crp at 6 you can have when you are tired and you run . They all claim that my headaches Are tension haleadaches... I just think they would not come with neusea

[Meimeiquest]

Do you know why your ferritin level was so low? I'm probably driving you nuts, but the failure to identify "why" has cost me a lot in my own health care.

[Kachna]

Hey , you are not driving me nuts. I am actually happy you are so "nosy" . Maybe we will have some idea together. Well, i do not eat a lot if meat and do have tendency to low iron. However, when i was taking

Lexarpo (here cipralex) my period went nuts. I had periods every 20'days for 10 days. Doctor of course said it is not related and cipralex is just fantastic with calming PMS and other bla bla bla . So i believe these crazy periods were responsible for low ferritine. When i was witjdrawing it was even worse with periods. And i ended up on 7.

[Kachna]

And i do understand this WHY attitude. I amso want to know why, but as Alto said - too many factors'all together. And No doctors trying to connect all of them.

[Kachna]

And if you have other questions i am very happy to answer

[Meimeiquest]

I'm thinking...and working

[Meimeiquest]

One more WHY...Why did your back hurt? Does it still hurt?

 

I had a diagnosis of fibromyalgia at one time...who knows what I really have. But chiropractic helped my pain more than anything (haven't tried acupuncture, that also helps some). But if you have a sensitive spinal column and get some muscle tension in the back of your neck, you can get pressure on the nerves and really magnify the normal withdrawal head symptoms. Chiropractic really helped me with that. The head stuff can be very persistent in withdrawal, just on its own.

 

Also, headache is a classic feature of anemia. You might want some liver (from a very healthy animal) to just replenish your body generally. I think you can partially freeze the liver so you can cut it up tiny and put it in empty capsules and store in freezer till you take them. I realize this is really gross, but I am developing a strong bias for real food over supplements. If you take a supplement that works, it has a chemical in it that is doing something, but you don't really know what. I think I am in the great minority with that opinion .

 

Also, Gia has just posted some info about a book she liked on fibromyalgia et cetera. She thinks it has valuable info that pertains to drug withdrawal.

[Kachna]

My back collapsed before all the drugs. I was sitting wrong for years, we moved houses so maybe i picked something heavy or maybe that was some sort of an inflamation . I went to chiropractic, she misdiagnesed it i think and made things worse. Sent me to back exercises centre - it hurt more. Then orthopaedic sent me to two Mri's - shiwed nothing unusual. He gave me cortisone injections. Did not help. Tcm with needles and massage did not help. Phiosio - no. Now, i am trying osteopath - working on my neckuscles and my tail bone. It helps with headaches. Somehow my body is resistant to let go. It is so tense.

And for my back pain, i went also to Dorn method specialist - that helped a for a while.

I also do not like supplements; i will see when my ferritine level drops and then will look into iron rich diet.

Now, i think that my body does not like high iron level and is protesting somehow.

[Kachna]

Hi guys, i sometimes wake up so irritated and angry like these are not my feelings. It happenes around 5-6 am in tye morning. I try to meditate. Does not really help. Can this be connected with cortisone leves? How can i check it myself. Are there tests for this ??

I so want my normal self back. Sometimes, i am not too sure what is normal anymore.

[Meimeiquest]

The morning crud is totally cortisol. There is info on it in the symptoms section. Getting it verified is probably a waste of effort. I am so sorry about your back. I really do hope you can get your life back quickly!

[Kachna]

Hiye, i believe it needs time time to stabilise? Can i do anything to stabilize it?

With my back - at some stage i will have it fixed. I need to fix me first, so that i fell more

Like myself .

[Altostrata]

Please see the Symptoms and Self-care forum. Stimulated by morning light, the morning cortisol spike can sometimes be diminished by darkening the bedroom with blackout shades and curtains. Also, using a sleep mask to block out the light can help.

 

Over time, the exaggerated response to the cortisol spike will diminish.

[Kachna]

Irritation throughout the night and waking up every hour, not only in the morning, still cortisol ? Gosh, when will it end ? .....

[Kachna]

Hi guys, i tappered the st johns wort i was taking . Took me around 6 weeks. Last dosis was very low - one -2 drops per day ( initially it was 3 x 10)

Last dosis i took on satuday and since sunday evening i have been feeling such bad anxiety and cannot cal myself down. Head pressure is pulsating. Is this connected with sjw withdrawal? Can this happen on such low dosis? I did not have anxiety while tappering.

[Altostrata]

Sorry, can't say. Try taking one drop and see.

[Kachna]

Hi guys, did try the drops again and it did not work.

I am somtired of all these symptoms. I wanted to get rid of st johns wort to see if this contributed to the headaches. I do not see much difference. It has been a week since i have stopped. I wake up angry, with nausea, have moments when i think i will faint, especially when i walk. I have constant health fear. And the feelings are soooo real. I went to see my Gp today and as i was expecting (i did hope she would connect the pieces and be more open- minded) she said she does not believe in withdrawal, especially from SJW. And maybe i should take it longer. It does not cause headaches , it helps with them and no nausea at all. I was trying to explain to her that cipralex withdrawal & stj was not a good combination. She did not listen. I am all alone with this. Feeling nasea all the time , headaches and sadness, fear etc. Is it still any kind of withdrawal ? I need to know i am not going mad here. And i need to know if i should medicate myself somehow. ? Thanks all in advance for the tips

[Kachna]

And forgot to mention that i take half of 1mg tablet of lorazepam if i really have a bad fear attack

[annelle]

Hello Kachna,

 

I am very sorry that you are feeling so bad.

 

I, too, am tapering off of Cipralex. I stopped rather abruptly with them in last October, and I remember that my first non-acute withdrawal symptoms were nausea, then headache, which I think each lasted about 6 weeks. They are both gone now. I also took St John's Wort a few weeks, but stopped because I felt as if it was raising my blood pressure, I felt very stressed on it. 

 

I reinstated Cipralex in May, and am very slowly getting better. My worst withdrawal symptoms since around April have been insomnia and paresthesia/skin sensitivity. But finally it seems that they are also getting better. Now I have days without paresthesia, and my sleep has improved. From January-February through May-June I slept on average 2-3 hours a night, now I can sleep about 6-7 hours, and have for 2-3 weeks.

 

I guess I just want to give you som encouragement. It does slowly get better. I know how impatient you feel when these horrible symptoms seem to go on forever.

 

I tried liquid Cipralex, but it seemed as if it was stronger, it did not agree with me, so now I am dry cutting tablets again, currently 1,25 mg, and feel better on this type of medication.

 

I have not taken any benzos for a long time so I do not really know how that fits in the picture of what you are going through.

 

Your post caught my eye, because it seems your symptoms, headache and nausea were the same as mine in the beginning, and I thought - aha, another Cipralex survivor - because you will survive this, I know.

 

Hang in there!

[Kachna]

Hi Annelle

Thank You very much for your post. You know the wrost thing is that doctors do not believe you. I am guessing in 15 years time they will as withdrawal will be recognized.

Each if them tries to find another disease, nerve problems, stress headaches, claims that too much iron does not harm you.

I am so disappointed.

I was thinking about reinstating Lexarpo but my system is tooo sensitive. I am worried it can make things worse. There is noone to advise.

The only person that believes me is my husband - witnessing this misery. It must go away.

Thanks again. You hang in there as well. I am happy this forum exists - shows me i am not crazy. And of course doctors say - do not read anything as you make up ypur sympthoms. I am fed up with this. I feel it , it is real , i am not inventing it.

[Kachna]

Annelle, are you taking any supplements ? I quit all of them as i was not sure if they were really helping .

[annelle]

Hi Kachna,

 

I can certainly relate to the frustration and even anger towards your doctor. And I think you are right - in a few years or so withdrawal syndrome will be recognized as a 'real thing'.

 

I stopped taking almost all supplements, because I felt they were harming more than helping, so now I am taking only magnesium citrate, appr 260 mg a day.

 

I recently stopped taking fish oil because I got a sneaking suspicion that they were contributing to the tingling in hands, feet and breasts, and I have felt better since I stopped taking it. A rash I had on my left foot is also clearing up.

 

But is always so difficult to know which is which. I may be feeling better now because I am stabilizing on Cipralex - I have been on the same dosage for about a month now.

 

But since I feel good taking only magnesium, I will probably continue doing what I am doing.

 

Hope you are feeling good today!

[Kachna]

Hiye, not a good day. Head pressure is always here. I cannot bend as i feel like pressure is changing in my head , like some bone is pressing on an artery. Even wehn i am walking it gets worse, only mornings are ok.

Still do not know if this is something mechanical or is this drugs related.

I have such anxiety when I walk. As my head keeps pulsating.

Hope your day has been good so far.

Xx

[Kachna]

Hi Annelle, jus curious on what dosis did u reinstate? And what was your original dosis?

[annelle]

Hi Kachna,

 

I was taking 10 mg of Cipralex when I tapered rather quickly of last October.

 

I reinstated on 5 mg of Cipralex, but felt it was too activating, and on Alto's advice went down to 2,5 mg, and then down to 2 mg/ml, when I got the liquid form.

 

I think I had to go back on at such a low dose because I had been off Cipralex for about 7 months before reinstating, much longer than the 'recommended' time, which I think is max a couple of months, when reinstatement is considered likely to be effective.

 

But I do feel I am getting better on a low dosis, currently 1,25 mg. But it is hard to tell, since it could also be simplye the time that has gone by since my almost cold turkey. I might be feeling better now, 10 months out, even without the reinstatement.

 

But I am just glad that I am feeling better!

[annelle]

And I hope your head symptoms are getting better. Which dosis are you on now?

[Kachna]

My head pressure may be mechanical, so a disc blocked or something, as it comes and goes,

I was taking 20 mg . I was just curious, i will see after mri what options i have and if i can reinstate or will be given something else. I want to see if there are other options.

The head preassure is still terribly annoying , especially when i bend or move my head.

Did u have a regular constant headache or was it like head pressure? I sometimes feel like somethingnblocks either nerve or artery, i stand up, the prssure appears and it releases after few second.

[annelle]

My headaches at the beginning of withdrawal were 'normal' headaches, ie headaches that I recognized from earlier. I did not even think withdrawal at that point.

 

I do not have head pressure, but for a few weeks I have had a strange feeling in my right side of my neck, shoulder, arm and hand. Sometimes it feels as if I had a mini stroke or something. My right hand is shaking and has almost no strenght in it, and I feel numb in the right side of the face, and sometimes I even almost drool a little, as if the muscles in my mouth cannot quite contain my salive. It is a little scary. It also comes and goes. It is bad today, so much so that I am thinking that maybe I should get it looked at by my doctor. 

 

But thinking that he will probably throw a new drug at me holds me back. But then again I think what if it is not part of withdrawal, but an actual sign that something is really wrong, like a stroke or brain tumor, or Parkinson's. But then again I think that this could just by hypochondria stemming from the withdrawal. 

 

So difficult to know the right thing to do. Maybe I should get a mri like you. And I suppose I could just hear what the doctor says - I could refuse to take a drug for it.

 

I just don't know.

[Kachna]

Hiye, hang in there. Deep inside i bet you know it will pass and this just temporary.

I think I would do mri just to know you are fine and afterwards u will be able to ignore these symptoms.

I am sending u a virtual hug.

I have kind of nerve shaking in my left leg and in the back of my skull.

As for the doctors - u can listen to their opinion and advice but not neccessarily follow them.

I had a very annoying conversation with my GP recently. They just do not listen. I am so dreaming of finding a smart holistic doctor who will just connect all pieces of my puzzle.

I also have hear palpitations, maybe related to lorazapam wering off.

We will go through this

Xx