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About reinstating and stabilizing to reduce withdrawal symptoms

Altostrata

By Altostrata,
in Symptoms and self-care

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ChessieCat

ChessieCat

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@Manati

 

Please ask questions about your own situation in your Introduction topic.  This way your history will all be in one place and it is easier for the mods to access previous history.  Thank you.

NEW!!!     INTERVIEW with Altostrata, SA's founder    NEW!!! 

 

Plodding along inch by inch:  12" = 1',  3' =  36 " or 1 yard,  1760 yards  = 63,360" or 1 mile

Current from 17 Apr 2021:  Pristiq 0.2665mg  now holding each dose for 3 weeks

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering Oct 2015 

My tapering program   My Intro (goes to my tapering graph)  My website

PLEASE NOTE:  I am not a medical professional.  I provide information and make suggestions.

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Altostrata

Reinstatement is more likely to work done fairly soon after stopping a drug, while the nervous system is still somewhat shaped around the drug that's been removed. The window of opportunity is not def

arwen

In my experience, each time I decrease the dose, I have some symptoms. The decision to updose or reinstate depends entirely on the severity of the symptoms. Brain zaps, tinnitus, lighthead, uncomforta

WackoSirJacko

Why it's good to crash!  (MOD NOTE:  Please see this post) When we crash, it’s scary, very scary. But there is a bright side. Look at it this way. When we take these tablets, our brains adapt ove

Manati

Manati

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2 hours ago, ChessieCat said:

@Manati

 

Please ask questions about your own situation in your Introduction topic.  This way your history will all be in one place and it is easier for the mods to access previous history.  Thank you.

 

Oh sorry -  I didn't mean to hijack the thread for my own concerns, and will stick to my intro topic with those questions! 🙈

Fluoxetine (Prozac) (25mg?) from December 2002 - November 2005 for anxiety/depression

Effexor (Venlafaxine) Retard (75mg) due to Panic attacks from November 2005 until around May 2020 when I started tapering off from 75mg to about 33mg in September. Accidentially missed a dose and naively went cold turkey from around 33mg to zero on 26th of September. I am in week 13 without the drug now. I've tried CBD oil and htp5 for a while, currently taking Omega 3 (1400mg), magnesium (800mg) and ashwagandha for the cortisol spike.

25th December: Reinstated Venlafaxine with one bead (0.3/0.4mg) in the evening, proceeding with two beads (0.7/0.8mg)

01th January: Updosed to 3beads (around 1mg) of Venlafaxine, so far no adverse reaction

2nd January: Back to 2beads of Venlafaxine, also 1/4 Diazepam, 12mg Lyrica.

since 5th January: 3 beads of Venlafaxine daily and nothing else except fish oil and magnesium. No changes in daily routine

15th January - 17th January: 4 beads of Venlafaxine

since 18th January: back to 3 beads of Venlafaxine, introduced Ashwaghanda supplement. Also still using fish oil and magnesium.

Since 23. January: introduced Lyrica to help with sleep/jerks keeping me awake: updosed from 4mg to meanwhile 8mg.

February: 700mg Valerian and 2mg Melatonin for sleep

March: tapering Lyrica again due to side effects.

 

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  • 2 months later...
Melany

Melany

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Anyone felt even worse when reinstating after 2 1/2 months? I was finally doing better but took the path of reistating and I got so bad and depressed . My depression wasn t even back. Why is my brain reacting so bad at this? Anyone felt worse? 

JUNE 2019 Tried Coaxil ,wellbutrin, cipralex, mirtazapine, effexor, sertraline, benzoS for 5 months.November 2019 started prozac 30 mg, took till May 2020 and started tapering 5 mg at a time till reached 2.5mg once every 2 3 days.January 2020 stopped benzos (tapered for 2 months).27 December 2020 stopped Prozac, 2 bad weeks.January and  february was feeling well.I am taking 2 mg of lorazepam /year.Tried 5Htp 100mg Febr 2020 for a copule of days, vomited non stop. Stopped right away.No supplements, possibly allergic to excipients now. 30 mg of Ulipristil acetate on 25th of febr.

Reinstated 0.4 mg of prozac 12 march  , had 0.2mg 13 march. Stopped reinstatement, feeling better. 

 

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SouthernFreeze

SouthernFreeze

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14 hours ago, Melany said:

Anyone felt even worse when reinstating after 2 1/2 months? I was finally doing better but took the path of reistating and I got so bad and depressed . My depression wasn t even back. Why is my brain reacting so bad at this? Anyone felt worse? 

Yup!! I think alot of people on here have, that's part of the risk of reinstating. 

How long have you reinstated for? You could go back to your regular dose if you haven't been reinstated for too long. Either way, it's going to be a matter of patience waiting for your brain to regulate itself.

10 years on various anti-depressants

5 years Effexor xr

tappered of 150mg in 6 months

nothing for two weeks

Reinstated 15 beads for 50 days

Tappered off then clean 2-3months

gradually went back up to 13 mg 3 years

bridged fluoxetine 10mg

2 week tapper

1 year clean

reinstated 5ml dispersed fluroxatine for 6months

 

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Melany

Melany

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How can we tell if it s the reinstatement that makes us feel worse or the WD that got worse?

Should I pause for 2 3 days? See if I get better?

JUNE 2019 Tried Coaxil ,wellbutrin, cipralex, mirtazapine, effexor, sertraline, benzoS for 5 months.November 2019 started prozac 30 mg, took till May 2020 and started tapering 5 mg at a time till reached 2.5mg once every 2 3 days.January 2020 stopped benzos (tapered for 2 months).27 December 2020 stopped Prozac, 2 bad weeks.January and  february was feeling well.I am taking 2 mg of lorazepam /year.Tried 5Htp 100mg Febr 2020 for a copule of days, vomited non stop. Stopped right away.No supplements, possibly allergic to excipients now. 30 mg of Ulipristil acetate on 25th of febr.

Reinstated 0.4 mg of prozac 12 march  , had 0.2mg 13 march. Stopped reinstatement, feeling better. 

 

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SouthernFreeze

SouthernFreeze

Posted
Posted
5 hours ago, Melany said:

How can we tell if it s the reinstatement that makes us feel worse or the WD that got worse?

Should I pause for 2 3 days? See if I get better?

Usually, for me, if the reinstatement works I feel better very quickly. 

 

You will feel better eventually either way, it's a matter of whether its worth upping your dose if your going to have to go through withdrawal symptoms until your brain levels out anyway. 

10 years on various anti-depressants

5 years Effexor xr

tappered of 150mg in 6 months

nothing for two weeks

Reinstated 15 beads for 50 days

Tappered off then clean 2-3months

gradually went back up to 13 mg 3 years

bridged fluoxetine 10mg

2 week tapper

1 year clean

reinstated 5ml dispersed fluroxatine for 6months

 

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Melany

Melany

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Posted

Thanks ! I ve delayed my dose and feeling ok so far. We ll see in a few days what happends and then tough it up and deal with it  whatever it is.

JUNE 2019 Tried Coaxil ,wellbutrin, cipralex, mirtazapine, effexor, sertraline, benzoS for 5 months.November 2019 started prozac 30 mg, took till May 2020 and started tapering 5 mg at a time till reached 2.5mg once every 2 3 days.January 2020 stopped benzos (tapered for 2 months).27 December 2020 stopped Prozac, 2 bad weeks.January and  february was feeling well.I am taking 2 mg of lorazepam /year.Tried 5Htp 100mg Febr 2020 for a copule of days, vomited non stop. Stopped right away.No supplements, possibly allergic to excipients now. 30 mg of Ulipristil acetate on 25th of febr.

Reinstated 0.4 mg of prozac 12 march  , had 0.2mg 13 march. Stopped reinstatement, feeling better. 

 

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JustBella

JustBella

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I have read through this entire topic again.  My impression when I first read it was that reinstatement is not recommended after being several months off.  This time it seems that any time reinstatement occurs, it should be at a very minimum dose to start and that amount of time off does not always mean you should not try reinstatement.  Is that correct?

I also want to clarify if you reinstate at say.5 and it creates problems, do you still taper off @10% or just stop.


My situation is dire at 18 months off, so trying to figure this out. I did post my specifics on my own thread, but have not received a response.  I addressed that post to @Altostrata but I know all of you are very busy, so thought I would go back through this thread.  I do appreciate all this information and the time you spend creating and monitoring it.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mid and late 1990s various antidepressants including Prozac, Pamelor, Zoloft, Trazadone for brief periods of time  Usually one month or less with no taper.

1998 to August 2020   .5 mg lorazepam, first PRN then daily. CTed Jan 2015 RI March 2015 (6 wks): CTed October 2016 RI Nov 2016 (3 wks (October 2016). 10 month taper begin Oct 2019 finished Aug 10, 2020. 2000 to Sept 2015 periodic use Escitalopram 10 mg.  Brief periods, 3-6 months, with rapid tapers or cold turkeys.Oct 2016 Cymbalta and Remeron for a period of about 2 weeks. Stopped cold turkey.Nov 2016 to October 2017 10 mg escitalopram.  One month taper

Last 2 ½ years:

Ongoing daily .5 lorazepam originally began in 1998 PRN, then daily 2008.  March 2019 to August 2019 10 mg escitalopram; rapid taper about 3 weeks. Sept 2019 to Sept 2019 Pristiq 25mg, taken 2 weeks then a every other day taper for one week.  25 mg trazadone for one week, no taper.  Zoloft 25 mg for 5 days, no taper. October 2019 -August 2020 10 month taper from .5 lorazepam.

Currently taking Valsartan 40 mg daily and Preservision AREDS2 one capsule daily.

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ChessieCat

ChessieCat

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@JustBella

 

Post #1 of this topic explains what to do if you start to feel worse after reinstating.

 

Reinstatement is basically a gamble whether you reinstate after a few months or many months.  We have seen it work/fail for both time spans.  It seems that the sooner you reinstate/updose (usually starting with a small amount) after experiencing withdrawal symptoms the better chance there is of it being successful.

 

Generally SA suggests reinstating the last drug that you took.  However if you have been off a drug for longer than a few months, or the drug you stopped is one that is difficult to taper (either because of the physical difficulty of getting doses OR side effects), changing to a different drug like Prozac or citalopram is an option that might work.

1

NEW!!!     INTERVIEW with Altostrata, SA's founder    NEW!!! 

 

Plodding along inch by inch:  12" = 1',  3' =  36 " or 1 yard,  1760 yards  = 63,360" or 1 mile

Current from 17 Apr 2021:  Pristiq 0.2665mg  now holding each dose for 3 weeks

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering Oct 2015 

My tapering program   My Intro (goes to my tapering graph)  My website

PLEASE NOTE:  I am not a medical professional.  I provide information and make suggestions.

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thecowisback

thecowisback

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i went back on prozac after struggling for 2 years with crippling ocd and anxiety. i started at a tiny dose and gradually increased over a year with very little benefit. eventually i bit the bullet and went back on 40mg, the dose i originally took. it took a long time to work - over 3 months before i saw a difference but now 4 years later i'm feeling a whole lot better and i can see the sunshine again. i wish i'd bitten the bullet sooner and gone back to my original dose. 

1

Took prozac 40 mg for 20 years.

January 2017 started cutting down prozac by 12.5% a week. End of February 2017 completely off prozac and withdrawals began.

Currently taking Levothyroxine 75 mcg, Magnesium citrate 200mg,Sage leaf 50mg daily

Amlodipine: October 2017 , discontinued 26 Feb 2019; Candesartan:  26 Feb 2019, 4mg.

Discontinued magnesium citrate 200mg Apr 3rd 2019

Reinstated prozac:  14 Jan 2019, 1mg; 26 Jan, 1.5mg; 4 Feb, 2mg; 16 Feb, 2.5mg; 2 Mar, 3mg; 5 Mar, 2.5mg, 23 Mar, 3 mg; 6 Apr, 3.5mg, 14 Apr 4mg, 23 Apr 5mg, 10 Jul 8mg, 1 Dec 20mg, 1 Apr 2020 40mg 

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ChessieCat

ChessieCat

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@thecowisback

Please update your drug signature.

NEW!!!     INTERVIEW with Altostrata, SA's founder    NEW!!! 

 

Plodding along inch by inch:  12" = 1',  3' =  36 " or 1 yard,  1760 yards  = 63,360" or 1 mile

Current from 17 Apr 2021:  Pristiq 0.2665mg  now holding each dose for 3 weeks

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering Oct 2015 

My tapering program   My Intro (goes to my tapering graph)  My website

PLEASE NOTE:  I am not a medical professional.  I provide information and make suggestions.

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