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ChanceLucky: Antidepressant withdrawal, social anxiety, & pessimism


ChanceLucky

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Chance- I love your plan as you stated it above. I'm impressed! 3 miles a day is huge!!!

 

Have you seen research recently about moderate exercise really being as beneficial and in fact a bit better for long term than the strenuous jogs so many people do? There was an article in the Times recently about this- apparently maximum benefits come from something like one to three 30 minute jogging sessions a week! More walking is probably best for anxiety moderation and easier on the joints too- anyway, I know regular walks help me so much when I do them. Point being, it's something to be very satisfied with yourself about!! Bet your dog is happy too. What kind? Wish I had a dog sometimes!

Found this site for real in 2015. Decided to taper slowly.

** I should mention that anytime I haven't been in a wave, I've felt pretty amazing! I only record the waves to look for patterns : ))**

50 mg Zoloft 6/2015, with intermittent fish oil

6/9/15 alternated 50 mg/37.5 mg - doc's idea (she meant well) 6/17 terrible morning anxiety and rumination, flu symptoms, and prickles in legs. 6/18 up to 45 mg liquid Zoloft. 6/26-29 cortisol mornings and bad anxiety. 6/30 started to take mag 100 mg and fish oil regularly with med 7/4 44 mg. 7/8 42.6 mg. 7/16 40 mg. 7/23 39 mg 8/1 32 mg (bad idea).

8/5 fatigue, anxiety, can't sleep, depressed. 8/7 36 mg resolved to be patient and try to keep to THE THREE KIS's. 8/13-15; 8/17- 23 painful physical and mental wave. Started light therapy 20 m in am. 8/25 34 mg, added 80-100 mg liquid mag during day. great window til 8/29 2 day down stretch 9/8 32.8 mg 9/11-14 wave added acupuncture 9/22 31.5 mg teeny wave 10/6 30 mg small grumpy wave 10/19 28.5, same pattern- small wave at day 5. A few tough weeks. Held around 29 until 11/18 when dropped to 28 mg; 11/22 the usual fluey fatigue. 11/30 27 mg 12/14 25.75ish mg "hold til Xmas club" (in my case New Years) Xmas was tough, kept holding: by 1/15, feeling good again. 1/25/16 Mirena IUD out after nearly six years- I think it was affecting my mood and taper- feeling super great! 2/2 down to 24 mg. symptoms much less severe. One day, not too bad wave on 2/8. 2/15 down to 20 mg from 24. A week later, two restless mornings and one morning of brain fog. 3/2 from 20 to 16 mg! Wish me luck.

 

Medicine History:

Currently tapering from 50mg Zoloft. Ten years of SSRI's including Celexa, Prozac and Zoloft, as well as a stretch with Wellbutrin added to the Zoloft. When I started on Zoloft (4 years ago?) I was on 100 but was able to taper down to 50 via 25 mg increments slowly around 2013. Have used light therapy and fish oil intermittently since around 2013. Have tried unsuccessfully to get off the meds since then in what I know now to be too large a taper (for example, jumped from 25 to 12.5 and that did not work). Motivated to do this slowly because that's the only way it will happen.

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Chance- I love your plan as you stated it above. I'm impressed! 3 miles a day is huge!!!

 

Have you seen research recently about moderate exercise really being as beneficial and in fact a bit better for long term than the strenuous jogs so many people do? There was an article in the Times recently about this- apparently maximum benefits come from something like one to three 30 minute jogging sessions a week! More walking is probably best for anxiety moderation and easier on the joints too- anyway, I know regular walks help me so much when I do them. Point being, it's something to be very satisfied with yourself about!! Bet your dog is happy too. What kind? Wish I had a dog sometimes!

I Googled that now. That's really interesting. My dog is possibly either a cavalier or cocker spaniel mix.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • 3 months later...

Sorry I've been away for so long. I felt I needed a break from thinking about antidepressants. Things have been going pretty well overall. I've been gradually exercising more and more and I'm amazed that my body is doing very well. I now walk fast and even jog on the treadmill every other day. I use weights too. The exercise has really helped my anxiety and my sleep. I am a bit upset though that I recently found out (just by chance during for a small rash I had) that I have a very small abdominal hernia. I meet with a surgeon in about 2 weeks. So I have to find out if I'm going to have surgery for that, which then would be a lengthy recovery (and no exercising for a while).

I've been very gradually lowering the Celexa. I'm at 3 mg a day now. I haven't adjusted the Wellbutrin or Benadryl yet.

One other big update is that my dad passed away back in January. He was sick with a rare neurological disorder (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinocerebellar_ataxia) for 16 years and had a huge list of other problems. He had a poor quality of life for many years. This loss was hard but I had been preparing for it for a long time and I felt a lot of relief when it happened (still mixed with sadness). Maybe it sounds surprising to say I'm doing reasonably well despite such a big loss but he was sick for so long I felt in many ways like I lost him many years ago. I do sometimes feel like his death should have hit me harder than it did. I was basically back to normal after a few weeks.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Hi CL,

 

Thanks for dropping in to give an update.

 

I'm sorry for your loss, but you do sound like you are coping well considering the circumstances.  I also understand that you feel like it should have hit you harder but in a situation when someone is sick for many years you do a lot of what I call "pre-grieving".  Don't feel guilty about it, but also be prepared that you may feel the loss further down the track.  I have found that there can be unexpected triggers by things totally out of the blue.  We don't get over a loss, we learn to live with it.

 

Keep taking care of yourself and good luck with your op.

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

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 from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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Hi CL,

 

Thanks for dropping in to give an update.

 

I'm sorry for your loss, but you do sound like you are coping well considering the circumstances.  I also understand that you feel like it should have hit you harder but in a situation when someone is sick for many years you do a lot of what I call "pre-grieving".  Don't feel guilty about it, but also be prepared that you may feel the loss further down the track.  I have found that there can be unexpected triggers by things totally out of the blue.  We don't get over a loss, we learn to live with it.

 

Keep taking care of yourself and good luck with your op.

Thanks! I spent about a week in NY (where he lived with my step mom) after his passing but haven't gone back since. It certainly could hit me harder once I go back in a few weeks. We're having a large memorial party in NY to celebrate his life. I guess this could bring up all sorts of feelings.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi Chance!

 

   I've been away too! It sounds all very bittersweet and raw, but you sound wonderful. My husband's father died suddenly but he (the father) was suffering for a long time from undiagnosed bipolar, which was causing all sorts of havoc in his life and in the family. It was terrible when he died, but wounds are healing now, and life is happening in a way it couldn't before. For me and my husband, it was a strange mix of horror, sadness, and total relief. I can relate to that funny feeling of relief that the pain is over for the person you've just lost, and the caregiving has come to an end. It sounds like your father was very lucky to have you. 

 

   I'm so impressed with your exercising!! Don't worry, your body will rebound from the surgery. How long will you be unable to exercise? I can't imagine so long that your new muscles will wave bye-bye. I think your improved fitness would take a long time to dismantle, since you've been working at it for so long. So happy to hear about that. Is your dog just thrilled?! Your taper also sounds completely heroic. 

 

   I agree with Chessie, things come back after a death. I'm amazed at that. I'd say try to be gentle with yourself, and courageous as it sounds like your dad was. Try to articulate or pinpoint the feelings. Sometimes my husband gets angry, and only after a petty argument do we realize it's because he was reminded of his sadness at losing his father, and that was all he had to say. 

 

   I've finally taken your lead and started slowly getting back into jogging. My life is going pretty awesomely, and it's all because I stopped using hormonal birth control (so sorry, I know, not appropriate conversation, apologies). Anyway it's been amazing not having fake hormones calling the shots around my body. I also think acupuncture has been really wonderful for me. Did you ever try it? Key to go to a community acupuncture place if you can, as they are cheaper so you feel like you have less to lose and it's not such a waste of time and money. 

 

    Great to run into you again! I need to update my signature but I was wondering how you were. Sounds like the answer is, you are abiding just fine : )). 

 

    All best thoughts to you. 

Found this site for real in 2015. Decided to taper slowly.

** I should mention that anytime I haven't been in a wave, I've felt pretty amazing! I only record the waves to look for patterns : ))**

50 mg Zoloft 6/2015, with intermittent fish oil

6/9/15 alternated 50 mg/37.5 mg - doc's idea (she meant well) 6/17 terrible morning anxiety and rumination, flu symptoms, and prickles in legs. 6/18 up to 45 mg liquid Zoloft. 6/26-29 cortisol mornings and bad anxiety. 6/30 started to take mag 100 mg and fish oil regularly with med 7/4 44 mg. 7/8 42.6 mg. 7/16 40 mg. 7/23 39 mg 8/1 32 mg (bad idea).

8/5 fatigue, anxiety, can't sleep, depressed. 8/7 36 mg resolved to be patient and try to keep to THE THREE KIS's. 8/13-15; 8/17- 23 painful physical and mental wave. Started light therapy 20 m in am. 8/25 34 mg, added 80-100 mg liquid mag during day. great window til 8/29 2 day down stretch 9/8 32.8 mg 9/11-14 wave added acupuncture 9/22 31.5 mg teeny wave 10/6 30 mg small grumpy wave 10/19 28.5, same pattern- small wave at day 5. A few tough weeks. Held around 29 until 11/18 when dropped to 28 mg; 11/22 the usual fluey fatigue. 11/30 27 mg 12/14 25.75ish mg "hold til Xmas club" (in my case New Years) Xmas was tough, kept holding: by 1/15, feeling good again. 1/25/16 Mirena IUD out after nearly six years- I think it was affecting my mood and taper- feeling super great! 2/2 down to 24 mg. symptoms much less severe. One day, not too bad wave on 2/8. 2/15 down to 20 mg from 24. A week later, two restless mornings and one morning of brain fog. 3/2 from 20 to 16 mg! Wish me luck.

 

Medicine History:

Currently tapering from 50mg Zoloft. Ten years of SSRI's including Celexa, Prozac and Zoloft, as well as a stretch with Wellbutrin added to the Zoloft. When I started on Zoloft (4 years ago?) I was on 100 but was able to taper down to 50 via 25 mg increments slowly around 2013. Have used light therapy and fish oil intermittently since around 2013. Have tried unsuccessfully to get off the meds since then in what I know now to be too large a taper (for example, jumped from 25 to 12.5 and that did not work). Motivated to do this slowly because that's the only way it will happen.

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  • 1 year later...

Hi everyone! Wow, it's been so long since I visited here. Things are going pretty well overall. Work is going well and I'm enjoying hobbies, especially photography. I wanted to update people on my medication status and ask a few questions. A few months ago, my primary care doctor and I increased my Celexa dose from 0.5 to 1.5 ml (equivalent of 1.0 to 3.0 mg). So it was still a low dose. I thought it would help with anxiety, and it may have, but I developed a bad hand tremor and just didn't feel right. I decided I wanted to just be off Celexa entirely. My doctor said I could just stop since I was on a low dose but I did it over about 3 weeks instead. I've been off Celexa for about 2 or 3 weeks now and I feel good. The hand tremor is gone too. (Well, I've always had a very mild hand tremor and technically, the tremor isn't gone - it's just returned to my baseline.)

 

My questions: I'd really like to get off Wellbutrin too. Do I need to give my brain more time to adjust to being off Celexa? I know there was another thread here on tapering Wellbutrin, and it seemed like that should not be as hard as tapering Celexa. How long are you supposed to go between tapering different drugs? I've been taking 100 mg twice a day for many years. This may sound trivial but I know you're not supposed to drink alcohol if you're on Wellbutrin and I'd like to be able to have a few drinks with my family over the winter holidays. Obviously that's not important enough to rush getting off of it though. Besides the alcohol interaction issue, I want to be off all psychiatric drugs eventually. Wellbutrin is the only official psychiatric drug I'm on although I still take a Benadryl at night and eventually would like to be off that. Also, can you remind me how to update my medication history in my signature? Thanks guys.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • ChessieCat changed the title to ChanceLucky: Antidepressant withdrawal, social anxiety, & pessimism
  • Moderator Emeritus

Chance - thanks for stopping by to let us know how you're doing and what you've been up to since April 2016.

 

There's no way of knowing how tapering Wellbutrin will compare to your experience of tapering Celexa. The information for most psych medications, including SSRIs like Celexa, advises NOT drinking alcohol while taking the drug.

 

Please update your signature to reflect the date you stopped taking Celexa and the last dose you were taking.

 

To answer your question about when to start tapering Wellbutrin, please answer these questions:

What are your symptoms now?

How have they changed since you stopped taking Celexa a few months ago?

 

 

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.
1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results

Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to  0.0 mg  Aug. 12; details here


scallywag's Introduction
Online spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet

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Thanks for writing back, Scally. Unfortunately, things seem to have taken a turn for the worse and I wanted some advice from you and others on the board. First, I’ll respond to what you wrote. I figured out how to update my signature and did so. Just to clarify: I’ve only been off Celexa for about 3 weeks (not months). I saw my primary care physician and he said it was WAY too soon to talk about tapering Wellbutrin. I was on Celexa and am on Wellbutrin for anxiety, especially worry, social anxiety, and health anxiety.

Basically, the past few days my mood has been lower and I’ve been worrying much more about little things and my hand tremor seems worse again. I’m starting to think I tapered the Celexa too fast. My doctor said I could just stop because I was on such a low dose (less than 10% of my previous long-term dose). I wanted to be a little more cautious but I probably still rushed it and I tapered in about 2 or 3 weeks. I’m wondering if I should just go back to the 0.5 ml and hopefully I return to where I was before. And then maybe I should just stabilize for a while. That seems like a risk too – I don’t know if that will make the hand tremor worse since it worsened when I went from 0.5 to 1.5 ml. Or maybe it will be better because it seemed to be minimal back when I used to be stabilized at 0.5 ml. I’m starting to think I shocked my nervous system when I increased to 1.5 and then again when I tapered too quickly and that both times, that worsened the tremor. Alternatively, now that I’m off the Celexa, I could give it a little more time and see if my nervous system adapts to this. I don’t know if that will happen or if things will get worse. I’ve been feeling down and anxious and had the hand tremor back for only a few days. I was doing pretty well up until then. So I’m not sure whether to wait or go back on the 0.5 ml dose. It almost seems like it might be impulsive to go back on now.

Just to be clear, this is the timeline for the tremor:
-Very mild tremor for as long as I can remember (at least since high school and I’m 38 now). Tremor stayed mild even when I was on a high dose of Celexa for many years as well as during my previous taper and low dose reinstatement
-Tremor worsened significantly when I increased from 0.5 to  1.5 ml (early summer).
-Tremor returned to my normal (very mild) when I tapered and stopped the Celexa (late July and early August)
-Tremor is worsening again (last few days)

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

 

Edited at 3:45 PM - Added that I was doing pretty well until the middle of this week. (Then anxiety and hand tremor hit me out of nowhere.)
 

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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On 2015/08/13 at 6:09 PM, Orangecat said:

Chiming in to say I am rooting for you!

Question: Does anyone know how Orangecat is doing? I always appreciated her support. I see she hasn't posted here since 2016.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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Well it's only been a couple of days but I haven't been this anxious and worried since back in 2015 when I went through AD withdrawal. I'm just flooded with anxiety. I'll probably wait until people respond but I'm thinking I should do the 0.5 ml reinstatement, and hopefully I will have caught this early enough. Hopefully I could then get back to where I was before and stabilize and eventually do a smarter, gradual taper. Any suggestions?

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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I took 0.2 ml last night and I am feeling a little bit better now. I'm starting to think that was an impulsive, poor decision though. I was like 90% sure I was beginning to experience AD withdrawal and wanted to stop it as soon as possible but now I'm thinking I should have waited until I was 100% sure. I hadn't felt as bad as I did Thurs and Fri since the last time I went through AD withdrawal and I was really scared. I'm not really sure if it's too early to know that this AD withdrawal and I should give it more time before a reinstatement - which would mean pretending I didn't do that one dose last night and just seeing what happens. OR if this is definitely AD withdrawal and I need to stop it as soon as possible by reinstating and then eventually do a smarter, slower taper. I'm really worried that I could struggle as much as I did in the 2nd half of 2015 when I was going through AD withdrawal. However, the fact that I had the bad hand tremor at 1.5 ml of Celexa makes me worry the drug might be doing something bad to my brain - maybe it's more subtle and I don't notice anything at 0.5 ml but it could still be doing something harmful and that would mean I'd be better off not being on it. My thoughts are basically all over the place. It seems like every possible decision is a gamble.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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What do YOU mean?

Many SSRI's and SSNRI's over 20 years. Zoloft for 7 years followed by Effexor, Lexapro, Prozac, Cymbalta, Celexa, Pristiq, Valdoxan, Mianserin and more - on and off. No tapering. Cold turkey off Valdoxan - end of May 2014

 

                                                  Psych Drug - free since May 2014
.
         

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7 minutes ago, AliG said:

What do YOU mean?

Hmmmm. I typed a lot of things in the past 24 hours. Was there one thing specifically that confused you?
I guess I'm just trying to figure out if I'm beginning to experience AD withdrawal and should do a low dose reinstatement now and eventually do a smarter, gradual taper.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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Ok. That's fine. Let's not argue. We are not at cross purposes here. How are you feeling now ?

Many SSRI's and SSNRI's over 20 years. Zoloft for 7 years followed by Effexor, Lexapro, Prozac, Cymbalta, Celexa, Pristiq, Valdoxan, Mianserin and more - on and off. No tapering. Cold turkey off Valdoxan - end of May 2014

 

                                                  Psych Drug - free since May 2014
.
         

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44 minutes ago, AliG said:

Ok. That's fine. Let's not argue. We are not at cross purposes here. How are you feeling now ?

Oh I definitely wasn't trying to be argumentative. I appreciate your taking the time to reply. Psychologically, I feel better than the previous 2 days. I'm not sure if that's because I did the low dose last night or not. I'm a bit worried that my hand tremor is still here though. It's not severe or disabling but it's enough that it's clearly visible at times and I think it might affect me during my major hobby (photography). I'm definitely still scared about the possibility of going through prolonged withdrawal like I did in 2015.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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The hand trembling may be one of the side effects of the drugs.

Are you ok?

 

 

Many SSRI's and SSNRI's over 20 years. Zoloft for 7 years followed by Effexor, Lexapro, Prozac, Cymbalta, Celexa, Pristiq, Valdoxan, Mianserin and more - on and off. No tapering. Cold turkey off Valdoxan - end of May 2014

 

                                                  Psych Drug - free since May 2014
.
         

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18 minutes ago, AliG said:

The hand trembling may be one of the side effects of the drugs.

Are you ok?

 

 

Today, I feel OK overall. It's not an emergency. I've had a minor hand tremor my whole life. Both when I increased the Celexa in June/early July and then after I tapered and was off it completely (Aug), the tremor was worse. The only time it returned to being minor was mid July when I was in the middle of the taper and at around 0.5 ml a day (which is what I had been on for a long time before this summer). I don't know if that's just a coincidence or if my brain needs to be on that amount for the time being because it had gotten used to that. I'm starting to think that a low dose reinstatement is a major decision though and I should give it a little more time off the drug and see what happens. 

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

It's been 1 ½ days since your post and 2 since your reinstatement. How are things going? What have you decided to do, Chance?

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.
1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results

Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to  0.0 mg  Aug. 12; details here


scallywag's Introduction
Online spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet

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10 hours ago, scallywag said:

It's been 1 ½ days since your post and 2 since your reinstatement. How are things going? What have you decided to do, Chance?

Thanks for asking. I felt a little better after the reinstatement but not normal and then felt much worse Sunday - just really anxious, worrying, and tense. I decided to go back on the 0.5 ml dose. So I took that yesterday and again today. I actually think I'm going to just stabilize on that for now and then reassess things later. Hopefully I haven't shocked my nervous system too badly too many times. I do feel significantly better right now though not quite back to normal.

 

Edit: I updated my signature now to reflect these changes.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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I was doing nicely until mid morning today, and then anxiety and worry hit me out of nowhere. It was like I was back to where I was before the low dose reinstatement and I seem to have gotten slightly worse throughout the day. I forced myself to get out and do the one thing that always gives me joy and fulfillment (photography). I still enjoyed that but when I'm not keeping busy/distracted, I'm not feeling good. I'm not bed-ridden or in need of urgent care - I don't want to alarm people. But my baseline mood (when not distracted) is just way off. I think this is worse than in 2015 when I went through AD withdrawal. I guess with the number of Celexa changes, my body is in shock right now. I'm hoping this is temporary and hoping this doesn't mean the low dose reinstatement is going to fail.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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Well I got home and relaxed a bit. I still don't feel right but I'm in a better state than I was a couple of hours ago.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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Update: The tremor is still here but my mood has been much better and I'm enjoying life. I'm hoping my brain will adapt to all the changes and the tremor will go away with time. But I'm just glad to be enjoying life again.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

Chance, symptoms can fluctuate during the day when on medication, when tapering medication, when off medication, when never having taken medication.  It's good that you're noticing them and not letting them run you. Good to read that things are generally enjoyable/good in your life.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.
1997-1999 Effexor; 2002-2005 Effexor XR 37.5 mg linear taper, dropping same #beads/week with bad results

Cymbalta 60 mg 2012 - 2015; 2016: 20 mg to 7 mg exact doses and dates in this post; 2017: 6.3 mg to  0.0 mg  Aug. 12; details here


scallywag's Introduction
Online spreadsheet for dose taper calculations and nz11's THE WORKS spreadsheet

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5 hours ago, scallywag said:

Chance, symptoms can fluctuate during the day when on medication, when tapering medication, when off medication, when never having taken medication.  It's good that you're noticing them and not letting them run you. Good to read that things are generally enjoyable/good in your life.

That is a great point you've made. Sometimes it seems like my tremor is gone and I'm back to normal. Then sometimes it's here. I love how you've put that. I think it's something I should just let go of and allow whatever happens to happen. It's not interfering with my life in any way.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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I've been feeling pretty good overall. Tremor is back to my normal (meaning just the mild tremor I've had my whole life). I'm going to just keep all my medication doses the same for at least 2 months.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Bad news. About a week ago, my hand tremor began to return and it seemed my concentration was not as good as normal. Last week it was pretty mild, and I thought I was just imagining it, though. That was until yesterday when the tremor was much worse. I realize now that my concentration while driving and watching TV is not as good as normal and I’m worried about the driving. I feel slightly disoriented too. I recall now that I was having these symptoms back earlier in the summer when I increased the Celexa dose too. It wasn’t just the hand tremor that I mentioned before. I seemed to have totally blocked out these symptoms. Gosh, I had bad symptoms when the Celexa was increased, and again when I stopped the Celexa (though I only stopped briefly), and now back on the original dose I was on before the start of the summer. I’m at a loss and I’m scared. I’ll call my doctor tomorrow though I’m pretty sure he’ll just say that I should immediately stop the Celexa and he’ll want to start me on a new drug. I don’t want a new drug. I just want to feel back to how I was a few months ago before I changed the Celexa dose. I didn’t realize how good I had it.

 

I fear it's a bad sign that these symptoms returned after 3 to 4 weeks on the new dose. I would have thought this would be when my body was adjusting to the new dose not reacting badly to it.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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Wow, I'm having disequilibrium/unsteadiness. It's not quite the same as dizziness. I'm still able to walk around but it's getting worse rapidly. Do some people have symptoms like this develop during low dose reinstatement and then the brain adjusts? What happens if low dose reinstatement is causing bad symptoms? Do you still have to taper very slowly?

Edited by ChanceLucky
Added more detail

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

I would advise holding steady and not making any rash decisions. Just floating with the symptoms. As unpleasant as they are, they are not going to harm you.

 

But going after quick fixes to eliminate them might. The symptoms are very often not dose related but more a response of our brain to destabilisation.

 

Therefore keeping things as stable as possible is the best way out.

 

If we want to get off this drug merry go round we must learn to tolerate and put up with symptoms even if it means not being fully functional for a while.

 

I would look into ways of easing things for myself. Take a time off if possible, avoid driving, doing things which are pleasant, greater focus on yourself, etc.

 

Monitor your symptoms for a few days. Make a log of them in relation to when you are taking your drugs. This way we will get a symptom pattern which will suggest a course of action.

 

I'm typing from my phone so can't see if there is a log of how tou tapered Celexa. Maybe it got too fast and maybe tremor was a WD symptom. Stopping it caused things to get even worse mid term.

 

Recovery is not linear. So it is perfectly normal to experience this kind of a wave.

 

In any case keeping a log of your symptoms will tell us more.

 

Are you practicing any non-drug copying skills: breathing exercises, meditation, yoga or something like that? You mention your original anxiety. Have you tried any kind of therapy for it or some other non-drug ways of coping?

Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2

2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013)

Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 
1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg.
2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg
went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days after
reinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours
28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr  2015 1 mg,  25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64  Xanax     9 month hold

24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26

Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic 

I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. 

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2 hours ago, bubble said:

I would advise holding steady and not making any rash decisions. Just floating with the symptoms. As unpleasant as they are, they are not going to harm you.

 

But going after quick fixes to eliminate them might. The symptoms are very often not dose related but more a response of our brain to destabilisation.

 

Therefore keeping things as stable as possible is the best way out.

 

If we want to get off this drug merry go round we must learn to tolerate and put up with symptoms even if it means not being fully functional for a while.

 

I would look into ways of easing things for myself. Take a time off if possible, avoid driving, doing things which are pleasant, greater focus on yourself, etc.

 

Monitor your symptoms for a few days. Make a log of them in relation to when you are taking your drugs. This way we will get a symptom pattern which will suggest a course of action.

 

I'm typing from my phone so can't see if there is a log of how tou tapered Celexa. Maybe it got too fast and maybe tremor was a WD symptom. Stopping it caused things to get even worse mid term.

 

Recovery is not linear. So it is perfectly normal to experience this kind of a wave.

 

In any case keeping a log of your symptoms will tell us more.

 

Are you practicing any non-drug copying skills: breathing exercises, meditation, yoga or something like that? You mention your original anxiety. Have you tried any kind of therapy for it or some other non-drug ways of coping?

Thanks. I am feeling a little better now. I don't know if that's because it's been like 8 or 9 hours since I took the Celexa. No problem about not seeing my signature. I'm just glad to get some support. I actually have a 20 year history with SSRIs.

I mostly do physical exercise and talk therapy for my anxiety. I have a very understanding therapist. 

I've done breathing exercises/meditation on and off. I really should stick to them better. I'm going to try.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

You see :) That's exactly what I meant! People often come here in near panic about a symptom and want to do something, just anything to make it go away. Unfortunately such desperate measures just make things worse.

 

All we have to do is wait patiently and it will go away. It frequently comes back and then we wait again and then it gradually loses its power and disappears. That's why we call symptoms during the stabilization process waves. 

 

Breathing exercises and meditation work wonders if applied with discipline. I also start slacking when I'm doing better. But hopefully with time we will make it a habit. It's so very powerful. It literally causes (positive) changes in our brain structure making us more resilient. 

 

I hope you continue to improve but give it time. I can usually see where things went wrong by looking at a signature where tapering is logged. Something obviously went wrong when you increased from 0.5 to 1.5.. 

 

You should be able to stabilize on 0.5 mg but it will take time and symptoms will come and go. 

 

Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2

2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013)

Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 
1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg.
2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg
went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days after
reinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours
28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr  2015 1 mg,  25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64  Xanax     9 month hold

24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26

Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic 

I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. 

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I am reading this and I am hopeful that there are other methods to deal with anxiety that will really work. I recently started CBT and it has been helping. Also Mindfulness Stress reduction.

-D

2001- Klonopin 0.125 mg.  2011- increase to 1 mg.  2018- increase to 1.5 mg 

2010- Trials of SSRI's, several.

2011- Saphris 5 mg. CT. 6/2017- retry Saphris 5 mg sublingual, begin taper August 2020 10% taper with scale, and final taper liquid sublingual, August 2019- taper complete!

2011- Geodon 20 mg. Begin taper Sept 2019. 10% liquid taper. 2020: December-5 mg. 2021: Jan-4.5mg. (held Feb.for vacation). March-4mg. Apr-3.6mg. May-3.2mg. June-2.8mg. (Held July for vacation). Aug-2.4mg. Sept.- 2.2mg. Oct. 2mg. Dec 2022 - Taper complete!

2011- Gabapentin 300 mg to present- 2020. Increase 2023 to 400mg.

2014- Vyvanse 20 mg, 2020- Vyvanse 5 mg. Increase August 2022 20mg

2016- Lithium 300 mg, June 2016 - FT.

2017- Cogentin 0.5 mg. June-August 2019- off Cogentin.

2021 - Hydroxyzine 30mg. Holding.

Omeprazole 20 mg and holding, Omega 3's/fish oil, Magnesium

 

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1 hour ago, bubble said:

You see :) That's exactly what I meant! People often come here in near panic about a symptom and want to do something, just anything to make it go away. Unfortunately such desperate measures just make things worse.

 

All we have to do is wait patiently and it will go away. It frequently comes back and then we wait again and then it gradually loses its power and disappears. That's why we call symptoms during the stabilization process waves. 

 

Breathing exercises and meditation work wonders if applied with discipline. I also start slacking when I'm doing better. But hopefully with time we will make it a habit. It's so very powerful. It literally causes (positive) changes in our brain structure making us more resilient. 

 

I hope you continue to improve but give it time. I can usually see where things went wrong by looking at a signature where tapering is logged. Something obviously went wrong when you increased from 0.5 to 1.5.. 

 

You should be able to stabilize on 0.5 mg but it will take time and symptoms will come and go. 

 

Thanks for sharing the link. I looked at it a little now and will look more carefully later. Honestly, I'm having a lot of pessimistic thoughts right now. After about 6 or 8 weeks, I didn't adapt to the 1.5 ml. My pessimism thinks that means my brain can't adapt to changes but hopefully with a lot of time I will be able to adapt to the 0.5 dose I was on before. I'm just hoping I didn't damage my brain too much. I was reading that not everyone who goes through AD withdrawal does get better though I think/hope it would be a rare exception if that was the case.

I guess I'm functioning OK right now in the sense that I can walk my dog, type, and most likely work. I really hope it doesn't get worse. I don't feel I should drive right now because my equilibrium/balance and my attention are not consistent. They're not terrible though. I'm scared but I'm also thankful I'm doing adequately right now.

I don't know how relevant this is but my dad actually had a rare balance disorder unrelated to psychiatric medication. At times I'm feeling like my balance is a little off (that's what I mean by equilibrium). I'm hoping and assuming that that is just a coincidence and this is just a temporary antidepressant withdrawal issue for me. He had a rare devastating neurological disorder (spinocerebellar ataxia).

Edited by ChanceLucky

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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  • Moderator Emeritus

After everything, 8 weeks is not such a long time and as you say, you are not doing so bad.

 

Maybe you could have that balance disorder checked just in case.

Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2

2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013)

Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 
1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg.
2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg
went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days after
reinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours
28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr  2015 1 mg,  25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64  Xanax     9 month hold

24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26

Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic 

I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. 

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  • Moderator Emeritus
14 hours ago, DMV64 said:

I am reading this and I am hopeful that there are other methods to deal with anxiety that will really work. I recently started CBT and it has been helping. Also Mindfulness Stress reduction.

-D

 

Thank you for reaching out DMV and great that you are doing CBT and mindfulness stress reduction. There are a lot f ideas here:

 

 

Even if we get off our drugs but don't learn how to cope with our symptoms without them we haven't done much. Withdrawal is an ideal time to learn just that and acquire some habits and practices out of sheer necessity which will aid us the whole life. 

Current: 9/2022 Xanax 0.08, Lexapro 2

2020 Xanax 0.26 (down from 2 mg in 2013), Lexapro 2.85 mg (down from 5 mg 2013)

Amitriptyline (tricyclic AD) and clonazepam for 3 months to treat headache in 1996 
1999. - present Xanax prn up to 3 mg.
2000-2005 Prozac CT twice, 2005-2010 Zoloft CT 3 times, 2010-2013 Escitalopram 10 mg
went from 2.5 to zero on 7 Aug 2013, bad crash 40 days after
reinstated to 5 mg Escitalopram 4Oct 2013 and holding liquid Xanax every 5 hours
28 Jan 2014 Xanax 1.9, 18 Apr  2015 1 mg,  25 June 2015 Lex 4.8, 6 Aug Lexapro 4.6, 1 Jan 2016 0.64  Xanax     9 month hold

24 Sept 2016 4.5 Lex, 17 Oct 4.4 Lex (Nov 0.63 Xanax, Dec 0.625 Xanax), 1 Jan 2017 4.3 Lex, 24 Jan 4.2, 5 Feb 4.1, 24 Mar 4 mg, 10 Apr 3.9 mg, May 3.85, June 3.8, July 3.75, 22 July 3.7, 15 Aug 3.65, 17 Sept 3.6, 1 Jan 2018 3.55, 19 Jan 3.5, 16 Mar 3.4, 14 Apr 3.3, 23 May 3.2, 16 June 3.15, 15 Jul 3.1, 31 Jul 3, 21 Aug 2.9 26 Sept 2.85, 14 Nov Xan 0.61, 1 Dec 0.59, 19 Dec 0.58, 4 Jan 0.565, 6 Feb 0.55, 20 Feb 0.535, 1 Mar 0.505, 10 Mar 0.475, 14 Mar 0.45, 4 Apr 0.415, 13 Apr 0.37, 21 Apr 0.33, 29 Apr 0.29, 10 May 0.27, 17 May 0.25, 28 May 0.22, 19 June 0.22, 21 Jun updose to 0.24, 24 Jun updose to 0.26

Supplements: Omega 3 + Vit E, Vit C, D, magnesium, Taurine, probiotic 

I'm not a medical professional. Any advice I give is based on my own experience and reading. 

Link to comment

Those are great resources, Bubble. I'm feeling a little better but my lack of attention and concentration are worrying me. I'm often just staring and not really paying attention to things. I'm not sure if I'd say it's making me drowsy or just "out of it."

I'm wondering if I should try taking the Celexa at night instead of in the morning. Maybe these effects would partly wear off by the morning. I do feel a little better (but not normal) in the morning before I've taken my Celexa dose. There are two reasons I'm not sure about switching to night, though. First, it would be another change my body would have to adjust to. And second, I already take Benadryl at night. If the Celexa is also making me drowsy or out of it, I'm wondering if the two together could have a bad effect. Drugs.com says there's a moderate risk of a bad interaction between the two (drowsiness and lack of concentration). I may already be experiencing this interaction actually, even though I don't think I did in the past. I'm wondering if the interaction could be worse or even dangerous if I take the two together.

-I was on an SSRI (most recently Celexa at 40mg/day) for about 15 years for anxiety. I tapered off over about 8 months and in 2015 and had worsened anxiety and well-being once off it. In the fall of 2015 (I believe) I did a low dose reinstatement and was doing better. I stayed on roughly 1 ml (2 mg) for a while but eventually lowered it to .5 ml and was on this for a long time.

-Around late mid May (2017) my anxiety was worse and I increased the Celexa to 1.5 ml. At first, I felt significantly better but I developed a hand tremor. I also was having some attention and concentration difficulties. In mid July (over about 2 weeks) I tapered off of the Celexa and was off it for about 2 1/2 weeks before I started to feel an intense increase in anxiety and my hand tremor returned.

-Aug 13, 2017 I did a low dose reinstatement of 0.5 ml a day and am currently still taking that. Initial response is good.

-Early September 2017 to present - hand tremor returns and attention and concentration are impaired. Feeling of unbalance/unsteadiness from using treadmill. Mild changes to sexual performance too.

-Sept 18, 2017: 0.4 ml Celexa. Everything is generally improving although hand tremor is worse. Attention, concentration, and anxiety are good.

-I am also on Wellbutrin (200 mg/day) for anxiety and take a Benadryl at night for sleep and allergies. Eventually I'd like to be off everything.

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9730-chancelucky-antidepressant-withdrawal-social-anxiety-pessimism/

 

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