SSRI support group - tapering while on benzo's or after recovery

[[Gr...]]

It was really a combination of the Maxalt and the Pristiq.  The Maxalt comes with a warning about seretonin syndrome, and I had taken it before and come out okay, in fact, I honestly was just lucky, and I think I may have had seretonin syndrome before and just not known that was what it was.  Also, I was taking a vicodin cough medicine the same week it happened, and I think that may have also played a part.  It was really crazy.

[Guest [Kp...]]

Big shout to all those on SSRIs -- either tapering or not.

 

I am closing the end of my benzo taper. My taper has been quick and trouble free. I think I have to thank my SSRI for completely camouflaging my benzo withdrawal. I will not commence a taper of my SSRI (fluoxetine) till  after a year of healing from benzo-withdrawal. In any case, I will taper mirtazapine first (before fluoxetine).

 

What are you taking?

 

p.s. SSRIs saved my life!

[[Pa...]]

Hi Kpin,

 

I'm 6 months off Benzos. I'm far better than when I was on them but have had some really bad days. 3 months ago I switched from Zoloft to Effexor and I take Trazedone at bed time. I had a really good first month on Effexor but I was on a low dose and maybe the Zoloft was still in my system. Since then it hasn't been as good but I'm still getting some good days and last week I had 10 straight days of feeling good.

 

I've also been trying CBD Oil for the last three weeks. I stopped today because for the last three days my nervousness, anxiety and shaking got really bad. I think it's either the CBD building in my system and causing this or the CBD interacting with the Effexor.

 

Here the problem, it's hard for me to know what's working and what's not. I agree with your approach. Don't make any changes to your SSRI's for at a year

[[bl...]]

I just started lexapro because I can’t take the way benzo w/d has turned me into a hypochondriac. It’s been a rough start so I cut dose and plan to go up gradually to where it’s working and not just making me feel sick. Sounds like many people found help with SsRI’s through this process and I’m not completely stupid to add another drug? Never been on an AD. Anyway, just feeling weird about adding I guess but I need a bet. I guess it’s ok.

[Guest [Kp...]]

Hi Bluepill,

 

I have noticed there are two types of people here (and I have been here for 5 years) -- those who hate SSRIs and those who love them. I do not think there is any one who is in the middle of this continuum. : ) I think what this means is that either SSRIs work outrageously for one, or they induce a very bad reaction. I belong to the camp that benefited from SSRIs. I was in tolerance withdrawal last year when I started prozac. It was not the first time that I was starting an SSSRI, so I knew roughly what to expect. My tolerance withdrawal was bad (as bad as acute cold turkey) and prozac, for two weeks, made it even worse. But after two weeks I got such sweet relief that I was able to taper my benzo, over 7 months, without any withdrawals whatsoever!

 

So, if this your first time with an SSRI, the only advice I could give is -- fasten your seat belt and give it at least two weeks to show what it can do (if it is able to do anything at all!).

[[bl...]]

Thanks you, Kpin! I think you are dead on!!!

[[Pa...]]

I found that two weeks is not enough time to see the benefits of an SSRI or SNRI. I've tried different AD's over the years and some have worked and others haven't. How fast they help and how long they last depends on where your CNS is and how much stress you have in your life.

[Guest [Kp...]]

I found that two weeks is not enough time to see the benefits of an SSRI or SNRI. I've tried different AD's over the years and some have worked and others haven't. How fast they help and how long they last depends on where your CNS is and how much stress you have in your life.

 

I agree. Two weeks is the minimum you need to give for it to see effect. A more conservative approach would necessitate a month to a maximum of two. 

[[Ba...]]

I have been put on paxil because my great docters didn't understand I was in withdrawl from ativan, And thought it would help 

 

I have been on it 5 weeks but my depression seems to be getting worse and so does my anxiety. Basically its doing nothing but bad things and even makes me think very dark thoughts. I want off this stuff Asap

 

First week 10mg

4 weeks 20mg

 

Today I am back on 10mg on docs advise because she said I used short term and can get of quick.

 

What do you guys think?

 

Wish I could just flush the stuff but that could be a bad idea. What would be smart after 5 weeks use?

 

 

[Guest [Kp...]]

BattleGaba, I am sorry paxil did not work out for you. In my opinion, your doctor did the right thing weaning you off it. I do not think you will get any withdrawals from such short use -- it is considered very rare.

[[Ba...]]

What should my taper be after 5 weeks use of Paxil?

[Guest [Kp...]]

BattleGaba, I think your doctor has a sensible plan. Going down from 20 to 10 sounds fine. If you are going to have any difficulty, you should see it tomorrow. If you have no difficulty then perhaps you can carry on with 10% every few days and keep watching your symptoms. If you feel something is wrong, you can always hold.

 

My doc. had started me on lamictal last year. Lamictal has to be titrated up (standard protocol to study if patient is developing skin rashes). I went from 25 to 50 to 100 mg in a month. After two months my doc told me to stop it because lamictal had failed on me. I went down to 50 in one day and then got off totally in 3 days as per her instructions. I had read up lamictal withdrawal experiences by members here  -- most members suffered deathly depressions sustained over a couple of weeks. But I thought since my use was short, I would, unlike long term users here, have a very short and mild withdrawal. I ended up getting no withdrawals.

 

So take your chance with 10% and watch your body and mind. : ) But don't get paranoid!

[[Ba...]]

Thank you Kpin99 !!

[Guest [Kp...]]

BattleGaba, how did the day go? How are you feeling now? second day on 10 mg, right?

[[...]]

BattleGaba, I am sorry paxil did not work out for you. In my opinion, your doctor did the right thing weaning you off it. I do not think you will get any withdrawals from such short use -- it is considered very rare.

 

Kpin, I would be careful making such comments. I am not currently apt to write an eloquent reply but we know very little about antidepressant withdrawal and it seems that it can be as bad or even worse than benzo-withdrawal, depending on people. Short term use does not mean easy to come off of it!!

 

As always with psychiatric drugs, proceed with caution and do not take one person's word for it. Don't take my word either, check check check, discuss discuss discuss... this is your health and sanity!

[[ga...]]

I'm only 2 mo 3 weeks off of benzos and need to taper Cymbalta.  I am having horrible anxiety, depression, fear, terror & insomnia from benzo withdrawal.  Any idea how long after a benzo taper it's advisable to start the SNRI taper?  I think the Cymbalta is very activating and making me revved up.  But the benzo withdrawal symptoms are terrible and I'm afraid to further destabilize my CNS.

[Guest [Kp...]]

This is a very good question. In almost all cases that I have seen here, folks have gotten worse after tapering their SSRI, no matter how bad they were prior to tapering their SSRI. It does feel, after a benzo taper, that if one is slow to recover, then it must be the SSRI holding one back. Also, reinstatement seldom works. Nobody knows exactly what is going on though. Check out member Vaartist or pm him -- this happened to him 3 months go with cymbalta.

 

[[Ba...]]

KPIN

 

Sorry for late reply, back to 10 mg was a non issue, actually felt MUCH better. No more bad thoughts, less anxiety just felt almost normal

 

Now im down to 5 mgs and anxiety is rising again. I think I will just keep reducing or just quit.

 

Other option would be to hold on 10mgs.

 

I also dropped a little on my lorazepam when I had my good days which maybe was a little too much altogether. I am down to 4mgs daily from 4.3.

 

Anxiety just sucks so bad, but my guess I was just in a window and now back into a wave.

 

Would you recommend holding on 10mgs of paxil.

 

I just dont know what is causing this spike in anxiety

 

-the drop in benzo

-drop in paxil

-or just entering another wave

[[ga...]]

I'd like to hear experiences from anyone who tapered an AD after the benzo....how long did you wait and what was it like?

[[ga...]]

Anyone?

[[Pa...]]

Hi Gardenlady,

 

I'm 7 months off Benzos and about a month ago I started to taper down my Trazadone. This was prescribed for sleeping but also to help to go along with my main AD. As I've started to sleep a little better I decided that it may be good for me to get off of Trazadone as it could be making worse in terms of my anxiety and nervousness. I've taken it down from 100mg to now at 50mg. I've noticed that it hasn't effected my sleep and I'm still sleeping through the night mostly. I plan to go down taper completely down over the next 30 days.

 

After a month or two, I will assess if i want to taper down from Effexor. BTW, the only reason I want to get off of these is because I suspect they may not be helping and actually making feel worse.

 

Regarding the Benzo withdrawal, this is going pretty well. I am getting more and more windows now and my mind is clearer. I still have some bad days which I think is because my CNS is hyper sensitive so the littlest stress could set me off. This is where we need time to heal.

[[ga...]]

Thanks for responding, PaulMar.  From what I understand, Cymbalta and Effexor are very similar and both hard to get off of.  I'm proud of you for tapering the Trazadone.  I took it for a short time a few years ago and a doctor c/t'ed m off of it and I had zero withdrawal from it.  It didn't help me a bit.  I'm afraid that the Cymbalta is activating and making my anxiety worse, but concerned that tapering it might be a mess as I'm already in benzo withdrawal. 

 

I have tinnitus, insomnia, black, chemical depression, anxiety, fear, terror...all of which I've had since I jumped and all sxs are intensifying.  I wish I knew what to do.  It's very scary.

[[Pa...]]

Hi Gardenlady,

 

Have you tried Gabapentin? I know you don't want to introduce another med but this one has helped me a little. I took it last Tuesday when i was feeling just like you and it helped enough that I had 4 good days. I only took 200mg and I won't take it every day because it will stop working. I took it again 1.5 hours ago and it has given some relief. I had a really awful morning also feeling depression, anxiety, shakiness, heavy breathing and couldn't catch my breath. I feel a little better now and I think I will keep getting better as the day goes on.

 

Today I also increased my Effexor to 225mg because I believe I need to be at 225 or 262.5 to start getting anxiety relief.

[[ga...]]

PaulMar, I hate to see you adding to your Effexor dosage....I'm afraid it will come back to bite you.  From all that others have reported, nothing really helps anxiety in the long run and adding pills only makes it worse down the road.  And Effexor is one of the most difficult AD's to get off of.

 

Of course, you know what it right for you, but for what it's worth, you may want to do a lot of investigating before taking more Effexor or Gabapentin.  Gabapentin never worked for me, and it's also hard to taper once you become dependent on it.  Just a word of caution.

[[Pa...]]

Gardenlady - I'm afraid I also need Effexor for Depression. Before I developed anxiety I had mild depression. I didn't take anything for it but the anxiety came after. I started taking AD's and benzos when I started getting anxiety on a daily bases. To be honest I'm not sure if the AD's made my anxiety worse but they did help my depression.

 

I was on Effexor from 2013 to 2016 and they didn't help me until I got to 225 and eventually to 262.5. I was told that for anxiety you have to be at the higher level.

 

I'm mostly guessing at everything but my plan is to use the Effexor to stabilize and get off of everything else. Eventually I will get off of the Effexor. I won't take Gabapentin every day but use it as a rescue med. It's really hard for me.