Board index › General Discussion › Bipolar, Tourettes, Schizophrenia, and other Psychological Conditions

Tried to stop antidepressants

Page 3 of 4 [ 56 posts ]  Go to page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4  Next

Previous topic | Next topic

Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

07 Oct 2024, 11:32 am

Carbonhalo wrote:
There may be benefits to switching to a DNRI antidepressant.(Bupropion)
Possible weight loss instead of gain.
Minimal sexual dysfunction.
The downside is it takes a while to be able to sleep again after starting.

If you're already on an SSRI or tri/tetracyclic you will still have to taper from serotonin, and simultaneous administration is frowned upon. (But they let me)


Thank you for sharing! I had tried Buproprion in the past but didn't stay on it too long and didn't give it enough of a chance. I might have to try it again :)



steve30
Velociraptor
Velociraptor

User avatar

Joined: 16 Feb 2007
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Posts: 449
Location: Rotherham

06 Nov 2024, 2:06 am

Just wondering, how is the anti-depressant withdrawal going?



Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 2:13 am

Hi Steve! Hope you've been doing well! It's actually funny you should ask but it didn't go very well. I appreciate you asking! I tried cutting down to 12.5 mg of Paxil and then using 10 mg of Prozac but I ended up getting badly sick. I ended up going to 25 mg of Paxil and have been at that level for about maybe a month or so. I was feeling pretty good this week so I thought "Why don't I try to cut it down to 12.5 mg instead. I think I can do this somehow". It was a bad idea and ended up getting a severe panic attack tonight. I could feel my heart speeding up which was awful. It's finally calmed down now after taking 2 doses of Ativan and taking 25 mg of Paxil. I had talked to my Doctor last week and he said that I should just stay where I'm at for right now. As much as I hate the idea he's right. I can't tolerate coming off at least with a large drop.

I talked about the idea of a liquid taper of Paxil but he thinks there might be more side effects with that. I am going to take him at his word and just try to stay the course for now. It kind of depresses me because I really want to be off but I have to accept I have to take the 25 mg dosage.



Jakki
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Sep 2019
Gender: Female
Posts: 12,845
Location: Outter Quadrant

06 Nov 2024, 7:24 am

Very sorry to hear of your situation at this point, please feel better . And perhaps try not to give up on the fight to get control of your health issues .


_________________
Diagnosed hfa
Loves velcro,
Quote:
where ever you go ,there you are


Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 11:46 am

Thank you, Jakki! I appreciate it :)



blitzkrieg
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 8 Jun 2011
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Posts: 20,189

06 Nov 2024, 1:42 pm

Coming off of any anti-depressant is hard, best wishes to you Brian with your wish to be less reliant on these medications.



Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 6:35 pm

Thank you, Blitzkrieg! I appreciate it very much :)



PhosphorusDecree
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 3 May 2016
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,628
Location: Yorkshire, UK

06 Nov 2024, 6:40 pm

A while back, I was put on a higher dose that turned out to actually make things worse. While waiting to be put back on the lower dose, I got hold of a pill cutter and literally just cut the pills into quarters and took 3/4 a day.


_________________
You're so vain
I bet you think this sig is about you


blitzkrieg
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 8 Jun 2011
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Posts: 20,189

06 Nov 2024, 7:00 pm

Brian0787 wrote:
Thank you, Blitzkrieg! I appreciate it very much :)


No worries! :)



steve30
Velociraptor
Velociraptor

User avatar

Joined: 16 Feb 2007
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Posts: 449
Location: Rotherham

06 Nov 2024, 8:53 pm

Brian0787 wrote:
Hi Steve! Hope you've been doing well! It's actually funny you should ask but it didn't go very well. I appreciate you asking! I tried cutting down to 12.5 mg of Paxil and then using 10 mg of Prozac but I ended up getting badly sick. I ended up going to 25 mg of Paxil and have been at that level for about maybe a month or so. I was feeling pretty good this week so I thought "Why don't I try to cut it down to 12.5 mg instead. I think I can do this somehow". It was a bad idea and ended up getting a severe panic attack tonight. I could feel my heart speeding up which was awful. It's finally calmed down now after taking 2 doses of Ativan and taking 25 mg of Paxil. I had talked to my Doctor last week and he said that I should just stay where I'm at for right now. As much as I hate the idea he's right. I can't tolerate coming off at least with a large drop.

I talked about the idea of a liquid taper of Paxil but he thinks there might be more side effects with that. I am going to take him at his word and just try to stay the course for now. It kind of depresses me because I really want to be off but I have to accept I have to take the 25 mg dosage.


That's a shame you ended up ill. Lets hope you can have another go sometime. I'm curious as to why a liquid taper would introduce more side effects. I'd have thought it would probably take longer to come off it, but probably will less severe effects.



mjb4321
Hummingbird
Hummingbird

User avatar

Joined: 30 Sep 2018
Age: 33
Gender: Male
Posts: 21

06 Nov 2024, 9:36 pm

what about stopping antipsychotics like abilify maintena.



Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 10:31 pm

steve30 wrote:
That's a shame you ended up ill. Lets hope you can have another go sometime. I'm curious as to why a liquid taper would introduce more side effects. I'd have thought it would probably take longer to come off it, but probably will less severe effects.


Thank you, Steve! I was curious too and asked my Doctor why there would be more side effects with the liquid. I think he said it has to do with the absorption rate. I am tempted to give it a shot as I'm not how else to go about it. The one other thing I could maybe do is directly switch from Paxil to Lexapro and then try to taper off Lexapro instead. Lexapro has a slightly longer half-life I think. I am hoping one of those methods would possibly work.



Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 10:35 pm

mjb4321 wrote:
what about stopping antipsychotics like abilify maintena.


Stopping antipsychotics I think can cause some severe issues if not tapered. I was put on a low dose of Abilify in 2019 when I was inpatient at a facility and ended up stopping it cold turkey. The next week I had very bad akathesia in my legs and it felt like I had to keep moving them. It was horrible. I also got very bad panic attacks and think it was related to this.



Jakki
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Sep 2019
Gender: Female
Posts: 12,845
Location: Outter Quadrant

06 Nov 2024, 11:29 pm

Titrate the dosage please....just chip off a piece of a pill then take the rest of the whole pill. for at least two weeks.?
then chip off bigger piece after two weeks ....and so on and so on . often tranquilizers of some sort can help with withdrawels .... And the tranq does not have to be a prescription..So consider some otc herbs from healthfood store
Valerian root ..passion flower, Skullcap, or even lower level in a tea ,such as chamomile. (just a thought ..not intended as medical advise ) Just incase you choose to go that route . :mrgreen: .


_________________
Diagnosed hfa
Loves velcro,
Quote:
where ever you go ,there you are


Brian0787
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Aug 2024
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,415
Location: Pennsylvania, United States

06 Nov 2024, 11:32 pm

Jakki wrote:
Titrate the dosage please....just chip off a piece of a pill then take the rest of the whole pill. for at least two weeks.?
then chip off bigger piece after two weeks ....and so on and so on . often tranquilizers of some sort can help with withdrawels .... And the tranq does not have to be a prescription..So consider some otc herbs from healthfood store
Valerian root ..passion flower, Skullcap, or even lower level in a tea ,such as chamomile. (just a thought ..not intended as medical advise ) Just incase you choose to go that route . :mrgreen: .



Thank you, Jakki! I will have to see if I can take a chip off the extended release pills I take. I think I seen you couldn't cut them but will call my local pharmacist and ask. It would be nice if I could try it :)



czarsmom
Pileated woodpecker
Pileated woodpecker

User avatar

Joined: 17 Aug 2011
Age: 64
Gender: Female
Posts: 183
Location: midwestern USA

05 Jan 2025, 2:32 pm

There is a forum just for safe tapering off of antidepressants, and other psych drugs.

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org

The people there will teach you how to taper off properly, and walk you through it. Many people have gotten off successfully, including myself. I was on Paxil, then Lexapro for 15 years, and finished tapering off over 2 years ago.


_________________
Czarsmom