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Mental Health (Expert Forum)
Paxil withdrawl Zaps
Answered by
Roger Gould, M.D. - Mental Health, Wellness
Questions posted in the Mental Health forum are being answered by Dr. Roger L. Gould, author of the Mastering Stress and Depression program and affiliated with the UCLA. Department of Psychiatry. Topics covered include anger, attention deficit disorder (ADD), bipolar disorder, dementia, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), learning disabilities, memory, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic, personality disorders, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, stress, transitions, and work problems.
Paxil withdrawl Zaps
by nirvanagurl, Dec 20, 2001 12:00AM
I went off Paxil just like my doctor told me by tapering and then slowly going off of it, I began having what I would call brain hiccups but I have now begun calling zaps, My head above my eyes tightens, thoughts freeze and I hear a zzp or a swish in my head ..It does this alot off and on, I am on month two, all my other complaints are gone except I am still having head zaps, after thinking I was dying of a brain tumour and going to the er to be tested and finding nothing, I came on the internet and boom found other ppl with the same thing and all had just stopped using paxil either cold turkey or with tapering, I have counted the ppl I have met with it, I am up to 148 ppl right now, out of about 170 ppl I have asked thats a pretty large percentage,
I have heard the zaps are mild seizures in the brain, my question is .in 20 years am I gonna get brain cancer or tumours from these zaps and why dont doctors know about them? and why does the drug company deny them, I know mass hsyteria is a real disorder thingy but really come on..why do some many ppl..hundreds of thousands I am sure experince zaps and there is no acknowlegement of them
????
I have heard the zaps are mild seizures in the brain, my question is .in 20 years am I gonna get brain cancer or tumours from these zaps and why dont doctors know about them? and why does the drug company deny them, I know mass hsyteria is a real disorder thingy but really come on..why do some many ppl..hundreds of thousands I am sure experince zaps and there is no acknowlegement of them
????
Doctor's Answer
by Roger Gould, M.D., Dec 20, 2001 12:00AM
, Dec 20, 2001 12:00AM
I have seen the same reports, but have not seen a case personally. That's probably why, i.e. most doctors have not seen a case. I can't respond about drug companies..I am sure they have their own experts looking over these reports..drug companies are very responsible, despite what some people think.
I wouldn't worry about long term effects like brain cancer. there is nothing to suggest that as a possibility.
I wouldn't worry about long term effects like brain cancer. there is nothing to suggest that as a possibility.
I've tried to explain to friends and the nearest I can come to it is it's like being stoned, but not. I'm so happy I caught this because I thought I was imagining things. My belief is that psychotropic meds that act on our neural connections cause this side effect. Would welcome any comments.