Concerns with Paxil and Bleeding Disorder

[trushak]

I was prescribed paxil because of my anxiety becoming more and more severe.

I have a mild platelet dysfunction that was diagnosed around 10 years ago from a slightly increased bleeding time test. I'm also struggling with two stomach ulcers that were diagnosed early February from an upper GI. They were not bacterial and I have an appointment for an Endoscopy in early June since they haven't improved too much. I've read a lot about increased bleeding problems with Paxil and I'm having severe anxiety about taking a medication for anxiety. I have not yet started it, and I'm trying to weigh the pros and cons, but my anxiety is destroying my life. And to make matters worse, I am getting my wisdom teeth out soon, and I heard SSRI's are something that needs to be taken into consideration because people who are using them bleed out almost 20% more during surgeries.

Is this all a no-deal for me? Does anyone know if I'm playing up this bleeding side effect of SSRIs too much? You hear that you shouldn't take NSAIDs with a stomach ulcer, but you never hear much about SSRIs. Any help would be greatly appreciated in which direction I should go.

[Paxiled]

Having tried to get off Paxil, I wouldn't.  You have a lot of antidepressant options out there, and there's no way of knowing in advance which one will work the best for you.  Paxil doesn't work any better than any other one, it's just harder to take and stop taking.  But you do get to choose, so that's enough on that.  As for your stomach, I had an ulcer from stress many years ago, and my doctor solved it by getting me to start meditating.  Haven't had another in nearly 40 years now.  Sometimes, with digestive issues such as ulcers and GERD and the rest, doctors aren't the best way to treat it -- the drugs they give you might help temporarily, but then by suppressing stomach acid they make the problem worse.  There are lots of simple natural remedies that can help you get through that part until you find a good therapist and get to work on this problem.  Aloe vera juice and DGL, a form of licorice, are just two.  Good luck whatever you decide to do.

[trushak]

Thanks for the reply Paxiled. And yes, my doctor is the one who prescribed it. I am aware of the withdrawals and the difficulty of getting off of Paxil. My mother died a few months ago due to leukemia and I looked after her while she was on hospice for 6 weeks and it was a very traumatic experience for me. She died in late October and I was fine until one day in early January I woke up with pressure in my head and I rushed to the ER convinced I had brain cancer, but nothing showed up. I was prescribed 14 pills of xanax that didn't help me at all and two weeks later I had terrible stomach pain which I went to my doctor for. He gave me nexium, and later, prevacid, but I asked him that I really need to have a test done to see if I have stomach cancer and explained my situation to him. So they had me get an upper GI, in which they found two ulcers. I don't take NSAIDs and it wasn't caused by H. Pylori, and yet the internet says stress alone doesn't cause ulcers, so who knows what caused them. My stomach pain still persists today but has slightly improved, although I do have an endoscopy scheduled in early June.

I am struggling very hard to even work part-time. I don't leave my house for anything but my job, and I go through the day worrying about dying and having cancer. I have been looking at pychiatrist options but I'm at the point where I don't care if I try my last resort first, because I'm so tired of living in fear and going through the day scared and making myself sick from the panic. If the thing I have to worry most about Paxil is the difficulty getting off it, I consider that a huge win.

[Paxiled]

Officially, all ssris and snris have a warning about being used with NSAIDS because of bleeding.  However, when I've had surgery, they've been concerned about the herbs I take but never the ssri.  So that should say how limited the risk is.  However, if this is the first med you're trying, I encourage you not to make that first med Paxil.  This particular med is the hardest antidepressant to take and quit taking, and isn't a first-resort med.  You also haven't said if you've tried therapy first and whether you're doing this with a psychiatrist or a regular doc -- it's hard to believe that any doc at this point would start with Paxil, but there you go, but if you're going the medication route see a psychiatrist, not a regular doc.  Doctors.  I'd start with Prozac, as it's the easiest to stop taking, and the second one I'd try is Lexapro, reputedly the second easiest to take and stop taking.  I'd do Paxil or Effexor only if all else failed and you couldn't live your life.  But I'd try therapy before getting on the medication merry-go-round if you haven't tried it yet -- the medication won't go anywhere in the meantime.