Reading about Paxil withdrawal on the web. HELP!

[acleme1]

I am a 36 year-old make. I have been taking Paxil 40mg/day for 10 years, and had worked miracles. I feel like it has quit working recently, so I started looking around on the web for some advice. It wasn't long before I stumbled upon 100's if not 1000's of post describing the hell of quitting Paxil. I have started obsessing about it, and now it's all I can think about. I have a family and career, and from what I am reading, it is going to be hard to keep either if I actually have to quit the Paxil.

Can anyone shed some light on this subject for me? Is it possible to quit Paxil without all of the supposed withdrawal symptoms? Does Paxil cause permanent serotonin/receptor damage?

Thanks for the help,
AC.

[Paxiled]

Don't worry about my reaction, it isn't common.  Worry about your own situation.  It will go better.

[acleme1]

thanks for the replies. hey paxiled, what can't you get over? are you working?

[Paxiled]

Because of the length of time you've been on Paxil, yes, it will probably be difficult to quit this med.  I'm one of the horror stores who never recovered from my withdrawal.  But most of us who have suffered greatly had lousy psychiatrists, which is why so many had to turn to the web.  A good psychiatrist will know how to taper you off slowly and put you back on it if it gets too bad.  Most people make it off after a bad few weeks, some have not problem at all, and some never make it.  As to long-term damage, nobody knows the answer to this, whether it's for Paxil or any other antidepressant.  None of these meds were studied long-term, and nobody's studying them now.  Bad for business, you know.  So no sense worrying over what you can't find out.  You aren't anyone else, and their experiences can't tell you what you'll experience.  When you go on those Paxil withdrawal sites, go to the success stories -- they're there, too.  And remember, a lot of people suffer bad withdrawals because they're never told by their docs about withdrawal.  Paxil's manufacturer was sued to the gills over this, but that was a decade ago.  The FDA now puts a warning on every antidepressant about the possibility of withdrawal and how to deal with it.  Now, I don't know if coming off Paxil is the right thing for you to do.  If it has stopped working, I think that fact will probably lessen the withdrawal -- it seems to be worse the better the med is working.  But it will take your brain a while to adjust to operating without the med.  Switching to another med won't necessarily help with withdrawal from any med, particular a med of another class -- you'll just have side effects from two meds to worry about.  But some will use Prozac at the tail end of your withdrawal to try and wean off the Paxil because Prozac stays in the body much longer than other of these meds and is therefore usually easier to wean off of.  For a good description of this, The AntiDepressant Solution by Joseph Glanville is a good book.  Wish I'd had it before my quack psychiatrist ruined my life.  Because you know in advance what to look for, this won't happen to you.  Simple as that.  You're prepared, not obsessed.  Don't make it into more than it is; wait and see.  Expect to take some time off work to recover; think of it as being sick.  Some call it the Paxil flu.  If it gets emotional, go back on it and taper off more slowly.  And make sure your psychiatrist knows this and cares about this and will monitor you carefully; if the shrink sounds cavalier in any way, or dismissive, find another.

[aheart]

Your Doctor should know how to make a smooth transistion from one to another without to much difficulty. I'm going to be tapering off Tramodol and on to Cymbalta Good Luck to you, let us know how it goes. :- )

[studchick]

Check out your May 27th post for my response! Studchick