withdrawal from paxil cr and lorazapam

I havebeen taking 12.5 paxil cr and lorapam for 11 months for PTSD due to incest and rape.  I am 65 years old.  Dr has been reducing lorazapam from 1mg 2x daily to .5mg daily(cut in half and taken 2x daily).  When reducing the paxil cr to once every other day for 1 week and then none, after 3 days I am experiencing panic attacks and flashes of lightheadness.  They only last a few moments and  I wonder if these are typical of paxil cr withdrawal.  When stopping the LOrazapam, the only side effect I had was a couple of sleepness nights.  Thanks for your help.

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

These would be rather typical symtpoms, and you should expect them to go away altoghether within a week or two, as long the occasional ones are only as brief as they are now.

[mayy]

I'm so sorry for what you had to go through. In addition to the symptoms you mentioned regarding withdrawal, I had the same plus quite a few headaches. I thought I could stop taking it altogether but that was the wrong way to go. I had to start taking it again and then slowly wean off the Paxil. Then my doctor gave me a different medication to take that does not have the same side effects. Good luck to you.

[surfbot]

I too attempted to wean myself off of Paxil over the past four days. Unfortunately, on the third day I started feeling frequent bouts of lightheadness, confusion and dizziness. The symptoms worsened on the fourth day so I had to restart the Paxil last night to get a semblance of normality. I will talk to my doctor to help me figure out an effective "withdrawal program."

[sweetle]

I'm hoping that all of you Paxil Withdrawal Survivors can help me come up with a plan for tapering off of this drug.  What has worked well for you?
I was on 20 mgs, and then started cutting the pills down slowly, 2 mgs at a time.  My doctor told me not to do this, and switched me to Paxil CR 12.5 mg.  She told me to take it every other day for 2 weeks, and then stop all together.  This is not working, as the withdrawal is horrible. Does anyone have any suggestions for tapering?
Thank you!

[chelebell]

I've been on Paxil CR 12.5 mg since Sept of 04.  I recently tried weaning myself off of it and it was awful.  I had headaches, diarrhea, nausea dizziness and dearealization.  Anyways I went to my FNP (nurse practicioner)and she had me taper to everyother day X 1 week and then every 3 days X 2 weeks and then 1 X per week for 2 weeks and then stop.  The every other day was fine and even the every 3 days however the one time a week is leaving me very tired in the afternoons.  I am  finished with the tapering so I am going to just ride this out.  I do want to mention that my FNP did give me a RX of Prozac to take along with the Paxil for a 2 week period if I could not take the withdrawal because the Prozac is self weaning.  I did not have to resort to that plan but I wanted to put that out there if the paxil withdrawal is just too much!!!  Good Luck

[MJohnson]

I am currently taking .25mg of Klonopin daily.  I have recently stopped taking Paxil 12.5 CR plus 5 mg of Paxil regular after being on it for 6 years.  The Klonopin I started in August of 2003.  I stopped the Paxil after 1 week of tapering and switching to Prozac which was a complete nightmare. After one month I stopped the Prozac too.  It has been 8 1/2 weeks.  I am STILL dizzy, feel off-balance, anxious,extreme fatigue and depressed over this whole mess.  I am only 38 years old and I have never felt like such **** in my life.  I gained a lot of weight while on Paxil, too.  I have kind of an unusual fear of exercise which I has gotten worse over the past year.  I am afraid that since I can't go for a walk for more than 10 minutes because I'm too dizzy and tired, that I must be going to die of a heart attack.  It's torture.  I have been to the doctor.  My labs are good. My cholesterol is good.  I have no heart disease in my family.  I'm just 70 lbs. overweight and it scares me to death.  However, since being off the Paxil, I have lost 12 lbs.  Anyone out there ever have this type of fear.  If so, how do you deal with it?  Also, can anyone shed some light on how long this withdrawal can last?

Thanks

[d4ggs]

Wow!  I'm so glad I found this site.  I am now off of my Paxil and I couldn't understand why I felt so dizzy all the time.  Now I understand.  AND I have hope that the dizziness will end soon.  Thanks Bunches!  Debra

[chenchen]

I had some dizziness when I withdrew from Paxil, so much so that I had to lie down at times, but I finally got through that and I'm off that drug completely. It took about three weeks and I tapered my does down.

I'm still on the lorazapam and want to get off this drug as well.

Does anyone know of alternative hebal therapies specifically for axiety and sleeplessness?

Thank you.

[lc720]

I started taking paxil cr about 3 months ago for moderate social anxiety disorder.  I was only prescribed 12.5 mg, thank god.  While the drug did seem to help my S.A. i am still upset that i started taking it.  I am now trying to wean myself off of it because i just don't want to become dependent on prescription drugs for the rest of my life.  I started to take only 1 pill every other day instead of everyday, since i am already on the lowest dose.  Well i have only been doing this for 4 days and am already feeling the withdrawal effects.  I am getting pretty constant flashes of lightheadedness where my brain feels like it is shifting around.  I also have experienced diarrhea and nausea.  I am afraid that these symptoms are only going to get worse, but i know that the longer i stay on the harder it will be to wean myself off later.  Not to mention that i just dont have the money to pay for it since i lost my prescription coverage.  Good luck to anyone that is trying to get off this drug!

[Faseel]

Hello all,
I've been reading the posts about withdrawal. I am currently weaning off of Paxil and am at the 5mg point. I've had random dizziness when I lay down, look down too long. I quickly adjust, but well, it sucks. I also get headaches (mild ones) in the evening and occasionally nausea. DO NOT GIVE UP. I have done hours and hours of research, and I work at a hospital. I have had the pleasure of talking to over 20 Pharmacists and many many doctors. These withdrawal symptoms are Typical! They will end. Now I'm not advocating doing this alone. Always do this in cooperation with your Doctor/Psychiatrist and or Nurse practitioner and remember EVERYONES withdrawals are different. Believe me I HATE being dizzy more than any other symptom. Even now I think, hmm.. Could this be an inner ear problem.. So silly, I had a CT scan, MRI and full blood workup, you name it. Even my ENT said "Your perfectly fine" just last year. IT

[Faseel]

Hello all,
I've been reading the posts about withdrawal. I am currently weaning off of Paxil and am at the 5mg point. I've had random dizziness when I lay down, look down too long. I quickly adjust, but well, it sucks. I also get headaches (mild ones) in the evening and occasionally nausea. DO NOT GIVE UP. I have done hours and hours of research, and I work at a hospital. I have had the pleasure of talking to over 20 Pharmacists and many many doctors. These withdrawal symptoms are Typical! They will end. Now I'm not advocating doing this alone. Always do this in cooperation with your Doctor/Psychiatrist and or Nurse practitioner and remember EVERYONES withdrawals are different. Believe me I HATE being dizzy more than any other symptom. Even now I think, hmm.. Could this be an inner ear problem.. So silly, I had a CT scan, MRI and full blood workup, you name it. Even my ENT said "Your perfectly fine" just last year. IT

[virgojilly]

I began weaning myself from 37.5 mg of Paxil CR 5 days ago down to the 25 mg CR Paxil. it is funny, I do feel as if I have had some withdrawal symptoms, but I am not sure if I just do not feel well this week or they are really ill effects..?I have experienced sweating at night and in the am, some shakiness,diarrhea,a bit of panic for a short period of time, off balance, and feeling achy, like I have the flu. My nerves are also more sensitive. None of these symptoms have been extreme, they kind of come and go. But, generally I do feel the difference in the dosage. I am still wondering how I plan on weaning off of this completely... I have been on thissince June of 2003 due to the delayed onset of PTSD from when i was stalked by a psychotic madman. Who I believe is Borderline personality disorder..I am a counselor in training...3 more classes to go!!! Any pointers or suggestions on how to get completely off this stuff?
thanks, jill

[dizzylizzie]

I have been taking paxil for several years. It has been a good medication for my symptoms of anxiety.
I've decided to try more natural ways to relieve anxiety because I really want to get off this medication. Anyway, I have been tapering and have been doing fine on my own. Unfortunately, I went on a 3 day trip and forgot my medication. The past 4 days have been a terrible experience of nausea and vertigo. And like a previous writer, I was thinking maybe I had a brain tumor. I have been  a recluse because of these symptoms.
I am finally home and able to take the Paxil again waiting for it to relieve these horrible symptoms. I am down to 5 mg/day. I'll continue to write to hopefully help others weaning.

[Magikpawz]

I have been taking Paxil CR 12.5 once a day for almost 3 weeks now. I'm not seeing any changes just frustrating side effects. I've tried several antidepressants but I end up stopping them cause of the side effects plus I really don't want to be on medication. So my question is, do you think after only taking the Paxil for 3 weeks once a day and just stop taking it... Will I experience any withdrawl (withdrawal) symptoms?? Thanks.