insomnia from paxil

I have been taking 10 mg of Paxil for ten days, and I still am experiencing insomnia as a side effect.  I'm taking Xanax to help my sleep, but I can't do this indefinitely.  How long should I put up with this insomnia before deciding Paxil is the wrong medication for me?  Thank you!

[shadowknight]

cindy,

I reckon your doctor put you on Paxil? I mean of course, why else would you be taking an antidepressant. There are few solutions to SSRI related Insomnia. Insomnia caused due to antidepressants or for the matter any other medicine subsides with time. But if you are feeling impatient then you should talk to your doctor. He would either prescribe a hypnotic or an antipsychotic. Prescribing an antipsychotic as a sleeping aid makes it an off label use so I am not sure what the status on off label use of drugs is in your country.

Also, Xanax is for anxiety. I have never heard of Xanax being prescribed as a sleeping aid mainly because of its abuse potential, the tolerance a person develops to it and the dependence that it causes.. so .. why exactly are you taking that?

[birdie0907]

Side effects can take months to subside, if they ever do go away, so try not to get upset over side effects in the beginning if they are manageable. Your body has to do a lot of adapting to accept the drug.
I yawned with Celexa for months, then realized one day that it had stopped and I had missed it.

[thepixies]

What time do you take the Paxil? You are supposed to take it as early in the morning as possible, apparently.

[michelle54991]

Hello,

Some antidepressant causes you to have insomnia on the onset  approximately 14 days  or sometimes longer for different people  as a side effect then it goes away.
Paxil did not agree with me  when I try to take it again after being off it . It gave me insomnia after I took it for 8 days (and I took it in the a.m.) so I went off it. But the insomnia occurred after being on the med. from ten to fourteen days then it is not compatible for me. I can only speak from my experience as I am not a doc.
Good luck !