Paxil Withdrawal

[Dana1981]

I've tried to get off Paxil recently and had the WORST problems. After researching and talking to people who have gotten off (or tried to get off) of the drug I am horrified that Paxil is still being prescribed. I am also AMAZED that a DOCTOR would actually say that this isn't dangerous, or that it isn't the PAXIL!?!? Are you kidding? How much were you paid to say that? Paxil DID help with my panic attacks. Did not cure or stop them, but helped. Then getting off of it, or trying to was ABSOLUTE HELL! I can't walk because I'm so dizzy I can't keep my balance. My head feels foggy and cloudy. My head also hurts and it feels like someone keeps hammering a nail into my eyes. I cannot read a book or focus on the computer screen. I get confused and do not understand even the simplest of things. I am 27, smart, in shape and fast- paced. When trying to slowly wean off of this drug - I become slow and confused. Also, I become nauseous, the lights around become extremely bright. I cannot stand the lights even in my house. I have to squint and then even cover my eyes. I become emotional -- overly ovely emotional. I become paranoid and scared and start to panic because I see shadows out of the corners of my eyes. Then I try to go to work and I can't correctly hear or understand what people are saying to me. I feel like I'm watching a movie or it is a dream. I start to wonder if I'm losing my mind. I start sweating in my own house (that I always keep at 60 degrees) and have to go outside in the 30 degree weather with a tank top on. That is if I don't fall down the steps from the dizziness or the shocks in my head. I became extremely angry and irratated. So angry that family members suggested that I go to anger management classes. That was before they knew that it was the Paxil. These are just some of the MAIN things I am feeling while slowly slowly weaning off of this drug that was supposed to help me. My doctor that put me on Paxil told me to only stay on it for 1 year. So one year later, this is what's going on. It is happening to everyone trying to wean off of Paxil. If you don't have one symptom, you have the other. And lucky me, I have most of them. I have NO time to take off of work and I worked like this every day until I couldn't take it anymore and went back on Paxil. I read one doctor say that this was a safe drug and there are no withdrawal symptoms and I had to laugh out loud. Please "doctor" try out Paxil for yourself for a year or 2 and then stop taking it. My husband was on Paxil in the army and stopped taking it and got what they call the "Paxil Flu". This is a dangerous drug that has many side effects and many MANY more withdrawal symptoms. You might as well be on heroin and try to get off. If I could go back, I would have never gotten on Paxil. It helped with panic attacks but gave me about 30 other problems. So to sum up.... when on Paxil you get to look forward to gaining weight, making bad decisions and choices that will affect the rest of your life and coming close to death while trying to get off of this drug from HELL!!
P.S. There are documents stating that GSK (the makers of Paxil) knew that there were horrible withdrawal symptoms and hid this fact. So either the doctor's don't know about it or they're lying to us. Either way, this is happening.. it's real and extremely dangerous.

[suzcoo]

  what you are going through is REAL. The medical community is making too much money from the manufacturer, glaxo smith- kline to be true to their medical ethics.

I am at my wits end with getting off. it has been 2 months and a week and all the symptoms you describe are mine.

Furious isn't a powerful enough word to describe how I feel against my psychiatrist who knows all of the horrors but wouldn't admit to me when i visited him 2 weeks ago.

Yesterday I contacted several law firms who do Paxil lawsuits. There are so many class action suits. The settlements have been beyond huge. I feel so wrecked by this experience . Trauma .

Today I hope to hear from an attorney at my aged father's lawfirm. I am just praying they can sue the socks off this despicable company. I cannot think of anything else to do.

I have a good psychologist I see twice a week.She urged me to get off Paxil and Depakote. Paxil on 6 years, Depakote 25. I have lost 17 pounds in 2 months. I had gained 50 in the last 13 years. But what a way to lose.

There are thousands if not more of us. I wish I could find a live support group. writing is the only thing that makes me feel better . And reading these posts.

Night time when I am not sleeping is so lonely and scary. My fears mount and I have to talk myself down.

I didn't feel any physical side effects of getting off Depakote. My doctor said cold turkey was O.K unless I was on it for seizures. I was not.

I got off drugs after being in therapy most of my life. My psychoanalyst and I decided I should try getting off drugs to see if some of the depression and anxiety had gone away. It was so long ago. I was in my thirties when a lot was going on in my life to cause depression and low level mood swings.

I have always exercised and eaten right and been a positive and productive person. She says I am very strong and will get through this.She says the traumas in my past were much worse. She promises me she will stay the course with me for as long as it takes. I thank God I found her 11 years ago in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She is twenty years younger than me, but she has matured  right along with me.

Every night I pray for daylight. We are not alone and must fight back.Tell the story wherever you can and however you can. I am a writer and this is a major part of my memoir which is almost finished. I will work relentlessly until it is published.

[suzcoo]

  money from the pharmaceutical companies. look how much glaxo smith-kline has paid out in settlements. they are obviously making enough on this drug to ignore the fact that people almost die getting off it.

[Paxiled]

Getting off Effexor is just as hard as getting off Paxil for most people -- they are the two worst.  The reason she liked the Paxil better is that Effexor is a stimulating antidepressant that targets norepinephrine as well as serotonin, so it isn't as good if anxiety is the primary problem for most people.  That's also why it's helping her sex life perhaps, though it could also be hormonal, because ssris are notorious for depressing sexual performance and desire.  So if she wants to quit Effexor, she's going to have to do it just as carefully as she did the Paxil, and I seriously doubt going up on the Effexor while quitting the Paxil helped -- more likely it hurt, giving her the side effects of starting a new drug alongside the side effects of quitting Paxil.  It's much safer to completely quit a drug before starting the new one and makes evaluation of the new one much easier.  Sometime Prozac is used for this purpose because it's assumed to be easier to quit due to its longer half life in the body but I doubt it works much of the time, but certainly starting an equally difficult drug like Effexor wouldn't be my choice.

[tom_h]

My wife had remained on Paxil for many years after successfully conquering anxiety, panic attacks and agoraphobia.  In her case, psychological counseling, combined with  Paxil was the cure.  She had remained on the SSRI more as a prophylaxis.

A number of years ago, it was discovered that she had developed breast cancer.  After a lumpectomy, and radiation, she went on a 5 year regime of the drug, Tamoxifen.  It was discovered that SSRI greatly reduce the effectiveness of Tamoxifen, and she was put on the SNRI, Venlafaxine (Effexor).  The transitionary period was pure misery for my poor wife. Fortunately, as the Paxil was being reduced, the Venlafaxine was being increased, so it wasn't as bad as coming off it completely.

I can't impress enough on anyone just how slowly your particular dosage must be reduced to avoid the unpleasant side effects.  It must be reduced so gradually that you literally trick your body into slowly accepting the reduced dosage.  For instance, quartering you pill is way too gross of a reduction.  Most people will have unpleasant reactions to this relatively vast change in strength.  Instead, liquid Paxil is available to make dose changes so small that it would be equivalent to cutting one tenth of a piece of pill out of the daily dose.

It is my belief that liquid Paxil is the only way to effectively reduce the dose, and this must be done over months to avoid the nasty side effects.

I would also like to warn anyone that may read this thread who are thinking of beginning treatment with an SSRI or an SNRI to really think t through before starting it.  Physicians might be eager to get an anxiety sufferer on it because it can be an effective treatment.  But I think if a physician could subject themselves to the misery of coming off this stuff, they might think twice before putting a patient on it.

Having successfully defeated breast cancer, my wife is thinking about getting back on Paxil again as she claims to fell much better on it. I know that Venlafaxine gives her frequent vivid night terrors, and I'm often awakened by vocal outbursts, and what I call "Fred Flintstone" leg movement as if she were running in place.  I'm not so sure this is a good idea though. I saw this transition period once, and I don't want to see her go through it again. As a positive point for the SNRI, not associated with this discussion. and if I could be as discrete as possible, the Venlafaxine has had a positive effect on her libido.  We've are both 64 and have been married for 42 years.  We've always had a healthy sex life, but since she's been on the Venlafaxine, and even at 64, she is experiencing multiple orgasms, sometimes 3 or 4 before totally exhaustion.  I am absolutely positive this is due to the drug, so of course, I'm not anxious for her to change it.  Let's not mess with success.  Of course though, I want what's best for the other 98% of her day to day life.

Getting off of SSRI's can be done, but it must be done ever so slowly, and by using a liquid for of the drug made specifically to make miniscule reductions in daily dose.

[KDMH]

All I would like to say is I am so glad I'm not going through this alone. Unfortunately I can' take the brain shocks, or any more of any of the withdraws. ( its been a month) and i have missed too much work)So i am just going to go back on paxil. I really have no trust in my doctors at the moment. All I want is to feel normal again. I feel this is my only option. Sad but true.

[Luvskl]

My GP switched me from Zoloft to 10mg Paxil no more than a month ago.  And also said I needed to see a psychiatrist as he didn't feel qualified to address what was going on with me (previous depression, current anxiety).  I thought it was helping with my anxiety so he upped it to 20mg.  I started having "rage" episodes and made another appointment to see my GP. (Couldn't get into see a psychiatrist for 2 more weeks).  I went back down to 10mg on my own because I know you shouldn't quit anything like this cold turkey.  I only took the 20mg for about 7 days.  I would forget to take my 10mg and get extremely dizzy, lightheaded, agitated and irritable.  I missed another dose and had the worst day ever.  Luckily I only have one week before I see the psychiatrist.  I cannot live with these withdrawals as I am a stay at home mom to a 2 year old.  Keep in mind I haven't even been taking Paxil for a whole month!  Be careful when stopping this drug.  This forum has made me feel SOOO much better, not so alone.  I love my GP and respect him tremendously.  He has steered me in the right direction and done what he could for me but I don't think he realized the side effects of getting off Paxil.  Seeing a psychiatrist and getting on a weening off plan is my next step.  Remember, a good doctor doesn't want you to become dependent, they want you to become independent.