Paxil withdrawal

[jakecat]

I have been on 30mg Paxil for over 27 years.  Don't let anyone tell you it isn't addictive.  Unfortunately I didn't know how addictive it is until 2 years ago.  Within the last 3 weeks I have begun the withdrawal process - which, by the way, mimics withdrawal from Heroin.  I am doing o.k. other than the uncontrollable anger, dizziness and debilitating sweats.  

Anyone know of anything natural that I can take to alleviate the withdrawal symptoms?  I am determined to rid myself of this most horrible medication.  And, apparently, as long as you do not express your concerns about Paxil to your doctor the prescriptions will continue.

[Julie359]

Well i was on Paxil or Paroxatine for 12 yrs in total and in so many ways it was a God send, it gave me back my life, i did have Symptoms while on it but i could live with them.  I did have a lot of trouble coming off as well, a lot of withdrawl which was terrible and lasted for the longest time.  I can say that even though i miss the confidence it gave me to live my life normally i am glad i am free of Paxil now cause now i can actually learn how to control the anxiety, which is sending me on a great personal journey of self discovery which i am enjoying and learning heaps from.  For the first time i am actually learning alot about me.

Also one question, isn't addiction and dependancy the same???  Different word same meaning....?  N please no one bite my head off for asking that....LOL

[jakecat]

It has now been approximately 6 weeks since I started tapering off Paxil by reducing dosage froom 30 to 15 mg per day.  It has been 9 days since I have taken any Paxil at all.

This post is intended to offer a bit of encouragement to all who are tapering off.

I am free of all symptoms of withdrawal (by whatever definition you choose to attach to the use of the word withdrawal), no more lightheadiness, no more unrealistic anger.  I am calm, happy and feel terrific.

The long term effects of taking Paxil are just now coming to light.  When coming off Paxil I noticed I was no longer throwing up (which I had been doing at night, 3 to 4 nights a week) for years.  I have had every medical test known to man to diagnose the problem - no answers.

I have had sleep disturbances for years.  Couldn't sleep through the night, dreams so vivid I can remember them for years.  So I did a sleep study.  Nothing definitive there.

Left hand shaking, feet felt like ice, a myriad of small, odd things.

Without Paxil every one of my "oddities" have disappeared.  What I began to have, post-paxil, is terrible edema of the feet and ankles and unexplained weight gain.  Because of all the previous throwing up I found I could never eat more than 1.5 cups of food at a time, and still don't.  So no reason for weight gain there.

There is legitimate medical literature with findings that longterm use of Paxil does cause edema and unexplained weight gain.

To those of you just embarking on this journey - you can have optimism because you will make it.  It sometimes isn't a pretty sight but there is a light of the long and sometimes very dark tunnel.

Because the long term effects of taking Paxil are only recently being reported my wish would be that although Paxil can be a blessing unfortunately there is a price to pay and that you carefully consider long term use.

My very deepest and sincerest Best Wishes to all of you.  May God bless and keep you during this journey.

Good Luck to all.  

[Paxiled]

Just wanted to add that you weren't suffering side effects, china, you were suffering withdrawal.  When you skipped your dose you went into withdrawal; when you resumed the med, it stopped.  A side effect would be something you suffer while on the med, such as headaches or weight gain.  

[theotterone]

Ok, I get that (though I was gestational diabetic and even getting down to ideal weight I will probably be type 2 in a few years).  Since I went on Adderall, I have noticed that I have calmed down quite a bit.  That being said, the last two days I have been very "edgy" and feel like I have been on the cusp of having an attack, but haven't quite gone over that edge.  I don't think the anxiety will ever "go away" or be "cured", but to drop my dosage would be nice.

I am very lucky to have a great doctor who listens and really makes me a partner in my treatment.  He doesn't hand me a prescription and say "take this" and expect me not to ask things.  It helps he is the first psychiatrist I have had who is personable, laughs at my jokes instead of analyzing them, and truly listens to me.  The Family Therapy has really helped my husband understand my different issues too.

I appreciate the information and you kind words!

[Paxiled]

If Paxil works for you, stay on it.  I wish I hadn't quit, but I couldn't sleep anymore on it and I couldn't write on it, but I can't do any of those things now, anyway.  But no, not all ssris cause bad withdrawals, and most people will get off Paxil without a terrible withdrawal.  You might have a very easy time of it.  There's no predicting for any individual, just probabilities that the ones with the most reported problems will potentially be more likely to cause a problem than the least.  The most important thing is to have an understanding and educated and curious psychiatrist.  And it's different than insulin -- the Type 1 diabetic can't live without it.  You can live without Paxil, and there are alternatives, while there are no alternatives for a Type 1 diabetic.  Ryan has a heart condition that could kill him; anxiety is really unpleasant, but we won't die of it, though I kinda wish I would.  But the most important thing is, you won't necessarily have a bad withdrawal, so if it comes time you wish to quit, don't expect it to be hard.  Just prepare so you know what to do if it is.  Anxiety is a horrible disease, and if the medication helps, then that's the best we can do at this moment in history, assuming therapy hasn't worked, and it doesn't work in the large percentage of cases from the few studies that have been done.  

[Paxiled]

I think you've got me half confused with someone else -- I said Paxil was not addictive, not that it is.  My information about Paxil no longer being a drug of first choice was told to me by several psychiatrists, and researching Paxil on the web.  This has been true for years.  It was the sixth or seventh choice for me, so I'm not claiming it was the first choice for me, either, and that was several years ago.  My health plan at that time was owned by one of the top medical schools in my area, and that's how they approached it, and again, that was several years ago.  My last two psychiatrists don't use Paxil much at all.  But I agree, there are people with Lexapro horror stories, just a whole lot fewer of them, and the manufacturer of Lexapro didn't oversell it as did GlaxoSmithKline and didn't lie about it, as did GlaxoSmithKline.  They spent a lot of money on lawsuits because of this, and left psychiatrists unprepared for what followed.  And you misunderstand my Paxil experience.  The medication did help me, and I've always said so -- more than any medication I've ever taken.  My problem wasn't necessarily with Paxil, it was with a quack psychiatrist who never told me about withdrawal even when I entered, and I was unlucky enough to suffer an extraordinarily bad reaction that is still ruining my life three years later.  Had I a better psychiatrist, I would have been counseled about what was happening to me and put back on Paxil, leaving me the choice to taper more slowly or just stay oneit.  Now I'm in a never never land where nobody knows what to do to get me back to those good old days where all I had was anxiety attacks.  But my warnings go beyond that.  Paxil does have a lot of side effects -- that's what drove me to try stopping it -- and it does seem to be more difficult to quit than any of the other antidepressants other than Effexor.  So if you know that, why wouldn't you start with a different medication first in the hopes you wouldn't have to use the one that psychiatrists have the most difficulty getting patients off of?  You keep it on your list of possibilities, but you don't start with it.  Because it has nothing special other ssris or tricyclics don't also potentially offer; it's not a situation where there are no alternatives.  If you go on the mental health forum, Dr. Gould always recommends Prozac first, because he finds it to be the easiest on patients.  If it doesn't work, yes, you move on.  I don't want to ban it, I might in fact end up back on it and I certainly don't want that option taken away from me.  I always say, try therapy first, then natural remedies, then medication as the last resort, and the more difficult medications last.  What's controversial about that?