Paxil Withdrawal

[Robin Mick]

I am writing on behalf of my husband, who has been taking 20 mg of Paxil daily for a little over a year.  He has been reducing his daily dosage in an effort to discontinue taking the medication.  For the first week, he took 10 mg, then halfed those pills, then moved on to every other day, and so on.  He is now in his 4th day with no Paxil whatsoever, and he is really suffering.  He is very sensitive to light and sound, and both worsen the debilitating headhache he is suffering.  He has contacted his doctor, who prescribed a migraine medication to lessen the pain.  He is unable to function in his daily routine with this pain.  

I've read a lot via the internet about this medication and such withdrawal symptoms.  I've also read that some people have only mild reactions.  Please, any suggestions that can be offered to alleviate his discomfort would be welcome.  And how long can we expect this to go on?  

Thank you in advance for your response.

[Rachelle]

I was diagosed with clinical depression 4 years ago and have been on Zoloft and Luvox.  I started taking Paxil about 2.5 years ago and have recently decided to stop.  Paxil allowed me to function but only at a very base level.  I was just scraping by.  I no longer wanted to be pill dependent.  I wanted to deal with my depression head on.  

I am coming off Paxil under my doctor's supervision and it has been absolute hell.  I have been taking it for over 2 years at 30mg.  I am constantly nauseous, dizzy, tired, irritable and extremely weepy.  I also feel as if I have a ball in the base in my throat that is very painful. I thought it was caused by my constant crying but I've just realized it could be some sort of indigestion.  My movements are slow, it takes an extreme amount of willpower to get out of bed in the morning and control my emotions at work.  And it has only been 1.5 weeks since I finished my last dose.  In order to push down my feelings of nausea I have tried to eat everything in sight and have gained weight as a result.  I am especially prone to starch cravings.  I was vaguely aware of withdrawal symptons associated with Paxil but if I knew then what I know now I would never have considered Paxil.

Right now, I'm rock bottom in my life.  I am experiencing  intense depression and constant thoughts of self doubt.  I hurt so much and I'm finding it harder and harder to live like this.  I feel that I should isolate myself from my family and friends so they don't have to see me this way.  They also have a very limited knowledge of this kind of disease (some don't even think it is an actual disease) so I feel that I have limited support.  This is the hardest thing I have ever experienced in my life.  I know these symptons have to eventually subside, but the question is when?  

I hope that anyone considering taking Paxil has access to the information provided in these sites.

[dave]

>Quote from Caldine:
>my eyes movement feels as though it is a few seconds behind my head turning (which is a very
>weird sensation)

Yes! I know what you mean. I've been on Paxil for 3 years now and never enjoyed being "chained" to a med., yet have had too good of an experience to stop. If I have missed a pill for a day or so, I get the above symptom (starting withdrawls). If your eyes move, your brain tells you that they moved, but the visual signal to your brain is a split second off. My Psych. had never heard of it and few have, but the symptom is 100% Paxil. It is the only drug I'm on and have never experienced anything like that before taking it.

[Randy Willis]

I have been on 40 mg of Paxil and it has helped me with anxiety.
However, it had intolerable side effects.

I've been cut back to 20 mg.  Next it will be 10.  Then 5.  Then
I'll be on something else.

SIDE EFFECTS OF GETTING OFF OF PAXIL FOR ME:
1)a Panic Attack in church this morning (2 July 2000).
2)a headache over my right eye.
3)nervousness
4)slight trembling in my hands.

Will these go away?????????????????????????

[alaina]

Boy - this information has been very comforting - at least as I sit and read it.  I have been taking Paxil for about 18 months for depression and after discussions with my family physician, decided it was a good time to try to stop.  It has been 4 days now and I feel rotten.  I feel sick to my stomach constantly - I am shakey and I burst into tears at for absolutely no reason.  And sound bothers me emensly.  My doctor did tell me to expect not feeling "normal" but this is really bad.  Tell me it will end??

[Mark Murphy]

After having taken 20mg daily of Paxil for 2 years, I have halved my daily dose to 10mg. While it has been an excellent drug to eliminate my depression, I must concur with the general internet claims regarding coming off this drug. The effect in my case is absolutely characteristic of the flu-like dizziness one can experience everytime you move or roll your eyes when you are sick with the flu.

After a week @ 10mg, I have observed that this dizziness intensity seems to cycle during the day. Eating seems to mitigate the effect somewhat. The symptom is inconveniant to say the least, especially if you are like most of us and must perform at whatever profession we may happen to be in.

Unless there has been a permenant physiological change to my seratonin re-uptake mechanism, I trust my body will equalize in time. I have heard that the half life of paxil is extremely short and that the drug washes out of the system within 72 hrs. I will attempt to cut down to 5mg and then 0 during the next 30 - 60 days. Mark M.

It is based on this that the drug company representatives suggest that it is merely "the return of the depression" that we are confusing with these symptoms. We all know this is ********. I would suggest that our brain has been "trained" by paxil to "act" a certian way much like a tree limb or grass reed bends out of shape by a wind over time. Even after the wind ceases, it takes awhile for the limb,(e.,g, this part of the brain), to incline back into its natural state or "shape".

In any event, this is my theory. I hope it is plausable and will give some hope to those who need it. Until then, we will just have to white knuckel it until we get back to our old self.If after a month or two, I feel the same way I do now, I will probablly find a good attorney to file a class action lawsuit.

[John Adams]

I suffer from occassional panic attacks. I have always been a fairly anxious person. I began taking 10 mg.'s of Paxil and it was helping me but not that well. When I started taking 20 mg. it worked much better. I felt much more stable emotionally and capable of handling those situations that used to cause me anxiety. Well, I went in to get a refill a few days ago and they said that I didn't have any refills available. So, I have been without paxil for about 3 days now, while waiting for approval to continue taking the medication.

While I have been okay for the most part, I have been having a couple of withdrawal symptoms. The two symptoms I have been experiencing the most are electric shocks and tiredness. The electric shocks were kind of scared me, but I read that in these posts that other people experience them while withdrawing from the medication. So, knowing that others suffer the same symptom was comforting. My energy level has gone down considerably. I have had to take at least one nap each day for the past three days.

These "electric shocks" occur on my head. It kind of makes sense, because the medication affects the neural synapses. So, it is easy to understand that withdrawls would upset my bodies neural functioning, which is most noticeable in my mind. Since the brain is a huge organism of neurons.

I am quite upset that they discontinued my refills. Must have been an oversite. It is a little discomforting to know that if I ever decide to quit paxil for good that I will experience the withdrawl symptoms again.

For me paxil is a very good alternative to anxiousness, so I will continue use after the weekend.

There read a couple of posts that are helpful but a bit more pessimistic about the use of paxil. It is acceptable to me that the discontinued use of a drug would cause some withdrawls. You have to expect these things.

I hope my experience helps others whom experience similar symptoms.