Treatment Withdrawal

[cbee]

Hi All,

I finished tx a little over a week ago and have been feeling worse than on tx!  First I got a real flu (the first in 15 years) with all the body aches, etc. Now I am having complete sleeplessness, moodiness, much like when I first started tx (although the irritability never seemed to go away).  I was finally able to give up the sleeping meds towards the end of tx because I was able to sleep on my own again.  I am also experiencing more of the neck and upper back pain with terrible headaches.

So, I was thinking . . . going cold turkey off the riba could produce these effects?  I know that you are never supposed to go off an AD or anti-anxiety quickly due to the rebound effects.  The meds caused such sleeplessness, anxiety, mood swings, etc., much like an AD so it would make sense that this is happening now.

Has anyone experienced anything similar and for how long?  

-cbee

[scruffy]

Yes the Groucho eyebrows will quickly disappear! My eyebrows grew dark from center toward nose and very coarse during tx. After tx they quickly regained normal color and texture. I called my tx brows devil brows. The devil brows plus the pissed off look made me look somewhat deranged I thought. You will be your normal lovely self-hair, skin,smile and disposition. No worry. frank

[cquest]

Hold up, you mean now my eyebrows are going to take on a mind of their own? And I am going to look older??? Yikes! That's all I friggin need...and then my hair should fall out on top of it all...??...oye...But you say you bounce back and become normal once again??? Please tell me you return to normal...
Cin

[Califia]

You know, I am a survivor from that last graduating class of MH--joined them late and remained after the majority of them had finished tx. Back in the old days, my child, which is to say only just a few months ago that could have been years,  there was always much talk about hair or the lack of it and eyebrows suddenly going vertical.   And not only on the full moon, either.  It seems to be an overnight phenomenon.  You wake up, confront the mirror for the first time, and go into shock:  What the f-----!       One thing I've noticed, tho':  as much as you experience accelerated aging while on tx, and boy is it horrifying to fast forward and get a glimpse of yourself in the debility of old age, most of it reverses itself even while  you're still on.   I had never looked my age before until this treatment, and there was a point  when....oh well, never mind.   It's still too close.  But thanks be the goddess,  the bad dream ends.   After only three days without swallowing riba, my dear friend Peg (1b, late 50s, treated for 72 weeks) actually looked like she'd spent a year at a spa.   A whole brand new woman.

I guess I was so busy looking at her smile that I forgot to notice her eyebrows.

[Califia]

I'd consider it an honor to share that broom.

[Lynne5477]

No withdrawals here.  My biggest problem was my impatience to get all my energy back.  It came back very fast.......I just wanted it NOW and it took a few wks.  Felt better and better every day off the meds.

Good luck to you.

[jmjm530]

I don't believe tapering off these drugs is a very common practice.  

As Eisbein mentioned, riba has long half life, so the taper here is built-in.

As far as peg goes, I've heard of "withdrawal" anecdotally, and even think I've experienced it myself sometimes on day 7, but personally, I will follow standard protocol and make my last full shot, my last shot.

"Withdrawal" be d*mn. When I've finished my weeks, I'm FINISHED with this stuff. :)

-- Jim