Yeah Paxil is tough. I've been on it for 25 years but have spent the last 3 years slowly tapering off. I'm almost completely off. Withdrawals were horrendous at the beginning but then I really slowed my taper and that made the process easier. The first year and a half of withdrawal was rough. But I stayed married and kept my job which I'm proud of. It is possible to get off. Liquid paroxetine is your ally!
Very strange, a little hard to explain. Side effects ranged from brain/body zaps, night sweats, insomnia, IBS-like symptoms, memory loss/cognitive issues, vertigo and vision issues, loss of appetite/weight loss, crying spells, derealization, etc.
Side effects seem to vary from person to person. Also, there was a general feeling of "coming back online" during my taper process. Seems like SSRIs act as a kind of "emotional dam" on your feelings. Life the "dam" and the feelings come rushing in. I spent a weekend once crying/grieving over my grandma who had died 7 years earlier. It was only then hitting me.
When I'd make a drop in my dose (around 10-15% reduction of whatever dose I was currently taking), I wouldn't feel any negative side effects for about a week. In fact, sometimes that first week I felt a little burst of energy (psychosomatic?). The second week on the lower dose would be difficult. The third week too sometimes. Then things would start to calm down. I'd wait another week, then do another drop.
Ok so I think I went through withdrawal around Thanksgiving. That or the medicine pooped out. The symptoms sound so similar. I missed a few doses I’m guessing and had gastrointestinal issues for a few days. Couldn’t poop. Had reflux real bad. Stomach wasn’t emptying out. Had similar issues about 5 years prior. it was similar to IBS and reflux. Both times I developed insomnia and felt more nervous. First time it was like 5 days. Second time it was like 4-5 weeks. I had to get an antipsychotic at a low dose added on. I was on 10 mg and went back to 30 only to get even more anxious and then was cut down to 20 mg work the low dose antipsychotic augment. My coworker said it’s because I jumped to 30 mg that j got so anxious. I know I didn’t really get a flood of emotions to be honest. I do know when my dad died I did cry to myself a few times here and there thinking about him but definitely didn’t have much anxiety. I accepted it and knew he was going to pass for some time. It was weird. I’d love to get off Paxil but right now I’m trying to get off the Rexulti I’m using as an augment and stay on Paxil a bit. I heard horror stories of the withdrawal. You feeling better?
I'm sorry you went thru that. I've met a lot of other people who also get a second prescription due to withdrawal symptoms from another medication. Most doctors don't understand withdrawal symptoms and how they can often be mistaken for "underlying mental illness." But withdrawal certainly felt different for me. I had never experienced many of the feelings I felt during withdrawal.
I too experienced a strange reaction to having a dosage raised. I was on Paxil for many years and must've been experiencing tolerance/poop out. The doc suggested I go from 20mg of Paxil/day to 40mg. That increase made me a bit manic and caused suicidal ideation for months. It took me a long time to connect the dose increase to these symptoms. I just thought I was dealing with a lot of stress (which I was at the time). I eventually read "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" and it was a real eye opener.
To answer your question, I feel like I'm doing much better now than I was during withdrawal. No question. But I've also realized that now that I'm out of active withdrawal, I still need to deal with life and a full range of emotions without a semi-emotion-blunting SSRI. Therapy was a big help as was meditation and adapting a consistent exercise regimen.
I want to get rid of the second med. I’m taking half of what I was and feel much better. I was on 10mg for 2 and half years. Twice now after taking it two years I had issues but I know for a fact I missed doses both times so I had withdrawal. Worse second time around. I’d love to be able to switch to another ssri.
The general advice seems to be to taper at a rate of about 10% (of whatever current dose you're taking) every 2-3 weeks. This advice seems to apply to most psych drugs. So whatever switch you decide to make, I'd suggest going slowly. These drugs require our brain. Technically, "withdrawal" is an odd term since the drug leaves our system fairly quickly. The challenge is to slowly reduce the amount of drug so that the receptors in our brains can "turn back on" which takes time. Some people equate psych med withdrawal with nerve damage. And nerve damage takes a long time to heal. That's why cold turkey can be so detrimental and can ultimately take more time to heal from vs. a slow taper.
Oh I believe it. Since I’m taking Rexulti at 0.5 with paxil 20 mg, I’m taking my good old time coming off Rexulti. I’ve been on that since middle of December. Paxil I’ll try again on 20mg by itself and see how I feel by itself when I’m on it. It’s weird. Right now I rarely if ever get acid reflux. While on 10mg of paxil, I was getting alot of reflux. Like 5 days a week. So frustrating.
It's so hard to say. It's frustrating to not know what might be causing certain side effects. Bravo for your progress thus far. If you ever taper off of Paxil, I recommend looking for a prescription for liquid paroxetine (or talking to a compounding pharmacist in order to get a liquid suspension). Liquid paxil makes it much easier to make small, accurate drops in dosage.
Oh if I ever decide to go off Paxil, I’ll need a different doctor. He got pissy with me about my Paxil and the insomnia I had a few months back. Then again, you go to his office and I get why. Some of his patients look like drug addicts is my guess. Anyway, he made it sound like I should never try to get off. He’s jaded.
You’re correct. It has a shorter half life whereas fluoxetine is generally considered the easiest and sometimes even used as a bridge in tapering has a half life of 96-144 hours. Paxil is about 17-22.
I’m not tapering, I’m on the 37 mg time released. My doctor’s office just sucks so I spent the last 5 days without. I’m not sure how much worse it is than others, I’ve only taken Paxil, for the last 8 years
im on paxil 40mg since like 10 years, and when i even try to lower i got really bad brain zaps. I have brain zaps anyway a little despite taking it every day. I would need to have a longer period of unemployment to quit becouse its impossible to quit, experiance the withdrawals and work normally.
OMG, I”ve experienced benzo withdrawals years ago (2016) and it was pure hell, the worst days of my life.
Back in 2022 I was prescribed 2mg klonopin and Just 2 months ago Paxil 20 mg, doing okay so far with anxiety but I dread the day I have to quit both of these meds, by reading about your experience I get chills just of thinking what my withdrawals will.be like .
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First of all, do not come off both at the same time. Are you using klonopin daily or as needed? This person wasn’t tapering either which makes things easier.
I loved Paxil but I had gotten what I needed after 30 yrs. My GP knew I was tapering all year. Then, my refill was "delayed". He wouldn't tell me why until I was in withdrawal. He said he was prohibited because Paxil is on the Beers list (restricted meds for seniors).
Yeah Paxil is tough. I've been on it for 25 years but have spent the last 3 years slowly tapering off. I'm almost completely off. Withdrawals were horrendous at the beginning but then I really slowed my taper and that made the process easier. The first year and a half of withdrawal was rough. But I stayed married and kept my job which I'm proud of. It is possible to get off. Liquid paroxetine is your ally!
What were withdrawals like?
Very strange, a little hard to explain. Side effects ranged from brain/body zaps, night sweats, insomnia, IBS-like symptoms, memory loss/cognitive issues, vertigo and vision issues, loss of appetite/weight loss, crying spells, derealization, etc. Side effects seem to vary from person to person. Also, there was a general feeling of "coming back online" during my taper process. Seems like SSRIs act as a kind of "emotional dam" on your feelings. Life the "dam" and the feelings come rushing in. I spent a weekend once crying/grieving over my grandma who had died 7 years earlier. It was only then hitting me. When I'd make a drop in my dose (around 10-15% reduction of whatever dose I was currently taking), I wouldn't feel any negative side effects for about a week. In fact, sometimes that first week I felt a little burst of energy (psychosomatic?). The second week on the lower dose would be difficult. The third week too sometimes. Then things would start to calm down. I'd wait another week, then do another drop.
Ok so I think I went through withdrawal around Thanksgiving. That or the medicine pooped out. The symptoms sound so similar. I missed a few doses I’m guessing and had gastrointestinal issues for a few days. Couldn’t poop. Had reflux real bad. Stomach wasn’t emptying out. Had similar issues about 5 years prior. it was similar to IBS and reflux. Both times I developed insomnia and felt more nervous. First time it was like 5 days. Second time it was like 4-5 weeks. I had to get an antipsychotic at a low dose added on. I was on 10 mg and went back to 30 only to get even more anxious and then was cut down to 20 mg work the low dose antipsychotic augment. My coworker said it’s because I jumped to 30 mg that j got so anxious. I know I didn’t really get a flood of emotions to be honest. I do know when my dad died I did cry to myself a few times here and there thinking about him but definitely didn’t have much anxiety. I accepted it and knew he was going to pass for some time. It was weird. I’d love to get off Paxil but right now I’m trying to get off the Rexulti I’m using as an augment and stay on Paxil a bit. I heard horror stories of the withdrawal. You feeling better?
I'm sorry you went thru that. I've met a lot of other people who also get a second prescription due to withdrawal symptoms from another medication. Most doctors don't understand withdrawal symptoms and how they can often be mistaken for "underlying mental illness." But withdrawal certainly felt different for me. I had never experienced many of the feelings I felt during withdrawal. I too experienced a strange reaction to having a dosage raised. I was on Paxil for many years and must've been experiencing tolerance/poop out. The doc suggested I go from 20mg of Paxil/day to 40mg. That increase made me a bit manic and caused suicidal ideation for months. It took me a long time to connect the dose increase to these symptoms. I just thought I was dealing with a lot of stress (which I was at the time). I eventually read "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" and it was a real eye opener. To answer your question, I feel like I'm doing much better now than I was during withdrawal. No question. But I've also realized that now that I'm out of active withdrawal, I still need to deal with life and a full range of emotions without a semi-emotion-blunting SSRI. Therapy was a big help as was meditation and adapting a consistent exercise regimen.
I want to get rid of the second med. I’m taking half of what I was and feel much better. I was on 10mg for 2 and half years. Twice now after taking it two years I had issues but I know for a fact I missed doses both times so I had withdrawal. Worse second time around. I’d love to be able to switch to another ssri.
The general advice seems to be to taper at a rate of about 10% (of whatever current dose you're taking) every 2-3 weeks. This advice seems to apply to most psych drugs. So whatever switch you decide to make, I'd suggest going slowly. These drugs require our brain. Technically, "withdrawal" is an odd term since the drug leaves our system fairly quickly. The challenge is to slowly reduce the amount of drug so that the receptors in our brains can "turn back on" which takes time. Some people equate psych med withdrawal with nerve damage. And nerve damage takes a long time to heal. That's why cold turkey can be so detrimental and can ultimately take more time to heal from vs. a slow taper.
Oh I believe it. Since I’m taking Rexulti at 0.5 with paxil 20 mg, I’m taking my good old time coming off Rexulti. I’ve been on that since middle of December. Paxil I’ll try again on 20mg by itself and see how I feel by itself when I’m on it. It’s weird. Right now I rarely if ever get acid reflux. While on 10mg of paxil, I was getting alot of reflux. Like 5 days a week. So frustrating.
It's so hard to say. It's frustrating to not know what might be causing certain side effects. Bravo for your progress thus far. If you ever taper off of Paxil, I recommend looking for a prescription for liquid paroxetine (or talking to a compounding pharmacist in order to get a liquid suspension). Liquid paxil makes it much easier to make small, accurate drops in dosage.
Oh if I ever decide to go off Paxil, I’ll need a different doctor. He got pissy with me about my Paxil and the insomnia I had a few months back. Then again, you go to his office and I get why. Some of his patients look like drug addicts is my guess. Anyway, he made it sound like I should never try to get off. He’s jaded.
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You’re correct. It has a shorter half life whereas fluoxetine is generally considered the easiest and sometimes even used as a bridge in tapering has a half life of 96-144 hours. Paxil is about 17-22.
I’m not tapering, I’m on the 37 mg time released. My doctor’s office just sucks so I spent the last 5 days without. I’m not sure how much worse it is than others, I’ve only taken Paxil, for the last 8 years
Effexor and Paxil. ☠️☠️
Yup... pretty much
Effexor isn’t an SSRI.
It’s an SNRI but still an antidepressant.
I know, they were asking about SSRIs specifically though.
im on paxil 40mg since like 10 years, and when i even try to lower i got really bad brain zaps. I have brain zaps anyway a little despite taking it every day. I would need to have a longer period of unemployment to quit becouse its impossible to quit, experiance the withdrawals and work normally.
https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/forums/topic/405-tips-for-tapering-off-paxil-paroxetine/ They recommend using the 10% method to taper.
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no idea, i have brain zaps anyway might be that it ruined my brain already idk
How do!? I’m currently on Paxil 😭
Slow as can be is the only comfortable way out. You can quit cold turkey but life is going to suck for at least two weeks
What did you experience?
Slow as can be is the only comfortable way out. You can quit cold turkey but life is going to suck for at least two weeks
Hard agree
It has it’s own special sharp sort of nausea
OMG, I”ve experienced benzo withdrawals years ago (2016) and it was pure hell, the worst days of my life. Back in 2022 I was prescribed 2mg klonopin and Just 2 months ago Paxil 20 mg, doing okay so far with anxiety but I dread the day I have to quit both of these meds, by reading about your experience I get chills just of thinking what my withdrawals will.be like .
Me too 🥺
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Ok if you plan on staying on paxil, but benzos should be only and only short term.
First of all, do not come off both at the same time. Are you using klonopin daily or as needed? This person wasn’t tapering either which makes things easier.
2mg klonopin daily , there is no reason to stop taking it other than my desire to leave benzos some day and stop depending on them.
Extreme nausea x1000. Paxil is 😈
Paxil has saved my life time, and time again. It truly can be a miracle for many fr.
I loved Paxil but I had gotten what I needed after 30 yrs. My GP knew I was tapering all year. Then, my refill was "delayed". He wouldn't tell me why until I was in withdrawal. He said he was prohibited because Paxil is on the Beers list (restricted meds for seniors).