Stop the ride........I want to get off.

[Miss October]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hi Star,

I did a google search, and what you are feeling is a side effect of Prozac. You should not be taking it. And it is OK to miss tonights dosage, just call your doc in the morning. i copied a piece for you to see from my search. 4th paragraph is for Prozac. Hope you don't mind.

"Symptoms related to discontinuation [and missed doses] commonly include physical symptoms such as dizziness and gastrointestinal symptoms," he says

Michelson and his colleagues studied 107 patients who had been successfully treated with Prozac, Zoloft, or Paxil. Over the course of 5 days, all of them received an inactive pill as a substitute for their medication, and this was compared with another 5-day period when all they took their regular medication. Patients reported side effects by filling out a questionnaire.

During the time they were taking the inactive tablet, patients treated with Paxil had more unpleasant -- and sometimes severe -- side effects than those who were treated with Zoloft. The most common symptom reported was dizziness. Unusual dreams, nausea, fatigue, and irritability were also common when after stopping Paxil and, to a lesser extent, Zoloft.

Researchers found that withdrawal from Prozac caused no negative events. They think this is due to the fact that Prozac stays in the body for a long time in comparison to the other SSRIs. If that is the case, withdrawal effects would not have been experienced after only 5 days of taking the inactive tablet.

Feel better soon.

[FinallyRN]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Star,
Talk to your MD, but I use to take my Prozac with food and not on an empty stomach for that reason. It really stopped the jitters

[nancy]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hi Starlight

hee hee, I love cashy's advice to smoke some weed...very politically incorrect.

I think unfortunately it's hard to figure out what is really going on based on your message.

It could be an adverse reaction but it could be that you are anxious about taking the medication because of your last bad experience. You know there is a strong placebo effect with medications, such as anti-depressants and it's sometimes hard to figure out what is going on. There is a fear factor with medications for sure, especially if you have not taken them before.

It's true that prozac has a long half life and it takes longer to come off of it as well. and i would not think one night off of it would cause problems.

a lot of cities have 24-hour pharmacies and the pharmacists can be very helpful. Bear that in mind. I had a skin problem diagnosed by a pharmacist once. My face was all swollen and they just asked me if i had used new products recently. Bingo, the new skin creme was thrown out and I was fine.

Some of these things are simple. Like finally RN suggested to have the medication with a meal. I know that when I upped my dose once from 20 mg to 30 mg I was sleepy during the day. The solution? Ah, so complex: take the meds at night. Wish I thought of that!!!

One thing that might have helped you in this situation is to start with a dose of 10 mg. But I know from experience that if you have clinical depression that this dose may be insufficient and you just delay the healing time. Imagine, you are suffering, you take the 10 mg dose for two weeks and it doesn't work that well you are still depressed etc. Then another two weeks have to go by. However, it does seem to minimize side effects.

Don't rule out anti-depressants altogether. get a doctor's opinion if the reaction is psychological or physical or a combination.

as for natural solutions, I think if your depression is severe, meds are a good choice. but once you start to feel better on them, look into all the natural things you can do to make yourself feel better. you already quit the booze and that is a huge factor.

then wean yourself off the meds after the six month period if possible, while keeping the natural things you have incorporated into your life. My own woman has written some good posts on this subject.

take care starlight, if you want advice on depression you probably could not find a more sympathethic bunch than us!

[happydog]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hi Star,

There are so many different med for different depressions to get the right one , for the right person. It is still early days, so see what your GP says about the natural solution,and if it dont work you can always go back to your GP. Maybe as well you should not stop smoking right now and just cut down until you feel a lot better in yourself. Hope all goes well.

Wishing you lots of love and strength.x

Love
Teardrop.x

[beatle]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Magic, it was not my own asessment that the SSRIs work on 50%. It did shock me though, the first time I read it. Some research says 50, some 60%, but I don't remember where I read it. I will look into it and post any info I find at a later time. Anyway, the point is that we all have different body chemistries, and if something works for you, great, but if it doesn't, move on (but keep searching). I am happy for everyone that has their life improved by SSRIs (I wish I was one of them).

[beatle]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

time2change-- re lithium oratate: I take 2x125mg-- providing 5mg elemental lithium each(that's what it says on the bottle) before bed. I'm just starting to try taking some in the morning too. Hopefully it won't make me too sleepy, as I already have a big problem with fatigue.

This amount (250mg) seems to help my anxiety and depression and it also helps me sleep. I wouldn't say it is a HUGE difference, but it is noticeable. Especially when I forget to take it, I notice I am more irritable and negative.

[magic]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hi Beatle,

I wish you were one too! One of those people that is. :huggy

You know I agree that we all have different brain chemistries and basically finding the right antidepressant is like a crap shoot. Right now I'm taking Luvox, one of the first few to come on the market and I'm liking it just fine.

But I've taken them all at one time or another.

I'm off to bed.

m. xx

[MyHeartIsDrenchedInWine]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hi Starlight,

Most antidepressants make me alittle manic; I have anxiety and depression. I take Xanax at night to combat the jitters but I really do need the antidepressant. My favorite antidepressant has been EMSAM, it's a patch.

You could have mild bipolar or cyclomythia. Let us know how it goes!


Take Care,


Myheart

[Guest]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Thanks so much for caring.......don`t know what I`d do without you all. Ended up I took the capsule last night, `cos couldn`t decide what to do for the best in that respect. Went to chat last night and my friends very kindly took my mind off the "jitters", until I tried to go to sleep and found myself back in panic mode. Hell, I woke up in panic mode.

Phoned doc........awaiting call back from her at the end of her morning surgery. Man!!!.......this is wicked!!!

Starlight Impress x

[Guest]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Doc says prozac not for me, so took me off it. Will see her next week about trying something else........I think I need to keep trying as depression is quite severe and can all but immobilize me at times. Just hanging round the house for next couple of days `til I feel better. Hell, still have a few gifts to buy, but am afraid it`ll have to wait.......am not venturing into town.......the bustle there would probably induce a full scale panic attack.

Really appreciate your perspective on the smoking, magic........I think you`re right and that I`m trying to tackle too much at once. Am going to be a little "kinder" to myself and tackle quitting smoking at a later date.

Sorry for venting all this........I can appreciate that there are a lot of people in this world who are a whole lot worse off than me.

Starlight Impress x

[PJ]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hey Star, hope your feeling better. Let us know what the doc says.

I too, have suffered with bouts of depression and anxiety as long as I can remember (20+ years before I turned to Al for support). It's true everyone's biochemestry is different. But the one that finally worked best for me is Lexapro.

My biggest problem was remembering to take it when I started feeling better. I'm also a big fan of natural solutions whenever possible, so I started experimenting without telling the doc (probably not my smartest decision).

It's just that I was thinking the problem might have something to do with not making enough seretonin or other mood regulating neurochemicals, instead of my brain not being able use them properly. So... After a lot of searching and reading, I eventually found some supplements that seem to work better (for me) than the prescriptions: Xtend-Life's Neuro Natural Serenity and Omega 3 / DHA Esters, along with the ALLONE. This is the best I've ever felt! Just sucks it took over 40 years to figure it out, with almost NO useful help or info from the docs.

Hang in there,

[MyHeartIsDrenchedInWine]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Another thing to remember is try to take it as soon as you wake up because you want to be "up" during the day and then have it wear off at night. I keep mine smack dab in front of my bathroom sink so I see it before I even brush my teeth. If I don't take mine by noon, I skip the day...otherwise I'd be awake all night. Lexapro was also my fave before I found the patch, I take the EMSAM patch off before I go to bed even though you are supposed to wear it for a full 24 hours I take mine off for the 8 hours of sleeping and put a new one on first thing inthe morning. I will say Lexapro rocks!

[memarcie]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

MyHeart, I actually had to take Effexor at night because it made me so tired. I tried in the morning, but it didn't work, my psych said ok to switch to night.

[Mags]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

This is just all so interesting. We have so much to learn. I'm not sure if my meds are the right ones. This is just such valuable information. Thanks to all of you.

Star- I can totally relate to the depression scenario. I wrote something on subscribers I hope you read. Love you.

[nancy]

Stop the ride........I want to get off.

Hey Star,

Glad your doctor gave you some good advice. so what will you try next? maybe citalopram? can't remember what you had first.

I am really sorry to hear that you feel immobilized and hope you feel better soon. Although I have had some very successful experiences with SSRIs and recommend them for severe depression, I have lately found (I should stress that realizations came while moderately not severely depressed)that the best way to combat depression is by developing a good relationship with yourself. I hope you look into therapy if you can get insurance coverage for it. Someone with cognitive behavioral therapy experience may be able to help you.