stopping lexapro

[starfairy]

not sure why i am posting this just need to talk it out i guess. so i am going to ween myself off my lexapro. i have been taking it a year and a half. i only got on it because i over heard my mom talking about me when she was here to visit. what she does not realize is she is one of my "crazy" triggers and i tend to drink a lot around her just to deal. she is an alcoholic too. i have been thinking a lot lately and i think i thought i was depressed but i can see most of it was just the roller coaster of drinking.(sober for 2 months now) i am naturally moody and all but don't think i need to be on lexapro. i am losing my insurance soon and wont be able to afford it anyway. i have been having some heavy anxiety but contribute that to lack of money and struggling to make ends meet. i find that i am holding my breath and have to tell myself to breathe. i think the lexapro makes me indifferent to particular issues where as i should be proactive. my procrastination is through the roof. i can't / don't think i can get a handle on myself if i have a toxin inside pulling strings.
thanks for listening.

[Byrdlady]

stopping lexapro

Star, well, you are struck a very raw subject for me! Back before the holidays in 2010, my liver readings began to be abnormal. I was going to a rheumatologist and he did a battery of tests and found I had too much iron in my blood. His office just called and told me... it was like heavy metal poisoning. I asked what to do, and the nurse said, I don't know, why don't you see your regular dr about it. I was mad...drop a bomb like that and leave me to deal with it! So I thought since my liver seemed to be in trouble, I'd give it a break however I could (except stop drinking, of course), so I stopped taking any meds I thought I could live without and one of those was Cymbalta. I stopped taking it on Nov 17 and by the 23rd, I was in the ER with severe sweats, shakes and high blood pressure. I thought I was having a heart attack. My diagnosis was drug withdrawal from Cymbalta! It was horrible. I was suicidal, depressed, no concentration....and nausea like no other. It took me 6 weeks after stopping to feel 'normal' again. One morning, I woke up, and it was like the world was in color again! It was shortly after that, that I stopped drinking and have been AF since. I am off 3 blood pressure meds, my liver is supurb, my iron is normal, and my eyesight improved 5 ticks!!! Cymbalta numbed me up and AL made it worse! I call this period, Numb and Numb-er!! I was a dang zombie!! So I will say give it a try...get off the Lexapro for a good 6 weeks and see how you do. BUT TAPER OFF IT. If you google Cymbalta withdrawals, you will see hundreds of people who are mad as hell with all these side effects trying to get off. I imagine Lexapro is the same...I was on that, too before Cymbalta...I changed because I thought Lexapro made me gain weight. It is a slippery slope, anitdepressants and AL together. I thought I took both because I was depressed but as it turns out, I was depressed BECAUSE of them! I am fine now! I can't tell you what a cloud I was under taking AD....dr's give them out like candy, they are serious drugs...even tapering off, the side effects are bad....I say get off of as much medication as you can. Just my 2 cents. PM me if you need to. Byrdie

[starfairy]

stopping lexapro

byrdie..thanks for the input. i will be sure to taper off. i was on them in 2007 and i had the worse time getting off. i too felt truly suicidal. i still have no idea why i got back on after that. i was just always looking for a "cure". being sober makes me not want to hide anymore. i want to feel and feel strong. i appreciate you offering me to PM you. i may take you up on that.

[fennel]

stopping lexapro

I'm gradually cutting back on my celexa. My depression was mostly due to drinking, and I hate the way ADs make me feel. They remove the crashing lows, but there are no giddy highs, either. Just as Byrdlady says, it's like the difference between color and black and white.

[spacebebe01]

stopping lexapro

I have wondered for a long time what it would be like to not take antidepressants, the only problem is that when I have tried stopping before I have drank so just ended up in an even worse mess.

[ThreeDogNight]

stopping lexapro

Hi, Star.

I started taking Paxil back in November as soon as I got to rehab. I had been having horrible anxiety--had never experienced that before the last year or so. I am like you--realizing the horrible anxiety came mostly from drinking and trying to numb myself with more and more alcohol. I decided a few weeks ago that i would cut the dose (20 mg) in half. And I have no insurance either at the moment, as I was denied after my COBRA ended due to detox and rehab:upset: And I did get the Paxil refilled last week--$28 as oposed to the $9 I was paying w/insurance. It isn't hard to cut the pill in half, but not sure how I'll cut it into quarters in a few weeks. I don't feel any real side effects--just a whooshing feeling in my ears sometimes when I get out of bed. I saw many a horror story about withdrawals on YouTube.
Lav recommends (and swears by) Amoryn, and I bought a couple of bottles online last fall. I have one in the freezer, as directed, and plan to take that as son as i am weaned off the Paxil. You have to buy it online.
Hope this helps.
:lTDN

[starfairy]

stopping lexapro

threedognight...thanks i will be sure to check the Amoryn out. In 2007 when i stopped taking another AD i had the worse "brain zaps" it was horrible and i was a mess. i am hoping to know what to expect and maybe it will help a bit.

[spacebebe01]

stopping lexapro

what are brain zaps star?

[Byrdlady]

stopping lexapro

Star, I had brain zaps too!!! It was the damnest thing! I absolutely couldn't think! Almost seizure like. I will never take AD again, getting off was the second best thing I ever did (getting sober was first) Byrdie

[LadyLush]

stopping lexapro

Space,

I had brain zaps when my insurance company switched me years ago from Paxil to the generic form. To me it is like a lightning bolt through your head. A "zap" if you will.
God awful. Every time I turned or moved my head.
I was not withdrawing just changing from name brand to generic. I'll never do that again!


LL

[Lavande]

stopping lexapro

star,

Lexapro made me numb & indifferent but it never lessened my desire to drink! i was on it 2 or 3 different times always with the same results. Wean yourself off carefully over a couple of weeks, you shouldn't have any problem.
The Amoryn that TDN mentioned was and still is a better choice for me. It keeps me level headed, feeling like myself. It may be an unwelcome expense for you right now. But if you can manage to at least give it a try, I think you'll like the results.
AMORYN Mood Booster | Natural Antidepressant | Supplement for Depression & Anxiety

Wishing you the best!
Lav

[starfairy]

stopping lexapro

you guys have made me feel so good about my choice. i started my first half dose tonight.

[starfairy]

stopping lexapro

update

well i have cut my dose in half for almost a week now. i feel horrible! my joints and body in general hurt so bad. but the worse are the brain zaps. they are making me crazy. how long do they last again? i want to take the full dose to feel better but i WILL NOT go backward. i know this will eventually end and that is what keeps me looking ahead but needed to vent cause i know my husband is sick of hearing about it. to make matters worse we have his buddy here for the weekend and the guy NEVER stops talking!! never!! and i am not much of a chit chatter. i just want to piddle in the garden or take a nap but i can only avoid him so much without seeming rude. any suggestions to help me get through this toxic time? happy easter.

[spacebebe01]

stopping lexapro

If he talks so much he probably doesnt notice if your taking part in the conversation or not. Just politely nod and smile in the right places and he'l be fine:H

[paulywogg]

stopping lexapro

this thread is old but ive been contemplating a.ds for a bit,however i dont want another thing to taper off later plus im not that depressed,just need more positives,was on zoloft 4 yrs ago i swear it made me crazier and drink more!