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Paroxetine withdrawal

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avril23791
avril23791

Hello to the group

I am a lady of 62 living in Manchester, England.

I started Seroxat in 1995 and went from 20, to 30 to 40 mg over the years.  This year, as I was still suffering severe bouts of depression and OCD every year, I decided to come off it.  I cut down from 40, then one week at 30, one week at 20 and three months at 10 mg.  I was thinking of trying Sertraline to see if that worked better but am going to first try a mixture of St John's Wort with other adaptagens, prescribed by a medical herbalist.

I felt fine cutting from 40 to 10 but have felt really terrible this week since quitting altogether.  Constant crying spells, shivering, severe anxiety, depression and OCD symptoms. I have also been assessed this year as being on the Aspergers/Dyspraxia spectrum although am awaiting confirmation on the NHS.

Can anyone relate to this or tried a similar alternative route? Words of encouragement very helpful.  I run a business sole handed, so this is very disabling. When not affected, i am quite a strong, positive person who achieves quite a lot in terms of business and personal interests.

0 likes, 3 replies

3 Replies

  • Purpleheather
    Purpleheather avril23791

    Posted

    Hi Avril. I must have started on Seroxat just before you. I think it was December 1994. Originally I took it for severe OCD. So eventually I increased to maximum dose of 60 mg. It definitely works for me with OCD, although you can never shake it off totally. I attempted to come off twice, without success, many years ago. The second time I was convinced it wasn’t working any more, so changed to Effexor. Big mistake! So I went back on to Seroxat but on 50mg this time. Such a relief. As time went by I went down to 40 mg, and would have liked to decrease further.

    Sadly my life fell apart 4 years ago. So back onto 60 mg plus Mirtazapine. I only took the Mirtazapine for 1 year, although it did help. Now still on 60 mg, and can’t decrease until my life improves more. 

    Sounds like you are in a a better position than me to come off completely. Wishing you all the luck in the world, but the one thing that worries me, is the return of OCD. I have anxiety and depression too, but just remember how disabled I was with OCD. I don’t know how bad your was, obviously, and it maybe that you are simply going through withdrawal. So, it could all turn out fine. I thought about Sertaline, but was told it’s not as effective. If it works, why change it?

    Sorry, not very encouraging words! You sound very positive though, so stick with it for now. Only you will know, in time, if you can cope without Seroxat. Good luck!

    • avril23791
      avril23791 Purpleheather

      Posted

      Hi, Heather

      I was suffering from OCD even on 40mg, and still getting odd episodes of moderate to severe depression, so that is why I thought it might be time to change.

      I am now using mild antihistamines to calm me a little, along with the Alpha Slim electrotherapy device, but I will be using another antihistamine called promazine next week, so I'll see what happens.

      The docs are really keen for me to try Sertraline but I think you have to be on quite a high dose for OCD, from what I remember of the OCD conference last year. I will probably end up having to go on it but I would like to give a medical herbal combination (from a medically qualified herbalist) a shot first.

      What does the Mirtazapine do?  Is it a tranquilizer?

      Many thanks.

      Avril

  • Purpleheather
    Purpleheather avril23791

    Posted

    Mirtazapine is another anti-depressant. Fairly recent I think? It works well for anxiety and certainly helped me sleep at night. I think it’s fairly well tolerated, but the main side-effect is weight gain. When I was taking it I had lost a lot of weight due to a breakdown, so it wasn’t an issue at first, but then I felt my appetite returning. So for that reason, I stopped. I DO have tranquilisers (Valium), but only take them very occasionally, as I know how addictive they are.

    Drs right now appear to be very against Seroxat and very pro Sertraline. I can only think that’s because some awful side effects have been reported the last few years. 

    OCD Conference? Sounds very interesting. Sadly OCD is still a “hidden secret”. Although people now talk about it a lot, it’s in a jocular way (I’m SO OCD!). I really hate that, as it’s such a serious problem.

    Hope this helps.

    Heather

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