Good Friend
Posted 04 September 2019 - 01:29 PM
Great to hear Kmrekl... sounds like you have got onto an even plateau with it all. Hope this can be maintained for you and that you have some relief from previous symptoms.
It'll be an adjustment whenever I go down in dosage again, but for the moment I'm staying where I am and building coping skills and working through trauma.
Hope that you're doing okay!
Site Admin
Posted 04 September 2019 - 07:41 PM
That's a wise move. Get some confidence in reserve before considering another move. It will serve you well.
I am doing exactly the same. I have had some really good days recently, which I am sure has something to do with the homeopathy I am taking, but am also getting some confidence back before I consider dropping my Citalopram. It will happen, but not yet. I want to enjoy more of these good days while I can!!
Good Friend
Posted 05 January 2020 - 11:45 AM
Been a while since I checked in. Still at 12 mg and no withdrawal symptoms because I guess my body is really used to the lower dose now. I didn't think this would be such a long process ( I thought max a year), but it's been almost a year and I am not off Effexor yet or even that close. (For anyone wondering, I was on Cymbalta for over a decade, and to taper my doctor put me on Effexor, which is quite similar.)
It's an added expense to do the compounded medication (with shipping $69/month), but it's so worth it. Still $828 a year is a lot, and it's hard not to want to rush this process so I can quit spending so much money. Insurance does not reimburse. Anyway, I just can't think about the money. This is what's best for my health. Slow slow slow.
Good Friend
Posted 11 March 2020 - 06:02 PM
Down to 10 mg now from 12. Doing okay so far. Just the weird shooting pains in my limbs returning. That's really manageable though and will eventually go away. I can't believe I've been weaning for over a year ( to be fair, I sort of stopped weaning for months and just stayed at 12 mg) and am not done. I need to talk to my dr about how long I'm going to stay on 10. I don't know if there's really any time table, but I don't know that I want to spend $60 a month on compounded meds for several more years.
Site Admin
Posted 11 March 2020 - 06:17 PM
Hello stranger!
Good to hear from you. I am going to be in the same boat with my Celexa so I know how you feel. It is a tough call, but ultimately there is a price on health. Keep us posted and we'll do what we can to guide you through the remainder...
IUN
Good Friend
Posted 16 March 2020 - 10:16 AM
I'm practicing social distancing and staying home (seriously not even going to the grocery store). I wish more people would take this seriously and also stay home, but I digress!
It's going to be hard to be so isolated. I'm trying to stay busy with work projects, home exercise routines, books, movies, and puzzles, but since I intend to stay home for weeks, I worry about falling into depression being so alone.
Site Partners
Posted 16 March 2020 - 10:59 AM
My wife and I have practiced the type of protective steps during the flu seasons each year for about 15 years and during that time she had the stomach flu (food poisoning/) once and other than that not a sniffle.
Site Admin
Posted 16 March 2020 - 04:40 PM
This is what worries me too. Spent the last two years getting used to being outside and not fearing it, and now we are being told not to. It worries me that it will reverse all the hard work...
For me it is worth the risk of getting a bit of a cough, letting the statuary 14 days pass, and then get out again rather than stick at it for months trying to avoid it.
The UK is once again the laughing stock of the world deciding first to adopt a herd immunity approach, and now Boris is suggesting everyone to stay indoors. Why do we have these fools running the country? I know some people have harsh words to say about Trump, but at least he says it like it is.
Good Friend
Posted 16 March 2020 - 06:32 PM
This is what worries me too. Spent the last two years getting used to being outside and not fearing it, and now we are being told not to. It worries me that it will reverse all the hard work...
For me it is worth the risk of getting a bit of a cough, letting the statuary 14 days pass, and then get out again rather than stick at it for months trying to avoid it.
The UK is once again the laughing stock of the world deciding first to adopt a herd immunity approach, and now Boris is suggesting everyone to stay indoors. Why do we have these fools running the country? I know some people have harsh words to say about Trump, but at least he says it like it is.
yeah, I don't want to get political, but poor leadership that doesn't know what to tell us is making my anxiety that much worse
Good Friend
Posted 12 August 2021 - 11:50 PM
Haven't stopped by here in a while. Hope everyone is coping ok!
I'm down at 4 mg of Effexor (for those following, a long time ago my dr switched me from Cymbalta to Effexor for my taper). For months, my taper was going pretty well. Just slight brain whooshes. A few weeks ago, I was processing a difficult situation and that's when I started to have some mood lability again. Crying several times a day, specific to the situation, but also a lot of berating myself, getting flooded with shame and anxiety first thing waking up and continuing throughout the day.
I used a lot of my coping skills-- yoga, meditation, journaling-- as well as therapy and getting enough sleep. It helps temporarily, but I've started having suicidal ideations and once again am like nope need to be on more meds.
My therapist says it's depression, and I should probably be on more medication. I speak to my dr tomorrow who may say it's just my emotions trying to learn to regulate themselves. I started taking 5 Hydroxytryptophan to help with mood
The question is: what do I want? Do I want to work this hard for happiness or is medicine ok to make it a little easier? Would another medicine work better than Effexor? These are the questions rolling around in my head.
Site Partners
Posted 13 August 2021 - 08:26 AM
"The question is: what do I want? Do I want to work this hard for happiness or is medicine ok to make it a little easier? Would another medicine work better than Effexor? These are the questions rolling around in my head."
drs have been asking these questions for years. Some people have good success with a certain AD but later in life if that try that same AD it does not work at all. Changing from a specific AD to one that works better is just a shot in the dark. There ois some hope that at some point in time genetic testing will be able to fairly accurately predict which AD will work best for a person but right now it is too hit and miss. I wish I could help but I am afraid my opinion would be a guess as well.
Hang in there Amrek. It sounds like it is time to slow down your wean for a while and give your body a chance to recover.
Site Admin
Posted 19 August 2021 - 09:40 AM
Hey - good to hear from you again - and apologies for the late reply. Been stupidly busy.
I remember your story well, and whilst good to hear that your withdrawal had been going well, it is unfortunate that you have done a u-turn. If the Effexor was working, it may be wise to go up a little before throwing it in for another drug, which may or may not be the right way - as Hat said, it is the flip of a coin.
If you have had difficult circumstances, then what you are feeling is obviously par for the course - the question is whether you feel this will pass in time, of whether it has pushed you too far. Never a good thing when something like this happens during a withdrawal. We get so fragile at these times and need to be so careful - but sometimes things are inevitable and beyond our control.
The 5HTP might work and is a possible, but much like an AD, works for some, does nothing for another. No one brain works the same way. No one drug works the same way. I mean they all state that they prevent the reuptake of serotonin, so logically that would be one process - so why do we have a dozen different pills stating they all do the same thing?
I'd tread carefully the with 5HTP - it will show itself to be working fairly quick if it will - and make sure you get a very good brand as there is so much rubbish out there which uses the worst possible ingredients.
Keep us posted!!
Good Friend
Posted 20 August 2021 - 08:54 PM
Went back up to 8 mg to curb the suicidal ideations and have a little relief from constantly crying. I'm still crying a few times a day, but it's like four times a day instead of ten. I'm usually able to calm myself down after a couple minutes.
Really hoping this isn't a sign of something worse than depression and is just processing the situation and trying to regulate emotions with less meds. I was managing all right before I started processing this issue. I did have to counter every negative thought or attempt to berate myself for being stupid with a counter thought (which happened a lot). Like if I made a mistake at work and started calling myself an idiot in my head again and again, I was able to breathe and talk myself through it with something like, "Everyone makes mistakes. You did what you could to fix it, and it's going to be ok." Going to yoga regularly was helping as well as trying to be more social. Hoping that once I've fully processed the situation I will begin to feel better, but I am scared.
Site Admin
Posted 21 August 2021 - 06:43 AM
Self compassion is something a lot of people lack - myself included.
I know it is often said, but consider what you would say to a friend in the same situation. Be social. Accept mistakes. Do gentle exercise. Sounds like you have it already there for the taking. Once you are doing the thing that you would normally, it will send the right information to the brain to regulate the neurochemistry.
I would stay at the 8mg and see if you can get through with the aforementioned therapy-based tools. The last thing you want is to make a massive jump to then add to the taper.
Where are you at with the 5HTP - do you start taking a dose? If so when, and what dose?
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