Getting of Paroxetine

[BikerBob31]

I have been on Paroxetine for a couple of years now due to some family-counseling issues.  I was reluctant to go on them at first.  But for my family, I thought I'd try it.  

It did reduce my anxiety.  I slept better, deeper, and longer.  A life-long stutterer, it cut my stuttering by 50-75%, and improved how I was viewed at work (I believe), by my calmness, better speech, and ability to focus.  I had suffered from significant anxiety my whole life up to that point.

But it changed who I was.  I was a person I didn't know.  I lost my identity.  I 'felt' less.  I've had no sex-drive, and when having sex, the feeling was dull.  

Once an early riser, with a lot of energy, personality, feelings, and 'life', I became a deep and long sleeper, had NO energy, put on weight, and just went through life with dull feeling.

Recently, I could barely get out of bed, had no energy, was very uncomfortable and self-concious about weight-gain, and could barely get anything done.  When my prescription was recently filled with a generic by the 4th different manufacturer (white oblong, white round, red round, and now green oblong), I vowed to get off the stuff.  How can they all be the same?(My health professional recently wanted me to go on even stronger medicine).

I went down from 40 mg to 20 mg/day over the course of a week and a half with no side effects.  But this week has been completely different.  After I received these new green pills(Zydus Pharm(?)), I decided I would not take them and enough was enough.  But it appears it was a big mistake, even after I performed a web-search to see how best to do it (on my own).

I am extremely dizzy and nauseous; to the point of incompacitation.  I have not been able to sleep for the past 3 nights.  I have had vivid dreams, including one of the greatest sexual epics imagineable.  But this is bad; so I just took a 20mg pill.  I'll continue to try it on my own, but slower.  But no more of these pills unless it is life or death.  

I would urge others to consult their Dr (firmly) about weaning-off these (if they want to), and not taking "I would not recommend that" for an answer.  I'm a 51 year-old male, and this is the worst I've ever felt in my life.

[bodymatters]

I have experienced Paxil withdrawal as a result of mistakenly skipping 3 days.  I experienced vertigo, nausea and a sort of "zapping" of perception as if experiencing a very brief blackout.  The effects of stopping Paxil cold turkey are disconcerting.  I am currently tapering off under my Dr's protocol.  I have decreased from 10 mg to 5 mg (was originally taking 20 mg).  I will take 5 mg for 1 mos and discontinue entirely.  So far, the withdrawals have been manageable, but apparent.  I have experienced irritability, moodiness as in anxious and then tired and then a bit manicky and then a bit down, some muscular stiffness/weakness, vivid dreams and some sleep disruption.  Generally feel a bit disoriented or "off".  Just reporting, as it seems there's no hard facts coming out of the medical community.

[Paxiled]

A book called The Anti-Depressant Solution by Joseph Glanville is a good place to learn about proper weaning protocols for going off these meds.  Paxil can be particularly difficult, so take it slow and easy.  There are many websites discussing Paxil withdrawal; skip the horror stories and just go to the success stories for more help.

[mammo]

Yes, it is ALWAYS best to work closely with your doctor when weaning off medications.

The Paroxatine seemed to do you a lot of good for awhile, and it could be that your body built up a tolerance for the medication and it was time to up your dosage or switch meds completely.  This happens often with these types of meds.  Sexual side effects are common with these also.  Some medications have fewer side effects, which you could talk to your doctor about.  It's your decision, and have to decide how you would rather live.  Good luck to you and take care.

[suzi-q]

I am also in the process of coming off the generic brand of paxil also....I was at 50 mg for 15 years....it was a lifesaver for me, but of course it affects everyone differently.  I just felt that it was time for me to come off....I was feeling stronger and better about myself and wanted to take this step...and i did it under doctor supervision...however, I also hit that brick wall from going from 20mg down to 10mg.....the jitters have come back, anxiety and irritability.  There are other possible reasons for these feelings but I am going to go back up to20 and take the tapering slower....

I also notice you came off 20 mg very quickly.  If you go slower, you may have better results....please go and read what greenlydia said on my post.  I am going to remain at 20 for a month now and take it slower.......our bodies need time to adjust.

BEST TO YOU!