The Real Supermum
Mental illness as many will know by now is a matter very much close to my own heart. I am proud to have mental health problems and I hope to break some of the stigma surrounding it. Today we have a guest post from Prozac Withdrawal. I personally have been prescribed Prozac three times that I can think of. Here is what happens when you just stop taking it …
Prozac Withdrawel is a blog diary of a long journey off liquid Prozac. The blogger spent 10+ years trying and failing to come off Lustral, it got her out of a deep hole with PND but she always knew deep down she didn’t need to be on it permanently and she hated the way it numbs her In so many ways and that doctors have no clue how to taper people off these drugs properly. She switched to liquid Prozac and began tapering excruciatingly slowly
The blog post:
Back in 1998 after I had my second son I fell into a severe post natal depression, I was put on 50mg Lustral, I remember taking that first tablet and how it wiped me out totally so I couldn’t stay awake, I went back to the surgery and they suggested taking half a tablet for four days then onto the whole ones, there began my relationship with Lustral. I didn’t hold out much hope of anything lifting me out of my depression, but lo and behold, about two weeks later I woke one morning and everything was fantastic, the sun shone and I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off me, I felt “well” and normal again, it was a miracle.
Three months on, I decided as I felt well I didn’t need to take the tablets anymore, so I just stopped, knowing nothing about them, a few weeks down the road I was feeling suddenly crap again and so it was back on the tablets again, and so it went on.
I was then about a year on, then I would try and come off with the advice of my doctor to withdraw by taking them alternate days for a fortnight, then every third day for a fortnight and fade them out, doing this would make my head so dizzy but I assumed this was correct, and without fail a few months down the road I would relapse and back on the Lustral again, and so I was on the Lustral merry go round.
2003 was the worst year, I’d come off Lustral at the end of 2002, and throughout the year 2003 I was struggling with my mental health (not knowing it was withdrawal), I tried every damned thing through that year, meditation, a healer, counselling, exercise you name it I tried it, the healer told me my depression was imploded anger, anyone who knows me knows I am the least angry and most laid back person you could meet!! By the time we got to December 2003 I was seriously falling apart at the seams, I couldn’t sleep for nights at a time, I turned into a zombie, adrenaline was pumping through me 24/7, I couldn’t eat and I couldn’t function, Peter was having an equally terrible time at work and couldn’t take time off to help me (which he now bitterly regrets), I finally had to admit defeat, I was mentally defective therefore I had to start taking the Lustral again.
January 2007 a book jumped out at me in Waterstones called “Withdrawing from Anti Depressants” by Joseph Glenmullen, which advocated the correct way to withdraw was by “tapering”, and that what I was experiencing when coming off the Lustral incorrectly was not necessarily a depressive relapse, but withdrawals, which can mimic the original physchological problems, this was a revelation to me and made a lot of sense.
Have you experienced any unwanted side effects from suddenly stopping taking your own antidepressants?
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Oh what an awful thing. I have run out of my prescription, and if I don’t take my tablets within 4 hours of the normal time I am like a drunkard. I am physically unable to stand up unaided, have horrible dizziness even when lying on the bed. This just gets worse and worse, and I feel physically sick then. I can’t get up unaided, walk without assistance and obviously can’t drive. The worst was when the doctor changed me to a different tablet, and I went 3 days between with no anti-depressants, called a “wash-out” I was non compos for those days. It was a horrendous experience. I am sorry for you, but thank you for sharing your story. The book might come in handy for me later on! x
I was that way for years Carol, thankfully I never become dependant on them as they are highly addictive too x
I don’t have the Prozac, have heard rotten things about it. So glad you didn’t become addicted. xxx
I did though! Until I worked out how to get off them properly.
Hi
Some antidepressants wash out really fast which is what yours sounds like Carol, others take longer to wash out like Prozac. The ones that wash out of the body quickly cause withdrawals to happen a lot quicker than than the longer ones, unfortunately I’m one of those who gets withdrawals even with prozac!
I felt so sorry for you, Yes mine stop working really fast. I find the longer I have been on them the faster they seem to wash out? Weird. But it is inherited with my family, and is clinical depression, so tablets probably lots different x
Wow that was fast thanks for putting that up. It looks better here than on my own blog LOL
Your very welcome hunny x Make sure you keep coming back & comment on all the many comments I am sure you will receive x
Will do, luckily I have a day at home today!
Ive never been on anti depressants before but i did see a councillor when i was much younger! I went from walking in and spending the entire session crying to walking in and saying nope nothing to discuss with a massive smile on my face!
I always walk into the shrink saying oh yes everything is great and then come out a snotty faced wreck …
I’ve found that before and I actually find it like that hear just typing and typing not knowing whose reading it or not but its really helpful for me anyway xx
when i used to see my councillor id go in smiling pretend everything was ok come out with mascara down my cheeky dry snot on my face i soon realised i needed to wear waterproof mascara and not to be afraid of opening up something i had severe problems with at one stage in my life x
waterproof mascara is awesome i might aswell be a guinea pig for a cosmetic company or buy stocks either one lol xx
Please dont judge me. I unfortunatly did this when I was younger and again recently, but to tell you the truth that would be saying that I had taken them properly in the first place as I believed that I had no need for them and was just smiling and nodding to make the doctors happy even getting repeat prescriptions to look like I was taking them, I know have a back catalogue in my cupboard. I think its time to go back and have a long hard chat with the doctor about all of this and see what needs to be done.
I did it so so many times – thinking I was fine and just came off them, each time the depression came back to haunt me only worse each time …
In my experience, and I have looked a lot into this, doctors really have no clue how to taper people off antidepressants properly, they do it too fast and by the alternate day method, don’t get me wrong, it works for SOME people, but for a lot the withdrawals kick in, and the head f*** is that the withdrawals often mimic the depression/anxiety you were originally suffering, so you think you have relapsed into depression and start taking the tablets again. I found out after lots of research to switch to a liquid prozac and do a long slow taper, it’s taken me 3+ years (yes really!) but for me it’s the only way to do it.
Most of the time I feel fine then others I really could just curl up and not want to wake up again, its like a constant pressure at the moment xx
huni we dont judge and you arent alone i took anti depressents on and off which in the end made me feel like my head was going to explode ! x
thanks hun x
Surly the doctors should explain this I went through hell when I came off my anti depressants and all docs said is that I wasn’t ready although I knew I was
Sadly the GP’s sometimes have no clue at all …
This happened to me over and over again, but I knew deep down they were wrong and something was wrong, when I found the book above, it all made sense. Hence my blog as well to try and help others in the same catch 22 antidepressant merry go round.
some gp talk poo !! i went to the drs a few weeks ago after suffering the loss of another baby and i broke down i told him exactly how i felt and i begged for some help he told me i needed painkillers rather than anti depressents
You are smart Sheila! A friend, years ago, decided she didn’t need Valium any more so she stopped taking it. She actually went off her head and ended up in hospital for months……..
xxx
Benzos are even worse than SSRI’s. I don’t want you to get me wrong and think I’m knocking these medications, because they have their place, and I am grateful for them for getting me out of a massive black hole and able to enjoy being a new Mum, but doctors are woefully ignorant about how to get people off them slowly and safely.
Think that is GPs are prescribing them they are just that ‘general’ it should be only specialists that know the drugs properly and their effects. do you agree??
I think some pharmacists know a lot more about them than doctors, but we don’t think to ask them.
yeah I think that sometimes doctors are also a little too quick to throw antidepressants at something sometimes too. I had surgery a few years ago and it depressed me I wanted to be referred for counselling and was sent home with a box of fluoxetine instead. xx
Counselling is so hard to come by on the NHS and a lot of people can’t afford private, I did manage to get some CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) on NHS which was really good. It’s just easier for doctors to stick their head in the sand I suppose and dish out the tablets.
Yup I fully agree, I’d had counselling when I was younger on the NHS and again later after my surgery to come to terms with my Crohn’s diagnosis I saw a psychiatrist and this was one of the time I ‘yeah sure i’ll take the tablets’ happened, just at that point in my life I could have really done with an outside perspective as my family were seeing and hearing from me all the time.xx
I agree, and have said the same many times, that the pharmacist is the one who knows the drugs! xxx
Yes, I agree with you except in the case of people like my old GP (sadly he has retired). He kept up with the current medications, and attended all sorts of courses and conferences etc. to keep up to date with what was happening – he was great with depression for this reason, and knew all the ins and outs of the different medications. In other cases, yes a specialist is the way to go. xxx
yeah some GPs are brilliant I think its once you know whose good at which problems xx
sounds like you had a horrible experience hun. i spent years on an off anti depressants. up until last year that was. i had to completly come off them as they had the reverse effect on me, made me moody, angry and violent (almost stabbed my ex at one point because of something he said). just home enough mums read this post and talk to dotors before coming off theirs xxx
Me too Laura-Sue.
I am on Lustral and all they have ever said to me about coming off them, is that if I stop suddenly it will ’cause headaches’. Sounds like I need to get really clued up by the time I am ready to start coming off them :-/
Absolutely you do Kerrie, that is shockingly bad advice. I recommend the book mentioned above.
how do doctors treat anxiety, I am now starting to constantly feel like a switch im either ‘normal’ and mellow or so irritated that i could kill if somebody touches me. I suddenly start to feel really panicky like the whole world is spinning too fast and my face heats up and my heart races and them im gasping for breath, does this sound like anxiety? xx
it sounds a little like a panic attack possibly or anxiety i suffered with panic attacks daily and i suffered similar apart from my hands went really sweaty and clamy i dreaded leaving the house and i had to take a few minutes to remind myself to breathe x
Its worse lately and was bad today first time I tried leaving the house without my crutches and been on them for 7weeks now xx
bless you huni maybe speak to your gp if possible it took me a long time to build up the courage to mention it to the dr and i had councilling but unfortunatly i dont think ill ever be free from panic attacks i hope you recieve the support you need xx
thanks hun I would have no idea where to start ‘iv self diagnosed panic attacks treat me’ lol i usually start talking and get tissues pushed towards me and then they look really uncomfortable and the doctor thats really good is that good hes hardly ever available xx
bless you huni maybe give them a call tomorrow and see when the dr you like is available and tell them its very important xx
thanks michelle, feeling a bit urgh at the moment its worse cos im pushing myself to get back to work after being off for 8weeks and im still in pain and then im panicking about money and then the pain and then what my husband thinks of me being off and the fact that romantic life has been pretty nonexistant lately (if ya know what im saying) because of the pain and its just so much at once and im feeling crushed xx
i used to take anti depressants and id be the same feel fine after few months so when i ran out id not go back and get none then id relaspeand do silly things.. 3 times in fact i ended up in hospital.. i was put on the high dose 40mg then lowered again to 10 then up and down as id go without taking them because i felt ‘better’ i finaly stopped them october last year .. not by doctors ordered my own .. my life had changed after spliting with ex id found my now oh and was happy for the first time in 2 and half years i have good and bad days still xx
I took antidepressants after my Grandad passed away as that hit me hard & they yet again when I had PND after having my LO. I thankfully never became addicted to them as I was also receiving councelling which to me help me a lot more than just the antidepressants. I personally never wore mascara when I was with my going through councelling as I cried a lot as I thought the whole world was against me!!!
xXxXx
When I was on antidepressants when I was younger the dosage was lowered slowly when It was time to come off them, reading this blog post has made me certainly very grateful of that. It sounds like you had a horrible time with them, I’m glad the book helped you to understand why though. xx
ive never been on them so duno myself, its awful when doctors get it so wrong and u end up suffering from it.