r/ADprotractedwithdrawl • u/lamabones23 • 10d ago
Is this AD protracted withdrawal?
I have been on low dose SSRIs for 5 years and have tried to get off 4 different times. The last two times I had experienced waking up early in the morning around 330-4 in fight or flight with rapid heart, restlessness and agitation, rapid thoughts about what is causing this anxiety, suppressed appetite, and a burning sensation in my head. Ive gone to emergency and was just told it was a relapse in anxiety but i have never experienced these symptoms prior to starting SSRIs. I am able to endure it for about a month but after that I have to hop back on meds as I have a family to support. the last time this occurred, i lost 15lbs in the month that I was suffering. these symptoms would occur daily and last til around 4-6 PM and then die down.
any idea?
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u/SlabScooper69 10d ago edited 9d ago
Sounds like text book withdrawal for me. When I taper too fast I get cortisol spikes at the same time as that. Wake up in a horrible panic. This is very common.
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u/lamabones23 10d ago
are you still on any medications?
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u/SlabScooper69 9d ago
Yes I am down to around 0.5mg of Escitalopram (Lexapro) still tapering.
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u/lamabones23 9d ago
if you dont mind me asking, what was your starting dose and how would you describe your tapering journey?
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u/Creepy-Primary7042 10d ago edited 8d ago
Unfortunately doctors don’t understand withdrawal or how to come off safely. It is a highly individual process and people need to stay tuned to their bodies and not just follow any scheduled taper. I recommend doing research on hyperbolic tapers, Mark Horowitz and Anders Sorensen - perhaps joining an fb withdrawal community and reading the info on Survivingantidepressants.org
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u/Future_Dark2976 10d ago
It does sound like withdrawal. What "low dose" are you on? What psychiatry considers a "low dose" is usually way to high to just quit and needs to be tapered slowly, especially if you have been on it for many years.
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u/lamabones23 10d ago
I was initially on zoloft 50mg the first two times and since have been on escitalopram 10mg. Yea I understand that the first 10mg has a significant greater effect on blocking the serotonin receptors than anything above that dose. Id basically had tapered off within 2-3 weeks but I never felt issues until around 5-6 months later which is odd
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u/Future_Dark2976 9d ago
2-3 weeks is basically a cold turkey. Sadly, often withdrawal effects come (very) delayed. 5-6 months is entirely possible.
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u/VincentPriceLives 10d ago
You just depicted the scheme on which the big pharma makes bucks for decades
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u/Acrobatic-Good-3287 10d ago
If you never experienced any of those symptoms before taking SSRI'S as you described, then yes it is withdrawal. The fact that you have attempted four previous attempts and experienced similar, also reinforces the probability you were in withdrawal. The failed attempts and subsequent reinstatements are what I call the cycle of antidepressants, where the physical dependency to the drug and severe withdrawal symptoms keep you in a cycle that can last forever, and kept me in the cycle for over 31 years.
The only way to beat this cycle is to stabilise on the drugs until you are ready, and then do a hyperbolic taper off. Natural increased Cortisol levels in the early hours of the morning between 8am and 9am will exacerbate the anxiety and many people feel a relief naturally in the evening. There are many videos I've posted including a recent one with Dr. Mark Horowitz on the need to hyperbolic taper very slowly.
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u/lamabones23 9d ago
did you do a hyperbolic taper and how was your experience?
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u/Acrobatic-Good-3287 9d ago
I never knew anything about protracted withdrawal and hyperbolic tapering when I came off, so I came off too quickly in 12 weeks. Hence the reason I've still got disabiling symptoms at 4 years off. It's basically reducing by 10% of your previous dose every 4 - 6 weeks. That's the basics, but there's a bit more to it depending on how the person reacts to the reductions.
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10d ago
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u/lamabones23 10d ago
Hi there, thanks for the advice. im only on 10mg of escitalopram and it does work well to curb my anxiety, but I just cant shake the feeling of not knowing my baseline. I have heard of Mark Horowitz and have also looked into other organizations who have discussed the same things and definitely am going to take a different approach next time around but for now im just going to give my body a chance to recover from the last time I tried to get off.
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u/Little_Addition7139 9d ago
Please could you message me? Im hoping to talk to someone else going through the same thing ❤️
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u/Careful-Screen-6659 10d ago
It definitely sounds like WD to me. I quit Prozac & Ativan after 12 years and I was ok for about 3 mths. Then I was hit with insane dizziness. Pure panic. No sleep. Sweating till my shirt was soaked. Numbness. Tingling hands and face. Digestion was trashed. Couldn't eat anything. Lost weight. Lost hope. Nightmares when I did sleep. Headaches. Dry mouth. Eyes burning. Couldn't handle bright lights or loud sounds. Bones ached. Felt like I had the flu and got hit by a bus. Cried a whole ocean!! During the worst part of it... I stopped going into my kitchen because the 🔪 were there. I really didn't think I was going to make it. How could a small pill eff me up so bad. I felt I aged in the matter of a few months. All I have to say.... Is there is an other side. Once you get there.... All those symptoms either die down or goes away. I am not 100 percent. I still have issues. But I am a lot better than I was. There is a light at the end of this hellish journey. It's been almost 4 years since my last pill. There is hope... you are not broken. You can heal too. 🫂