Posted by Ame Sans Vie on September 9, 2003, at 12:19:49
In reply to Coming off Paxil:does the Prozac trick work?, posted by Festus on September 8, 2003, at 22:23:08
Paxil withdrawal, in my experience, tends to cause extreme malaise, anxiety, nausea, cognitive difficulties, problems with coordination (i.e. clumsiness), and of course those oh-so-annoying brain zaps. The withdrawal is described by many as consisting of flu-like symtpoms.
The switch to Prozac to avoid SSRI withdrawal is quite often very reliable, as it is eliminated from one's system at a much slower rate than Paxil. The effects you listed (i.e. feeling sickly, nauseus, tired, edgy) are most likely due to the Paxil withdrawal, though Prozac could also cause these symptoms.
One thing that may help ease the withdrawal even further is to talk with your psychiatrist about adding a benzodiazepine to calm your brain. If you already are taking one, perhaps a temporary dose increase would be in order.
Hang in there -- if you stick with the Prozac, I can almost guarantee you that the withdrawal will end up being pretty painless (once you get past this initial transition phase). It sure as hell beats the pants off discontinuing Paxil cold-turkey <shudders>!
Best of luck,
~~Michael
poster:Ame Sans Vie
thread:258250
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030907/msgs/258395.html