[SCraver]

I decided to wean myself off my pills. (Yes - I know I should have gone to my Dr. - but that is besides the point) I split the last of my pills in half and took the half pills for about two weeks. Friday was my last half pill. Monday started the spins/shocks to the brain. This is HORRIBLE. If I had known about these withdrawals, I honestly don't know I would have ever started the pills in the first place.

Anyway - I guess I don't have a question - just needed to vent a little.

[DietVet]

Oh man. I went off paxil a couple of years ago and it was really terrible. The zaps, the weeping, the headaches. Poor you!!! I had a similar experience when I started to go off lexapro, which is what I currently take. I really feel for you.

A note: in both cases, I wound up really, really depressed in addition to the physical symptoms. (Even so much that I had to cancel my classes and stay home from work...) If that happens to you, try to remember that it's just the withdrawal and NOT a real feeling that you should act upon.

Do you have a partner or friend who can keep tabs on you for a week or two to make sure you don't go off the rails?

Ugh. Anti-depressants. Can't live with them, can't live without them.

[SCraver]

I haven't been feeling depressed... though, I did cry at my desk this morning after a confersation with my supervisor that was unpleasant. Haven't cried in a while... it almost felt good. (I am nuts, I know!)

A Facebook friend of mine said she went through the same thing and it lasted about two weeks... it is sort of odd, but having a time limit to focus on is helping me. (even if it lasts shorter or longer)

I have a hubby and I talk with my sister and mom via emaile very day. My poor hubby... I was awfully cranky with him when I got home from work yesterday. He asked if he had done something wrong - and I apologized and told him it was just the withdrawals.

I will be glad when this is over!!

[uwfan27]

I am so sorry! Weaning off is the worst, and surprisingly, the two times I've done it on my down w/o a doctor have gone better than the one time I did with WITH a doctor. Different drugs though (weaning off Effexor is a nightmare...). Hang in there! I wouldn't expect you to feel depressed yet, because just as the drugs took a while to build up in your system, they will take a while to completely leave. I hope you are able to stay happy without them! (I unfortunately, cannot)

[Bellamack]

I hear ya! I was taking Cymbalta for Fibro and then my liver enzymes went high, so my doc weaned me off, what brain shocks and just feeling spacey. It went on for about 6 months ( I had been on the cymbalta for 5 yrs.) I also had a horrible time getting off ambien (on nightly for 11 yrs.) I am drug free told my doctor, when they offered up another drug for Fibro that may help with sleeping, NO THANKS!

[SCraver]

I have to say, I still have the brain shocks... but they are SO MUCH better today.

[DietVet]

Glad to hear it!

I'm pretty bad at remembering to take my medicine--the brain shocks (I call them zaps) remind me if I've missed a few days. I abhor them, but I'm glad for the reminder!

[stellarwbz]

Sorry it's making you feel yucky. I used to take that but quit it cold turkey. I don't remember having any bad side effects though. The week after I quit taking it I started taking lithium and that is when I got really sick. I was always tired and couldn't even get myself to go to work.

[SoHereitGoes]

I was on Citalopram and had more problems on it then when I had (abruptly, without Dr's or family's knowledge.. heh) stopped taking them! Everyone said they saw a "good change in me" but really the only change inside of me was I had gone from miserable to just numb and felt nauseous the first few hours after taking them... so basically I wasn't sobbing and having panic attacks (I was prescribed them not just for depression but for anxiety) which was an improvement to the people around but a horror to me because I just wasn't feeling anything. I'd personally rather feel bad than nothing at all. What's kind of funny about it is no one believed me when I told them I'd stopped taking them for at least 3-4 months until I displayed the full bottles of pills that I'd still had.... shows what difference it made in me, eh?
I fortunately, did not have the shocks too bad. I think maybe once or twice and they were mild and I didn't know what they were until long after when I read something about it online. I wish I had advice on that but I don't really. I just thought I'd chime in that I wasn't a big Citalopram/Celexa fan myself and good luck with the weaning

[rocket pop]

When I started weaning off citalopram I had the exact same problem. It was absolutely awful. What helped for me was weaning off them ridiculously slowly. I started staggering a full dose (1.5 pills) one day and a half pill less the next day for a few weeks; then 1 pill every day; then staggered with half a pill less every alternate day, and so on and so on. Eventually I just started taking half pills when I got the shakes/spins and then one day I never took one again.

I hope you find what works for you.