Posted by SLS on June 25, 2000, at 8:45:12
In reply to Paxil Withdrawal (Yes, Doctors, WITHDRAWAL), posted by Rick E. on June 25, 2000, at 4:35:29
Someone should be able to recommend an effective taper schedule for discontinuing Paxil. I took it a long time ago and forgot how I went about it. I probably ended up biting off pieces of the tablet as needed near the end.
A common strategy for discontinuing Paxil and Effexor with minimal withdrawal effects is to use Prozac (fluoxetine) as a temporary substitute. Prozac and its metabolite have extremely long half-lives (7-14 days) - they stay in the body a long time and are eliminated very slowly. It is almost like an automatic gradual and smooth taper schedule. I don't know what the current thought is regarding how to do this, but in the past, some doctors gave one 20mg dose followed by one 10mg dose about a week later. Cam W. knows how this is done.
Whenever an antidepressant is to be discontinued after remission is achieved, it should be done very gradually anyway. This helps to minimize the risk of relapse.
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:38313
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000619/msgs/38321.html