Posted by Rich B on August 11, 2003, at 14:00:06
In reply to Anyone switched to Lexapro? « ggrrl, posted by Dr. Bob on June 11, 2002, at 7:52:48
At least for me, withdrawal from Lexapro was far worse than withdrawal from Paxil. Maybe it’s because I was only on Paxil for a couple of months and I was on Lexapro for about 8 months. Either way, here is the lowdown. With Paxil, I weaned myself off it for a couple of weeks. During the weaning process, I was miserable. The dizziness was the main problem. Once I stopped totally, the dizziness stopped almost completely. With Lexapro, the dizziness wasn't bad the entire I time I was cutting back, but as soon as I would stop, the dizziness would kick in. Accompanying the dizziness was EXTREME fatigue, lethargy, and depression (which was never a problem for me).
Stopping cold turkey is not recommended. I did that right off the back and the symptoms were unbearable. I tried twice to wean myself off, and each time, after I stopped, I had to go back on because I had some weekend thing going on that I could not attend feeling like I was. I guess I should have planned my weaning process a little better.UPDATE:
I totally stopped a little over a week ago. Friday Aug 1st was the last day I took it. The dizziness is finally starting to get better. I still have it, but it is not too bad and is getting better every day. I went to an amusement park on Saturday and rode the rides all afternoon and was OK. After all that walking and standing I did, I was completely drained and exhausted all day on Sunday. I wonder if my withdrawal played a part. Overall, it took a week (after the weaning process and then stopping completely) to finally start feeling a little better. I'll let you all know when the withdrawal is over.Rich
P.S. - Lexapro was a better SSRI for me that Paxil was because the regular side effects were much better with Lexapro that they were with Paxil. With Paxil, I was wayyy to tired all the time. With Lexapro, the tiredness was not as bad. The sexual side effects were also worse with Paxil.
poster:Rich B
thread:109458
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030807/msgs/250055.html