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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by sassyveg on September 1, 2003, at 16:23:49
I've read a little bit about the withdrawal symptoms that people have experienced, but those people were all going either cold turkey or tapering down from 10mg. I've been on 20mg for about 4 or 5 months, and I've decided to stop taking it because I don't have health insurance anymore and it's very expensive. Plus the sexual side effects and the teeth clenching are driving me nuts, and the anxiety I was having that I started taking it for has subsided.
Anyway, I want to know if anyone out there has successfully stopped taking Lexapro without experiencing these awful-sounding withdrawal symptoms. I'm in law school, and frankly, don't have the time to deal with feeling like shit for a couple of weeks. I'm planning on tapering down from 20mg, to 10mg, then 5mg, and maybe 2.5mg, but it all depends on whether I can get some samples from my doctor.
Thanks for any help out there.
Posted by Quixote on September 2, 2003, at 0:32:16
In reply to Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by sassyveg on September 1, 2003, at 16:23:49
i tapered down without withdrawal symptoms successfully in this time frame~~
From 20mgs daily for 4-5mo ---> 10mg daily for 4 weeks, taking 20mg just ONCE after a week when my head seemed "zingy", then continued the 10mgs. :
From 10mg daily for 4 weeks + a day/two ---> 5mg (half that tab)daily for 3 weeks or so, taking 10mg on a sparse occasion when i got that "zingy" sense again and found myself going from 0->overly emotional in a nano-second... :
From those 3+ weeks of 5mg daily, i skipped a day, took 5mg, then skipped two, took 5mg, then skipped three days, took a small 5mg half, four days none, etc.etc. maybe backtracking a day once only when i felt wonky, i don't remember...
I've been completely without Lexapro for about a month&1/2 now. All told, this method was seamless and painlessly mild- and i'm hypersensitive- i can feel a molecule under 52 mattresses ;) and like you, i have a career committment in which "I don't want to take the time to deal with feeling like shit for a couple of weeks". (i teach kindergarten)
Hope that helps you, Sassyveg,
Don't get me STARTED re: pharmaceutical prices and health insurance.Quixote
P.S.
The terrible ear ringing that brought about my desperate decision to quit Lexapro has FINALLY stopped. Does anyone have any experience or knowledge about Lexapro and/or combinations causing terrible ear ringing?
>
> I've read a little bit about the withdrawal symptoms that people have experienced, but those people were all going either cold turkey or tapering down from 10mg. I've been on 20mg for about 4 or 5 months, and I've decided to stop taking it because I don't have health insurance anymore and it's very expensive. Plus the sexual side effects and the teeth clenching are driving me nuts, and the anxiety I was having that I started taking it for has subsided.
>
> Anyway, I want to know if anyone out there has successfully stopped taking Lexapro without experiencing these awful-sounding withdrawal symptoms. I'm in law school, and frankly, don't have the time to deal with feeling like shit for a couple of weeks. I'm planning on tapering down from 20mg, to 10mg, then 5mg, and maybe 2.5mg, but it all depends on whether I can get some samples from my doctor.
>
> Thanks for any help out there.
Posted by Treb on September 2, 2003, at 0:51:28
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by Quixote on September 2, 2003, at 0:32:16
One thought I had was: Could your losing the anxiety be a result of the med. Would stopping cause them to return?
I had to very slow taper off of Effexor. it would probably be a good idea with any of these meds - powerful stuff!
Nosey Treb playing the devil's advocate!!!
Posted by sassyveg on September 2, 2003, at 7:45:44
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by Treb on September 2, 2003, at 0:51:28
My mom said the same thing. HAHA! Seriously though, I think I found the "root" of my anxiety, and my life is a little more stable now, so I want to see if it would return without the meds....and if it does, I would like to talk to my doctor about maybe trying a different med.
And to Quixote - thanks so much for that schedule! I'll try it, assuming I can get enough lex from my doctor to do it for that long.
> One thought I had was: Could your losing the anxiety be a result of the med. Would stopping cause them to return?
>
> I had to very slow taper off of Effexor. it would probably be a good idea with any of these meds - powerful stuff!
>
> Nosey Treb playing the devil's advocate!!!
>
Posted by Treb on September 2, 2003, at 18:04:02
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by sassyveg on September 2, 2003, at 7:45:44
Great! I'm a believer in adressing a root cause as opposed to dumping meds on a symptom.
Best of luck! Thanks, Treb
Posted by sassyveg on September 4, 2003, at 17:57:21
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by Treb on September 2, 2003, at 18:04:02
Whelp, 5 days at 10mg (down from 20), and I'm breaking down and staying on it....Being on the 10 is making me realize that I do need to be on it, for now anyway, because I'm in law school and that's soooo stressful and anxiety-ridden. I've got the paranoia and distrusting-ness (not a word, ha!) back, so I guess I should stick to it for a while.
Oh yeah, and I felt like I wanted to kill someone when it cost me $163 for a two month supply. (On top of $47 for a one month supply of a beta blocker that I take for migraines, which I can't just stop taking, cause then I could potentially have a heart attack....oh the joy of pharmaceuticals....)
(Not literally, don't anyone go reporting me now....But I did feel like my head was going to explode all over the pharmacy counter at Walgreens.)
Posted by Treb on September 5, 2003, at 12:14:25
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by sassyveg on September 4, 2003, at 17:57:21
It took me a couple of weeks to get used to the 10 mg of Lexapro. I don't think I could go for a higher dose. I'm at a happy place and I think more would make me wirey.
Oh, I'm glad your head didn't explode at Walgreens! Thanks, Treb
Posted by sassyveg on September 5, 2003, at 16:18:13
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by Treb on September 5, 2003, at 12:14:25
It's weird.....being on 10mg makes me ultra-moody and depressed. When I first started on it, I felt really unstable and really depressed (even suicidal) until I upped the dosage. 20mg is my happy place (though it would be happier if I could have a normal sex life too). I feel wirey on the 10...and I get those annoying "zings" as I've seen people put it. It's funny how these things work with our own brain chemistry.
Posted by shorty on December 9, 2003, at 11:01:50
In reply to Re: Lexapro Withdrawals, posted by sassyveg on September 5, 2003, at 16:18:13
i just stopped taking lexapro pretty much because i needed to re-fill my prescription and IM BROKE. im a abnormal pyschcology student, anway i feel really messed up. floating feelings, seeing things even. as i type this the keyboard gets farther and farther away. oh yeah its just great (sarcasm) i was on 40mg suppossed to be upping it one more time. plus on wellbutrin and risperdal. i know i sound like im crazy with all these drugs but i promise im not!! anyway i do hear that ringing noise to. your not the only one. it drives me crazy. but each day it starts to fade a bit and doesnt reoccur for a time period. i dont know how long this is going to last for but im telling you right now DONT STOP COLD TURKEY!!! taper down. i feel like im messed up on some drug for the past few days. everything feels like a dream! anyway though....take my advise and just taper man cuz i feel like im in a cloud...
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