Long term sufferers - Your top 5 symptoms

CloneX · 05-05-2004, 12:51 PM

Post your top 5 lingering symptoms.

Here I go:

1. Dizziness, cloudy thinking.
This is definitly the #1. Fortunately I don't have it all the time, but it does annoy me quite often. Doesn't make life that much fun if you are walking through clouds.

2. Bad mood - not depression. Just feeling..blah. Everything seems even more annoying and difficult when I have those bad mood days.

3. General feeling of being sick..just feeling not well. You wake up and just don't feel well. Sometimes hungover, sometimes just weird. I can't really descrive it - but it sucks. At least it's not always like that.

4. Increased anxiety now and then

5. I don't know...just various stuff happening now an dthen like bad nights , feeling shaky, having extreme hunger

There are still only a few days where I can say "Ah, getting back to normal"

05-05-2004, 01:31 PM

I get that occasional bad mood thing...like today I woke up and was just pissed off at everything, the cat rubbing up against my leg put me in a fury. It sucks but I always know in the back of my mind what the cause is so I just go about my blah day and try my best from letting it show to anyone around me.

....and yeah I had some moody days before paxil, quitting, and withdrawals, but that was a whole different ball game.

mjm · 05-05-2004, 02:34 PM

1. Cloudy thinking, confusion.
2. Easily ovewhelmed.
3. Anxiety, social fears, awkwardness
4. Fatigue
5. Mood fluctuations.

genevieve · 05-05-2004, 02:45 PM

1.fatigue, no energy, feeling faint, feeling like I am 80 years old
2. anxiety (that may be my original condition though... hard to tell)
3. low mood, not really depression but kind of...
4. some annoying things but not really a big problem for me : dizziness, muscle twitches, muscles pain, etc.
5.i will go with nausea even if I dont have it anymore (rarely) but I had it pretty bad for 6 months so...

do I forget something? I guess the more annoying is doctors telling me I have a disorder (panic disorder, depression disorder, anxiety disorder, name it!) and I have to be on pills... but this is not a symptom!!!!

MJR · 05-05-2004, 04:37 PM

How does one categorize the feeling of being numb to everything that goes on? I cannot seem to get energized over anything.

I can't wait to go to the office to get out of the house - there seems to be nothing there to make me happy. When I get to the office, I don't care about working.

Is this the real me, the effect of reducing Paxil or a demonstration that I am clinically depressed and should be on medication.

It is clearly frustrating because I can see it but don't care.

MizzT · 05-05-2004, 04:44 PM

The only thing i would add to my list is a feeling of internal shaking. like in my chest....almost a feeling of electricity in my upper body that makes me shake and feel uneasy.

altho that is feeling much better right now.

insomnia also still reigns to some extent.

safarigal · 05-05-2004, 07:07 PM

I've been totally med free since October 2002. No Paxil, no meds at all.

It does get better, slowly. I guess it took me around 6 months of being totally med free before I really felt better.

mjm · 05-05-2004, 07:12 PM

Safarigal,

Thanks for sticking around after you've recovered.It's very helpful for those of still in the trenches.

hope · 05-05-2004, 07:55 PM

You guys just described everything. When one subsides, something else creeps up. Heres my new one:

1. Sharp pains in wrists and head.

Lingering ones:

1. Sudden anxiety, nervous stomach, like stage fright or something.

2. Cloudy head.

3. Brain surges, like the zaps but milder, feel like dizzy spells but concentrated.

4. Lethargy and fatigue. I am just dragging.

5. Sleepiness and heavy brain and tingling hands when asleep.

6. Leg twitches at night.

7. Mood fluctuations, depressed, laughing, mad, nl, happy, depressed, etc...

8. Head buzzing at night or when I lay down.

05-05-2004, 08:05 PM

No one has yet mentioned my foremost and favorite symptom:

Every-day diarrhea!

CloneX · 05-06-2004, 08:09 AM

For me this withdrawal thing is like a stupid TV show:

The program is like this:
Week 1: Bad nights and how they suck
Week 2: Cloudy thinking and dizziness
Week 3: Feeling weak - what can I do ?
Week 4: ...

And every now and then you have special guests like Mr. My Head Hurts So Bad or Mrs. Weird Muscle Shaking.

Withdrawal, YOU CAN SUCK MY BUTT !

Kelly · 05-06-2004, 10:37 AM

My top five are
1.anxious days
2.flat days (not happy or sad, just flat)
3.That feeling of being not quite right
4.Still don't enjoy some things I used to (reading, certain TVshows,etc.) Alot of it is just to heavy to enjoy .used to enjoy mystery, intrigue, drama. but now anything with violence or unhappy topic bothers me.
5.That uncertainty of is this withdrawal or the new real me.

genevieve · 05-06-2004, 11:02 AM

ok guys... let's be the devil's advocate....
I am a doctor and I think that your fatigue, anxiety, depression, etc are a relapse/new condition and not lingering symptoms... what do you tell me to convince me???

dar7726 · 05-06-2004, 11:13 AM

Bite me!!! (sorry couldn't resist) I've been down this road before and I an't going back.

Ha.
Darlene

MizzT · 05-06-2004, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genevieve

ok guys... let's be the devil's advocate....
I am a doctor and I think that your fatigue, anxiety, depression, etc are a relapse/new condition and not lingering symptoms... what do you tell me to convince me???

The internal shaking i never had before going off paxil. Doctor, why is that happening after paxil if there are supposed to be no withdrawal sypmtoms??
And i NEVER had suicidal thoughts before paxil. Why do i have that now.
that is why i dont think its relapse.

And doctor.....what do you think might be wrong with my nutritional intake that might also cause this so that maybe i could avoid unnatural chemicals?

CloneX · 05-06-2004, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genevieve

ok guys... let's be the devil's advocate....
I am a doctor and I think that your fatigue, anxiety, depression, etc are a relapse/new condition and not lingering symptoms... what do you tell me to convince me???

- I had similar symptoms when I tried to get off the drug the first time, most of them stopped a few hours after taking the pill again (I was off for a month, so as the docs say...the drug should be out of my system - it should take longer for the drug to take effect again)

- Well, gimme a diagnosis that does make sense

I don't really fit in any category. Some symptoms might fit on those categories but others just don't fit.

- Why do those physical symptoms appear even when I am in "good" mood and have no anxiety ?

- Why do those symptoms sometimes seem to be connected to taking meals or exercise - but no blood sugar problems ?

- Why are some symptoms similar to side-effects I had being on the pill and which I had never ever before the drug ?

- Why are there so many other people out there suffering the same way after stopping the pills - even those who did not take 'em for anxiety or depression ?

- ...

Most doctors won't listen though.

But you can never be sure though...I might be wrong. Maybe it is a new diseaese - but I haven't found a diganosis that does fit better than the "withdrawal diagnosis". If someone can prove me wrong I might be open for it. But most doctors don't even give reasons for their diagnosis.

genevieve · 05-06-2004, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CloneX

But most doctors don't even give reasons for their diagnosis.

that is because if they try to do so, it is really easy to contest the diagnosis... For exemple, in my case : "you have depression because you are tired and anxious"... ok doctor, but why do I DONT feel sad if I am depress?
doctor : euh....

another one "this is only your panic attacks coming back"
ok doctor, but my panic attacks where never like that before...
"they have just changed, shut up now!"

05-07-2004, 07:12 PM

My top lingering symptom is anxiety. I am high strung anyway, but I have never in my life experienced anxiety at this level. It get so bad I want to cry and sometimes do. It's really disconcerting. This has triggered stomach problems which I'm prone too but haven't had this bad in 25 years. I'm into my 7th week of withdrawal so the worst of it's behind me, but this is unbelievable ... and all for a drug that isn't addictive!

-Ell · 05-07-2004, 09:47 PM

Quote:

ok guys... let's be the devil's advocate....
I am a doctor and I think that your fatigue, anxiety, depression, etc are a relapse/new condition and not lingering symptoms...

"hey I think you're right doc....and since I now also have an obsession with nice sharp shiney objects and just happen to know where you live...next time I feel like stabbing somebody..I'll spare the family and come to your house!" Convincing enough?

Of course first I will force feed you a couple paxils just to get you through it!

how's that?

05-10-2004, 02:18 PM

Has anyone else had eye or face twitching?

When I first started paxil, I would yawn a lot, and often when I yawned my face would seize up and my right eyelid would twitch. It was very, very annoying. I just had that happen again last night.

Considering all the bizarre effects of getting on, staying on, and getting off this stuff, I can't imagine that Glaxo SmithKline honestly believes that they're helping anyone besides their stockholders.

05-05-2004, 02:45 PM	#4
genevieve Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: montréal, canada Posts: 1,441	1.fatigue, no energy, feeling faint, feeling like I am 80 years old 2. anxiety (that may be my original condition though... hard to tell) 3. low mood, not really depression but kind of... 4. some annoying things but not really a big problem for me : dizziness, muscle twitches, muscles pain, etc. 5.i will go with nausea even if I dont have it anymore (rarely) but I had it pretty bad for 6 months so... do I forget something? I guess the more annoying is doctors telling me I have a disorder (panic disorder, depression disorder, anxiety disorder, name it!) and I have to be on pills... but this is not a symptom!!!! __________________ paxil free since july 2003 Still dealing with agoraphobia and anxiety

05-05-2004, 04:37 PM	#5
MJR Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 36	Depression / not Caring How does one categorize the feeling of being numb to everything that goes on? I cannot seem to get energized over anything. I can't wait to go to the office to get out of the house - there seems to be nothing there to make me happy. When I get to the office, I don't care about working. Is this the real me, the effect of reducing Paxil or a demonstration that I am clinically depressed and should be on medication. It is clearly frustrating because I can see it but don't care. __________________ MJR ----------------- Currently: Nothing - exercise and good food Prior dosing: 40mg Paxil (overworking) titrating to 20 over 3 weeks for now 100mg Lamictal (works well) 20mg Adderall (Helps with the focus and fog)

05-05-2004, 07:07 PM	#7
safarigal Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 4,879	I've been totally med free since October 2002. No Paxil, no meds at all. It does get better, slowly. I guess it took me around 6 months of being totally med free before I really felt better. __________________ Julie Paxil free since Nov 2002! Forum Rules Withdrawal FAQ

05-05-2004, 07:55 PM	#9
hope Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 3,188	lingering symptoms You guys just described everything. When one subsides, something else creeps up. Heres my new one: 1. Sharp pains in wrists and head. Lingering ones: 1. Sudden anxiety, nervous stomach, like stage fright or something. 2. Cloudy head. 3. Brain surges, like the zaps but milder, feel like dizzy spells but concentrated. 4. Lethargy and fatigue. I am just dragging. 5. Sleepiness and heavy brain and tingling hands when asleep. 6. Leg twitches at night. 7. Mood fluctuations, depressed, laughing, mad, nl, happy, depressed, etc... 8. Head buzzing at night or when I lay down. __________________ Hope. "I never cared much for flim flam doctors." (Doctor Baker, Little House on the Prairie). Put on Paxil in 1996 for Post-partum depression. After 5th withdrawal attempt, went into severe debilitating withdrawal, restarted Paxil in the ER which didn't work anymore. Taken off again quickly by a shrink, started on Lexapro. Body rejected all drugs except benzos. Currently off all drugs. I'd say I'm recovered. Yeah, I'd say so.

05-06-2004, 11:02 AM	#13
genevieve Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: montréal, canada Posts: 1,441	ok guys... let's be the devil's advocate.... I am a doctor and I think that your fatigue, anxiety, depression, etc are a relapse/new condition and not lingering symptoms... what do you tell me to convince me??? __________________ paxil free since july 2003 Still dealing with agoraphobia and anxiety

05-05-2004, 12:51 PM	#1
CloneX Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 294	Long term sufferers - Your top 5 symptoms Post your top 5 lingering symptoms. Here I go: 1. Dizziness, cloudy thinking. This is definitly the #1. Fortunately I don't have it all the time, but it does annoy me quite often. Doesn't make life that much fun if you are walking through clouds. 2. Bad mood - not depression. Just feeling..blah. Everything seems even more annoying and difficult when I have those bad mood days. 3. General feeling of being sick..just feeling not well. You wake up and just don't feel well. Sometimes hungover, sometimes just weird. I can't really descrive it - but it sucks. At least it's not always like that. 4. Increased anxiety now and then 5. I don't know...just various stuff happening now an dthen like bad nights , feeling shaky, having extreme hunger There are still only a few days where I can say "Ah, getting back to normal"

05-05-2004, 01:31 PM	#2
SLCPax Posts: n/a	I get that occasional bad mood thing...like today I woke up and was just pissed off at everything, the cat rubbing up against my leg put me in a fury. It sucks but I always know in the back of my mind what the cause is so I just go about my blah day and try my best from letting it show to anyone around me. ....and yeah I had some moody days before paxil, quitting, and withdrawals, but that was a whole different ball game.

05-05-2004, 02:34 PM	#3
mjm Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 93	1. Cloudy thinking, confusion. 2. Easily ovewhelmed. 3. Anxiety, social fears, awkwardness 4. Fatigue 5. Mood fluctuations.

05-05-2004, 04:44 PM	#6
MizzT Banned Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: NM Posts: 6,866	The only thing i would add to my list is a feeling of internal shaking. like in my chest....almost a feeling of electricity in my upper body that makes me shake and feel uneasy. altho that is feeling much better right now. insomnia also still reigns to some extent.

05-05-2004, 07:12 PM	#8
mjm Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 93	Safarigal, Thanks for sticking around after you've recovered.It's very helpful for those of still in the trenches.

05-05-2004, 08:05 PM	#10
fluffychick Posts: n/a	No one has yet mentioned my foremost and favorite symptom: Every-day diarrhea!

05-06-2004, 08:09 AM	#11
CloneX Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 294	For me this withdrawal thing is like a stupid TV show: The program is like this: Week 1: Bad nights and how they suck Week 2: Cloudy thinking and dizziness Week 3: Feeling weak - what can I do ? Week 4: ... And every now and then you have special guests like Mr. My Head Hurts So Bad or Mrs. Weird Muscle Shaking. Withdrawal, YOU CAN SUCK MY BUTT !

05-06-2004, 10:37 AM	#12
Kelly Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 38	My top five are 1.anxious days 2.flat days (not happy or sad, just flat) 3.That feeling of being not quite right 4.Still don't enjoy some things I used to (reading, certain TVshows,etc.) Alot of it is just to heavy to enjoy .used to enjoy mystery, intrigue, drama. but now anything with violence or unhappy topic bothers me. 5.That uncertainty of is this withdrawal or the new real me.

05-06-2004, 11:13 AM	#14
dar7726 Banned Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Kentucky Posts: 3,474	You tell him!!!! Bite me!!! (sorry couldn't resist) I've been down this road before and I an't going back. Ha. Darlene

05-07-2004, 07:12 PM	#18
deb90230 Posts: n/a	My top lingering symptom is anxiety. I am high strung anyway, but I have never in my life experienced anxiety at this level. It get so bad I want to cry and sometimes do. It's really disconcerting. This has triggered stomach problems which I'm prone too but haven't had this bad in 25 years. I'm into my 7th week of withdrawal so the worst of it's behind me, but this is unbelievable ... and all for a drug that isn't addictive!

05-10-2004, 02:18 PM	#20
fluffychick Posts: n/a	Has anyone else had eye or face twitching? When I first started paxil, I would yawn a lot, and often when I yawned my face would seize up and my right eyelid would twitch. It was very, very annoying. I just had that happen again last night. Considering all the bizarre effects of getting on, staying on, and getting off this stuff, I can't imagine that Glaxo SmithKline honestly believes that they're helping anyone besides their stockholders.

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