can new w/d symptoms start anytime?

[polkadot]

Hi everyone,

Is it normal for new withdrawal symptoms to start up several weeks after getting off Paxil? I was on 10mg for 8 months, then spent 5 months slowly weaning off (withdrawal symptoms started if I tried to drop too quickly). I took my last 2.5mg dose 5.5 weeks ago. For the first couple of weeks I had some minor anxiety, but then everything seemed to clear up and I felt great for about a week or two. Then, 2 weeks ago I started feeling dizzy/lightheaded, and it has been fairly constant since then. Seems to fluctuate in severity throughout the day. I've also gotten some off and on minor numbness in my left arm and lower left foot.

Yesterday morning I woke up to blurred vision - it was constant for about 10 minutes then for about 20 min it seemed to come and go, then finally cleared up. I am trying so hard not to be a hypochondriac, but it's so tough to relax when I get new symptoms all the time! Now I'm scared to sleep for fear I'll wake up blind. I have an appointment with a neurologist, but not for almost 3 weeks and I am so scared I have MS or something worse. The internist I saw at urgent care said he doesn't think it's withdrawal because I would have had symptoms right away, not delayed like this.

For anyone who has had blurred vision or numbness or dizziness - can you describe your symptoms? Did they come and go like that, or do they usually all start happening right away? I just wish I could feel like I was progressing and getting somewhere, that symptoms were starting to subside instead of starting up. Please help....

[Buxy`s Back]

hi i had the dizziness and vision and coordination after about 5 days off,and still have to a degree at 9 mths off ,but i was on it for almost 6 yrs,but yes symptoms of any kind can come and go and also new ones can crop up at any time too,in my experience.You wer,nt on it such a long time so maybe this has just hit you now but it will improve and hopefully not too long,i tried cold turkey 3 yrs ago and the first 8 weeks were rough but then i went bang big time and didnt function at all after that so would say yes deff new symptoms can hit at any time but they do come and go,wishing you luck and if ur doc dont believe you print a few posts off here to show him and yep... i feel like a number one hypercondriac lol

[scotty]

Polka, I have to say that the worst of Ryan's symptoms were once he had weaned. It took quite a few months to really feel "normal" again. Don't despair it wasn't all bad, just alot of ups and downs. Yup, it's still withdrawal. Once off paxil your brain needs time to re-adjust to the new environment.

[rc1904]

Polka,
These symptoms sound typical and yes, this could go on for a few weeks. You might think about taking checking out the supplement forum to see if there is anything there that might help you. A lot of us benefit from magnesium and fish oil. I know when I take these I don't experience any symptoms.

[polkadot]

Thanks Joanne, Scotty, and RC! It's reassuring to know you think what I'm going through could be withdrawal... so strange to be WISHING that I'm experiencing w/d symptoms... but it's definitely better than the alternative explanations I've concocted. So far no recurrence of the blurred vision (knock on wood) - that was so scary because I could hardly read my computer screen.

I did start on magnesium and fish oil supplements a couple of days ago, so I'm hoping that I might feel some effects soon. Do you know how long they generally take to have effects?

[scotty]

Polka, being able to identify withdrawal vs recurrence of what brought you to paxil is VERY important. I believe that most who don't know what we've learned immediately assume that need these drugs for life, when in fact they are still in withdrawal. This is a LONG process! It's taken my son from start of wean to full recovery 14 months total. The first 8 months were the hardest.

[Buxy`s Back]

if i wasnt still getting the physical symptoms i would be assuming now that my pre seroxat anxiety had returned but purely through reading posts on this site i know that its not the case ...yet.....if in 18 mths i only have the anxiety then i know it is mine ,but at the moment im having too many regular w/d symptoms to say im through w/d ,i do know we are all different and hoping ur worst symptoms are short lived good luck

[davedood]

Originally Posted by scotty

This is a LONG process! It's taken my son from start of wean to full recovery 14 months total.

It's hard to deal with, true. I was feeling GREAT a few weeks into w/d, then I started getting all kinds of symptoms. I never had any of them before I took Paxil.
It's been about 3.5 months since my last dose, and I can totally feel my body and brain still adjusting. Muscles twitching, anxiety 10 times worse than before Paxil, and irrational thoughts are what plague me now.
I'm investigating different ways to deal with all these stresses.
I'll never go back on an antidepressant, just because I never want to go through the w/d again.

I still believe they have their place, to get some people through particularly difficult problems, but I think I was wrong to go on Paxil (Zoloft, and Wellbutrin). I think all I achieved was masking my anxiety and depression, and in the long run screwed myself because it's kept me from dealing with my feelings.

Good luck with your withdrawal, I hope it becomes easy and passes quickly.

[zappelina]

Polkadot! I got my first WD symptoms 3 or 4 weeks after the first dose reduction and they were very similar to yours. Dizziness, blurred vision,slurred speech, palpitations and muscle weakness and twitching. My doctor thought I had some neurological disease, possibly MS or something, and refused to believe (and still do) that it had anything to do with withdrawal and most doctors react like that, they are not fully informed. I have had the blurred vision for over a year and I can assure you that you will not go blind so please don´t loose any sleep over that. But my optician says that she has seen many people with vision disturbances after SSRIs and there is a slight risk that you may become a bit short sighted according to her experience.

[scotty]

"I think all I achieved was masking my anxiety and depression, and in the long run screwed myself because it's kept me from dealing with my feelings. "

And that is it in a nutshell!!

[toliveisChrist]

For the last three to for weeks i've felt the left arm numbness and my vision come and goes. Hang in there.