Anyone know anything about Paxil?
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TV ClubHouse: Archives: Anyone know anything about Paxil?

Teddybear

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:12 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I have just been prescribed the anti-depressant Paxil. I have been taking it for about 1 week. I was looking on the internet to find some info about it and have found some horror stories about it. Especially about withdrawl from it. Its really freaking me out. Does anyone have any good info about Paxil???

Goddessatlaw

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:18 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I do, Teddybear - don't worry. It's like any other antidepressant - you have to wean yourself off of it gradually. If you stop cold turkey, sure, you'll have problems depending on how long and how much dosage you've been on. It's a miracle drug. Many members of my family take it, and it has given them back their lives. I'll post some literature later for you - I'm on my way out the door. If you're prescribed Paxil, you may already be in a state where disturbing information freaks you out - in which case, it's the symptoms of your depression talking. Since you just started, you're probably on a low dose (say 20 mg or less) and it takes a bit of time for (a) Paxil to start regulating your seratonin absorption rates and (b) for you to work yourself up to a dosage which will hold for you. Hold tight - you're going to be just fine. More later.

Teddybear

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:21 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks so much Goddessatlaw! And yeah your right about the dosage, I just bumped up from 12.5 mg to 25 mg today and I have a prescription for 5 more months at the same 25 mg.

Rig

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:22 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, I have had an Rx for Paxil for about 10 years, for Panic Disorder. It works very well at reducing the symptoms of that disorder. I, too, have read horror stories about withdrawl from it, but my doctor swears it's not an addictive drug. I have never tried to go off it, because it works for me, so I don't have any personal experience with withdrawl from it.

Car54

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:25 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I have taken it also. I found it took a couple of weeks to stop taking it. I was on it for about a year.
My doctor was very specific about stepping off gradually...and she was right...I did have some slight side effects while I was transitioning off it. Nothing serious, but I was glad she told me...I think I might have just stopped taking it suddenly if she had not been very clear.

Goddessatlaw

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:28 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddy - 12.5 isn't going to do much but get your body primed for the higher dosage. You're going to start feeling better very soon with the 25 mg. dosage. Give it a few days - you'll wake up without that gnawing in your stomach, without the bad thoughts banging away at you, and without feeling hopeless. After years of outrageous behavior - depressive, suicidal, violent, aggressive, self-defeating - a really bad case of the family depressive illness, my 20 year old cousin finally decided he couldn't live like that anymore and accepted medical treatment. They put him on 25 mgs. immediately. Within one week, he walked downstairs to his parents shaking his head saying he couldn't believe when he woke up he wasn't angry and depressed - which is how he'd woken up every morning for the past 4 years. If you can't tell, I'm a real believer in the stuff (as long as it's prescribed following a proper medical diagnosis). I just remember too much of how life was for my family before Paxil. I'm sure you're going to see results very soon, too. Just keep your doctor advised on how your body and mind are reacting so he can continue to gage your dosage accordingly.

Webkitty

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:37 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, Everyone here is right, don't worry. My son takes it and he has had no side effects or any problems with it at all.

He was put on it for anxiety, and it has helped him a lot. He hasn't tried to go off it so I can't speak to that, but what all have said makes sense about weaning yourself off of it when the time comes. Good luck.

Teddybear

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 02:38 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks guys! Car54, it makes me relax some knowing there is at least one person who did not have a horrible time with the withdrawls.

Car54

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 03:36 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, everyone is different and the meds affect us all differently. Just really stay in touch with your doc and listen to YOUR body. You will be fine. Good luck.

Squaredsc

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 04:54 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
teddybear, i was prescribed paxil by my primary care doctor. i was having panic attacks about driving over bridges and overpasses. he gave me the sample packets and said for the 1st week take 1/2 a pill(don't know the exact dosage) and on the 2nd week take the whole pill. well i took the 1/2 pill and i didn't really feel any different but by then i had already avoided any bridges but there are 2 or 3 routes that i can take home and each of them has a short overpass.

i basically had a fear of falling off the bridge. i don't know where it came from. it started gradually but thats another story. anyhoo when i went to the whole pill i felt out of my head. i can't describe the feeling but i just didn't feel like myself at all and i didn't like the feeling at all. i went to their website to read up on it and that horrified me. the doctor never told me about being weaned off of it, so i just stopped taking them. felt like myself again but still don't do bridges and i have worked my way up to going over the overpasses w/o thinking about it too much. but there is this one overpass from the beltway that i had to stop taking. it curves way up in the air and i haven't been on it in over a year and don't know if i will ever be able to do it.

so i don't know if my story is a help or not. i haven't followed up with my doctor either but that's another story too, lol.

Sia

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 05:03 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, the mother of a college friend of mine had taken Xanax for years and years to help take the edge off her anxiety about her Parkinson's disease, and her physician felt Paxil would be a much better alternative drug for the anxiety. My friend asked me to stay with her mother during the day while she was in the process of decreasing the Xanax and beginning the Paxil. It really did help the woman, and it didn't have the side effects of the Xanax.

I'd say you might want to keep track in an informal journal of how the medication seems to be helping. That might be a really good indicator to you that the medicine is doing its job. If you're in close contact with the doctor and follow his/her instructions, you should be fine. Good luck! You've got lots of support here, you know.

Hippyt

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 06:31 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear,I take 25 mgs of Paxil a day for anxiety and panic attacks.It has changed my life! I was to the point of agoraphobia before I started taking it,now I can go anywhere. I even drove my family home from Thanksgiving dinner on the freeway the other night,an hour drive. I would have NEVER been able to do that 8 months ago. I've only been on it for about 7 months,so I don't know about getting off it,but like Car said,when the time comes just talk to your doctor about it,be sure she knows your concerns.
The only side effect I have noticed is sometimes I wake up and can tell I've been clenching my jaw tight through the night. But,really compared to how I was before,that's pretty much nothin'.
Good luck,let us know how you're doing,and feel free with questions. There's pretty much someone who knows something about everything here!

Rissa

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 06:53 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I took Paxil for a very short period years ago. Was for post-partum depression mixed with some family emergency *stuff*. I took it for about a year almost exactly a decade ago. It worked GREAT for me and I had no problems at all when I decided to quit it.

Having said that however, I feel it necessary to note the following....... there are numerous anti-depression/anxiety, etc drugs out there and the reason is that each one only works for a small percentage of patients. I was actually watching a Cdn. documentary just a few days ago and a woman on it was saying that she was trying out the 29th of 30 drugs when she found one that worked for her!!!

My dad is (well, I won't go into it.. suffice it to say my dad is medically a *MESS*)..... he tried Paxil more than once and it not only did not work but made his anxiety much Much MUCH worse!!! I am absolutely not saying this to scare anyone but it should actually be comforting (no really. LOL). Hopefully Paxil will work wonderfully for you, but if it doesn't... be assured that it's not you and it's not hopeless. It's just a matter of matching the right drug with the right patient.

Azriel

Monday, December 02, 2002 - 06:57 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, a while back I was clinically depressed and having awful anxiety attacks. Like Hippyt, I had become agoraphobic and didn't want to leave my house even to go to the grocery store.

My family finally dragged me out of the house and to the doctor. He prescribed Paxil and it was a miracle for me. When I started taking it, it was like a heavy black weight that was crushing me, just lifted off of me and I could breath and see clearly again.

I took it for only 6 months and had no problems with withdrawal when I quit taking it. Stay in touch with your doctor and follow his instructions on dosage, but I wouldn't believe the horror stories. I think a few bad cases have been blown out of proportion.

Teddybear

Tuesday, December 03, 2002 - 06:55 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks so much guys. All your help makes me feel so much better. My doctor told me I might only need to be on them six months also. I will keep everyone posted on how I am doing. So far so good. I went shopping with my friend last night and didnt get claustrophobic (sp?) in the Christmas section, I thought that was a step. I dont know if it was the Paxil because its only been a week but it felt nice to be able to do that.

Conejo

Tuesday, December 03, 2002 - 10:11 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear and all the other posters that have had success with anti-depressants I'm very glad that these drugs have worked for you

I only wish that they would work for me! I have been suffering from panic attacks and agoraphobia since 1989 and have tried I don't know how many different drugs including Paxil and all of them make my problems worse and more hopeless.

Squaredsc, I know exactly what you mean! I can hardly drive anywhere these days - no bridges, tunnels, heavy traffic, etc. I feel like I'm falling off the bridges and trapped in the tunnels & traffic.

I wish all of you whose body chemistry can handle these types of drugs the best and am not intending to discourage anyone from trying them

Adven

Tuesday, December 03, 2002 - 10:53 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Teddybear, as some people on this site know, I am a psychiatric counsellor with 15 years experience, much of it dealing with issues surrounding depression and anxiety. Paxil came on the market in the mid 80's with a group of other medications called SSRI's (prozac being one of them) that had fewer side effects and were safer in cases of overdose. Depression, anxiety, panic disorders and phobias are caused by disruptions in how the brain processes certain biochemicals. This can happen because someone is genetically susceptible to depression or because of extreme stresses in someone's life. Paxil works by slowing down the rate at which the biochemical serotonin is re-absorbed at the molecular level. This re-absorption returns biochemical function to normal.
Any anti-depressant works in about 65% of cases and it is difficult to predict which one will work with a particular individual and how serious any side effects might be. One individual can take a particular anti-depressant that works wonderfully with no side effects and another person with similar problems can take the same anti-depressant and experience no improvement in mood or experience side effects serious enough to discontinue usage. All anti-depressants, except in rare instances, take four to eight weeks to work. The most common side effects with paxil are sexual dysfunction, sweating, disrupted sleep patterns, drowsiness and weight gain. These will lessen with time as your body adjusts, but will likely not go away completely.
As for the horror stories you have heard about getting off paxil, there is growing evidence that it can be more difficult to get off than oroginally thought and, in rare instances, extremely difficult to get off. It is not addictive, but when you discontinue usage the brain can be very slow in resuming it's natural functions. The result can be rebound anxiety/depression, nausea, sleeplessness or a kind of "electric" feeling through your body. This is extremely rare, though. Paxil is completely safe and, if you wean yourself off it very slowly,it should not present problems.
Hope this helps. As a side note, I would not suggest you use a message board for getting info on anti-depressants. Although well-intended, it is anecdotal. Nor would I necessarily believe your family doctor. Many are surprisingly uninformed when it comes to the latest news surrounding anti-depressants. A half hour with a psychiatrist is the best way to cut through the often conflicting information you hear on the subject.
Good luck with it.

Mosessupposes

Tuesday, December 03, 2002 - 04:37 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
My problem and the problem that a lot of people experience with anti-depressant medications are the side effects. I can deal with the withdrawal because I don't experience any. My problem is the initial side effects.

I can't get by the headaches, the inability to sleep (sometimes the reverse-too sleepy), the nervousness, the edginess, the emotional numbness, etc. This happens even at the lowest of doses. I can't begin to imagine what a full dose would be like. Just an example...Prozac (low dose 20 Mg...some patients as high as 80 Mg).

These symptoms were exactly the same with Paxil, Zoloft, and Prozac.

Elavil will just about knock a person unconscious, but doctors rarely prescribe this anymore (usually for fibromyalgia cases).

The one good side effect is that Paxil usually causes an initial 5 to 10 pound weight loss without dieting.

I guess I should also mention that most anti-depressants will kill the sex drive in almost all men and in many cases women. This causes problems in many marriages.

I am only mentioning all of the above because the initial poster was more concerned with withdrawal, and most patients seem to have more problems with side effects.

Squaredsc

Tuesday, December 10, 2002 - 08:27 am EditMoveDeleteIP
im sorry conejo, i just saw your post. adven, i appreciate the info you have given.

Conejo

Tuesday, December 10, 2002 - 09:57 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks squaredsc, it does help to know that there are other people out there that suffer from the same symtoms that I do (not that I would wish them on anyone) just helps in some way. I've just tried to adjust the best I can, but still sometimes the panic is unbearable.