The taper calculator gave me about 5.5 years left reducing about 1% R/O which is the equivalent to about 3% of current dose (every 4 weeks). And this is from 5.9mg onwards.

I'm actually impressed it's not longer when I used to do my own calculations by hand.

Still waiting for help from Deprescribing, after 6 months. It has to be soon. I want to refine where my limit is between reductions for the brain to settle - if it's say 3.5 weeks instead of 4 thats still better. I won't be trying anything till after the holiday though.

8 minutes ago, The Dust said:

Can I ask you, if you also have sense of impending doom (you mentioned panic) and if you woke up sweaty?

I get impending doom on off from a variety of sources but not from withdrawal - only when I got it wrong years ago. Lack of sleep always hurts me though, way out of proportion. Not having a job in general leads to inactivity and festering thoughts.

I get dehydrated and rib pain every morning but not sweaty. There's a thing I bought to stretch the front ribs+ sternum by pulling the back muscles when you lay on it - that does seem to help before sleep.

Two realisations I've made recently:

1. The removal of about 13% of my original R/O at 10mg (5.7mg now) has given a very subtle improvement in "feelings" nothing major but there's a particular connectedness to the current time and place/nature that I feel, sometimes a peaceful feeling I used to get after work even waiting for a bus decades ago.

   Maybe once a week there's this tiny tangible nature to reality - of course all dwarfed by side effects of Lexapro. Still a good sign.

2. The brain drain that hits me and used to interrupt workdays appears to be because of lexapro - almost precisely 2hrs after my dose. I used to take it 7pm evenings about a decade ago but will try later in evening

Has anyone noticed markable difference in energy after the medication is taken?(even after decades of use)

Also it's not always convenient to be measuring liquid in a syringe any time other than start or very end of day - I'd like to get the fatigue to line up exactly with bedtime.

On 8/9/2026 at 10:27 PM, PaintingDave said:

Still waiting for help from Deprescribing, after 6 months. It has to be soon.

The team at the Deprescribing Clinic only work one day a week, which is why everything takes so long. They've just had a change in staff, as well, so new doctors on the block to be trained.

1 hour ago, PaintingDave said:

Has anyone noticed markable difference in energy after the medication is taken?

Some people notice fatigue, and for others they are wired with serotonin and/or adrenaline. It's your genetics which determine how you metabolise both the drug, and the neurotransmitters which it alters.

2 hours ago, Erimus said:

The team at the Deprescribing Clinic only work one day a week, which is why everything takes so long. They've just had a change in staff, as well, so new doctors on the block to be trained.

Some people notice fatigue, and for others they are wired with serotonin and/or adrenaline. It's your genetics which determine how you metabolise both the drug, and the neurotransmitters which it alters.

I see, do you have any experience with the deprescribing team yourself? It's been 6 months and wanted to check in again.

When you say individuals are different, I have had friends and relatives that took Sertraline for years but were able to come off without too much trouble (or diluting a liquid). Every time I tried to reduce 10-5mg in previous years it was not only unendurable but I suspect it sensitised me to further reductions even but smaller increments. Hence I can't go over 1% receptor occupancy per step.

15 hours ago, PaintingDave said:

1. The removal of about 13% of my original R/O at 10mg (5.7mg now) has given a very subtle improvement in "feelings" nothing major but there's a particular connectedness to the current time and place/nature that I feel, sometimes a peaceful feeling I used to get after work even waiting for a bus decades ago.

   Maybe once a week there's this tiny tangible nature to reality - of course all dwarfed by side effects of Lexapro. Still a good sign.

This is good to see. Essentially reducing the drug is reducing the side effects, encouraging, just do it carefully so as to minimise WD mate.

15 hours ago, PaintingDave said:

he brain drain that hits me and used to interrupt workdays appears to be because of lexapro - almost precisely 2hrs after my dose. I used to take it 7pm evenings about a decade ago but will try later in evening

Basically this is a dose related side effect and one to watch imo. If you are reacting to the dose itself I think tapering will help this. Just as I said, do it carefully watching and hold for WD as you go. If you want to move your time you dose, do it one hour each day rather than in one hit.

12 hours ago, PaintingDave said:

I see, do you have any experience with the deprescribing team yourself? It's been 6 months and wanted to check in again.

Yes, I've been with them since February this year.

12 hours ago, PaintingDave said:

When you say individuals are different, I have had friends and relatives that took Sertraline for years but were able to come off without too much trouble (or diluting a liquid). Every time I tried to reduce 10-5mg in previous years it was not only unendurable but I suspect it sensitised me to further reductions even but smaller increments. Hence I can't go over 1% receptor occupancy per step.

Unfortunately, some of us become extremely sensitised to even the smallest of reductions. Most people who end up on support forums are having difficulty tapering.

The ones with limited symptoms are probably ultra-rapid metabolisers, which means their body breaks down and expels the drug before levels of serotonin have chance to build up and impact the brain.

Edited August 17Aug 17 by Erimus

"The ones with limited symptoms are probably ultra-rapid metabolisers, which means their body breaks down and expels the drug before levels of serotonin have chan

On 8/17/2026 at 10:28 AM, Erimus said:

The ones with limited symptoms are probably ultra-rapid metabolisers, which means their body breaks down and expels the drug before levels of serotonin have chance to build up and impact the brain.

Thats very interesting thanks, I'm sure from the deprescribing perspective there's a lot for doctors to study in how individuals differ in withdrawal, particularly how many bad taper attempts they made.

It reminds me of people trying to lose weight and each successive diet becomes harder because the body remembers it's "starving" programming and clings on to any existing calories.

On 8/17/2026 at 9:07 AM, Chippy said:

This is good to see. Essentially reducing the drug is reducing the side effects, encouraging, just do it carefully so as to minimise WD mate.

Basically this is a dose related side effect and one to watch imo. If you are reacting to the dose itself I think tapering will help this. Just as I said, do it carefully watching and hold for WD as you go. If you want to move your time you dose, do it one hour each day rather than in one hit.

Yes, had a bit of a bumpy day trying to change the dose time. I'm currently shifted to about 7pm, aiming for just before bedtime. Because of the inconvenience and public spectacle of water syringes and drops (instead of pills) I've premixed the solution for the day and drink it wherever I am normally away from home.

I've also had to factor in my trip away and a different timezone so I take the stuff at an equivalent hour. All the more reason to never get stuck on Lexapro.

• Another thing (!) It could be unrelated but since my first significant reductions this year I've been getting successive rashes for the first time. A bit like whack a mole treating them. Now either it's a chance infection, or stress, or Lexapro has some part in it. Never got gut problems though, despite celiac.

Cheers

4 minutes ago, PaintingDave said:

Another thing (!) It could be unrelated but since my first significant reductions this year I've been getting successive rashes for the first time. A bit like whack a mole treating them. Now either it's a chance infection, or stress, or Lexapro has some part in it.

Could be unrelated but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s not.

.... and perhaps it's worth mentioning, I cut back my drinking for the first time in years, not that I was often exceeding healthy limits. I'm also cutting down on snacks because of doctor advice - I was accustomed to eating junk in my former ears when I was miserable with undiagnosed celiac, anemic and not absorbing nutrients(inc. fats). To look at me you wouldn't guess! After taking account it was definitely overdue a change.

I still get vitamins, fresh stuff and plenty exercise just without the junk. Straightforward.

Something definitely shifted this month after 4 days off a single pint feels like plenty. It goes without saying that we keep extra substances at a minimum when reducing dose. Some days no caffeine, and I try to stick with morning, early afternoon at the latest.

I've got to say I didn't expect it to become this easy. I will say flow thingy helps me still (despite the expense) - but also there must be more dopamine, and reward for everything I try to do with my current level of the drug. Just the basics a regular human takes for granted.

@PaintingDave Drinking alcohol whilst in WD really isn't adviced mate. Please look atter yourself, eat well, plenty of water, fuel the body the best you can, it will help loads. We can't choose much in WD but we can select what inputs we deliver it.