I am nervous about posting and I hope I am doing this right. I came across the old website and was upset to see that it was discontinued. After constantly being on the website looking for others who are going or went through the same thing I came across a post that directed me to this new website thank you for that because this website has been getting me through some of the toughest times. 
I have been on Escitalopram/ Lexapro generic for 14 years. After 14 years it stopped working. The depression and anxiety came back. I was constantly obsessing over every negative thing my brain could possibly think of. In 2023 I was able to get myself off of the Lexapro but then I had go through a lot of emotional things that were going on in my life at the time who h is when the doctor told me I needed to get back on Lexapro and at a higher dose of 20 mgs with abilify 2 mgs. It wasn’t working, maybe it helped a little but to a very small degree. I recently was able to get up enough courage to put my foot down and say This isn’t working something needs to change. That is when the psychiatrist put me on Pristiq for 1 month I was fine but then I started having symptoms of loss of appetite, raised blood pressure, migraines , nausea etc. The psychiatrist then said she would do a 5 day taper get me off the Pristiq and see how I was feeling and go from there. After the 5 days I felt better! I had decided at that time it was my moment and I told the psychiatrist I no longer wanted to be on the antidepressants. I had no knowledge of such withdrawals before coming to this website, even though I was off of Lexapro on my own in the past for a short while I really don’t remember the withdrawals to be like they are now. Maybe because I tapered longer when I got off of Lexapro in the past? I tapered myself but I remember my husband telling me it was too fast then. My husband told me I shouldn’t have been tapered for 5 days in my recent situation and I am now starting to understand that. I am a very impatient person, being impatient and dealing with antidepressant withdrawals do not go together. 
it has been since Feb 19 writing that makes me scared because it wasn’t that long ago and I fear of myself getting back to normal being a lifetime away. The withdrawals have been debilitating. I have been in bed everyday writing that just makes me want to cry. I have no will to get out of bed. Get out of bed and do what. I have no motivation. Migraines, nausea, loss of appetite, sadness, empty, alone, doomed, fear of losing a loved one, no interest in hobbies, eyes are sensitive to light, hearing sensitive to sound, can’t focus, hard to watch tv, unable read etc. 

at my last doctor GP visit I was on Pristiq and low in vitamin D. My next appointment is this Wednesday and I am afraid of what might happen? I don’t want the doctor to insist I get back on antidepressants. My husband thinks I should get back on an antidepressant and taper more but I don’t want to get back in them I feel like it’s many steps backwards and I want to move forward from this. Had I known about the withdrawals I would have never agreed to be on antidepressants to begin with. I will have to look for a new psychiatrist because I will not being seeing the one that tapered me for 5 days again. I told her how I was feeling and she told me there is no way it’s from the antidepressants! She said firmly I was tapered for 5 days , I said but I was on Lexapro for 14 years! She didn’t want to hear it. I was so hopeless until finding this website has given me some hope and it feels good. I want to thank everyone for their stories , every story helps. I wish everyone well. I’m always available for chat. 

 

 

Hi @Journey

 

Welcome to the forum!

 

This is a volunteer-run, community forum aimed at helping those who are tapering and/or experiencing difficulties with psychiatric medications and withdrawl syndrome. We are not medical professionals and cannot offer medical advice. We simply offer support and opinions which you could use as talking points with a medical provider knowledgeable in withdrawing off psychiatric medications.

 

Please familiarise yourself with the forum rules and the disclaimer located here: Guidelines

 

Please make sure your signature is kept up to date with your drug history. This will allow members to see some basic information about your drug history and situation so that they may help you best. Information on how to do this is located in the FAQs section above, but here is a direct link: Update Signature

Once this is done, future posts made by you will have this signature turned on by default. For this reason please keep it clear but condensed as possible.

I'm so sorry to read about the tough time you've had recently you will find plenty of support here for sure.

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

am nervous about posting and I hope I am doing this right. I came across the old website and was upset to see that it was discontinued. After constantly being on the website looking for others who are going or went through the same thing I came across a post that directed me to this new website thank you for that because this website has been getting me through some of the toughest times.

Don't be nervous! We are so happy you found us and Im pleased to see the site has already been of support for you 🙂 

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

have been on Escitalopram/ Lexapro generic for 14 years. After 14 years it stopped working. The depression and anxiety came back. I was constantly obsessing over every negative thing my brain could possibly think of. In 2023 I was able to get myself off of the Lexapro but then I had go through a lot of emotional things that were going on in my life at the time who h is when the doctor told me I needed to get back on Lexapro and at a higher dose of 20 mgs with abilify 2 mgs. It wasn’t working, maybe it helped a little but to a very small degree.

The main 'help' these drugs do, asides from Placebo, is they numb our emotions. Over a long period of time using the drug, the brain builds up tolerance, and the effect is lessened as a result, requiring more drug to gain the same effect. There is a limit to the effectiveness of further dose increases due to the hyperbolic nature of the drugs and their effect on the brain. See our tapering document below which explains this further.

 

Im not sure how quickly you got yourself off Lexapro last time, but I imagine it was too quickly. We often 'get away' with faster tapers at first only to then find it is harder to get off next time. The theory is that each event like this brusies our nervous system making it more sensitized to further changes.

Hypersensitivity and kindling

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

I recently was able to get up enough courage to put my foot down and say This isn’t working something needs to change. That is when the psychiatrist put me on Pristiq for 1 month I was fine but then I started having symptoms of loss of appetite, raised blood pressure, migraines , nausea etc. The psychiatrist then said she would do a 5 day taper get me off the Pristiq and see how I was feeling and go from there. After the 5 days I felt better!

From what I can tell, you stopped both Lexapro and Abilify mid Jan CT, straight to 0, with no taper, and started Pristiq? So your doctor attempted to 'switch' you.

 

We don't recommend switching on here, and if you do you should switch to a related drug, so for Lexapro it would be Citalopram, or at the least another drug in the SSRI class. Pristiq is in the SNRI class so not a good call IMO.

 

4 weeks is long enough to gain dependance on an AD so a 5 day taper is very quick, however;

 

Your symptoms you experienced could be a couple of things. It could have been, and I think likely, WD from your CT of Lexapro and Abilify. It could be that you system was angry too, having another drug added ontop of all this. Its good to listen to our bodies they are trying to tell us something. For me the fact you felt better after stopping Pristiq, is your body telling you it was happy it was gone. Just my thoughts on this.

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

I had decided at that time it was my moment and I told the psychiatrist I no longer wanted to be on the antidepressants. I had no knowledge of such withdrawals before coming to this website, even though I was off of Lexapro on my own in the past for a short while I really don’t remember the withdrawals to be like they are now. Maybe because I tapered longer when I got off of Lexapro in the past? I tapered myself but I remember my husband telling me it was too fast then. My husband told me I shouldn’t have been tapered for 5 days in my recent situation and I am now starting to understand that. I am a very impatient person, being impatient and dealing with antidepressant withdrawals do not go together. 

Its ok to not want to be on antidepressants anymore. It is however best to come off them safely and patience is required to do this. 

 

There are likely two reasons it is much harder this time. As I said before, the first is that we often 'get away' with a faster taper the first time. The second is that you stopped, from what  I can see, abruptly here going straight to 0, so a Cold Turkey. Never a good idea.

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

it has been since Feb 19 writing that makes me scared because it wasn’t that long ago and I fear of myself getting back to normal being a lifetime away. The withdrawals have been debilitating. I have been in bed everyday writing that just makes me want to cry. I have no will to get out of bed. Get out of bed and do what. I have no motivation. Migraines, nausea, loss of appetite, sadness, empty, alone, doomed, fear of losing a loved one, no interest in hobbies, eyes are sensitive to light, hearing sensitive to sound, can’t focus, hard to watch tv, unable read etc. 

at my last doctor GP visit I was on Pristiq and low in vitamin D.

These are all very typical WD symptoms and I am so sorry you are going through this.

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

My next appointment is this Wednesday and I am afraid of what might happen? I don’t want the doctor to insist I get back on antidepressants. My husband thinks I should get back on an antidepressant and taper more but I don’t want to get back in them I feel like it’s many steps backwards and I want to move forward from this. Had I known about the withdrawals I would have never agreed to be on antidepressants to begin with. I will have to look for a new psychiatrist because I will not being seeing the one that tapered me for 5 days again. I told her how I was feeling and she told me there is no way it’s from the antidepressants! She said firmly I was tapered for 5 days , I said but I was on Lexapro for 14 years! She didn’t want to hear it. I was so hopeless until finding this website has given me some hope and it feels good. 

What you do next is completley up to you.

 

You have only really 2 choices.

 

1.You stay off the drugs and ride out the WD. This is likley to be a very tough path. You have been on Lexapro a long time and built up a huge amount of dependance on it. People do recover from WD, it can take a while often a number of years and happens in a non linear fashion following the waves and windows pattern. We have no way of knowing the trajectory of this healing. It normally comes in phases, but slowly people gradually improve. Time lines vary. Some recover quickly some take 2-3 years to recover. Some longer. We just don't know. But people do recover in time. I will point out that length on the time on the drug does affect recovery timelines from what we can see.

The Windows and Waves Pattern of Stabilization

 

2.Reinstate Lexapro. You have probably built up some dependance on Pristiq but it sounds like to me your body thanked you for removing it at first.

You did cold turkey 2 drugs and I wouldn't RI both of them. So if you are going to RI anything I would try the Lexapro. You don't want to RI a huge amount, and Lexapro is VERY potent at low doses. 1mg is around 25% effect on the brain! You were on 20mg and your situation is a little complex now, so if it were me I would try a 0.5mg or as it is Lexapro perhaps 0.25mg if you want to be really safe. Look out for a severe reaction. If this happens stop the drug completely. Assuming this doesn't happen, hold that dose for 14 days and reassess. If you get a bit better straight away this is a good sign. From there you could consider, after 14 days, increasing the dose some more. Once a stable dose has been found you would hold for a while until being ready to start a safe taper off. Please stay in contact with us so we can help you with this process.

 

Here is some info on RI, tapering and making small doses up:

 

Reinstating an Antidepressant

Tapering Information

Preparing Doses for Tapering - Weighing & DIY Liquids

 

 

13 hours ago, Journey said:

I was so hopeless until finding this website has given me some hope and it feels good. I want to thank everyone for their stories , every story helps. I wish everyone well. I’m always available for chat. 

Im so pleased you have found hope here. It is what we are trying to do. That and help people in a world where the medical profession seems unable to.

 

In the mean time this is what I would do if I were you:

 

-Stay Hydrated 

 

-Eat a good clean whole food diet, avoiding processed foods and sugars.

 

-Stay away from caffeine, alcohol and antihistamines and any other psychoactive substances.

 

Supplements are to be avoided initially, as they often irritate our nervous systems. Try to get your nutrition through food.

 

Down the line, you may wish to introduce Fish Oil and Magnesium. Those who can tolerate them have found them calming to the nervous system. Be careful try one at a time and start low and see how you get on should you choose to try them.

 

A daily walk is very important as much as you can manage, if you can manage it. Gets you your fresh air and Vitamin D does wonders for your mind!

 

You are very welcome here and I hope you find the site supportive.

 

Chippy

Chippy,

 

Thank you so much for your reply. Today has been terrible with dizziness, nausea, migraine. I wish I would have read your message earlier because I decided to take 10mg of Lexapro just a little while ago and I feel like such a failure. After reading your reply I should have taken less. Tomorrow I go to see my GP I assume the path I am on now is reinstating Lexapro to taper off properly. I just couldn’t take the extreme withdrawals anymore, it’s like torture/ suffering every minute of every day. I am feeling very sick and ill right now. Since taking the Lexapro 10mg earlier today I have been vomiting (water) that’s all I have in my system due to nausea. Should I lower the dose tomorrow? What do you recommend? 

51 minutes ago, Journey said:

Chippy,

 

Thank you so much for your reply. Today has been terrible with dizziness, nausea, migraine. I wish I would have read your message earlier because I decided to take 10mg of Lexapro just a little while ago and I feel like such a failure. After reading your reply I should have taken less. Tomorrow I go to see my GP I assume the path I am on now is reinstating Lexapro to taper off properly. I just couldn’t take the extreme withdrawals anymore, it’s like torture/ suffering every minute of every day. I am feeling very sick and ill right now. Since taking the Lexapro 10mg earlier today I have been vomiting (water) that’s all I have in my system due to nausea. Should I lower the dose tomorrow? What do you recommend? 

It’s a pleasure.
 

Oh no that’s such a shame.

 

So to confirm you feel the updose has made you physically sick?

 

What is done is done. It looks like this was far too much for your system judging by your reaction. 
 

I would definitely lower your dose and find a level your system is comfortable with. 
 

We recommend a maximum of 10% of the original dose. So no more than 2mg in your case. But honestly I’d drop to the 0.5mg. You can always increase if needs be. 
 

Please don’t jump your doses around. The brain needs predictable.  
 

Be really patient. It’s likely gonna be a rough few days I’m afraid. The higher dose you’ve just had will have likely rocked the boat further. 
 

Please check in here with us before making further changes. Be wary of your gp. They aren’t knowledgeable in antidepressants withdrawal. 
 

Chippy

Chippy,

 

Yes, I think the updose has made me feel more sick. I will lower the dose tomorrow. How do I know what is 0.5mg? I have a pill cutter, should I use that? 

Chippy,

Nevermind, I am seeing the taper cutting instructions on the website. 

6 hours ago, Journey said:

Chippy,

Nevermind, I am seeing the taper cutting instructions on the website. 

Glad you found this. Consistency is important. Pill cutters are really inaccurate and can’t give you the initial accuracy you need or the on going consistency required. 
 

So either dry cutting if that is sensible with your pill weight and use a micro scale to measure the dose. Or making a liquid and using syringes to measure the dose out.

 

Leaving this here to make sure you found the right one. 
 

Preparing Doses for Tapering - Weighing & DIY Liquids

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

@Chippy has given you a lot of detail and there's not a lot more I can add, other than I hope that with a low dose reinstatement you can stabilise and feel better. Once you've done that, you will hopefully be able to consider your next steps from a place of strength and calm rather than desperation.

 

I know you don't want to be on an antidepressant, but the priority is your wellbeing. If you can reach a point where you're at least somewhat well, then everything else can come later.

 

Please do check in and let us know how it is going.

@Luke

Thank you, you are right I need to get to a healthy point. This is not working. @Chippy Today was my doctors appointment with my GP and I’m so upset, she said the Lexapro and Pristiq should be out my system and I shouldn’t be experiencing withdrawals after a month of being off that it could be my depression and that I should get on a different antidepressant she recommended Zoloft. I asked her repeatedly to taper me slowly off the Lexapro that I no longer wanted to be on the antidepressants but the conversation kept going to starting a different antidepressant. I’m so upset, confused, hopeless. I have a bottle of Lexapro but it will not last me as eventually I will need a refill to continue to taper. I don’t know what to do I don’t want to be on the antidepressants but I am hopeless I can’t get a different doctor , it was very difficult finding this doctor that is in network with my insurance. I can look for a new psychiatrist but then I don’t know if they will agree with my plan to taper slowly off the Lexapro. I am at the point now to where I feel like I don’t have a choice. I’m disgusted. My husband has been supportive but it seems he is getting upset at times because I am so sick and he just wants to see me better. The doctor also wants to put me on a beta blocker called Propranolol. I don’t want anything else that effects my brain. Today I have not taken any medication. It was very difficult for me to get out of bed and go to the doctors office. I just don’t know what to do now. I have to follow up with the doctor in 3 weeks. I think I am going to see how I feel tomorrow and go from there. My husband really wants me to try the Zoloft for 3 weeks. 

9 minutes ago, Journey said:

@Luke

Thank you, you are right I need to get to a healthy point. This is not working. @Chippy Today was my doctors appointment with my GP and I’m so upset, she said the Lexapro and Pristiq should be out my system and I shouldn’t be experiencing withdrawals after a month of being off that it could be my depression and that I should get on a different antidepressant she recommended Zoloft. I asked her repeatedly to taper me slowly off the Lexapro that I no longer wanted to be on the antidepressants but the conversation kept going to starting a different antidepressant. I’m so upset, confused, hopeless. I have a bottle of Lexapro but it will not last me as eventually I will need a refill to continue to taper. I don’t know what to do I don’t want to be on the antidepressants but I am hopeless I can’t get a different doctor , it was very difficult finding this doctor that is in network with my insurance. I can look for a new psychiatrist but then I don’t know if they will agree with my plan to taper slowly off the Lexapro. I am at the point now to where I feel like I don’t have a choice. I’m disgusted. My husband has been supportive but it seems he is getting upset at times because I am so sick and he just wants to see me better. The doctor also wants to put me on a beta blocker called Propranolol. I don’t want anything else that effects my brain. Today I have not taken any medication. It was very difficult for me to get out of bed and go to the doctors office. I just don’t know what to do now. I have to follow up with the doctor in 3 weeks. I think I am going to see how I feel tomorrow and go from there. My husband really wants me to try the Zoloft for 3 weeks. 

Hey

 

Im so very sorry you had this experience. It’s is very common. 
 

Doctors have no ideas about safe tapering and often say things along the lines of what you are reporting. Please be reassured that they are wrong and tell your husband that too. 
 

I impress on you the importance of not starting any more drugs. They will lead to further harms. I promise, it won’t end well. I know it is tempting to believe your doctor but trust me.
 

It is very important to be consistent with your doses. Firstly a 10mg dose and now no dose. It’s time to take a deep breath and be deliberate. 
 

It’s good you have a bottle of lexapro. I assume this is a bottle of tablets? If so this is good as one tablet is many doses at 0.5mg so will last you a long time. 
 

Im going to ask another very experienced member who is from Canada if she has any suggestions about getting your refills sorted out for you and any suggestions about dealing with a US gp. 
 

@LostinCanada thoughts?

Just sharing a couple of links by Dr Mark Horowitz for you to watch. 
 

https://youtu.be/6j5VY0G_gqA?si=nxjuTwsSVjH4KdNx

 

https://youtu.be/jSEEAfbuCv8?si=8ZfinKkX78cTDrNp

18 minutes ago, Chippy said:

going to ask another very experienced member who is from Canada if she has any suggestions about getting your refills sorted out for you and any suggestions about dealing with a US gp. 

Hi @Journey welcome to the site...glad you found us.

So many of us have had to deal with uncooperative doctors unfortunately.

The key is being selective with the information you give them moving forward.

You could simply state, coming off lexapro wasn't good for me...I did better on it so I want to keep using it.

None of that is dishonest, it just doesn't tell the whole story. 

This is what many of us do to keep the prescription coming 

Does this sound reasonable and something that would work for you? It is impossible to change a doctor that doesn't want to change so sometimes you just have to be creative in working with the system.

Also, what state are you in? Outro Health works in a few states and provides prescriptions and taper coaching but it is not cheap.

 

My big concern is getting your dosing accurate. Have you ordered a scale or are you thinking of making a liquid?

This link is about lexapro. It specifically tells how to make a DIY liquid using a DIY saline solution to help with solubility.

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/forums/topic/406-tips-for-tapering-off-escitalopram-lexapro/#elControls_4142_menu

 

Please keep asking questions here...we are here to help you navigate this. You will be okay....your body will reach stability with consistent dosing. ❤️🙏

Edited March 18Mar 18 by LostinCanada

@LostinCanada Hello and thank you for your information and support. I’m in Louisiana. I will look into Outro Health I’ve never heard of them. I have not ordered a scale yet. I may order one tonight. I am nervous about tapering Lexapro myself as this is all new for me. @ChippyI have 56 (20mg) Lexapro pills left. Do you think this is enough to get me through the taper? If not I suppose I can get a new psychiatrist and request more Lexapro that way but I hope I don’t have to do that. How do people handle negative emotional life events that happen in your life after getting off antidepressants? I worry I may have something happen in my life in the future that could maybe put me in a depressive state, do

people stick with therapy to cope once they are off antidepressants? I’m

in therapy once a week right now I was just wondering. Thank you all for your kindness and support. 

54 minutes ago, Journey said:

56 (20mg) Lexapro pills left. Do you think this is enough to get me through the taper?

This will not be enough.

59 minutes ago, Journey said:

nervous about tapering Lexapro myself as this is all new for me. 

This is a normal response. We have all been there. We have been forced to become our own chemists. Thousands have tried this path successfully before us. 

 

https://antidepressantrecovery.org/topic/240-preparing-doses-for-tapering-weighing-diy-liquids/#comment-4207

 

 

55 minutes ago, Journey said:

How do people handle negative emotional life events that happen in your life after getting off antidepressants

Negative emotional life events are just that....it is normal to feel whether that be happy, sad, devastating, etc. It is part of the human experience. Unfortunately, Big Pharma and doctors have medicated normal human responses by making us numb. 

Therapy can be helpful for sure. Especially when dealing with trauma.

 

 

18 hours ago, Journey said:

 @ChippyI have 56 (20mg) Lexapro pills left. Do you think this is enough to get me through the taper? If not I suppose I can get a new psychiatrist and request more Lexapro that way but I hope I don’t have to do that. How do people handle negative emotional life events that happen in your life after getting off antidepressants? I worry I may have something happen in my life in the future that could maybe put me in a depressive state, do

people stick with therapy to cope once they are off antidepressants? I’m

in therapy once a week right now I was just wondering. Thank you all for your kindness and support. 

Good you have plenty to get you started. But yes you will need to secure further supply. LICs advice is good. We sometimes have to work the system to our benefit.

 

A lot of this is about reframing our emotions. They are not a fault, they are a design feature. Natures way of telling us something is wrong. We often find coping skills. Ruminating on our thoughts to try to 'worry fix' it, alcohol, drugs, antidepressants and so on but ultimately they don't work long term and cause us greater harm.

 

Some of it is about be ok being uncomfortable, we are taught we mustn't feel pain, but that isn't natural! Quick fixes lead to longer term more serious problems. Often things work themselves out eventually. The mind moves on and processes things if left alone.

 

It is important to try to deal with the root causes of our distress. Change what we can. But we also must learn to accept what we can't change and find some inner peace in a chaotic world. Hard to do but acceptance is the key to most of this pre and post drugs imo. We have a topic here:

 

Acceptance is key - Why does acceptance feel impossible?

 

Food and diet related, Im pretty sure we would all benefit from cutting out all the nasties they put in our food and replacing it with whole food/healthy eating.

 

Of course there are therapy sessions. This can be great and it is good to talk and work through your problems.

In my opinion it has its limitations. It feels good to talk about things in the moment, another short term coping stratergy right there. But in many ways talking about your issues is ruminating on them, supporting the idea that if you just talk it about it, give it more attention that it will somehow resolve. More of what I like to call 'worry fixing'. So I think there is a balance here. Ultimately most of us need to fix what we can and learn to accept and move on from the rest I think. 

 

Our minds are powerful machines but we can learn to work in harmony with them with some practice.

 

Chippy

@Journey

This section may have some reading selections, etc that may help:

 

https://antidepressantrecovery.org/forum/25-resources/

 

@LostinCanada Thank you for the link I appreciate it. @Chippy Thank you for the reply about reframing our emotions. Today I decided to call my GP doctor and tell her I am not taking the Zoloft and that I would like a small dose of Lexapro called in so that I can taper off slowly. She said on the phone “but you already tapered yourself off” I said but I am still having symptoms. I said can you please work with me with doing this taper? And she finally agreed to call in a small dose of 5mg tablets of Lexapro. Thank god I don’t have to worry about that anymore. This morning when I woke up I had hot sweats, nausea, migraine, dizziness, heart racing. I took 5mg of Lexapro today (by cutting a 20mg pill). I wanted to take less but my husband talked me into taking the 5 mg. Yesterday I didn’t take any medication. I don’t know how much I should take. I don’t want to take the full 5 mg I would like to start taking less once I get my 5 mg tablets. My scale came in today I find myself staring at the math on how to weigh small doses on the scale by cutting it , I don’t understand it. I will have to look over it again when my migraine gets better. Do you think I should continue with 5 mg? It’s like I’m  working backwards due to being off the meds now getting back on. The doctor also prescribed promethazine 12.5mg for my nausea and sumatriptan succ 100mg for my migraine. I think my doctor is really wanting to help me but it’s a struggle because of how she was taught about these antidepressants. 

@Journey

So first-weigh 5 pills

 

Divide that number by 5.

 

Then divide that number again by 5. (This gives the weight of 1 mg of drug.)

You can use a pill cutter to divide the pill into 4 pieces. Then use a metal nail file or one sided razor to slowly and carefully file off some of the chunk till you get to the weight that gives you 1 mg.

If you want to take .5 mg, divide the weight of 1 mg of drug in half.

 

Does this make sense? Please record the numbers you get here so I can review them.

 

18 minutes ago, Journey said:

Do you think I should continue with 5 mg?

It is probably too much. I would do 1 mg or less.

18 minutes ago, Journey said:

promethazine 12.5mg for my nausea and sumatriptan succ 100mg for my migraine.

I highly recommend you take nothing else. If you have a bad reaction, we will have no idea what drug is doing what. You have a sensitive CNS right now...less is important. These drugs are not benign and have serious side effects as well.

 

No disrespect but your husband doesn't understand....this site has collective knowledge that has worked for thousands. You have to be your own advocate and trust the reason you posted here. ❤️🙏

 

Edited March 19Mar 19 by LostinCanada

@LostinCanada I totally agree with you about my husband you are right. Thank you so much for helping it means so much I feel so lost without you all. I weighed all 5 pills =0.326

divided that by 5 = 0.0652

divided by 5 again = 0.01304

I cut 1 pill into 4 pcs the weight on the scale for 1 pc that is cut into 4 is 0.020g 

What number am i trying to get to on the scale that is in grams per each piece in order to get to 1 mg as you suggested? I’m a little confused at this point sorry please forgive me. 

 

Edited March 19Mar 19 by Journey

You are doing great.

 

So when you weigh 1/4 of the pill, just keep shaving it down till it weighs 0.013 g.

So 1 mg of drug weighs 0.013 g

 

This is because they put fillers in the pills, so the pills always weigh more than the actual drug amount.

 

Mgai=mg of actual ingredient or drug

Mgpw= mg of pill weight (drug plus filler)

@LostinCanada Omg thank you so much I couldn’t have done it without you. I have weighed out 4 days worth of 1 mg! I feel so at ease now. I will have to get your help again when I go down more. I will see how I do on the 1mg for the 4 days and go from there and either continue the 1mg or go up or down. Before I decide anything I will reach out to you. Thank you for getting me this far.  You are a blessing. 

Edited March 19Mar 19 by Journey

7 minutes ago, Journey said:

I will see how I do on the 1mg for the 4 days and go from there and either continue the 1mg or go up or down

Definitely just stay at 1 mg for a couple weeks unless you have some awful reaction, like when you took 10 mg....you shouldn't at 1 mg. 

Keep a daily log of symptoms...rate them 1-10. It helps to see what is improving. 

You got this. 👍 One day at a time...show yourself lots of kindness. ❤️🙏

@LostinCanada Will do. Thanks again for your support. 

12 hours ago, LostinCanada said:

No disrespect but your husband doesn't understand....this site has collective knowledge that has worked for thousands. You have to be your own advocate and trust the reason you posted here. ❤️🙏

 

@Journey just so you are aware, this site is fairly new (months), but it is a replacement for this site: Surviving Antidepressants which has been going for 15 years and itself was created after a previous community for psychiatric drug harms shut down.

13 hours ago, Journey said:

@LostinCanada Thank you for the link I appreciate it. @Chippy Thank you for the reply about reframing our emotions. Today I decided to call my GP doctor and tell her I am not taking the Zoloft and that I would like a small dose of Lexapro called in so that I can taper off slowly. She said on the phone “but you already tapered yourself off” I said but I am still having symptoms. I said can you please work with me with doing this taper? And she finally agreed to call in a small dose of 5mg tablets of Lexapro. Thank god I don’t have to worry about that anymore. This morning when I woke up I had hot sweats, nausea, migraine, dizziness, heart racing. I took 5mg of Lexapro today (by cutting a 20mg pill). I wanted to take less but my husband talked me into taking the 5 mg. Yesterday I didn’t take any medication. I don’t know how much I should take. I don’t want to take the full 5 mg I would like to start taking less once I get my 5 mg tablets. My scale came in today I find myself staring at the math on how to weigh small doses on the scale by cutting it , I don’t understand it. I will have to look over it again when my migraine gets better. Do you think I should continue with 5 mg? It’s like I’m  working backwards due to being off the meds now getting back on. The doctor also prescribed promethazine 12.5mg for my nausea and sumatriptan succ 100mg for my migraine. I think my doctor is really wanting to help me but it’s a struggle because of how she was taught about these antidepressants. 

You have had lots of great help from @LostinCanada. 🙂 

 

What dose to settle on is up to you, but certainly no more shifting doses about. It is common people do this but causes so much harm which is something you want to avoid. 1mg is actually a pretty big dose of Lexapro as I said before. I would certainly hold here and hope things settle down. Think about keeping a diary of your progress and rating your days, so you can track how things are. We use the 1/10 severity scale.