Hi everyone,

I just joined this forum, and I think it might be the first place where people actually understand what I'm going through.

I'm a 38-year-old woman, originally from Argentina, living in Madrid for the last two years. I was on paroxetine for 6 years, most of that time at 10mg and the last 9 months at just 0.5mg, a way lower dose. For those 6 years I was, honestly, "fine." Nothing worried me, nothing really bothered me. I was calm and steady, and I didn't realize how much the medication was holding all of that in place until I stopped.

The way I came off it is the part that still makes me angry. My psychiatrist was seeing me online from Argentina every few months. Because I was already on a low dose, he told me I could just take it every other day for one week and then stop. That was the whole plan. Although it felt way too abrupt to me, he was the professional, so I did this. My last dose was December 15, 2025. When I started feeling bad and wrote to him about it, he stopped answering. He basically disappeared and came back weeks later like what I was going through wasn't a big deal.

Since then, everything I had been spared for 6 years came back at once, and then some. The first three to four months were brutal: waves of anxiety, hopelessness, deep sadness, a feeling of no purpose and no light at the end of the tunnel. I'm now a little over 7 months off. It is better than the beginning; the waves are more spaced out now (maybe one every month or month and a half), and they last anywhere from a few days to a week. But when I'm in one, it is really hard. I'm actually in one right now, as I write this. What I feel during the waves: anxiety, hopelessness, sadness, a lot of self-doubt.

I've been in therapy for a bit over two months now, once a week, with a clinical-humanistic psychologist who knows about all of this. It helps me unload and process things, but it is not enough to stop the waves. I still can't find a way to actually feel better when one hits.

There is one more thing that makes all of this heavier: I feel really alone in it. I'm far from my home country and from most of the people I love, going through the hardest thing I've ever been through, and almost no one around me actually understands what antidepressant withdrawal even is. When a wave hits, that loneliness gets even bigger. Honestly, that is a big part of why I'm writing this here.

I've been completely clean since December, which is what both my doctor and a therapist friend have advised me to keep doing, and I don't want to go back on medication. But the question I can't answer is this: how long can I stay like this, and will the symptoms last? Did this damage my brain permanently? Are there any other ways I can make this less terrible?

Has anyone been through something similar, especially coming off paroxetine? Did the waves eventually stop for you? How long did it take? Anything you can share would mean a lot to me right now.

Thank you for reading!

Edited July 24Jul 24 by Lighty
Title change

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.

Please use the format outline here Preferred signature/drug history format

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

 

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!

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

The way I came off it is the part that still makes me angry. My psychiatrist was seeing me online from Argentina every few months. Because I was already on a low dose, he told me I could just take it every other day for one week and then stop. That was the whole plan. Although it felt way too abrupt to me, he was the professional, so I did this. My last dose was December 15, 2025. When I started feeling bad and wrote to him about it, he stopped answering. He basically disappeared and came back weeks later like what I was going through wasn't a big deal.

Total lack of knowledge about patient safety and withdrawal harms, and then being dismissive and unprofessional whilst doing their best to take no responsibility. Sadly, this is something we see here regularly.

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

I'm now a little over 7 months off. It is better than the beginning; the waves are more spaced out now (maybe one every month or month and a half), and they last anywhere from a few days to a week. But when I'm in one, it is really hard. I'm actually in one right now, as I write this. What I feel during the waves: anxiety, hopelessness, sadness, a lot of self-doubt.

As difficult as the waves are, that's very promising progress. If the general trend is towards improvement, all you can really do is look after yourself the best that you can while you improve further.

Being able to be objective and look back and see that you're better than a few months ago is very good, many struggle with this perspective.

Hopefully in more time, you will continue to improve and things will get easier. How do you feel between waves?

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

I've been completely clean since December, which is what both my doctor and a therapist friend have advised me to keep doing, and I don't want to go back on medication. But the question I can't answer is this: how long can I stay like this, and will the symptoms last? Did this damage my brain permanently? Are there any other ways I can make this less terrible?

Has anyone been through something similar, especially coming off paroxetine? Did the waves eventually stop for you? How long did it take? Anything you can share would mean a lot to me right now.

As above really, if you're improving in time, the best thing that you can do is to keep going.

I've been in support groups for quite a long time, and my observation is that mostly when people are consistently improving over time, they go on to continue to improve and then recover, even if this involves "waves" or setbacks.

I think it's very unlikely you've caused permanent brain damage, you are improving over time- you are not stuck.

7 months is unfortunately quite early, and many people are not improving at all by this stage- still they often go on to improve and then recover in the end, so you're making good progress.

If 3 months ago it was absolutely brutal, and now you're often okay but with setbacks, try to imagine where you might be in another 3, or 6 months.

We do have a section on coping strategies that might help:

Symptoms & Coping Strategies - The Antidepressant Harm and Recovery Forum

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

There is one more thing that makes all of this heavier: I feel really alone in it. I'm far from my home country and from most of the people I love, going through the hardest thing I've ever been through, and almost no one around me actually understands what antidepressant withdrawal even is. When a wave hits, that loneliness gets even bigger. Honestly, that is a big part of why I'm writing this here.

I'm really sorry to hear that you feel this way. I'm sure many here can relate to this.

What I can say, is that when you post here you are not alone in what you are going through, you'll find many who have experienced similar and I sincerely hope that this will be helpful for you.

I've moved your thread to the "introductions and ongoing recoveries" section, which is where everybody has a thread to post updates and ask questions about their situation, and where people can offer you some support. You might want to browse this section and see if you can find others you relate to. I hope that interacting with others who are going through something similar will help you to feel a little less alone.

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

Dear @CelesteB. Please update your signature....this is your drug history so we can see how you got here...drugs, doses, dates.

https://antidepressantrecovery.org/settings/signature/

This is mine as an example:

Paroxetine-2002 onward-20mg/ Citalopram-2007-20 mg-straight switch from paroxetine-back to paroxetine after a month/ Sertraline -25 mg-Dec 2016- given for a month instead of paroxetine (doctor mistake) Oxazepam -10 mg-2016-twice weekly for a couple months for sleep/ Zopiclone -3.75-7.5mg-2020-2022-once a week for sleep/Paroxetine -20 yr+/ Dec2018-May 2022 20 mg/ May 2022 30mg/2022.07.28-2022.08.24 30mg to 0mg/ Prozac-10mg August 24-29 2022/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.11.28-2022.12.04/10mg-Dec 5&6/22/ Prozac-10mg-Dec 8&9/22/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.12.07 to 2023.07.01

TAPER-Paroxetine-2023-Jul 2-4.9mg/ Jul 21-4.8mg/Jul 28-4.73mg/Aug 4-4.65mg /Sep 21-4.58 mg/Oct 27-4.56 mg/Dec 5-4.54 mg/2024-Jan 2-4.52 mg/Jan 9-4.51 mg/Jan 17-4.49 mg/Jan 26-4.47mg/Feb 6-4.46mg/Feb 19-4.44mg /Apr 4-4.43mg/Apr 28-4.4 mg/May 5-4.39 mg/May 19-4.36 mg/Jul 2-4.34 mg/Jul 9-4.32mg/Jul 31-4.3 mg/Oct 1-4.29mg/Nov 27-4.25 mg/Dec 5-4.22mg/2025-Jan 5-4.17mg/Feb 2-4.1mg/Mar 7-4.07mg/Apr 23-4.04mg/May 23-4mg/Jun 22-3.99mg/Jun 30-3.95mg/Jul 18-3.92mg/Sep 25-3.9mg/2026-Mar 25-3.85mg

9am-paroxetine, 200mg mag bisglycinate/75 mg DGL if needed for refux/200mg calcium citrate/algae oil for omega 3/ginger 400 mg as needed for nausea

As you can see I am still tapering and have been in this drug 25 years. 😭

I still have waves and windows...it is part of healing.

Acceptance and being kind to yourself is so important. Treat yourself like you would a friend, if they were going through this. Make an environment for your CNS to heal in. Whole foods, no caffeine, ( that includes green tea, chocolate, black tea, etc), no msg, no alcohol, no weed, no nicotine, etc.

Glad you found the forum...we need each other.

❤️🙏

Edited July 24Jul 24 by LostinCanada

16 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

I just joined this forum, and I think it might be the first place where people actually understand what I'm going through.

Welcome! You have found friends.

What you are going through is 100% WD from stopping your drug abruptly. Reducing from 10mg to 0.5mg and then every other day dosing just aggrevated your nervous system, going to zero was the final straw.

I am pleased to see things have improved for you significantly from what I am reading, however that does not make the waves when they come less hard I know. The most important thing you can do is read up as much as you can on acceptance and distraction. These are truly the keys to coping whilst you heal.

Acceptance is key - Why does acceptance feel impossible?

16 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

how long can I stay like this, and will the symptoms last? Did this damage my brain permanently?

We just don't know how long it will take for things to ease, but we do know things will get better with time. The path is often not straight but trust in your bodies ability to heal. Make you sure you eat and live clean. Get a little exercise when you and if you can. When you are having hard days don't be tempted to 'try' things to help or fix this, this almost always a recipe for making things worse from what I have seen and experienced myself.

We are here for you.

14 hours ago, Luke said:

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.

Please use the format outline here Preferred signature/drug history format

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

 

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!

Total lack of knowledge about patient safety and withdrawal harms, and then being dismissive and unprofessional whilst doing their best to take no responsibility. Sadly, this is something we see here regularly.

As difficult as the waves are, that's very promising progress. If the general trend is towards improvement, all you can really do is look after yourself the best that you can while you improve further.

Being able to be objective and look back and see that you're better than a few months ago is very good, many struggle with this perspective.

Hopefully in more time, you will continue to improve and things will get easier. How do you feel between waves?

As above really, if you're improving in time, the best thing that you can do is to keep going.

I've been in support groups for quite a long time, and my observation is that mostly when people are consistently improving over time, they go on to continue to improve and then recover, even if this involves "waves" or setbacks.

I think it's very unlikely you've caused permanent brain damage, you are improving over time- you are not stuck.

7 months is unfortunately quite early, and many people are not improving at all by this stage- still they often go on to improve and then recover in the end, so you're making good progress.

If 3 months ago it was absolutely brutal, and now you're often okay but with setbacks, try to imagine where you might be in another 3, or 6 months.

We do have a section on coping strategies that might help:

Symptoms & Coping Strategies - The Antidepressant Harm and Recovery Forum

I'm really sorry to hear that you feel this way. I'm sure many here can relate to this.

What I can say, is that when you post here you are not alone in what you are going through, you'll find many who have experienced similar and I sincerely hope that this will be helpful for you.

I've moved your thread to the "introductions and ongoing recoveries" section, which is where everybody has a thread to post updates and ask questions about their situation, and where people can offer you some support. You might want to browse this section and see if you can find others you relate to. I hope that interacting with others who are going through something similar will help you to feel a little less alone.

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

14 hours ago, Luke said:

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.

Please use the format outline here Preferred signature/drug history format

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

 

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!

Total lack of knowledge about patient safety and withdrawal harms, and then being dismissive and unprofessional whilst doing their best to take no responsibility. Sadly, this is something we see here regularly.

As difficult as the waves are, that's very promising progress. If the general trend is towards improvement, all you can really do is look after yourself the best that you can while you improve further.

Being able to be objective and look back and see that you're better than a few months ago is very good, many struggle with this perspective.

Hopefully in more time, you will continue to improve and things will get easier. How do you feel between waves?

As above really, if you're improving in time, the best thing that you can do is to keep going.

I've been in support groups for quite a long time, and my observation is that mostly when people are consistently improving over time, they go on to continue to improve and then recover, even if this involves "waves" or setbacks.

I think it's very unlikely you've caused permanent brain damage, you are improving over time- you are not stuck.

7 months is unfortunately quite early, and many people are not improving at all by this stage- still they often go on to improve and then recover in the end, so you're making good progress.

If 3 months ago it was absolutely brutal, and now you're often okay but with setbacks, try to imagine where you might be in another 3, or 6 months.

We do have a section on coping strategies that might help:

Symptoms & Coping Strategies - The Antidepressant Harm and Recovery Forum

I'm really sorry to hear that you feel this way. I'm sure many here can relate to this.

What I can say, is that when you post here you are not alone in what you are going through, you'll find many who have experienced similar and I sincerely hope that this will be helpful for you.

I've moved your thread to the "introductions and ongoing recoveries" section, which is where everybody has a thread to post updates and ask questions about their situation, and where people can offer you some support. You might want to browse this section and see if you can find others you relate to. I hope that interacting with others who are going through something similar will help you to feel a little less alone.

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

@Luke Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart! Reading your words have been truly helpful and felt less alone. I'll try my best to ride this wave and keep going... in the meantime, I'll keep coming back here and talking to you guys. Thank you!

10 hours ago, LostinCanada said:

Dear @CelesteB. Please update your signature....this is your drug history so we can see how you got here...drugs, doses, dates.

https://antidepressantrecovery.org/settings/signature/

This is mine as an example:

Paroxetine-2002 onward-20mg/ Citalopram-2007-20 mg-straight switch from paroxetine-back to paroxetine after a month/ Sertraline -25 mg-Dec 2016- given for a month instead of paroxetine (doctor mistake) Oxazepam -10 mg-2016-twice weekly for a couple months for sleep/ Zopiclone -3.75-7.5mg-2020-2022-once a week for sleep/Paroxetine -20 yr+/ Dec2018-May 2022 20 mg/ May 2022 30mg/2022.07.28-2022.08.24 30mg to 0mg/ Prozac-10mg August 24-29 2022/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.11.28-2022.12.04/10mg-Dec 5&6/22/ Prozac-10mg-Dec 8&9/22/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.12.07 to 2023.07.01

TAPER-Paroxetine-2023-Jul 2-4.9mg/ Jul 21-4.8mg/Jul 28-4.73mg/Aug 4-4.65mg /Sep 21-4.58 mg/Oct 27-4.56 mg/Dec 5-4.54 mg/2024-Jan 2-4.52 mg/Jan 9-4.51 mg/Jan 17-4.49 mg/Jan 26-4.47mg/Feb 6-4.46mg/Feb 19-4.44mg /Apr 4-4.43mg/Apr 28-4.4 mg/May 5-4.39 mg/May 19-4.36 mg/Jul 2-4.34 mg/Jul 9-4.32mg/Jul 31-4.3 mg/Oct 1-4.29mg/Nov 27-4.25 mg/Dec 5-4.22mg/2025-Jan 5-4.17mg/Feb 2-4.1mg/Mar 7-4.07mg/Apr 23-4.04mg/May 23-4mg/Jun 22-3.99mg/Jun 30-3.95mg/Jul 18-3.92mg/Sep 25-3.9mg/2026-Mar 25-3.85mg

9am-paroxetine, 200mg mag bisglycinate/75 mg DGL if needed for refux/200mg calcium citrate/algae oil for omega 3/ginger 400 mg as needed for nausea

As you can see I am still tapering and have been in this drug 25 years. 😭

I still have waves and windows...it is part of healing.

Acceptance and being kind to yourself is so important. Treat yourself like you would a friend, if they were going through this. Make an environment for your CNS to heal in. Whole foods, no caffeine, ( that includes green tea, chocolate, black tea, etc), no msg, no alcohol, no weed, no nicotine, etc.

Glad you found the forum...we need each other.

❤️🙏

10 hours ago, LostinCanada said:

Dear @CelesteB. Please update your signature....this is your drug history so we can see how you got here...drugs, doses, dates.

https://antidepressantrecovery.org/settings/signature/

This is mine as an example:

Paroxetine-2002 onward-20mg/ Citalopram-2007-20 mg-straight switch from paroxetine-back to paroxetine after a month/ Sertraline -25 mg-Dec 2016- given for a month instead of paroxetine (doctor mistake) Oxazepam -10 mg-2016-twice weekly for a couple months for sleep/ Zopiclone -3.75-7.5mg-2020-2022-once a week for sleep/Paroxetine -20 yr+/ Dec2018-May 2022 20 mg/ May 2022 30mg/2022.07.28-2022.08.24 30mg to 0mg/ Prozac-10mg August 24-29 2022/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.11.28-2022.12.04/10mg-Dec 5&6/22/ Prozac-10mg-Dec 8&9/22/Paroxetine -5mg-2022.12.07 to 2023.07.01

TAPER-Paroxetine-2023-Jul 2-4.9mg/ Jul 21-4.8mg/Jul 28-4.73mg/Aug 4-4.65mg /Sep 21-4.58 mg/Oct 27-4.56 mg/Dec 5-4.54 mg/2024-Jan 2-4.52 mg/Jan 9-4.51 mg/Jan 17-4.49 mg/Jan 26-4.47mg/Feb 6-4.46mg/Feb 19-4.44mg /Apr 4-4.43mg/Apr 28-4.4 mg/May 5-4.39 mg/May 19-4.36 mg/Jul 2-4.34 mg/Jul 9-4.32mg/Jul 31-4.3 mg/Oct 1-4.29mg/Nov 27-4.25 mg/Dec 5-4.22mg/2025-Jan 5-4.17mg/Feb 2-4.1mg/Mar 7-4.07mg/Apr 23-4.04mg/May 23-4mg/Jun 22-3.99mg/Jun 30-3.95mg/Jul 18-3.92mg/Sep 25-3.9mg/2026-Mar 25-3.85mg

9am-paroxetine, 200mg mag bisglycinate/75 mg DGL if needed for refux/200mg calcium citrate/algae oil for omega 3/ginger 400 mg as needed for nausea

As you can see I am still tapering and have been in this drug 25 years. 😭

I still have waves and windows...it is part of healing.

Acceptance and being kind to yourself is so important. Treat yourself like you would a friend, if they were going through this. Make an environment for your CNS to heal in. Whole foods, no caffeine, ( that includes green tea, chocolate, black tea, etc), no msg, no alcohol, no weed, no nicotine, etc.

Glad you found the forum...we need each other.

❤️🙏

Thank you so much for this @LostinCanada , and for taking the time to lay out your own history in such detail. I'll update my signature right away, it makes complete sense to have it all visible so people can see how I got here.

What you said about waves and windows being part of healing, and about treating myself the way I would treat a friend going through this, is exactly what I needed to hear right now. I'm not there yet, but I'm trying to learn it.

I'm going to work on the environment side too. I've already cut back on some things, but I'll take the caffeine and the rest more seriously and give my nervous system a calmer place to heal in.

Thank you for the welcome, and for the reminder that we need each other here. It's already true for me. Sending you a lot of warmth on your own road. ❤️

41 minutes ago, Chippy said:

Welcome! You have found friends.

What you are going through is 100% WD from stopping your drug abruptly. Reducing from 10mg to 0.5mg and then every other day dosing just aggrevated your nervous system, going to zero was the final straw.

I am pleased to see things have improved for you significantly from what I am reading, however that does not make the waves when they come less hard I know. The most important thing you can do is read up as much as you can on acceptance and distraction. These are truly the keys to coping whilst you heal.

Acceptance is key - Why does acceptance feel impossible?

We just don't know how long it will take for things to ease, but we do know things will get better with time. The path is often not straight but trust in your bodies ability to heal. Make you sure you eat and live clean. Get a little exercise when you and if you can. When you are having hard days don't be tempted to 'try' things to help or fix this, this almost always a recipe for making things worse from what I have seen and experienced myself.

We are here for you.

Thank you for this @Chippy , and for the welcome. "You have found friends" is exactly how it is starting to feel, and I really needed that.

It helps more than you would think to have someone who has lived it say clearly that this is withdrawal.

What you said about acceptance and distraction being the real keys, and about not being tempted to "try" things to fix it on the hard days, landed hard. It is the third time I'm hearing a version of that here, and I think it is finally sinking in. I've been chasing supplements that don't do much, and I've decided not to go back on medication. So I want to do less fixing and more trusting that my body knows how to heal, even when the path isn't straight.

I'll keep eating and living as clean as I can, and move a little when I have it in me.

Thank you for being here. It matters. Sending you my warmth.

@CelesteB. Oh yes, from everything you've described this is "classic" withdrawal.

Just to emphasise though, that improving while off of drugs entirely is a great sign that eventually, you'll improve enough to be recovered. It might be some time, and there might be (even likely will be) some setbacks but over the months if the trend is positive, it's likely that you'll get there in time.

To add to what others have said about what to consume and what not to consume, everyone varies in what they can and cannot tolerate. I've reached a point where I can tolerate a coffee just fine, but I'm quite a long way down the road and I still make sure I stick to a limited amount.

Likewise with supplements, others have reacted very negatively to them, I have never noticed this in myself, but also none of them have helped me so I just avoid them now. They don't seem worth the risk for most people- low chance of any benefits for some chance of reacting adversely to them.

Finally, things like alcohol just have no reward associated with them, and carry a significant risk of setbacks. Frustratingly for us, we always recommend people just stay away from it having seen it cause people big setbacks, and regularly this is ignored and then people return to the forum to ask for advice on the big setback they're having after drinking alcohol. Some people get away with it, sure, but there's no benefit to it in withdrawal and it's a huge risk.

As the others have suggested, what your body needs above all else is time, and minimal disturbances during that time to heal by itself. It's already been doing that over recent months and you have improved.

29 minutes ago, CelesteB. said:

@Luke Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart! Reading your words have been truly helpful and felt less alone. I'll try my best to ride this wave and keep going... in the meantime, I'll keep coming back here and talking to you guys. Thank you!

I'm very glad you feel this way.

You might find that talking to others on their threads about what they are going through also gives you some benefit through relating to others, you may find instead that you prefer to keep to this thread.

You'll also see that there are some limited community type threads where people talk about non-withdrawal related things that help them feel better, such as their pets, things that make them laugh (if they can) and so on. Perhaps those will also be of some help to you.

Please do keep checking in and letting us know how you are doing, and ask any questions you may feel you want to.

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

Thank you for this @Chippy , and for the welcome. "You have found friends" is exactly how it is starting to feel, and I really needed that.

It helps more than you would think to have someone who has lived it say clearly that this is withdrawal.

Good I’m glad it helped.

2 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

What you said about acceptance and distraction being the real keys, and about not being tempted to "try" things to fix it on the hard days, landed hard. It is the third time I'm hearing a version of that here, and I think it is finally sinking in. I've been chasing supplements that don't do much, and I've decided not to go back on medication. So I want to do less fixing and more trusting that my body knows how to heal, even when the path isn't straight.

I'll keep eating and living as clean as I can, and move a little when I have it in me.

I think this is the perfect attitude and mindset. This will help you so much in the good and bad times. Keep the faith you’ll be rewarded eventually. X

5 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

I'll take the caffeine and the rest more seriously and give my nervous system a calmer place to heal in.

Make sure if you are dependent on caffeine, to slowly lessen consumption. Cutting it to quickly will also disrupt the CNS

Also, a question about your signature...do you mean 5 mg of paroxetine instead of .5 mg ?

Please change that if this is the case. Thanks.😊

5 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

been chasing supplements

They can even cause problems....I just had a setback from some B12 and folate. Feel free to ask here first about everything.

You are going to be okay. The body wants to heal. ❤️🙏

7 hours ago, CelesteB. said:

What you said about acceptance and distraction being the real keys, and about not being tempted to "try" things to fix it on the hard days, landed hard. It is the third time I'm hearing a version of that here, and I think it is finally sinking in. I've been chasing supplements that don't do much, and I've decided not to go back on medication. So I want to do less fixing and more trusting that my body knows how to heal, even when the path isn't straight.

I'll keep eating and living as clean as I can, and move a little when I have it in me.

Hi @CelesteB. I weaned from Paroxetine several years ago and its a hard one to taper and stop. From my perspective, the key is acceptance and coping. I had a wonderful therapist who taught me Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques, and they helped tremendously. There are a lot of so-called "experts" out there who offer quick fixes, but almost none work, and at best mask the symptoms for a while. But it sounds like you have the right approach. Being a member here and getting support will really help you on your journey!

On 7/25/2026 at 6:23 PM, mstimc60 said:

Hi @CelesteB. I weaned from Paroxetine several years ago and its a hard one to taper and stop. From my perspective, the key is acceptance and coping. I had a wonderful therapist who taught me Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques, and they helped tremendously. There are a lot of so-called "experts" out there who offer quick fixes, but almost none work, and at best mask the symptoms for a while. But it sounds like you have the right approach. Being a member here and getting support will really help you on your journey!

Thank you so, so much, @mstimc60. I really appreciate you sharing your experience with me. Just a quick question: even though you went with a CBT therapist to cope better with the withdrawal, did the Paroxetine symptoms ever go away after you stopped taking it and went through the process? I only ask because I know I have to accept this, but my concern is... what if I have these symptoms for life? I know I might sound silly, or stupid, or catastrophic, but I do worry about this.
Thank you so much for reaching out! ❤️

On 7/25/2026 at 4:47 PM, LostinCanada said:

Make sure if you are dependent on caffeine, to slowly lessen consumption. Cutting it to quickly will also disrupt the CNS

Also, a question about your signature...do you mean 5 mg of paroxetine instead of .5 mg ?

Please change that if this is the case. Thanks.😊

They can even cause problems....I just had a setback from some B12 and folate. Feel free to ask here first about everything.

You are going to be okay. The body wants to heal. ❤️🙏

Hi @LostinCanada , thank you for pointing that out. Correct: they moved me from 10mg to 5mg. Fortunately, I'm not a huge coffee drinker, just a weak one in the morning, and that's it. Again, thank you for replying to my message! ❤️

1 hour ago, CelesteB. said:

Thank you so, so much, @mstimc60. I really appreciate you sharing your experience with me. Just a quick question: even though you went with a CBT therapist to cope better with the withdrawal, did the Paroxetine symptoms ever go away after you stopped taking it and went through the process? I only ask because I know I have to accept this, but my concern is... what if I have these symptoms for life? I know I might sound silly, or stupid, or catastrophic, but I do worry about this.
Thank you so much for reaching out! ❤️

Hi @CelesteB. Oh yes, the symptoms began to decrease the more I practiced CBT and the farther I got from stopping Paroxetine. I think all of us, at one time or another, feel like the symptoms will never stop, but they do. Its difficult to accept that recovery isn't a nice smooth upward curve, and that there are so many highs and lows on the journey. But you will get there!