I had presumed that being "only" on 10mg for 9 weeks then withdrawal would be relatively short/mild?

2 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

I had presumed that being "only" on 10mg for 9 weeks then withdrawal would be relatively short/mild?

Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. You came off Lexapro some time back and switched to Zoloft. Then tapered from that. I suspect all that had made your nervous system a little wobbly. Ri Lexapro at a top high dose will have added to all this and now the fast taper down away from the sensitizing dose. So it’s accumulating issue rather than straight 9 weeks on a drug and a too fast a taper. That doesn’t mean things won’t settle quickly. It may take some time. There unfortunately isn’t any way to know.

Yes makes sense. Just want to see some slow, steady improvement. Recognising it wont miraculously get better overnight

53 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

Just want to see some slow, steady improvement.

Hopefully this is the what happens for you Steve.

Had a better day yesterday, but today I feel I am back to square 1. Lots of physical tension

4 hours ago, Steve1 said:

Had a better day yesterday, but today I feel I am back to square 1. Lots of physical tension

This is totally normal @Steve1, waves and windows are part of the healing process. It's a great sign that you had a better day yesterday. More will come!

Just wish I knew what my current optimum dose was.

10mg was definetly too activating so up dosing to 10mg is definitely not the answer.

1 hour ago, SarahMc said:

This is totally normal @Steve1, waves and windows are part of the healing process. It's a great sign that you had a better day yesterday. More will come!

This is the key @Steve1 you had a better day, waves and windows are normal. There will be no dose where all this is perfect. Time is what you need so you can stablise on this dose now I think. Up is certainly not the right way.

@Steve1

No pressure at all to answer this… I’m just trying to figure out my own body’s responses… how do you tell the difference between activation and withdrawal?

It’s pretty much the million dollar question for me.

Hi @Finni very difficult question to answer and I might be wrong!

I do think I currently have overlapping residual activation and withdrawal so its very messy at the moment. With perhaps withdrawal being more dominant.

When I was suffering from horrendous activation on 10mg I felt terrible for hours after taking the pill.

In withdrawal the hours after taking the pill seems to provide some relief.

During withdrawal waves it feels like the body is desperate for more of the pill.

Just hope the body finds a balance at some stage.

27 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

Hi @Finni very difficult question to answer and I might be wrong!

I do think I currently have overlapping residual activation and withdrawal so its very messy at the moment. With perhaps withdrawal being more dominant.

When I was suffering from horrendous activation on 10mg I felt terrible for hours after taking the pill.

In withdrawal the hours after taking the pill seems to provide some relief.

During withdrawal waves it feels like the body is desperate for more of the pill.

Just hope the body finds a balance at some stage.

I understand ❣️

What you’re describing is very relatable.

I definitely have overlap, too.

28 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

Just hope the body finds a balance at some stage.

It will!

Mine was starting to find a balance back in July (looking back) when I tried to cut just a little tiny bit more because of the activation component. I needed to just keep holding.

How many weeks/months holding do you think the body will feel relatively settled?

3 hours ago, Steve1 said:

How many weeks/months holding do you think the body will feel relatively settled?

We really can't say, it's very individual. Some people stabilize quickly, within weeks or maybe a couple months, and for others it takes longer. They key is to give your body as long as it needs and to not get impatient and start making changes because you think you "should" have stabilized after a particular amount of time. You may want to take a look at some of our resources on coping skills like acceptance: Acceptance is key - Why does acceptance feel impossible?

On bad days is it best to try to do stuff regardless where possible or just rest and recover?

2 hours ago, Steve1 said:

On bad days is it best to try to do stuff regardless where possible or just rest and recover?

I think this is a very personal decision. For myself, I find it's best to try to distract myself as much as possible on bad days, so I will push myself to do things unless I notice that it makes me feel worse in the moment. The most important thing is just to pass the time, so do what you need to do to get through the day.

Still getting withdrawal symptons on day 35 of reducing dose from 10mg to 5mg.

Was only on 10mg for 9 weeks.

Edited September 13Sep 13 by Steve1

2 hours ago, Steve1 said:

Still getting withdrawal symptons on day 35 of reducing dose from 10mg to 5mg.

Was only on 10mg for 9 weeks.

You made a large cut, and please remember that you took 10 mg for 9 weeks after you had swapped to sertraline a year prior and then tapered off the sertraline very quickly. Those things will have sensitized your nervous system ahead of all this.

It doesn't do any good to impose artificial timelines on your healing. Patience and acceptance are key.

6 hours ago, Steve1 said:

Still getting withdrawal symptons on day 35 of reducing dose from 10mg to 5mg.

Was only on 10mg for 9 weeks.

That’s to be expected sometimes, unfortunately.

Hang in there!

Started to feel dreadful again. Had a couple of windows (Wednesday and Sunday).

But yesterday and this morning feel awful.

No idea if body is reacting badly to escitalopram or I'm now in protracted withdrawal from reducing dose 37 days ago?

18 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

Started to feel dreadful again. Had a couple of windows (Wednesday and Sunday).

But yesterday and this morning feel awful.

No idea if body is reacting badly to escitalopram or I'm now in protracted withdrawal from reducing dose 37 days ago?

Hang in there @Steve1 you will stabilise at some stage. I been at the same dose since end of April and only just considering I'm stable. Still I had an intense wave just days ago

Do you think its withdrawal @Catbird or ongoing activation from escitalopram i.e. the body is rejecting the drug?

Many thanks

10 minutes ago, Steve1 said:

Do you think its withdrawal @Catbird or ongoing activation from escitalopram i.e. the body is rejecting the drug?

Many thanks

It's your nervous system being dysregulated if it's symptoms that come and go, also means your nervous system slowly learning to balance itself.

you will be fine ❣️

Today feels absolutely dreadful.

Is the advice to hold the dose still?

What do I do if I get worse? Is up dose an option?