Anyone who feels like their brain is weightless sometimes ? When my head pressure and injured feelings lift, my brain is like air or pudding. When this happens.. I feel a bit hyper and jittery and have better mood (but feels chemical).

Still, I can’t feel my emotions in both states properly. Feel constantly drugged. In the weightless sensation, even my pupils are big.

7 months in this nightmare… after only 7 weeks off use last summer 😭

@Sophia I have had this feeling occasionally. It is eery and I don't like it at all. It makes a change from the weighed down foggy feeling but still isn't nice. My head feels empty and I feel weightless. I am 7 months off too. I don't know how much longer I can take. Feeling this numb all the time, the weird body sensations, no joy, no interest in anything. It truly is hell.

1 hour ago, Sminismoni said:

nice. My head feels empty and I feel weightless

I have this as well!! Even my muscles feel light. I truly feel drugged, along with big ass pupils.. how is this possible 7 months off ?

1 hour ago, Sminismoni said:

. I am 7 months off too. I don't know how much longer I can take. Feeling this numb all the time, the weird body sensations, no joy, no interest in anything. It truly is hell.

I really know how you feel :(

My rich inner world is gone. Even miss my insecurities, fears and sadness. It made me me.. it showed me I cared deeply over things.

Keeping you in my prayers @Sminismoni, hopefully we get a real window soon 🙏❤️‍🩹

45 minutes ago, Sophia said:

My rich inner world is gone. Even miss my insecurities, fears and sadness. It made me me.. it showed me I cared deeply over things.

Yes!! I completely relate to this. No imagination anymore 😥 It is amazing that such different drugs can cause the same symptoms. It truly is a brain injury.

36 minutes ago, Sminismoni said:

It is amazing that such different drugs can cause the same symptoms.

I just thought about this…. Must be some kind of network issue rather than a certain neurotransmitter/receptor issue. I wondered… have you found more colleagues being interested/open to PAWS? ❤️

58 minutes ago, Sophia said:

I wondered… have you found more colleagues being interested/open to PAWS?

I WISH. Their eyes almost start twitching when I mention it, as though I have joined the dark side of the antipsychiatry movement, putting my tin foil hat on.

34 minutes ago, Sminismoni said:

I WISH. Their eyes almost start twitching when I mention it, as though I have joined the dark side of the antipsychiatry movement, putting my tin foil hat on.

I have a letter from the Royal College of Psychiatrists informing me that they ensure that all of their members are trained in safe deprescribing.

They have declined to respond further when I asked how they do this given that their website says that clinicians cannot predict nor prevent PAWS.

Today I woke up and I noticed that I felt a little sad. I was actually glad I could feel it. I felt my eyes teared up and I could feel some emotional depth. Not full range, but it was there. I felt I could finally grief some of this and practice my self compassion. It felt good.

Tonight I watched a serie and felt touched by a beautiful scene. My body felt the emotion but my brain / eyes just could not allow me to release it. I felt devastated again. Losing my ability to fully feel / allow emotions for already 9 months now (as it started directly on the med) had been the most devastating thing that ever happened to me. It’s truly scary that a pill can erase your emotions, personality and feelings. And having to wait for my body to heal.. it’s just so hard.

I can’t wrap my head around that I only took that damn pill 1,5 month. I wanted to stop because of the blunting… and it even has gotten worse since stopping. Of course this morning was a nice milestone… but the reality that I have to be glad that I can feel an emotion for 10 mins, that I would normally have felt easily for way longer… it’s crazy. I often want to cry but my eyes don’t let it flow.. the signals are so blocked and I HATE it.

If there is anyone here who has gotten their emotional range back, but only after a long time after stopping, pls let me know.

I genuinely am jealous of people who report crying spells. I want to have one so badly to be able to let it all out for hours… 🙈

Edited April 27Apr 27 by Sophia

Dear @Sophia, I feel you very well. I have been thrown in hellish anhedonia also by the AD which increased after stopping the poison. We have to stay strong and hope in the body's intelligence to heal.

@Sophia its so good you got these feelings back today. Strong signs of healing. It is so hard to come to terms with the damaged that is caused by these drugs, even short term use. So unfair I know. I right there with you. Acceptance brings us peace. Time brings us healing. Xxx

I can relate to what you're saying @Sophia, I find myself in a similar situation. I also decided to come off my AD because of the emotional blunting and I still experience anhedonia and apathy.

However, it's a really good sign that you were able to experience this moment of sadness. It proves that you haven't lost your ability to feel. Your emotions will come back and recovery is on its way. ❤️

Same here. 9 months off only 3 months of escitalopram use. It's hell, I feel like a completely different person with over 30 different physical symptoms.

9 minutes ago, ALonelySoul12 said:

feel like a completely different person

Same… my entire brain works and feels different as well.

Even normal human things like feeling tired, feeling hungry, feeling comfortable lazy, feeling cozy… it’s all gone. Even my negative emotions are blunted. I don’t feel much fear or sadness either. I am just very blunted and numb :(

2 hours ago, Sophia said:

Same… my entire brain works and feels different as well.

Even normal human things like feeling tired, feeling hungry, feeling comfortable lazy, feeling cozy… it’s all gone. Even my negative emotions are blunted. I don’t feel much fear or sadness either. I am just very blunted and numb :(

Yep, the worst thing for me is that I was more or less myself for the past months, mostly having physical symptoms or being more sensitive to emotions, but by month 8 I changed radically. I suddenly became scared of everything, agoraphobic, no energy or willingness to talk to friends, unable to work even from home, even showering seems like a monumental task that gives me panic/anxiety alongside a flood of intrusive thoughts.

My usual self would have a careless brain that works like a CD player on shuffle, humming or laughing randomly because of a random meme I saw, or a song that is super catchy... Now everything in my mind are all my symptoms and issues. I try to act as if nothing is happening, but my mind refuses to cooperate.

Edited April 28Apr 28 by ALonelySoul12

The same, @Sophia, absolutely the same, you are not alone.

3 minutes ago, skamen said:

The same, @Sophia, absolutely the same, you are not alone.

I am so scared it is permanently damaged… 😔😔

I see so many people in withdrawal being overly emotional and mine are completely out of reach. This is so unlike me.. I used to be quite emotional my entire life before the SSRI

Edited April 28Apr 28 by Sophia

1 hour ago, Sophia said:

I am so scared it is permanently damaged… 😔😔

I see so many people in withdrawal being overly emotional and mine are completely out of reach. This is so unlike me.. I used to be quite emotional my entire life before the SSRI

You aren't damaged permanently, we all heal, just takes longer than we think it will.

Don't believe all your emotions and thoughts, they are not you, and especially in withdrawal they tend to be false negative thoughts.

3 hours ago, Sophia said:

I am so scared it is permanently damaged… 😔😔

I see so many people in withdrawal being overly emotional and mine are completely out of reach. This is so unlike me.. I used to be quite emotional my entire life before the SSRI

Hey Sophia. We all worry like this. I’m having a particularly bad day. It makes me feel this way. But it’s not the case. As Lighty said. It takes some time.

I’m similar to you in that I feel a bit numb. Perhaps not completely but certainly my range is reduced. Plus I also get the head pressure as my worse symptom as you know. Maybe they are linked. So I get your concerns. But I truly believe that in time we will come out of this stronger than we went in. Xxx

19 minutes ago, Chippy said:

I’m similar to you in that I feel a bit numb. Perhaps not completely but certainly my range is reduced. Plus I also get the head pressure as my worse symptom as you know. Maybe they are linked. So I get your concerns. But I truly believe that in time we will come out of this stronger than we went in. Xxx

Thank you for this Chippy! I really like your optimism.. ❤️

Just now, Sophia said:

Thank you for this Chippy! I really like your optimism.. ❤️

I believe it! Even today!

10 hours ago, Sophia said:

Same… my entire brain works and feels different as well.

Even normal human things like feeling tired, feeling hungry, feeling comfortable lazy, feeling cozy… it’s all gone. Even my negative emotions are blunted. I don’t feel much fear or sadness either. I am just very blunted and numb :(

This is exactly how I feel. I told my therapist yesterday that I have undergone a chemical lobotomy and have been obliterated as a person. This isn't living.

13 minutes ago, Sminismoni said:

This is exactly how I feel. I told my therapist yesterday that I have undergone a chemical lobotomy and have been obliterated as a person. This isn't living.

:( :(

Does your therapist support and belief you?

I'm kinda jealous 😅 I can cry but I still haven't felt anything for 5 months. Sophia I think that moment is a really good sign that your recovery is underway but really slow. Don't lose hope!

8 hours ago, Billford81 said:

I'm kinda jealous 😅 I can cry but I still haven't felt anything for 5 months. Sophia I think that moment is a really good sign that your recovery is underway but really slow. Don't lose hope!

Thank you @Billford81 ! Crying has been a bit harder for me the past 2-3 months so that’s scares me…

I am 2 months longer in this journey than you, so who knows where you would stand in 2 months! ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

On 4/27/2026 at 9:36 PM, Sophia said:

If there is anyone here who has gotten their emotional range back, but only after a long time after stopping, pls let me know.

I have most of it back, but struggle with emotional regulation and psychological symptoms.