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lobstershack
Australia
250 Posts |
 Posted - 07/09/2005 : 18:10:13
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hey all,
so i'm completey off of Lexapro--have been for about three weeks. i'm doing great! the TMS work is going strong and i'm really noticing improvement, although slower than i would like, but can we really have it all?
i want to stop taking the second medication i am on--wellbutrin. keep in mind that my therapist feels that this is a fine decision, especially given the progress i have made in the past few months (he's totally behind TMS).
i called my psychiatrist--who, by the way, i see about every three months--and told him what i did, that is stopped taking lexapro, and what i plan to do--stop taking wellbutrin.
his response was a bit off putting. it was akin to: "Seth, ,I don't think this is a good idea; if you get symptoms you'll have to go back on medication at once!" and so on and so forth.
my therapist made clear to me that i am not the person that i was when i first saw the psychiatrist and, worse comes to worse, i'll go back on meds if i really see myself slipping, but i should in no way shape or form take this as a defeat.
i know i must trust myself and realize the paradigm this doc is subscribing to, but i must say he did scare me a bit.
regardless, i'm tapering off the 'butrin slowly--i was at 300mg of the SR and i'm planning to go down by 75mg per week.
the psychiatrist wanted me to taper off at a rate of no more than 100mg a month. now i understand he is just trying to play things extra safe, but i feel that i can do this a bit sooner. after all, i got completely off of the lexapro in about 6 weeks (if I followed his protocol it would have taken me 5 months!)
looking back at when i was at my worst mentally, most of the depression, anxiety and sucidal thoughts came from not knowing what was wrong with me. now that i know about, understand, and am implementing TMS (with favorable results) much of that fear is gone.
wish me luck!
(please pardon the lack of punctuation in this posting.)
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Edited by - lobstershack on 07/09/2005 18:11:04 |
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n/a
560 Posts |
Posted - 07/10/2005 : 09:41:59
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| good luck. I was taking some of these anti depressents but I too got off them and I would rather jump off a balcony than go back on them. Screwed up my head big-time and did nothing to help me. |
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smth416
USA
43 Posts |
Posted - 07/11/2005 : 23:43:53
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| Seth, would like to hear some thoughts on the Lexapro, which I just began taking a month ago and have been pretty happy with it. -Al |
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Fox
USA
496 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 10:31:50
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| Seth - why wean yourself off Wellbutrin at a rate faster than what the shrink recommends? It sounds risky. What are the benefits for you of decreasing the dosage at such a fast rate? I haven't read all of your other posts - maybe you have a problem with side effects that you have mentioned in an earlier post - but unless you are plagued with side effects, why insist on a faster rate? If your depressive symptoms return, it will take a while to reacclimate to an increased dosage, won't it? (I know to get the relief iniatially from antidepressants, it takes weeks.).....In this case, stick with the professional's opinion. We can take chances with our bodies regarding TMS pain - by resuming normal activities quickly - because there is no true structural problem and therefore no true injury risk, but there is a significant risk to your life and to your emotional well-being if you trigger your suicidal ideation. |
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lobstershack
Australia
250 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 20:28:09
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You're completely right, why must I discontinue the Wellbutrin faster than my body might like me to? This isn't a race, yet like many TMS'ers (and the rest of the population for that matter), I want everything NOW! For some reason
Currently I'm on 150mg of the Wellbutrin. This is down from 300mg, and while I probably cut my dosage too much, too quickly, I am meeting with my psychiatrist on Friday and am going to follow his instructions from here on.
To answer your question smth416, I found the Lexapro to be quite helpful in eliminating my depressive symptoms. While it was not nearly a panacea, it did allow me to take the necessary step of getting into therapy.
In other news, my life is moving so incredibly fast, I think I need to slow down and I need your help.
Not only did I graduate at the end of May, I got a job (the first and only job I applied to!). I also landed myself a date this week! And I'm getting ready to move out of my house soon.
It's just that these are things that I never dreamed would be happening to me a short while ago, and even though I still have symptoms (basically the chronic headache), they are gradually fading.
I'm just a bit overwhelmed now. All of these great things happening to me, including my physical well-being. Part of me is scared. Scared that it's all just too good to be true and that--as silly as this may sound--I haven't made any progress, I just think I have.
All of this is nonsense, I know, but it seems so real. And I'm starting to get a bit obsessive with the TMS work again, thinking that I must do x amount of y-type work per day in order to continue getting better.
Lately, I find myself spending a better part of the day thinking about all of the TMS theories and planning when I am going to do the work. I know this is not kosher. I just feel that if I don't do this I'm going to lose any progress I have made or not be able to make any further progress.
It's easy for me to blame any increase in symptomotology not only on physical or structural reasons, but the fact that I'm going off of meds as well.
Also, yesterday I developed a pain in underneath the center of my left rib-cage, which is a bit sharp when I inhale deeply. Now, I'm almost positive that this is nothing, maybe I stretched the wrong way while running who knows. If I wasn't so type-T I would just forget about it, knowing that it will go away, but no, I must spend a majority of my waking hours thinking about living the rest of my life with this discomfort, and I've only had it for a day!
SO TMS OF ME!
Oiy Vey!
Seth |
Edited by - lobstershack on 07/12/2005 21:27:30 |
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windy
USA
84 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 14:38:04
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Wow, Seth. You have A LOT on your plate. No wonder you're TMS-ing.
Best of luck to you with all your upcoming endeavors. |
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going off meds
