Posted by papillon2 on August 12, 2012, at 4:56:31
In reply to Re: Transition from meds to emsam » papillon2, posted by Mrose on July 28, 2012, at 13:42:03
> Hey papillon2. Thanks for all the tips. I am aware and scared of what can happen. In the past I've had bad withdrawals with almost everything. What was your experience thru all of it?
Hey, I realised today that I had failed to respond to the above question. I recall writing and erasing whole paragraphs because (a) it had turned into a multi-page essay and (b) I didn't want to scare you unecesssarily. I'm sorry for leaving it so long.
---- How are you going? Where are you up to in your taper?
In answer to your question, I could talk about the withdrawal effects I've experienced - my spine shaking frantically like a slithering snake was an interesting one. But this was with a different medication (Effexor) and, in any case, everyone responds to medication differently - both when taking it and when discontinuing it.
You may not think so, but you are lucky to be able to draw on your own experience in dealing with prior medication withdrawals. You have lived through this before. This is evidence that yes, you might get really bad withdrawal effects (discontinuation syndrome), that you may feel worse - perhaps a lot worse - for a while, but you can prevail and get through to the other side.
I think it's more important to be prepared not for withdrawal effects which may or may not eventuate, but for the potential that you may experience the full force of your untreated depression, particularly if it is severe. Untreated depression is agonizing, exhausting, soul-crushing. It can be life-threatening.
So, if it comes to that, be prepared to fight. If you relapse hard, it is unlikely that your thoughts will be entirely grounded in reality (or at all). Being able to recognize this is powerful ammunition, because our illnesses can do a very good job of convincing us that our thoughts/compulsions are entirely rational when they're not. DON'T GIVE IN.
I hope to read an update from you soon. Until then, take gentle care of yourself.
Papillon
Ring the bells that still can ring
forget your perfect offering
there is a crack in everything
that's how the light gets in
~ Leonard Cohen
poster:papillon2
thread:1022291
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20120803/msgs/1023104.html