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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 5 of 5. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by marshall26 on July 4, 2007, at 16:16:39
I’ve always developed this side effect when first going on SSRI/SNRI drugs. This was back in the 90s when doctors didn’t know about starting on the lowest dose. I just remember being put on a moderate to high dose of almost every medication (can’t recall them all but I remember Prozac and Effexor were the worst offenders). When I complained two weeks later they just switched medications. I eventually got used to Zoloft at 75 mg, but now my pdoc is having me increase the dose to 150 mg. The problem, every time I reach 125 mg I get that familiar obnoxious sensation.
Anyways the symptom is this. I feel like there is this vague indescribable ticklish feeling deep inside my left forearm and calves. When it gets bad I have to cross my legs tightly and curl my toes when I sit. I’ve always tried to compare the discomfort to the feeling I get when someone scratches a chalk board with their fingernails. Even though the sound doesn’t literally hurt my ears, my body cringes in discomfort. At high doses, the SSRIs make me feel like my whole body is cringing from some indescribable feeling inside. If I focus on it too much, the feeling sometimes triggers grotesque thoughts of ants crawling through my veins or my innards exploding.
I’m now thinking that this sensation may be related to EPS side effects similar to akathisia. Unfortunately there isn’t a good description of subjective feelings in the literature. I don’t really have the urge to run around or shift from foot to foot like what’s described in the literature. Maybe it’s just not severe enough to the point where I have to move constantly, though I can imagine it driving me to throw myself out the window if it ever became severe.
Ugh. It’s so frustrating not being able to describe what’s wrong. Sometimes I just want to tell the doctors to take a 500 mg Zoloft and see for themselves if they feel anything!
Posted by Phillipa on July 4, 2007, at 17:41:19
In reply to Impossible to describe SSRI side effect, posted by marshall26 on July 4, 2007, at 16:16:39
My legs twitch when I go to bed on my SSRI but that's it and it's luvox. Love Phillipa ps taken zoloft but only 50mg no side effects at all at that dose.
Posted by chiron on July 6, 2007, at 0:03:01
In reply to Impossible to describe SSRI side effect, posted by marshall26 on July 4, 2007, at 16:16:39
Bodies are so weird and unique.
Will increasing the Zoloft be worth the other benefits?
What about trying a benzo like Xanax, especially if you only have this problem during your adjustment phase. I recently started having weird-scary-wavelike sensations throughout my body & brain and Xanax has helped. I know they are not related to your issues, but it's just a stab in the dark.
Posted by marshall26 on July 6, 2007, at 3:25:21
In reply to Re: Impossible to describe SSRI side effect, posted by chiron on July 6, 2007, at 0:03:01
> Bodies are so weird and unique.
>
> Will increasing the Zoloft be worth the other benefits?
>
> What about trying a benzo like Xanax, especially if you only have this problem during your adjustment phase. I recently started having weird-scary-wavelike sensations throughout my body & brain and Xanax has helped. I know they are not related to your issues, but it's just a stab in the dark.Actaully I was on Klonopin (2mg per day) for 3 months while titrating my Zoloft from 75 mg to 150 mg. It was when I got to 150 mg that I started feeling very uncomfortable. Either the Zoloft side effects were breaking through or I was having some paradoxical reaction to the combination. I recognized this strange feeling from when I first started SSRIs 10 years before. My old psychiatrist had no clue what was going on and I got scared.
I freaked out and tried reducing the Zoloft to no avail. Then I tapered down on the Klonopin and it got even worse. I then had benzo withdrawal for a month on top of it all. Of course I found the benzo.org.uk during my withdrawal and the people there had me really worried that I was going to be messed up for years. It didn’t turn out that bad but I’m afraid of benzos now.
I may just have to tell my psychiatrist that I can’t handle any more than 100 mg Zoloft. When I go any higher I feel disgusting inside.
Sorry to be so difficult. I’m mostly just venting. Thought some people here might know what I’m talking about. I just wish I could describe this stuff to my psychiatrist.
Posted by elanor roosevelt on July 12, 2007, at 22:13:21
In reply to Re: Impossible to describe SSRI side effect, posted by marshall26 on July 6, 2007, at 3:25:21
i do that leg thing on some meds
find myself tensing my thighs and curling my back a bit
sorry that it's happening to you
doctors don't seem to "get" it
This is the end of the thread.
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