Did anyone have chronic withdrawal from fluoxetine?

Question

I was encouraged by my GP to reduce the dosage, 1 every other day for a cuople of weeks, then 1 every third day then i should be ok to stop. Been feeling all out of sorts for two weeks GP says i am not ready so should go back on them. I think maybe the weaning was not slow enough. Any info could help me decide what to do. I dont want to be on the stuff forever.

i was advised to go on it for premenstrual dysphoric disorder over 3 yrs ago. It helped me a great deal even sorted mid cycle pain and regulated my cycle. As i am now hitting menopause it seemed a good idea to come off. Symptoms i have been experiencing are:
Electric jerks in head and body,
Total flat feeling
Nightmares
Fatigue (maybe due to disturbed sleep)
Lack of concentration
Irritability
Plus other bits and bobs.

Answer 1

How long and How much did you take fluoxetine, and for what problem?
I need to know those things before I can give you a precise method.
The first rule is to taper as slow as possible.
A person taking 60 - 80mg for 3 years need another one year to taper off. I recommend you to decrease 10mg and wait for 3 months. If you don't get a relapse you can taper again. 10mg with 3 months of interval.
Or switch to fluoxetine weekly and increase the intervel for taking next dose. Like 7 - 9 - 11 - 13 etc...

I was on Fluoxetine for 6 years and I could stop it.

Answer 2

Fluoxetine or Prozac has the longest half life of all the SSRIs is about 5 days. Half life is time of elimination of the drug

What this means essentially is that you can usually stop taking it and should not have the withdrawl symptoms that you get with a drug like paroxitine Paxil which has a much shorter half life and therefore patients will get withdrawl symptoms so they have to wean off slowly

Your doctor may be right because with antidepressants the thinking is longer use, Depression is self limiting usually but if not treated adequately runs the risk of recurrence.

Answer 3

Fluoxetine hydrochloride is an antidepressant drug used medically in the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bulimia nervosa, premenstrual dysphoric disorder and panic disorder. Fluoxetine is also used (off-label) to treat many other conditions, such as ADHD. Fluoxetine was derived from diphenhydramine, an antihistamine found to inhibit reuptake of the neurotransmitter serotonin
Common adverse effects include akathisia, rage, and anxiety, which is possibly associated with an interaction of fluoxetine with the pineal gland in addition to restlessness and insomnia. Weight loss, trembling, weakness, skin rash, anorgasmia, itching, and a decrease in sexual drive, have also been reported. It has been reported to cause subsequent weight gain

Like other SSRIs, an overdose of fluoxetine or combining it with other antidepressants can lead to serotonin syndrome.

Studies and media reports have linked Prozac with increased incidences of reckless behavior

Answer 4

I was allergic to them and after a couple of months came out in a nasty rash (apparently can take a while for allergic reactions to manifest), anyway, I just stopped taking them completely overnight. I know I wasn't on them long, so it may not be relevant, but I didn't get any adverse reaction.

Try and rationalise why you went on them in the first place, what you managed to deal with when taking them, and you will probably realise that you are a stronger person now - the 'feeling out of sorts' may be a kind of psychological reaction - being a bit worried that things might go back to how they were.

Be strong and you will be fine, you have a good attitude about them (ie not depending on them forever) and are doing all the right things following your doctor's advice xx

Answer 5

I've been on many different types of SSRI's to find the right one that suits. In between you have to leave it 6 weeks before starting the new ones (according to my quack). I was on Sertraline for a long long time and when I got pregnant I just cold turkey'd it. Ok, it was rough being pregnant and desparate for a a/d tablet worrying that I couldn't cope and for about 2 weeks i couldn't, but my family were really supportive and my doc referred my to a councellor which really helped and touch wood i'm still off the tablets 19 months later.

Answer 6

Weaning off SSRIs can be difficult. I weaned myself off Sertaline (which is similar to flouextine) by VERY slowly reducing the dose from 50 mg /day to 45 to 40 over a few months till I got rid of it. The first couple of weeks you get 'electric zaps' in your head and feel like you are losing balance. Then things become a lot easier. Dont worry you can do it.

Answer 7

Fluoxetine is Prozac. You must have depression. Why would you come off something that helps regulate a medical problem?

Answer 8

prozac has been around the longest and so most is known about it and more people have taken it than any other SSRI. Therefore, it is regardedto be the safest. Paroxitine has short half life and if you miss a dose you will notice it. I never use it, its also hard to get off. So all i all I would use prozac out of the 2

Answer 9

wow, seems like that should be slow enough...how comfortable are you with natural remedies?? Milk thistle is known as a powerful liver detoxifier and supporter. Look it up on the web and go to your local health food store...i think dandelion is good too. plus there are several natural remedies for depression. check the net for detoxification, as well. anything that works for alcahol or drug abuse should work for fluoxetine. good luck!

Answer 10

i was on them for quite a wihle and when i came of them i felt like something was missing. the doctor then said i should take bete-blockers to combat that. i didnt and i missed the fluoxetine for a month or so until i forgot about it.