Another Paxil question....?

Question

So I've been taking Paxil for a week now. The doctor told me that after a week, I was supposed to increase from 10mg to 20mg. They also put me on xanax for panic attacks. The thing that sucks is this: the Paxil makes me all jumpy, and panicy, it makes my thoughts race, and I get all agitated. So I take a xanax to calm down----but I end up being a zombie all day. Then around 4 or 5 in the evening, the depression kicks in again, and I start to feel worse, which spins me into another panic attack, so I take another .5mg of xanax, which knocks me out. Has anyone gone through this? I was nervous to increase the paxil, so I'm still taking only 10mg until I see my doc next week. Can anyone help me????

Answer 1

Paxil did just the opposite for me. I was on a 20mg dose however. I was a lot less anxious and it made me more drowsy more of the time.

I am a person that generally only sleeps 5-7 hours a night at most, and never takes naps. But when I was on paxil I was taking naps every day cause I was a lot more relaxed.

Paxil helped me for both depression and anxiety, starting in the first couple of days of taking it even though I know the medication probably hadn't reached its full effect. My biggest problem with it is all the side effects and withdrawal issues, plus the fact that I feel like I shouldn't need a drug to deal with whatever is wrong with me. But as far as depression and anxiety go, it did seem to work.

Note: if you are taking the Generic Paxil, and not the name brand, there is supposedly no difference... I however did not feel any positive effects when taking the generic paxil, and tried it on two seperate occasions for periods of a few days to weeks at a time. You may want to try getting your pharmacy to change to the name brand paxil, it will be more expensive, but I definitely thought there was a difference between the two.

Answer 2

Being "jumpy" can actually be a side effect of Paxil and some other antidepressants. Sometimes, such side effects will stop as you get used to the drug. Paxil is also supposed to help with anxiety, so it seems a bit odd to me that your doctor prescribed Xanax as well unless it was a temporary measure to help you until the Paxil takes effect. Talk to your doctor about this. If the Paxil doesn't work out for you, there are other meds you can try.

Answer 3

Yes, but I loved my paxil... You are still getting used to Paxil though...your body is still adapting, but I still got that jumpy sort of feeling the entire time I was on it. I recently went to a psychiatrist who took me off of paxil all together--and the SSRIs (the drug group that Paxil is in) and put me on a more stabilizing medication because I was having the same problem...well, sort of. I was good during the day but I couldn't sleep at night. I will tell you this, I have been on paxil for years, and i USED to be able to sleep but my dad just died recently, so I am VERY anxious and it is hard to sleep--so, anyhow.. I dont really know what the answer is. Maybe stay on 10 mg for a little longer until you get used to it. Be careful w/the xanax-- it is VERY addicting! (btw: my doctor refuses to put me back on paxil but I miss it :( and she says that xanax is way too addicting to prescribe..so i am screwed)..also, they do have Paxil CR (which is controlled release---it slowly releases through your system throughout the day). I am get tired now (which is im associated w/being depressed...) w/my medication and I still feel depressed--which paxil would always help with, i can sleep and my anxiety is gone but now im depressed.. I dont know if this is more confusing than helpful, but it is food for thought. Good luck! So, I can either decide to not sleep-- but not be depressed, or be depressed but not be anxious and be able to sleep....haha

Answer 4

I'm sorry that this isn't working out well for you. I can give you some advice, but I advise that you contact your Dr. via telephone as you experience these side effects.

First, it's important to understand that the Paxil works on increasing the availability of serotonin in your brain. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter responsible for mood, apetite, sexuality, body temperature, vomitting and sleep. It takes approximately 4 - 6 weeks for the reuptake process to reach efficacy, where in the first week or two, you may experience nausea, irritability, diziness, weight gain and loss of labido. Everything usually goes away, except for the loss of labido and weight gain.

In addition, Paxil does not work with the part of your central nervous system that causes stress. Panic attacks are a product of our body's natural stress reaction when we feel that we are being exposed to danger, even though no danger exists. Paxil will not cause this; your panic/anxiety is a biproduct of your depression and over all emotional health.

As far as your Dr's recommendation to increase the dosage; you should be 100% complient with his/her instructions. When you start adjusting dosage on your own, you are really making things more difficult for them and it's going to take longer to get you properly aclimated to any medication. When ever I feel I have to make an adjustment, I always call my Dr. immediately and ask her permission, we discuss it, but ultimately, I follow her instructions so she is fully aware of what's going on so she knows how to treat me.

One thing that sticks out is that the Paxil is making you "jumpy" and you're experiencing "racing" thoughts. I should point out, that these are symptoms of bipolar disorder, where if someone who is bipolar takes an SSRI - it will trigger mania (racing thoughts) and further increase depression. In many cases, bipolar depression is misdiagnosed and treated as unipolar depression, where SSRI's just make things worse.

I'm not saying that you're bipolar, but from your reaction to Paxil, it may be something worth bringing up with your Dr.

Lastly - the Xanax is not going to help your depression. Xanax is very addicting and has a short elimination half life. This means that if you start taking it regularly, you're going to build dependane. Being that Xanax doesn't stay in your system that long, you'll end up having to take more and more or you'll suffer from withdrawal very quickly - further increasing depression.

It's important that you keep regular contact with your Dr. when you're starting new medication. A good Dr. will want to put you in a position where you'll experience minimal side effects. Give them as much info as you can so they can make you feel better and keep you from feeling worse.

Feel better!

Answer 5

I never had any success with paxil, I could never understand why I would be given one drug to counter act the side effects of another. After being on paxil for almost 8 months (it takes up to 7 weeks to be in your system and functioning for you). I begged to go on something else. You do need to stick it out while it takes effect and it is in your system fully. Do not miss a pill, for every dose missed it takes 3 days to catch up. If after a few months you do not feel any better ask for something else. Not all antidepressants work the same on everybody. Good Luck.

Answer 6

i replaced into on Paxil for an somewhat long term, and it replaced into so tricky for me to get off of it, yet ultimately it in basic terms did no longer help me anymore. precise now i'm on Effexor XR and it works super. i does not survive Paxil, I even have heard loads of undesirable effects approximately it.

Answer 7

it's very obvious that Paxil is not the drug for you. Don't wait for the Doctors appointment, call him (or her!) and explain what's going on. This is not normal.

Answer 8

ask the doc to switch you from paxil to something else