Dr. HOROWITZ , Thank you. I have experienced exactly what you are saying after titrating off Paxil per my subscriber instructions. I seriously thought I was losing my mind. I found myself in the fetal position sobbing - eventually blacked out. My gp said it was an anxiety attack , and prescribed anti-anxiety meds. That was a train wreck! I decided to stay off all psych meds....am still withdrawing after 11 months. It IS getting better though. A very SLOW process.
Hi @susanmorgan4151 good to hear that u have stopped theADs for 11 months but still facing withdrawlas. The thing is if u withdraw ADs cold turkey or too quicly it damage sthe brain and the brain goes in some kind of kindiling mode and the symptons dont go for years. As u have cold tukerred ur meds and if still facing delibelating wds, then my advice wld be to go back to 25% from which u have cold turkeyed and start reducing the dose by 10% of last dose there on every month. This way the damge caused to the brain will be reduced and will have bearable withdrawals/ hope this helps
Psychedelics definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it's just so hard to source out here
I’ve been researching on psychedelics and it’s benefits to individuals dealing with Anxiety, Depression, ADHD and from my findings, they really work and I’ve been eager to get some for a while but its been difficult to get my hands on them.
The Trips I've been having really helped me a lot. I’m now able to meditate and I finally feel in control of my emotions and my future and things that used to be mundane to me now seem incredible and full of nuance on top of that I'm way less driven by my ego and I have alot more empathy as well
@@AlbertoTorres894I feel the same way too. I put too much on my plate and it definitely affects my stress and anxiety levels. I am also glad to be a part of this community.
Excellent presentation.Dr Horowitz may kindly also do presentations on tapering by elderly patients as their cases are different from other adults ie < 65 years.
Thanks Mark, doctors need to recognise this if they knew the damage they can and have done to patients they wouldnt be quick to prescribe.Opiates,benzos ,gabapentinoids and antidepressants can be really damaging.Informed consent thats all patients advocate for.Your a genius in your field of work.Theres people in psych wards that are ill cos these meds victims.
I´ve been tapering down from 5mg Lexapro, 10% reductions every two months, and now currently on 2.95mg. This is not medical advice to anyone, but taking the following supplements daily has helped quite substantially in tackling withdrawal symptoms: Vitamin D with K2: 4000units (morning) Vitamin C: 1gram (liposomal) (morning) Omega 3: 800mg EPA + 400mg DHA (at night) Magnesium Glycinate: 120mg (at night) Magnesium Threonate: 122mg (morning) Chaga Powder: 2g serving (served with tea, afternoon) Symptoms are mild the first three weeks after each reduction, then relatively normal functioning the following five weeks (with 1 or 2 miserable days)
How are you reducing the dosage? I have 5 mg pills. Are you just shaving them down? I went cold turkey and it's been 3 months and I'm starting to feel really miserable. I think I need to start it over and wean down but I don't know the best way to do it when I have pills.
Thank you for sharing this. I am back up to 5 in readiness to reduce. I went too fast and although no ‘neuro’ symptoms I was impatient, irritable, with bursts of anger and easily startled. I’m thinking of trying 4.5 mg next ( I have the liquid formulation). I am also going to stop trying to do this in secret because it’s been just awful for my relationship. I am also interested to hear that you’re doing this every too months…
@@snowps1 I live in Chile, and we don´t have either liquid formulations available in the market, or compounding pharmacies that can prepare very small, specific doses of escitalopram. The only alternative I had was to buy the available 10mg Lexapro, which can be easily cut in half because of the notch on the reverse, and then shave each 5mg piece down with an always sharp scalpel to the desired doses. For this, I had to buy a 0.001mg precision scale. It is tedious as hell, and requires time and dedication to make sure you get constant doses. It´s the only way. I went cold turkey from 5mg to 0mg back in January 2011, and I was miserable for about a year and a half before going back to 10mg. I definitely would not recommend that!
@@arquipaje8441 thanks for the tips! I did pretty much stop cold turkey off 5mg and it's been a very rough couple of months, especially the wild mood swings!
Execelent presentation Mark. Especially the graphs ( VISUALS)......they are true for most taperings I imagine. How would a graph look for those who have successfully stopped the drugs? For younger people who have a fighting chance? What might success look like?
Hi @rhianonallen2947 my advicew wld be go throgh the seminar again and the slides which u want u can take a sceenshot of it and use it for future refrence. hope this helps
My doctor makes a distinction between physical and psychological dependence. The concept of psychological dependence seems invalid to me. The way it is described, it sounds like a reverse placebo effect, in which you experience adverse effects because you expect them. If so, then saying that withdrawal symptoms result from psychological dependence amounts to saying that it is all in your head. It is frustrating that my doctor does not take my symptoms seriously, but he is really just there to write the prescriptions, so I don't dwell on it.
Your doctor sounds very uninformed like countless prescribers. Please convince them to watch this webinar or read over the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines which Dr. Horowitz recently published. It could save many patients lives from being ruined by their ignorance. 🙏
Hi If u have tapered quicly, u will surely have nasty withdrawals and if u have tapered at 10% of last dose , the wds are quiet manageable and tapeeing shld continue to the ;ast of 0.01mg. if u are still having acute symptons means u havent withdrawaled prodperly. so my advice wild be start form the 25% of the dose from when u started tapering and start tapeing at the recommedned speed. hopefully u will have manageable wds. hope this helps
Please can you guide me how to taper successfully Closopine. The doctor initially put my nephew at 450 mg. He withdrew by himself reducing it by 100mg. i.e 350 mg. Thereafter 25mg every 8 weeks or more. He wants to completely ween off this medication. The psychologist is refusing to his tapering. Where can he get help, to overcome withdrawal symptoms ...esp. suicidal symptoms, as this has happened when earlier he was put on Risperidon , which actually causes suicides...PLEASE HELP !
I’m 9 months off zoloft 15 years use (50mg). Too fast taper by Dr. 12,5mg to zero. Severe WD. Feels like injury in my brain. Is there any hope? Will I be disabled for years. Cant work. Pain in my body. Feels like I lost myself and my life.
Hi @Snowflake1374 Sorry to hear that u are going through the worst of wirhdrawals, it has happened to me too several times as doctors used to rapidly taper me of Ads very quickly in a month and after 2-3 months used to suffer from sever withdrawals that i coludnt even get up from my bed and then again after 4 months of sufferings used to start on new drugs and the cycle repeated. In your case i wld recoomed that as u are already of the drug for 9 months, have seen in a video by Dr josef (he also makes very informative videos on withdrawals) that to reinstate the drug at 50%, so in your case restart at 25mg )hopefully ur symptons will decerse quicly and from there on start reuding the dosage by 10% of previous dose evey 1 month, so for 1st month it wld be 22.5mg, then 2nd month 20.5mg and so on , so it wld take around 30 months to get off the drug but it will surely take u out of the unimagianbele hell of withdrawal. hope it helps.
I would also like to know this too, my GP has recently told me they are not licensed in the UK but they are, so an outright lie. They told me to go on Amazon but a pill cutter and cut my tablets in half, then half again and then stop them 😮 So Very Dangerous what they tell us to do, it's so wrong.
I want to know this too. Is it possible to get it from the UK if I live in Canada? A liquid formulation of venlafaxine is not available here. ??? I have very little trust in dose accuracy when counting or weighing beads/microspheres from the capsules of Effexor XR.
I have only been taking mirtazapine for 2 months , and i want to stop ( as i can not tolerate the side effects anymore ) I tried to stop but i got to day 3 and the withdrawal was horrific , feel terrible taking them a d terrible trying to get off tgem ( was put on them becauses of anxiety ( they do not really help , not very good with medication)
It's something that is very common and what I'm going through as well. Because of the hyperbolic way that these drugs work, there is an increased effectiveness on lower doses. My last taper was 0.04mg, 2.44mg to 2.4mg. It was a lot more gentle than my previous taper of 0.08mg. I suggest to join a peer-support group or buy The Maudsley Deprescibing Guidelines. 😊
From what I’ve learned and am experiencing, you need to tapering much slower and longer. I’ve been tapering from 5mg lexapro for 18 months. I’m now tapering at 5%! I’m currently on .95mg. The withdrawal symptoms get harder the lower you go
I commend you for sticking your neck out challenging these drug companies. Your videos are inspiring, thank you.
I DIDN’T start the antidepressants because of anger and irritability! But this is what I have when I stopped Lexapro.
Me too.❤
I experience it whilst reducing 😬
Me too! And depressive moods. I started it for panic attacks.
@@snowps1 my issue is that I now think that anger and irritability are good because somehow they are justified
Dr. HOROWITZ , Thank you. I have experienced exactly what you are saying after titrating off Paxil per my subscriber instructions. I seriously thought I was losing my mind. I found myself in the fetal position sobbing - eventually blacked out. My gp said it was an anxiety attack , and prescribed anti-anxiety meds. That was a train wreck! I decided to stay off all psych meds....am still withdrawing after 11 months. It IS getting better though. A very SLOW process.
Hi
@susanmorgan4151
good to hear that u have stopped theADs for 11 months but still facing withdrawlas.
The thing is if u withdraw ADs cold turkey or too quicly it damage sthe brain and the brain goes in some kind of kindiling mode and the symptons dont go for years.
As u have cold tukerred ur meds and if still facing delibelating wds, then my advice wld be to go back to 25% from which u have cold turkeyed and start reducing the dose by 10% of last dose there on every month.
This way the damge caused to the brain will be reduced and will have bearable withdrawals/
hope this helps
Psychedelics definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it's just so hard to source out here
I’ve been researching on psychedelics and it’s benefits to individuals dealing with Anxiety, Depression, ADHD and from my findings, they really work and I’ve been eager to get some for a while but its been difficult to get my hands on them.
The Trips I've been having really helped me a lot. I’m now able to meditate and I finally feel in control of my emotions and my future and things that used to be mundane to me now seem incredible and full of nuance on top of that I'm way less driven by my ego and I have alot more empathy as well
I was having this constant, unbearable anxiety due to work stress. Not until I came across a very intelligent mycologist. He saved my life honestly
@@AlbertoTorres894I feel the same way too. I put too much on my plate and it definitely affects my stress and anxiety levels. I am also glad to be a part of this community.
@@LucyFernandez628Does he deliver to various locations?
This is one of the best presentations on the topic of Psych Drug withdrawal, that I have seen.
Thank you so much, Dr Mark and all involved. ❤
Yes it is really succinct and thorough for only being an hour long, I pray that more doctors can see this.
Excellent presentation.Dr Horowitz may kindly also do presentations on tapering by elderly patients as their cases are different from other adults ie < 65 years.
This is why I NEVER take pharmaceuticals
Thanks Mark, doctors need to recognise this if they knew the damage they can and have done to patients they wouldnt be quick to prescribe.Opiates,benzos ,gabapentinoids and antidepressants can be really damaging.Informed consent thats all patients advocate for.Your a genius in your field of work.Theres people in psych wards that are ill cos these meds victims.
Please come back to Australia and set up a clinic here… Melbourne specifically… please 🙏
I would definitely see him if he was back here and would even travel from Sydney to Melbourne 100%
very informative. thank you Dr Horowitz!
38 years paxil and xanax and one week hospital to get off. Swear truth. Last October. Now what ??.
THANK YOU!❤
This is very informative Thank you
I´ve been tapering down from 5mg Lexapro, 10% reductions every two months, and now currently on 2.95mg.
This is not medical advice to anyone, but taking the following supplements daily has helped quite substantially in tackling withdrawal symptoms:
Vitamin D with K2: 4000units (morning)
Vitamin C: 1gram (liposomal) (morning)
Omega 3: 800mg EPA + 400mg DHA (at night)
Magnesium Glycinate: 120mg (at night)
Magnesium Threonate: 122mg (morning)
Chaga Powder: 2g serving (served with tea, afternoon)
Symptoms are mild the first three weeks after each reduction, then relatively normal functioning the following five weeks (with 1 or 2 miserable days)
How are you reducing the dosage? I have 5 mg pills. Are you just shaving them down? I went cold turkey and it's been 3 months and I'm starting to feel really miserable. I think I need to start it over and wean down but I don't know the best way to do it when I have pills.
Thank you for sharing this. I am back up to 5 in readiness to reduce. I went too fast and although no ‘neuro’ symptoms I was impatient, irritable, with bursts of anger and easily startled. I’m thinking of trying 4.5 mg next ( I have the liquid formulation). I am also going to stop trying to do this in secret because it’s been just awful for my relationship. I am also interested to hear that you’re doing this every too months…
@@Liz-hc4um oh my, I've also been doing it in secret and should just fess up to my husband. I'm so grouchy and moody now.
@@snowps1 I live in Chile, and we don´t have either liquid formulations available in the market, or compounding pharmacies that can prepare very small, specific doses of escitalopram. The only alternative I had was to buy the available 10mg Lexapro, which can be easily cut in half because of the notch on the reverse, and then shave each 5mg piece down with an always sharp scalpel to the desired doses. For this, I had to buy a 0.001mg precision scale.
It is tedious as hell, and requires time and dedication to make sure you get constant doses. It´s the only way.
I went cold turkey from 5mg to 0mg back in January 2011, and I was miserable for about a year and a half before going back to 10mg. I definitely would not recommend that!
@@arquipaje8441 thanks for the tips! I did pretty much stop cold turkey off 5mg and it's been a very rough couple of months, especially the wild mood swings!
Execelent presentation Mark. Especially the graphs ( VISUALS)......they are true for most taperings I imagine. How would a graph look for those who have successfully stopped the drugs? For younger people who have a fighting chance? What might success look like?
❤
Any chance that the original webinar participants can be emailed some of the data slides from the last half of the presentation?
Hi @rhianonallen2947
my advicew wld be go throgh the seminar again and the slides which u want u can take a sceenshot of it and use it for future refrence.
hope this helps
My doctor makes a distinction between physical and psychological dependence. The concept of psychological dependence seems invalid to me. The way it is described, it sounds like a reverse placebo effect, in which you experience adverse effects because you expect them. If so, then saying that withdrawal symptoms result from psychological dependence amounts to saying that it is all in your head. It is frustrating that my doctor does not take my symptoms seriously, but he is really just there to write the prescriptions, so I don't dwell on it.
Your doctor sounds very uninformed like countless prescribers. Please convince them to watch this webinar or read over the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines which Dr. Horowitz recently published. It could save many patients lives from being ruined by their ignorance. 🙏
What length of time after your last dose is considered a protracted withdrawal?
I'm 19 months off and still experiencing acute withdrawal symptoms 😢
Hi
If u have tapered quicly, u will surely have nasty withdrawals
and if u have tapered at 10% of last dose , the wds are quiet manageable and tapeeing shld continue to the ;ast of 0.01mg.
if u are still having acute symptons means u havent withdrawaled prodperly.
so my advice wild be start form the 25% of the dose from when u started tapering and start tapeing at the recommedned speed. hopefully u will have manageable wds.
hope this helps
Please can you guide me how to taper successfully Closopine.
The doctor initially put my nephew at 450 mg. He withdrew by himself reducing it by 100mg. i.e 350 mg.
Thereafter 25mg every 8 weeks or more.
He wants to completely ween off this medication.
The psychologist is refusing to his tapering.
Where can he get help, to overcome withdrawal symptoms ...esp. suicidal symptoms, as this has happened when earlier he was put on Risperidon , which actually causes suicides...PLEASE HELP !
Do Vyvanse!
I’m 9 months off zoloft 15 years use (50mg). Too fast taper by Dr. 12,5mg to zero. Severe WD. Feels like injury in my brain. Is there any hope? Will I be disabled for years. Cant work. Pain in my body. Feels like I lost myself and my life.
Hi
@Snowflake1374
Sorry to hear that u are going through the worst of wirhdrawals, it has happened to me too several times as doctors used to rapidly taper me of Ads very quickly in a month and after 2-3 months used to suffer from sever withdrawals that i coludnt even get up from my bed and then again after 4 months of sufferings used to start on new drugs and the cycle repeated.
In your case i wld recoomed that as u are already of the drug for 9 months,
have seen in a video by Dr josef (he also makes very informative videos on withdrawals) that to reinstate the drug at 50%, so in your case restart at 25mg )hopefully ur symptons will decerse quicly and from there on start reuding the dosage by 10% of previous dose evey 1 month, so for 1st month it wld be 22.5mg, then 2nd month 20.5mg and so on , so it wld take around 30 months to get off the drug but it will surely take u out of the unimagianbele hell of withdrawal.
hope it helps.
how do you access liquid forms of ssri so you can slowly come off
I would also like to know this too, my GP has recently told me they are not licensed in the UK but they are, so an outright lie.
They told me to go on Amazon but a pill cutter and cut my tablets in half, then half again and then stop them 😮 So Very Dangerous what they tell us to do, it's so wrong.
I want to know this too. Is it possible to get it from the UK if I live in Canada? A liquid formulation of venlafaxine is not available here. ??? I have very little trust in dose accuracy when counting or weighing beads/microspheres from the capsules of Effexor XR.
I have only been taking mirtazapine for 2 months , and i want to stop ( as i can not tolerate the side effects anymore )
I tried to stop but i got to day 3 and the withdrawal was horrific , feel terrible taking them a d terrible trying to get off tgem ( was put on them becauses of anxiety ( they do not really help , not very good with medication)
I dont understand i reduce slowly since 2020 and have many symptoms since 4mg
I reduce 0,1mg per month or 2month.
It's something that is very common and what I'm going through as well. Because of the hyperbolic way that these drugs work, there is an increased effectiveness on lower doses. My last taper was 0.04mg, 2.44mg to 2.4mg. It was a lot more gentle than my previous taper of 0.08mg. I suggest to join a peer-support group or buy The Maudsley Deprescibing Guidelines. 😊
From what I’ve learned and am experiencing, you need to tapering much slower and longer. I’ve been tapering from 5mg lexapro for 18 months. I’m now tapering at 5%! I’m currently on .95mg. The withdrawal symptoms get harder the lower you go