Depression Blog.com

I was on Paxil for 4 years and I felt like I was on a natural high with it. I met a girl and soon married her within 2 months. Now, I am off of it and feel I made a mistake in marrying her. I don't have that euphoric feeling I once had. I am afraid Paxil gave me misdistortions and terrible judgements. Need Help!!

I HAVE TAKEN 20MG PAXIL DAILY FOR 2 YEARS NOW THE DRUG IS WONDERFUL FOR HELPING WITH THE STRESS AND ANXIETY,BUT THE SEXUAL SIDE EFFECTS ARE A REAL PROBLEM FOR ME.

Wean yourself off this drug NOW! Put on some praise & worship music - pray and thank God for all the good things in your life. It is IMPOSSIBLE to be depressed or experience anxiety while in the middle of prayer or praise! God will heal you. All you have to do is ask, and believe that what He has said in His Word is true! By HIS stripes we are healed! Amen! Thank you Father God for telling me to throw away the meds and let You heal me!! Praise to You Father for your faithfulness!

I was taking zoloft for 2 years it seemed to poop out on me so the dr increased my dosage from 100 2 200mg a day. This just increased the side effects and no relief whatsoever. So I just switched to paxil 3 days ago. Im not feeling any new symptoms of this new chemical I hope it does work for me there is a chance it wont work since I stopped responding to the zoloft. I guess if this doesnt work ill try an snri and if that doesnt work ill go live with penguins in the arctic. Good luck everyone keep hope that days can and will get better. TO go to my depression website with a message board www.mentalhealth.0catch .com

I had been taking paxil for approximately 4 year due to depression and anxiety. I tried several different times to slowly wean off the medication and had a very difficult time. After doing some extensive research on the internet, I have been taking a multi-vitamin - Women's Ultra Mega vitamin from GNC and also additional 250mg of magnesium - I feel great and have been off the paxil for about a month now. After reading on the internet about magnesium deficiencies, it all makes some sense now. I feel wonderful. Hopefully this can be of some help to other people out there.

I started taking Paxil on the advice of my doctor but I got myself off it a year later and I had an extremely difficult time getting off it. I felt terrible dizziness if I turned my head right or left and was emotionally rocked for a couple weeks. I broke up with my partner and had a severe period of adjustment for months afterwards. I think it's too easily prescribed & makes you worse in the end. It's funny because what I went to the doctor for originally when he prescribed Paxil was what I know now to be what they call "Restless Leg Syndrome." This can be cured with Magnesium Supplements as I found out last summer and I sleep so much better now that I'm supplementing my diet with Magnesium. I think if my doctor had taken a little more time understanding why I couldn't sleep than he would not have prescribed paxil. I've never experienced suicidal thoughts until I was on Paxil. My breakup was 1000x worse than previous breakups, but somehow I got through it. I believe it's an extremely dangerous drug and I'm relieved I'm no longer taking it.

I have only taken 2 Paxil pills so far (2 days) and already I am unable to have an orgasm, and this has never happened, so I know it's the drug. I also started bleeding...and it is not time for a menstrual period!!! No more for me! I'd rather have the anxiety!

My 18yr old child was seeing a therapyst. She suggested my child try a MILD antidepressant, so we went to see a doctor who specialized in working with teens, hence our nightmare began. I was not about to put my child on any drug without doing research, my better judgement was not to have her taking Paxil. But this specialist insisted the bad rap Paxil had was in very rare cases, that the drug had been doing wonders, and had few side effects. She also assured me that both her and I would watch my child for any serious side effects. Within 1 week my daughter was in trouble. She was seeing people that were non existant, she became withdrawn and had horrible mood swings. The 2nd week she was witdrawn, a shell of herself, incoherent. Daily calls to her Psychatrist were blown off. I was told I was not giving the drug enough time to work. On the 3rd week I demamnded the doctor see us in person. Her answer was to INCREASE the dose. By now my child was in such danger her therapist demanded we take her to another doctor. That night my child almost lost her life. She found a razor, and sliced her wrist 22 times. Yes- 22 times( she dosnt even remember doing it). The blessing is she was found in time. She was rushed to the hospital and spent 2 weeks in detox from this nightmare. Listen - if you think it isnt working -DEMAND to be listened to. MY child has a wonderful new doctor that has her on Topamax, it has worked wonders for her. She was lucky, very lucky. They dont all work for everyperson. No one knows your mind or body like you, or your parent. Just because they have a medcal license, dosnt mean they're always right. And dont give up hope. Do your research and discuss with your doctor what you think may be right too. Dont let them make all the decisions.

I have been taking Paxil CR for 2 years now. The only reason I decided to go off is when they pulled it from the shelves and I had to start taking regular Paxil. After starting the regular Paxil I became extremely hyper. Not knowing when Paxil CR was going to return to the shelves I decided since I had some down time I would go off. I weaned myself to a lower dosage then to every other day for 2 weeks. Now I am completely off of Paxil for 7 days now and things are still no better. I cannot drive because i have flashes in my head that impair my vision for 30 seconds. My stomach is always sore, my head is always sore, i have no personality and care about nothing. I do go into fits of rage and take it out on my loved ones. My body feels like it was hit by a mack truck. I constantly cry and really don't want to go out and be seen because I really look like a mess. I know this will all go away eventually, but in the meantime, i suffer.

i have taken paxel cr since june of 2003. we have a lot of depression and anxiety in our family and i seemed to worry about things to the extreme. i can not get paxel cr because of a problem with dispensing it so i was given regular paxel. i am very leery of taking it and i am considering slowly getting off. reading about the side effects has me worried. i have had blurry vision which i really noticed after getting my eyes examined and then new glasses. i can read and see well in the house but in the car road signs and things are blurry. well i guess i will see what does happen. i want to try to just take a pill every other day and keep doing lesss. my dosage is 25m.

Took Paxil for nearly a year. It made me gain weight which was never a problem before taking it. The first 10 to 14 days on it were bad as it completely knocked me out while my body got used to it. If i forgot to take it one day my body would get these very bizarre sensations, almost like electric pulses running through my nerves. I don't think its a bad drug, just wish it didn't cause weight gain.

My wife was placed on Paxil in 1993 for family problems. She was taking 40 when I began reading what it was doing to her body. We decided to taper off by cutting in half for 3 weeks, the half in half for three weeks and down to nothing by cutting each portion in half. She threw up, had noises in her head, leg cramps and wanted to die. She has been off totally for two months and has become an agressive, mean, hate everyone including herself person. Yelling and screaming, threating and no longer wants to be married or be around anyone. It is to bad Droctors did not know what this dangerious drug would do when you tried to stop taking it. I might add she was a master level teacher for 19 years until she started taking Paxil, she has not taught since 1997 all do to the wonder drug. Paxil is causing a total family break up, our children age 21 and 25, would rather see her on Paxil and a walking zombie than the way she is now. Please tell everyone you know NOT to start Paxil.

I have been taking Paxil cr for a year and a half.

to control panic and depression. Because of the

recall, I am taking paroxetine HCL, which does not

control anything.

So now I'm back in my house, unable to live a

normal life.

I've been on Paxil for 17 months now. I started on 12.5 mg then increased to 25 mg. At the time I was on Paxil CR. Now I'm on regular Paxil, 40 mg. The drug has helped me tremendously. Before I went on Paxil, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown- I was deeply depressed, suicidal, and despondent. After a few weeks on the drug, I experienced a total turn-around. I still have my struggles from time to time, but on the whole, I'm much happier and stable on the Paxil.

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME I HAVE POSTED HERE. I STILL FIND ALL OF THE DIFFERENT THINGS PEOPLE WRITE TO BE VERY INTERESTING. I DID TRY TO TAKE A PAXEL CR EVERY OTHER DAY BECAUSE I REALLY DO NOT WANT TO TAKE THE REGULAR PAXEL THAT REPLACED THE PAXEL CR. EVERY OTHER DAY DID NOT WORK FOR ME. I WOULD GET REALLY SICK FEELING. I DECIDED WHEN I GO TO THE DOCTOR I WILL SEE ABOUT GETTING OFF OF IT WITH HIM TELLING ME THE RIGHT WAY. I HAVE BEEN REALLY HAPPY WITH THIS MEDICINE. I SLEEP REALLY WELL. I DO KNOW THAT TAKING A PILL IS NOT GOING TO MAKE EVERYTHING BETTER BUT SO FAR I HAVE NOT HAD REALLY BAD SIDE EFFECTS. I HAVE GAINED WEIGHT BUT I AM ALSO 48 AND GOING THROUGH A LOT OF CHANGES. I HAVE BEEN GETTING OUT AND WALKING EVERY NIGHT TO TRY AND GET SOME WEIGHT OFF. I THINK THE PAXEL CR DOES MAKE ME TIRED BUT ALSO MORE RELAXED AND NOT SO STRESSED ABOUT EVERYTHING. AS I SAID EARLIER I AM GOING TO ASK THE DR. ABOUT GETTING OFF OF THE MEDICINE AND SEEING WHAT DOES HAPPEN.

I have been taking paxil for almost 10 years for depression and anxiety and was recently prescribed a mix of wellbutrin with the paxil. My complain about paxil is feeling numb emotionally and with the wellbutrin, I feel kind of "zoned" and not "with myself."

I don't want to have to choose between depression and this state, but it's really frustrating to feel "removed" from myself.
I am tempted to change my dose or get off medication just to feel myself again at some level.

Not sure what catagory to leave this question in......My doctor has prescribe Paxil for me because of depression, crying spells and anxiety. I have been reading all the positive and negative comments. Is there more Positive then negative responses to this drug? Right now I am getting rather afraid to take it from everything I have read. Do most people gain weight and have a rise in their Blood Pressure with Paxil? I am already 30 pounds overweight and my Blood Pressure is boarderline. My doctor thought this would be a good one to try???? Soooo....... is there more negative then positive? Any responses would be greatly appreciated.

I have been on Paxil for 4 months now. My husband recently divorced me (this was before Paxil was introduced into my life and not due to my depression fits/just decided he didn't want to be married). I became sucidal, so Paxil was introduced to me. When I first started taking Paxil, I was yawning a lot and I felt sick. Once Paxil was in my system, I felt good. I woke up happy. I couldn't wait to go to work and start my day. I would go out with friends and have fun. I would get about 3-4 hours of sleep each night because I loved life so much and didn't want to sleep. I found myself sing in the office and talking to myself....sometimes I thought I was going nuts. Well, Not sleeping and the strain I put on my body ended me up in the hospital with pneumonia. I was in the hospital for two nights. When I got out of the hospital, it had been two days in which I did not take Paxil. Afterwards, I seemed to get more down and just started skipping my morning "happy pills". I ended up trying to kill myself by taking P.M. pills and sitting it the garage with the car running. I woke up because I felt sick from too many pills and didn't go through with it. I then decided to get it together and take Paxil daily again. I have gained 10 lbs in 4 months. I have been the same weight before taking Paxil for 15 yrs. I have just stopped taking Paxil 4 days ago because I don't want it in my system anymore. The only side effects I have now are iching, night sweats (which I'm tired of waking up cold from my soaked clothes from night sweats), tingling in my toes, dizziness, and headaches. I will let you know how day 15 and 20 goes.

I am on 20mg of Paxil-is cr paxil better ?? Please write and tell me anyone who has used both!!!!

If you are on it for Depression (and OCD symptoms) don't go off. I went off for almost one month and lately I have been collecting everything I can-like in years past. No controlling my need-impulsivity. plus more. I realized today when I went online that Paxil-which I went off to try to deal with the Depression by exercising was also helping with the OCD.

My girlfriend has been taking paxil cr off and on for the last 2 years. Her doc told her drinking was okay but I felt otherwise. One night after leaving the bar we got into a spat and I went to the bathroom. Afterwards, I found her in the kitchen trying to cut her wrist with a knife. When I went to grab it out of her hand she nearly cut my thumb off and I went to the ER to have 9 stitches to close the wound. Has anyone else dealt with problems like these before? Ive been trying to get her to stop drinking but she's 21 and thinks she knows everything. She won't listen to a word I say and its kind of scary to think a drug could cause such a reaction. However, when she took herself off the meds she was so angry and unbearable to be around that I almost ended our 2 year relationship. Im not sure what I should do and any help on the matter would be appreciated.

this plaxix is horrible. I've had a lot of bad side effects from them. Stop them now. Helen

My (new) stepdaughter has been reducing her paxil and is experiencing some bad side efffects.Her "Doctor"also has her on another antidepreesant!She was diagnosed for anxiety and given paxil?Somehow this seems like a crime to screw up an 18 year olds life like this.We (mom and dad) are helping her get off the drugs and are seeking healthy ways to later address any slight imbalances she might have or grown out of by now.Any information anyone has to help in the meantime would be helpfull.Trusting your friendly nieghborhood doctor can have serious life altering consequences.Research anything before you take anything.Read any book by Ralph Moss.Drugs only mask the problem and do not get to the causative source of the clinical problem.Sincerely...Steve Young.

I am taking paxil. Restarted again after a 9 month pause. Got excessive yawning and restlessness (and tiredness?) and apathy, tremors ( I'm not sure) and no sex drive as side effects. Coming off the stuff is can cause profound depression and other side effects.. weird ones.. so taper down slowely! I am hoping that paxil will help with my depression. I know that it is a miracle drug for me and others for social anziety disorder... the negative part of this is that instead of being morbidly shy, I can be so loose lipped that I sometimes say things that I regret... to my embarassment and regret. I might also have manic-depresive disorder.. I don't know, but if I do I hope that the manic phase kicks in again soon... I'm sick of the depression! I was afraid to talk on the phone to strangers... now because of paxil I'm getting up the nerve again.. good news!

My brother ( 18 yrs old) has been on paxil for 4 weeks- the first week he was on 20 mg- before 2 weeks was even up-the bumped his dosage up to 100 mg- He had a seizure while he was driving on christmas eve- I think a result of an overdose on paxil- he had all the signs of an overdose- then he has began talking about really morbid things..like killing people and he describes in great deal what he would do to them- it is freaking me out. I have got him down to 20 mg- instead of 100- your not supposed to just stop taking right?? has anyone else had any problems like this?? please let me know-

my mother died5 months ago and now my very loved husband did at age 36 just got our 1st home im soooo sad called also depersonalzation im ill help if anyone has this much hurt and made it karen

I was on paxil for massive anxiety problems and generally feeling flu like all the time. I took it for about a year and it really helped me a lot except for the sexual side effects and the feel of being indifferent to everything. I quit and everything was great for about 3 or 4 months then i started to have attacks again. They got soo bad that I was ending up in the hospital because I thought I was having heart attacks. Soooo...I started paxil again and in about 3 week or so I was back on my feet again...I could play outside and get crazy and go to work and not have a problem. Again the sexual side effects and a few other things were right in my face but other than that I felt great. My girl and I broke up and she moved to another state so to fix things I really thought I needed a change so I quit taking it again....and again for 4 months everything was great...in fact I felt better than I could ever remeber....then slowly...it got worse and worse again. We did get back together and I moved here to Atlanta with her and though things are bad I got myself another job but I really struggle though it and it seems like things are getting worse and worse. I tried taking LEXAPRO but I freaked out worse than I ever had after two days and spent the night thinking I was going to DIE it was so bad...must have had 40 panic attack that night. So not its been about 4 weeks sense I tried that and to be honest I think that starting a new medication and freaking out on it might have been partly mental. So I think I'm goingto go with the paxil one more time...I know it works...I know it helps...and I think that if I can get myself in a better state of mind and then switch off paxil to another drug, might really help me get my life back together. This drug does have bad side effects and there are better ones out there now...but in the end you have to go with what you are comfortable with I suppose until your are in a good state of mind to make a change. I have hoped that I wouldnt have to spend any more of my life on these drugs but I guess sometimes things jsut aren't firing correctly up there and you need help. Wish me luck on this journey I am about to take again. I understand all the peopel who had terrible experiences on PAXIL cause I'm one of them...but you have to remeber that this drug DOES HELP A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE!!!! Not everyone is wired the same and you need to be careful what you say on these forums because if your having a hard time...and read nothing but horrer stories all the time....it can push someone who is unstable to possibly kill themselves or to quit suddenly and then try something even crazier...I'll end with saying its not to see so many people out there like me...makes me feel not so alone...and good luck to all of you in your quests to find what is right for you.

All Psychotropic medications have their place; however, many of them (including Paxil) are over used. We are a society of quick fixes therefore we seek medications that will get us back to "normal" quickly. This often leads to dependence on them in order to maintain a "normal" mood. Medications are not bad when used properly. It's when they become a way of life that they take rule us. We become dependent on them. If you are interested in trying Talk Therapy instead of meds then feel free to visit my website for more information. Finding a good therapist to help will do wonders in the long run. You can find me at www.LogosCounseling.com. I wish you all the best.

I'm wondering why I'm dizzy and sort of spaced out after missing my dose of Paxil. I forgot yesterday and today, and these symptoms have continued throughout the day. Please respond.

Paxil is the devil.

I have posted once before but will do so in hopes that someone smarter than me will research before going with the suggestions of a doctor. I could write a story before taking Paxil and after but I still cannot differentiate the difference other than Paxil is not for everyone. We all go through fits of depression and anxiety. For myself, I have dealt with bouts of depression for years but masked it through drinking or painting or writing. Due to a disability and a lack of job stability, the anxiety started to increase more. Everyone has a story or does not have a story on why depression happens or why anxiety happens. Mine is irrelevant.

The only thing I can say is do not go cold turkey off an antidepressant. The drug was not working for me even though my friends thought it was. I am not willing to share my story yet. All I can tell you is that you will believe you are going through hell if you try to quit Paxil cold turkey and may wish you were dead before the experience is over. I am not over the effects of the withdrawal even though it's been two weeks +. My parents and friends do not understand why I am having dizzy spells, not eating, or having angry outbirsts, let alone the times I am have clarity and am talking about all kinds of things which make me look manic. The paxil was a bandage that did not allow me to figure out the problems correctly. You may need to print off the blogs from this website so that your friends do not commit you if you decide to go cold turkey of Paxil. There is another website I found it helped me to realize what was about to happen by going off this drug. I do not wish this on anyone but unfortunately this guy was correct in my case -- www.join-the-fun.com This is where I found some info on dealing with the possible withdrawal symptoms of paxil. I also started taking herbals/vitamins to start the process of getting back to normal (whatever that is as we all have our sense of what normal is). What I do not understand is why this drug has not been taken off the market.

i have been taking paxil 10 mg for about 3 months. after the side effects went away I started feeling great again. Now it seem to not be working as well for my panic disorders and depression. Would a dose increase be any good for me. I really liked the new me at first and want that feeling back again. please any suggestions.
Mark

I was on Paxil for about 8 years. It did help, changed me, made me feel more like a man, rather than an eternal adolescent. There are some side effects, like ''delayed ejaculation'' but your body adjusts and eventually it's not a real big problem (Actually, they prescribe it to premature ejaculators and you can last a long time). Some weight gain, difficult to shake. Another issue is that I started drinking heavily, and it turns out it accelerated my alcoholism, which is a progressive ''disease''. I didn't think I was an alcoholic like my father, brother and sister, but I am. Paxil made me overconfident and reckless. I ended up going to AA. I tried quitting Paxil a few times, but couldn't ... but suddenly, I quite cold turkey and realize that I had to take for all this time. When you are ready, you can quit, it seems. I did change my outlook on life, but the principles of AA helped to. I was ''self-medicating', with alcohol for years, but alcohol is a depressant.... Paxil did allow me to retrain my brain, I am a not the person I was 8 years ago.. I've stopped blaming my parents, etc. for everything that was wrong. I was the problem, in many ways.

Hello i have a qustion i have terminal brain cancer and my dr has me on 20 mg of paxil for depression and anziety i have1 pill left and i cannot afford to get my refill i want to know what the side affects are if u just stop talking them im worried what is going to happen i have tryied every thing to get them filled i cant get any help so i guess i haveto go with out. ty for your time

Help Please,During Sept. 2007 my husband's boss announced he would be closing the company's doors forever then a week later on October 8, 2007 his boss killed himself as a result my husband fell into a 2 year depression Thus, he sought medical attention and began taking paxil in Feb.2009 He seemed to be doing fine with it, in march he became distant. Then in April he became a complete mean and aggressive. In May I approached him regarding how distant he had become and he said I was going through separation anxiety. I also addressed his aggressive behavior and he became defiant, heartless, and denied he is having side effects. He sweats so bad that he stinks up the bed, headaches, sleeping too much I visited his doctor and asked the doctor to wean him off of it. He disregarded me and said my husband said there was nothing wrong with him.I told the doctor that he did not live with my five children and I to know what was occurring. He lowered the dosage to 30 mg from 40mg He got worse that one night he treated me like an animal. my 13 yr. old daughter calls Paxil the crazy person pill. I asked her why and she calls it that and she said said because the pill makes her dad a different person, more like a crazy man! I told her he thinks the pills are working for him she said working to lose his family... Thus, I'm asking for help because my family and I don't know what to do with him any more

I was on 10mg paxil for only two days and it messed me up. It through me for a loop.First I was experiencing excessive yawning and urination. Then I woke up in the middle of the night flipping out saying I am dying i'm going to die. I had to called the ambulance when they got there my heart rate was 180. Then I started hallucinating...was not fun. The hospital put me in the psych ward and believe me I didn't need to be there I just kept going to the hospital because I didn't know what was going on I felt so messed up I felt so high. I couldn't sleep, think I couldn't do anything. I thought my life was over. I had blood work done and my liver enzymes were high and my sugar and RBC. Then I finally realized I needed yo call my doctor he put me on adarax which is an antihistamine and is for anxiety and I had to take it for a couple of months and I am doing better. I'm so happy to be alive!!

I was just prescribed paxil HCL by my doctor for depression and anxiety. For the past month I have lost interest in everything, never want to leave my room, and barely eat even though I am hungry (not because I think that I am fat but I just don't care). I also never want to see any of my friends and don't even like them anymore for some reason even though I used to be very outgoing and spend all of my time with them. I have always had symptoms of anxiety and depression but they recently seemed to have gotten worse and this was the first medication prescribed to me but after reading these posts I am afraid to try it....

Here is what I found about Paxil. Good: It really helped cure my mild to moderate depression. It worked wonders. I felt Euphoric, like nothing could hurt me. It changed me for the better; I had more self-confidence and was funnier and happier. People liked being around me. I loved that person. Bad: I had a difficult time achieving orgasm. It took a lot longer and I also sometimes had Erectile dysfunction. I also was sleepy more often (but would sleep so well anytime). Lastly and most importantly, I became lazier and more lethargic. I didn't have the will-power to go to the gym as often or work as hard when I did go. I also gained weight (not because of the drug, but the change in lifestyle).

Because of the bads, I slowly weaned myself off it. It wasn't hard for me to get off it, but the depression came back shortly after I got off it. Now I am looking for another drug that does all the good of Paxil with none of the bad.

I have been taking Paxil for over a year, but just recently I was switched to the generic version. I stopped taking it for about a week to a week and and a half and I started experiencing scary symptoms. I've had crazy dizziness and my blood pressure has gotten higher. Has anyone had these symptoms coming off of this drug?

I have Essential tremor. My physician, Neurologist commented that Paroxetine could possibly increase the tremor. Is this true?

Was put on Paxil over a year ago,was weaned off over a month,but after off it, crying spells,not sleeping,depression started all over, went back on Paxil. Would like to try to get off it again,any suggestions?

ok so all of u who take anti depressants DONT STOP even if u feel happy u only feel better and like u dont need them is cause they are working if u stop u will just be depressed again!!!!

I have taken Seroxat CR 12.5 for 3 years is taking one every other day a way of weaning off any advice?

I have been taking paxil cr for a week now and I have not been sleeping well at night. I wake up very exhusted, and just don't like how I feel on paxil cr. I also just recently found out that you are not supposed to cut the paxil cr in half, which I am still doing because I don't feel comfortable taking 25 mg of paxil cr due to the negative comments about this drug. I used to take paxil IR 10 mg, and still have some pills left, and my question is can you stop taking paxil cr and switch over to paxil IR? PLEASE HELP ME!!