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Hi everyone, I won't go into a long boring history, just the basics. I went on Seroxat (paxil/paroxetine) for stress, anxiety back in 2007 i think. After a couple of years of feeling better i started to taper slowly but hit an unexpected crash at about 15, massive panic. I reinstated at 20mg and remember crying as the numbing of emotions began again. But at least I could function again. I started a long, slow withdrawal. Tapering the dose down by just a couple of mg each year by taking half a tablet every 2 weeks, then every week, then every other day etc. Forward to 2014 and I have a baby son and a new job. I started the year at about 13mg (taking 10mg, 10mg, 20mg consecutive days). I began to feel the stress and confused brain which i felt was caused by the changes in dose each day. After moving to 10mg, 10mg, 10mg, 20mg ( averaged around 12.5mg i think) i took the plunge and dropped to a straight 10mg. I had only done tiny drops before and for some reason I felt brave enough to try something bold. (Idiot) 6 weeks ago i started taking 10mg exclusively. I immediately felt better. No horrible dread feelings, paranoia or confusion. Then, a week later, followed (yeah you guessed it) the withdrawal symptoms. I had all the physical stuff, flu in the limbs but a strangely clear head. Headaches. So hot and sweaty. Confusion. Nausea and lack of appetite. This lasted about 2 weeks overall, and wasn't nice, however i actually felt better mentally so i toughed it out. Now i feel physically fine apart from being a bit hot and the odd headaches. Oh and my appetite has gone, but i put on weight years ago so I'm not concerned by that! The last 2 weeks have seen a return of my old friend anxiety. Horrible anxiety which comes in waves through the day and doesn't seem to have a pattern. I have started to try Mindfulness meditation, take exercise and 'get on with life' anyway. A bit of depression has also crept in, which is the icing on the cake. A doc gave me propanalol for the anxiety, which doesn't really work but it could be because i'm only taking it 'as needed' and only half doses. I felt better after a counsellor told me that the hardest part is done and that 10mg is just a therapeutic dose. She also said i could try to switch to Prozac. The better feeling didn't last too long though, and the anxiety is making it really hard in my new, horrible job. At the moment I don't know what to do. Sometimes i feel like upping my dose a bit to see if i will feel better, and sometimes i feel ok and think 'i'll tough it out and i will feel better'. Do you think the anxiety is the remaining symptoms of wd and i will adjust? Or is this just 'a funny dose' and i will feel better when i eventually drop a tiny bit lower?(I have heard a lot of people struggle around this level) Is this life below 10mg? Or is this just my anxiety coming through? All opinions welcome, but please keep it positive and sensitive please, i am incredibly fragile right now! And thanks for letting me join. Matty

I wonder about the importance to taper very slowly after taking escitalopram 5 mg for 10 days and before that Zoloft during 52 days between 25 mg-50 mg-37,5mg (a total of 62 days on 2 different SSRIs). I went from 5 mg escitalopram to 2,5 mg 3 days ago. I feel a little "lost" and tired but also better and don´t know if it can be dangerous/bad tapering fast even if I haven´t been long on the meds. I'm quitting the SSRI since I feel they don´t work this time. I was on Zoloft for 18 years, feeling good. I decided to finish after seeing a webbinar this summer about the dangers with a/d. Started again after 5 months due to stress in a new and horrible job. Thought it was going to be a piece of cake like before but, No. A night mare! This time I've felt worse with highly increased anxiety every day so I want to get off them and be drug free before I see a psychiatrist on Tuesday. Due to the increased anxiety I have been forced to take 0,5 mg of Lorazepam daily for a 1 month. Which I hate :-(

I'm just interested in whether anyone has done research in to why most of us can be rapidly titrated up to a large dose of an AD or AP without the brain having the complete melt down that it does if these drugs are rapidly removed? Surely the initial introduction of them throws just a bigger wrench in the gears of our brains' delicate neurochemistry, yet if this caused the dilemma that rapid removal does, none of use would have ever tolerated any psychoactive drug for more than a week.