Things that caused "activation" or withdrawal symptoms

[SquirrellyGirl]

So, I've often seen people write of having things cause them problems.  They'll say something was too activating, or caused withdrawal symptoms. 

 

Yesterday afternoon I began having numbness of my face, a headache, and a slight swimmy-head feeling.  I hadn't made any real cuts, other than shaving 0.375 mg off my venlafaxine (from 74 to 73 mg gross weight) the week before, and I didn't think there was any way that could be the problem.

 

I can say that over my 20 years on these meds that I have been rather obtuse in making connections about things.  For instance, I just remembered I was on Prozac when I drove off with the gas nozzle still in my car!  I never thought the weird, disconnected feeling I was having that day might have had to do with Prozac!  I've been quite the victim of what Peter Breggin refers to as "spellbinding."

 

Anyway, it finally dawned on me today that I had eaten a bunch of Life Saver gummy candies as I was driving around yesterday.  I'm still prone to my sweet tooth and I KNOW that stuff is junk and not worth eating, but....  I usually have chocolate after dinner but haven't noticed any connection with feeling weird on that one, nor the coffee I have in the mornings.

 

So, I'm thinking it was the sugar.

 

When you have made the connection between a substance and a bad reaction, what was the substance, what was the reaction and how did you make the connection?

 

SG

[Christian]

I had to give up Vitamin B Complex. I take a multi vitamin every day in addition to taking the B complex and realized it may be overkill based on the increased anxiety it was causing. I've also given up the after dinner Fish Oil as I heard that can be activating for many.

[legan]

I found sugar. Caffine . fish oil is activating .

[KarenB]

Coffee BT was fine; now makse me feel quite ill in my stomach for the hour or two after taking it, and also jittery.  Then sugar started doing the same.  

 

I had lavender essential oil in my bath BT (before tapering) - no probs.  After tapering - awful itchiness and redness. 

 

Dance class BT was sweet as, now I can't go.  I get an awful headache about an hour afterwards, and all my symptoms are worse the next 2-3 days. 

 

Alcohol BT was fine; now makes me feel awful in my stomach. 

 

So I've cut out all these things. 

[legan]

Thats bad . Weve to cut alot of things that we used to enjoy

[KarenB]

I know what you mean, although I have to say I see most of those changes as positive/healthy changes.  Except for dance .

[Christian]

Coffee BT was fine; now makse me feel quite ill in my stomach for the hour or two after taking it, and also jittery. Then sugar started doing the same.

 

I had lavender essential oil in my bath BT (before tapering) - no probs. After tapering - awful itchiness and redness.

 

Dance class BT was sweet as, now I can't go. I get an awful headache about an hour afterwards, and all my symptoms are worse the next 2-3 days.

 

Alcohol BT was fine; now makes me feel awful in my stomach.

 

So I've cut out all these things.

[Altostrata]

Using the computer or tablet too late at night. Messes up my sleep badly.

[Purplestars22]

For me when ever I do any form of exercise I get terrible insomnia. Also social encounters I get very anxious and start to ruminate after the event.

[KarenB]

Oh yes, social interractions.  Family staying... I love them but I find it wears me out, and ramps up symptoms a fair bit.  Christmas and my birthday were also big causers of stress and more symptoms

[SquirrellyGirl]

KarenB, I can say that I have had the same response to visitors over the course of taking Effexor as well as withdrawal!  I can't really remember how I was before, but I do know that I always had a cluttered, messy house because I just didn't have motivation to tackle the day to day.  So, when visitors were expected, I had all of that to contend with to bring it to a level where I wouldn't be ashamed to let them in my house, and that is what caused me to freak out!  Also, I lost all motivation to cook and prepare in advance.  Multitasking to prepare meals when I had visitors completely freaked me out.  Thankfully,  my husband was always a rock and kept it together for me.  He is the cook in our family, since I rarely can get the gumption up to do anything other than heat up pre-fab food.   I pretty much know I wasn't quite this bad in my 20's before meds.

 

SG

[simack]

All the few things I used to enjoy in life, coffee, weightlifting, carbs... Also had a horrible reaction to doxylamine...hallucinations, rapid thought was horrible

[Faithgrl]

Pilates after 9pm makes gives me insomnia so that need to be reduced to yoga. Also needed to moderate my exercise as my joints now get really sore and crunchy. Um......also porn late at night (yes I am a girl) does not help with insomnia either....

[grandmaD]

Due to anxiety and very high pulse (100-115) recently) and insomnia I searched everything to do with anxiety, insomnia and early morning cortisool, etc.

 

I only just started vit B complex, starting slowly with 1 tablet a day, so am considering if it is this

 

I was put on "Sustagen" by the doctor for weight loss.  After having gall surgery, many things disagree with my belly so I am on an IBS diet and I tried Sustagen about 4 diferrent times and tried again last week, so wonder if it is this stuff.  I finally checked ingredients and it contains lactose and I drink lactose free milk.  It also contains corn syrup which I have read is something no one should ever consume!  While it seems too upset my belly, I'm not sure if is causing anxiety to worsen.

 

I drank lemon balm all day and night for 2 days and it also seems to upset my guts.  The first day and night it didn't affect pulse, but after 2 days, pulse is back to 100, still not good.

 

The other thing I wondered about was "Movicol".  I know you have to drink lots of water with it and I thought I was, but I increased water intake anyway.  It was only as a result of my son going to hospital that they told him he was dehydrated and that was the cause of his rapid pulse (106) that I learned about de-hydration and rapid pulse.

 

Consequently, I will stop the vit. B and the "Sustagen" and try and introduce them again at a later time one at a time.  I think I'll stop the lemon balm also.  I can't stop the Movicol.  It gets really complicated when you have several things going, even if only once a week!  Then a very slow process trying to introduce things back, once a week.

 

When I read about the early morning cortisol thing, I wanted to race off and take extra vit. C. aspirin and magnesium all at once - but I did refrain!

 

The other thing that caused my head vibrations to worsen was the internet, despite having the screen turned down quite dark.  That is why I could never be on it for very long.

 

I find anxiety is also worsened by things outside my normal routine and by extra exercise, housework, walking, etc.

[Junglechicken]

I discovered this evening that when my mother has had a few too many to drink, and she starts screaming and shouting, my pains return.  I experienced a surge of back pain that came out of nowhere because of that.

 

Stress in general sets everything off and this overseas move has been very painful.

[Rockingchaircat]

After a recent bout of increased cortisol spikes in the wee hours- and attempting to 'do something' about my ankle edema, I decided to start taking some diuretics to do something about it. I accomplished that- I soon discovered dairy products and chocolate causes me to go into a nasty fatigue state. 

Thus- I have to avoid any and all dairy- this includes the butter on toast, and it appears, the milk inside a pancake as well now. (grump grump!). 

I have discovered that going on a bike ride on a cold rainy day is a sure way to end a window.

 

But I have discovered that aspirin seems to help with anxiety attacks and cortisol spikes.

[grandmaD]

I had a sore head and a funny head, not sure if it was headache or not, so I took some panadol called "Rapid" - the dissolving type.

 

Afterwards I didn't know if I had head pressure or head vibes or a combination.  I felt sort of dizzy, weak and funny.  The head vibes got worse and anxiety hit and I felt funny so took my pulse and it was 111. 

 

Anyway, it was pretty definite this reaction to the panadol so I checked the ingredients.

 

I assumed it was just panadol, however found it also contains:

 

phenylanine - does anyone know what THAT is???

saccharin sodium (I know saccarin is bad for you)

sucrose (I don't eat any sugar, ever)

aspartame (I recall this being bad for you also)

sodium (salt, I assume)

 

Anyway, this stuff is made by GSK so I'm going to look for someone else that makes panadol!

[hennie86]

5-htp, reinstating medicine, sugar, caffeine, b-vitamin complex, aspirin (?!)

[coldturkmama]

I was in a good window and some life/work stress came up and threw me in to a wave.

[grandmaD]

I tried a vit B last week and about to try another one this week.  When I took it last week I saw an increase in anxiety but I had also taken several other different things at the same time.

 

Outside stressors can definitely cause my anxiety to worsen too.

[Rockingchaircat]

I was in a good window and some life/work stress came up and threw me in to a wave.

Yeah, that has happened to me often too.

[SquirrellyGirl]

 

I was in a good window and some life/work stress came up and threw me in to a wave.

Yeah, that has happened to me often too.

 

 

Me, too, even while tapering.  Happened this weekend.  I can be cooking along doing pretty well, and then a stressor comes up and throws me in the hole.  Currently trying to climb out...

 

SG

[AmyK]

I tried omega 3 fish oil for two days, but get nausea. Is this common?

[coldturkmama]

Not much fun!! :/

[grandmaD]

So far the vit B seems okay once a week, so I will start taking it twice a week.

 

Amy K - hi!  I took fish oil for the first 2 or 3 years but I had nausea anyway.  I stopped taking it a few years ago because of the gall issues.  I would like to re-introduce it again soon, but have to stick to one thing at a time for now (Vit. .

 

All you can do is stop taking it and see if the nausea goes away.

[KarenB]

Some people do have a reaction to either fish oil or magnesium (or to anything, I guess), although mostly people are okay with it.  GrandmaD has the right idea, and if you do start up again, just take it slowly.

[AmyK]

Thanks, I stopped it after two days. I dont want to go around wondering what symptom is caused by what.

[grandmaD]

I can sure understand and relate to that Amy!  It is so difficult to stick to just introducing just one new thing just once a week, so you can know what causes what! 

 

I am persevering with magnesium again.

 

I have tried magnesium several times, first a whole tablet, then half and then quarter.  Next, crushing i1/2 tablet and dissolving it in 1/4 tsp vinegar and then added to 1L water.  I was diluting that by half but still think it was upsetting my guts.  I am trying one more time, this time diluting it even further.

 

I was crook again yesterday after visiting a friend and having a couple of pancakes.  She makes them with spelt flour which I believe I can tolerate, at least better than wheat.  I have had them before but yesterday I ended up with nausea and indigestion and had to take an antacid.  The only difference in these ones was she used cinnamon and nutmeg.  Could these cause gut problems too???

[Mort81]

So many things Ive tried have been activating  . The worst culprit was last week tuesday . A vigorus massage with pressure points on my neck. Ive had the worst week 19month out . So dizzy and heachaces still after a week. THe worst has been the intensity of the Akathisia during the week with today peaking at a ridculous level. Im trying to just get through this mess I accidently created. I dont blame myself anymore , At first I was so angry but really it was hard but not to the point where I was screaming for her to stop.. I thought it might cause a headache for a day or two but not this .

[gn11]

I am still trying to figure out what activates me. Bread yesterday, potatoes the other day. Talking to people. An intense acupuncture session. Oatmeal wit flaxseeds. is it possible that you are activated by something one day and not another??  

[PortugueseSea]

Yeah, I still live in a constant state of activation so it is hard to tell what I react to or not...

[Prozack]

I'm thinking similar to @PortugueseSea and @gn11 but in terms of psychoactive things. What are your experiences? What do you think?

I am confused, because sometimes I feel like one thing helps, the other time the same thing makes akathisia and other WD symptoms worse. I am confuse with everything I tried - St. John's Wort, Valerian, Coffee, Cola, tobacco, even Mg. Really everything behave like that. One time after consuming you feel normal, the other time, your akathisia has just been awaken by the same thing.

 

Or sometimes is like that: my inner akathisia is calmed down, but at the same my muscle are more in tension. Or vice versa. By the same substance.

 

Or you don't take something that you have been taking for weeks, and you realize you feel better. The next time you feel bad it helps again. Or doesn't help again.

 

Is this because of sleep interruption? You sleep well, take the thing, you feel better. Then the same psychoactive thing (even B complex or herbal teas) makes you sleep less deeper and you feel worse, even when you take it again?

 

Is everything about blood levels of drug? A little bit of neurotransmitter makes you being calm, but to much makes you anxious? Like SSRIs? You take one it makes you calm, you take it every day, you get akathisia?

 

Is purity of the product the thing? If your supplement has traces of toxins, you became agitated, because of hypersensitivity to toxins? In the case of coffee it must be mold, every coffee is moldy and this makes you anxious?

[jon1]

58 minutes ago, Prozack said:

Is purity of the product the thing? If your supplement has traces of toxins, you became agitated, because of hypersensitivity to toxins? In the case of coffee it must be mold, every coffee is moldy and this makes you anxious?

 

In the case of coffee (or tea, or soda drinks, and even chocolate), it's the caffeine that causes anxiety. It doubles the amount of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol in the blood stream for several hours (in some up to 24 hours). This happens in healthy people too, but for those of us in withdrawal with a compromised nervous system that can't deal with stress, it can easily trigger symptoms.

 

After trying everything under the sun, I've come to the conclusion nothing works, and most things actually make things worse or delay healing.

 

The only thing that helps is eating wholesome, healthy, nutritious food, and - most importantly - time.

 

Unfortunately, the supplement/pharma marketing idea that has been drummed into us all over decades - that we always need to take a pill to fix a health issue - doesn't dissipate when we go into withdrawal.

 

But it's a time in our lives when we just need to leave our bodies alone to heal.

[Prozack]

@jon1 I'm afraid that I have to agree. Nothing works. Even Mg sometimes makes me more anxious.

 

I don't advocate caffeine, but... However, I don't have a link to it, but I remember very much a yt video of lab workers. The tested cortisol spikes before and after drinking coffee. Their conclusion was that coffee DOESN'T spike cortisol. And that it's a myth. For a couple of months I was drinking every morning a quality coffee of my local roaster. Every time I drank it, i felt very calm. Then he get a new shipment and... Not anymore! A new one was different and I didn't feel good. Now I can't get a good one anywhere...

 

What I have to say is that it's not just one thing in food that is causing problem. Like caffeine. Mold is almost in every coffee. And mold spike anxiety very very much. Moldy cheese make my brain "shaking" after one bite.

 

@jon1 Can you share any concrete things that delayed your recovery? Have you tried B6 maybe?

[jon1]

7 hours ago, Prozack said:

@jon1 I'm afraid that I have to agree. Nothing works. Even Mg sometimes makes me more anxious.

 

I don't advocate caffeine, but... However, I don't have a link to it, but I remember very much a yt video of lab workers. The tested cortisol spikes before and after drinking coffee. Their conclusion was that coffee DOESN'T spike cortisol. And that it's a myth. For a couple of months I was drinking every morning a quality coffee of my local roaster. Every time I drank it, i felt very calm. Then he get a new shipment and... Not anymore! A new one was different and I didn't feel good. Now I can't get a good one anywhere...

 

What I have to say is that it's not just one thing in food that is causing problem. Like caffeine. Mold is almost in every coffee. And mold spike anxiety very very much. Moldy cheese make my brain "shaking" after one bite.

 

@jon1 Can you share any concrete things that delayed your recovery? Have you tried B6 maybe?

That’s interesting about cortisol. It definitely increases adrenaline though, which isn’t good.

 

Apparently coffee has over 1000 other compounds in, many of which scientists don’t know what they do. So I guess any one of them could easily cause issues. Even pesticides could be a cause.

 

It’s probably easier to say what doesn’t trigger a wave for me. 😁

 

The biggest culprits for me are:

 

- Vitamin D (over a period of days, this causes increasing anxiety and insomnia)

- B Vitamins (B12 makes me tired and depressed, B6 very anxious like D)

- Gluten (sensitivity began after quitting SSRIs completely, eating any will cause severe anxiety without about an hour)

- Caffeine

- Fish oils

- Artificial sweeteners (especially aspartame, probably one of the next big health scandals about to happen)

 

As I say though, with the exception of having to go gluten free, none of that bothers me. I now eat a really varied healthy diet, and get all the vitamins and minerals I need naturally. My body is very happy with that!

 

’Externally’, I have to be very careful about exercise, and avoid cleaning chemicals as much as possible. Even scented room sprays or diffusers can make me feel off.

 

It seems that anything that’s a chemical, or synthetic and man made, like supplements, can trigger symptoms. It’s like my body is so tired of having to deal with healing from SSRIs, it refuses to process anything unnatural!

 

 

[Prozack]

2 hours ago, jon1 said:

Externally’, I have to be very careful about exercise, and avoid cleaning chemicals as much as possible. Even scented room sprays or diffusers can make me feel off.

 

It seems that anything that’s a chemical, or synthetic and man made, like supplements, can trigger symptoms. It’s like my body is so tired of having to deal with healing from SSRIs, it refuses to process anything unnatural!

Me to! Exactly like this. I also can't tolerate artificial sweeteners.

 

However, I also had shorten breath every-time I ate wheat. However, just wheat from biodynamic agriculture is well tolerated by me. Organic is not enough. Have you tried any organic or biodynamic wheat? I don't say that gluten can't be the issue, but, as you mentioned, it could be pesticide.