Ask the Therapist
Withdrawal from Lexapro
Two weeks ago, I went off cold turkey from Lexapro. I had been
taking 10mg since October 2003. I simply ran out of samples and when I saw my
doctor, I found out that I had gained 12 pounds in 6 weeks. This was not fun
news for me to hear as I am a woman and do not like stepping on the doctor's
scale, let alone gaining even one pound. Her reply? (Casually) "Oh, that.
Forgot to mention that S/E. Let's put you on something else." She gave me
Effexor samples, even though I told her I didn't think I was depressed. I threw
them away. I'm trying not to bee too verbose, so here is my question and then I
will give you a tiny bit of medical background...
Q: This withdrawal is the pits. Electrical impulses in my head, feeling like I
have WAY TOO MUCH energy in my hands, feeling light headed (like a head rush)
even when standing still, etc. Weird thing is this: The ONLY time I feel OK is
when I engage in physical activity like Bikram yoga. 3 days ago, I had to take 3
different classes, just to feel like I wasn't going to have a panic attack. And
when class is over? Dizziness. I used to get dizzy during Bikram (especially the
standing with my head on the floor pose) while on Lexapro, but NO MORE (now it's
afterward). In fact, my yoga practice is better and I am more focused. What is
the deal? have you heard of this before? I am happy to report, however, that i
feel a teensy weensy bit better every day.
My pill background:
Ages 20 - 34 took a bunch of pain pills (medically prescribed); sleeping pills,
diet pills (NOT medically prescribed, but got me through undergrad and law
school in 5 years) and Xanax for panic attacks. I am now 36, 18 months clean
from all pain pills and weaning off xanax very slowly. My only other real
exposure to antidepressants was 9 months of Wellbutrin while detoxing from pain
pills. It was wonderful for a while until i got too speedy and started thinking
about suicide.
I don't think i have ever really been depressed! I think it's all been a by
product of pain pill abuse. However, my doctor wants to convince me otherwise.
All of the withdrawl side-effects that you are describing are quite typical. In fact, it sounds like you've got quite a mild dose of it. The withdrawl from an SSRI puts many people in bed for 2-3 weeks. As for the weight gain, that's also typical with most every SSRI and SSRI-equivalent (like
Wellbutrin, etc.).
I can't really comment on the depression/no depression aspect of your profile.
