lexapro withdrawal

omg i went off cold turkey about 2 weeks ago and i AM suffering. I didnt have anymore, couldnt refill my prescription coz my doctor said i had to come and revisit my case in order for him to prescribe me more and a visit to him is about $500 and my insurance doesnt pay for him.

So....i went off it cold turkey. Im feeling everything from nautia, vommiting, headaches, moodiness, irritability, and i get these VERY strong heartbeats where i can feel them in my whole body (has anyone experienced this?), also like these shocks in my head...ugh im miserable

I refuse to go back on it coz i dont need it and seeing what it has put me through, i dont want to ever depend on such a drug ever again!

My scrip for Lexapro ran out, my pharmacy did not bother calling my doc, so when I requested a refill they turned me down. I just assumed that this drug was not so important, if nobody cared that I quit it cold turkey.

6 days of symptoms later, I am in the ninth ring of hell. I just thought to myself, "It cannot get worse than this, this HAS to be the turning point, I HAVE to get better from here on out...because worse would be inhuman." I luckily had a spare Klonopin today, or someone would have carted me off to the funny farm by now.

Sweating, hands shaking, zinging, brain being squeezed in a vice while simultaneously shutting on and off, extreme feelings of unreality, inability to do much more than sit and drool, folks wondering what I am on, when in fact, I am profoundly NOT on anything...

I feel the pain of every one of ya. This is nasty stuff to get off of. I got my scrip refilled, but I am using that to taper instead. I am a mom of two, and cannot risk being the quivering blob in the corner when they need me, not even for another single day. No rest for the soccer mom!

I am afraid of going back on the hideous stuff, because I am determined that I am only doing so in order to quit, POSSIBLY bringing myself right back to where I am today...but I have to find out if there is an easier way.

So, recap:
20mg/day--->cold turkey for 6 days--->unbearable, inhuman results
Fri 10/17: 1 mg Klonopin, 10 mg Lexapro--->will report results

I will try a daily update with dosage and side effects until I am symptom free...maybe this will help future m****s that took what the doc prescribed, when THEY go through what we are experiencing.

Cheers!

I only took Lexapro for 3 months (10mg) - I went cold turkey for 9 days now and I'm in hell. I'm so comforted to see everyone with similar symtoms. Mine are mainly depression, dizziness, disorientation, lack of concentration, feelings of helplessness, fatigue. ughhh help - when does this stop!

I am surely glad to find this site. I really thought I was loosing my mind. I have been on lexapro 10mg for about 2 years. In my 50's, taking care of an ill parent (who passed away), stress at work and so my doctor put me on it. I never thought about withdrawal and he didn't tell me about it. So now life has evened out and I feel it is time to come off. I have gained 30 pounds during this time and no amout of dieting or exercise helped.
My doctor wanted me to switch over to Pristiq and told me to cut the Lexipro in half for 5 days and take along with the Pritiq. I decided to just do the half lexipro and not start on the pristiq. Well, 4 days in and I was down with what I thought was the flu. couldn't lift my head off the couch. I missed 3 days of work. Ached everywhere, can't sleep. hot flashes, night sweats. So today I start searching for answers and have found that I am most likely going through the "withdrawal" process. I am so dizzy and feel like I am in a fog. So at lunch I went home and took a half. Is this going to mess me up again? I do not want to get on another med. It sounds like I just came off too fast. I think I will try taking half every other day. Does any one have any suggestions?
Thanks

I have been on Lexapro for over 3 years and stopped cold turkey. I have the 'head sparks' and have had them for 3 weeks now. It has definitely interfered with concentration which causes agitation and irritability. I have also not had one night without seriously bizarre dreams that last the entire night. Whatever it takes, it can't last forever and can't say Lexapro did anything for me but cause serious weight gain. It's easier to deal with life than to mask it with medication; I recommend getting involved in self help books.

First off I'm not a doctor and I don't pretend to be giving medical advice, you should see your doctor and discuss all of this with them before starting/stopping/changing dosage of medicine, but here's my experience:
I went on Zoloft in spring of '05 which was SO helpful for my anxiety, but I literally turned into the "happy blob" featured in their advertising. I was happy but I put on 10/15 lbs and was very tired all the time. So I switched to Lexapro (10mg). I may have had a little more trouble than I normally would keeping weight off while on it and I was still a little more tired than usual, but still a very helpful medicine and no extreme SE's. Spring '06 I titrated off the medicine (half pill everyday for a month then nothing, big mistake). I had the "brain shocks" pretty badly but they went away in a couple weeks and otherwise everything was fine. Summer '06 marked the return of anxiety and I went back on the Lexapro. I finally tried to get off it again a couple weeks ago but this time I titrated more slowly (half pill every day for a month, half pill every other day for a couple weeks, half pill every three days for about a week). I had some brain shocks as I reduced the dose but nothing too major, except drinking alcohol (even one drink) made it worse as well as exercising (almost passed out running to the train). About a week after it was out of my system most of the physical SE's were gone but then I started to feel emotional (sad to the point of tears over nothing) and then just really really jittery and anxious to the point I couldn't sleep. I called my doctor and he said the pill should be mostly out of my system and completely out within 2 weeks. So what I gathered is that since my physical SE's were going away the emotional stuff may have been related to my anxiety returning. Went back on half a pill (since thats all I really seem to need anymore and it gets rid of any and all side effects) and within 24 hours I felt so much better. So I don't think the emotional stuff is necessarily a side effect, it may just be your body's way of letting you know you need the medicine. And thats not a weakness or anything to be ashamed of, anxiety and depression are genetic and the right environment can set you off. And also, I've heard Lexapro can be used safely in pregnancy from my doctor (who was trying to assure me that long-term use wasn't going to harm me). I don't think its fair to blame this medicine for all your problems once you stop it, especially if you stop cold turkey which any doctor will tell you is dangerous! I'm not saying you won't have some physical side effects no matter what but for me they only last a couple weeks and they're fairly minor as long as you avoid alcohol for that time, but overall this is a good medicine and doesn't deserve the blame!

I was given lexapro by a doctor after I took a really bad beating from my husband. I had a restraining order placed on my husband who has a terrible drinking problem. But the beating was so very brutal that I was nervous all the time, couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, couldn't stop shaking, and having anxiety attacks. I was referred to this doctor by a co-worker. She gave me lexapro and I regret ever taking them. I took them for about two months and just about 5 days ago I decided to stop taking them. I feel terrible, like I need to throw up, I break out in sweats one moment, then I'm having chills the next moment. At times I feel that I'm going to pass out and I don't have much of an appetite. I just don't want to be a pill popper. Today was my first day even sleeping. I feel worse than I did before taking them. I'm feeling horrible right now. But I refuse to take another one of those pills. I just pray that these withdrawals will soon pass.

I am also trying to come off of the Lexapro. I was on it for 3 years for anxiety due to a lot of pain incured during a car accident that caused me to lose my business, husband of 19 years, and a single mom of a 11 month old son. I was really mad at the world and needed some relief. It took doctors 3 years of talking to me before I gave in. I am a health freak and do not like taking any meds even for a headache unless I absolutely have to. I was on 10 MG for 2 years and upped to 20 MG because my body built up an immunity to it. I weaned down gradually. 10 MG for 2 weeks, then 5 MG every other day for another week....and now I am finished. It has been 7 days clean and I am having ringing in my ears, headaches, anxiety and tension, heart palpatations, very irritable, and stomach cramps occasionally. I am not very nauseated, but I am having a hard time swallowing, like there is reflux. The worst part so far for me has been the shakes. I will be sitting and all of a sudden my body trembles, it is very aggravating and makes me feel like it is pure tension. Maybe that is the shock everyone is talking about? Just in my body.....

I would say that it did help me get through my anger and injury pain caused by the accident......but it is extremely hard to get off of it without feeling like you are going crazy!!! I am one irritable woman at the moment. I have no patience for Stupid people either! URRRGGG. Does this symptom go away??????

I wanted to share my story of going off Lexapro on two separate occasions. I had been trying to get pregnant for over a year while on 20mg of Lexapro, and decided one day to quit cold turkey. I had been on 20mg of Paxil in the past, so knew coming off an SSRI is painful. It took a GOOD 3 MONTHS for the side effects to completely go away. And whadda ya know, once the side effect were completely gone, I got pregnant. After my son was born, I got extremely bad PPD, so I went back on 20mg of Lexapro. My son is now 8 months old, and I am still on it. I tried around the 5 month mark to go off of it, and just couldn't do it. At that point I had to keep taking the drug because I couldn't survive my high maintenance 5 month old and the side effects. I'm trying to get pregnant again now, so I'm quitting again cold turkey. I'm a little afraid, but know it has to be done. If only one research study says that Lexapro can harm a fetus, that's enough for me not to take it. Incidentally, those months I was off Lexapro trying to get pregnant and being pregnant?? I was FINE, as in there was no need for an antidepressant.

The worst side effects are the brain shocks by far. And when I say it was a good 3 months to be done with them, it was a gooood 3 months. And then one day, they were just gone. SSRI's suck ASS trying to go off of, Paxil is just as bad as Lexapro. My heart goes out to all of you trying to go off this evil drug. I will say if I do get pregnant again, and get PPD again, I will NOT take another SSRI.

OK - I was on LexaPro for almost 2 years and after a month of trying to taper off I may have to go back on it. I was on 10 MG then tapered down to 5 MG over a 2 week period then down to 2.5 MG for a week. I tried to stop after that but my withdrawal symptoms spiked after 2 days without any Lexapro in my system. The problem is that everyone is different - and some may go off easier than others. It also depends on how long you took it - the longer it's in your system the more it changes your brain chemistry and the longer it may take to titrate off of it. THe best thing to do if you start getting severe symptoms (brain zaps, dizzieness, sweats, headaches, moodiness) - go back on it for a while to stabilize then start the weaning (titration) process over again but increase the times you are taking a lower dose - maybe a month on half dose, then another month on a quarter dose. Unfortunately, the pharma companies don't really want you to know about this "hidden" problem with anti-depressants since it would kill their profits. If I had known that it would be so hard for me to go off Lexapro then I would never have started it - I would have requested some other alternate way to deal with my depression/anxiety.
Hope this info helps someone.

I have been taking lexapro for five years and five months now, I am slowly tapering off the anti-depressant. I am doing this in conjunction with acupuncture treatment and a herbal teas from my acupuncturist. I was becoming tired, and irritated often, she felt my pulse and looked at my tongue and said it was due to a weak liver and kidney. She told me to consult my psychiatrist about tapering off... so, I am tapering off. It is not so bad, I am getting irritated a bit more easily, but that is it, a little light headed at times, dizzy, I guess.

One week ago I started tapering off the medication. I just can not stop cold turkey, I went from 10 mgs to 5 mgs. Prior to Lexapro, I was deeply depressed, I had hypersomnia, the inability to think clearly and suicidal thoughts and it saved me, but I think it is time for me to venture off the medicine. Maybe you should try acupuncture and herbs in conjunction with tapering off.... I hope this helps. It is an idea, and option.... my best friend said to try the tapering off, but if I need to go back on it, to not see that as a failure, and I extend this advice to you all.

I have been on Lexapro for about 4 years. I had a new baby and my older children were fighting and my father almost died and had trouble coping. I tried twice to go off the meds but couldn't handle the side effects. When I called my MD for suggestions, I was told I could just stop taking the pills. Now after doing my own research I have found that you HAVE to taper off. I am actually down to a quarter of a pill every 2 days but the effects are really bad. I have the shocks, i can cry at the drop of a hat or laugh hysterically. I am having trouble focusing at work. The most recent problem is throwing up after I eat. Last week I no sooner ate my lunch and just threw up. Today right after breakfast I threw up. There wasn't really any nausea, just that my food didn't stay down. I really want to be off the meds and I'm trying very hard to deal but I almost want to take a medical leave from work to get through this. I wish I knew this before I went on them. I don't think what I was going through at that time was really bad enough to have to put up with these withdraw symptoms now.

I recently stopped taking lexapro a couple of days ago and I had been taking 20mg for almost a year and I feel like c**p. I am getting those brain shocks and am feeling very dizzy and lightheaded. I'm also feeling extremely tired and my whole body aches. But for all you people that are scared to stop taking lexapro or have to I would tell you guys to be strong and stick out for how ever long it takes for the withdrawal to go away

I've only been taking Lexapro for 3 months. After forgetting to take it for two days my brain started protesting. Brain shocks is as good a description as any, pretty accurate too.
I guess I'll have to gradually wean myself off this c**p. I wish my doctor had warned me. He's sure gonna hear about it!

All while it sounds crazy for me to say it, i am glad i am not the only one feeling like im getting electric shocks every 5 mins.. Also sleep problems and headache, and this was after a very slow taper off.. So, i guess we have to stick at it and get through the other side..