I have been taking 10 mg. of lexapro for 3 years, and I went cold turkey off the meds about 2 months ago. I had severe sweating, SCARY hallucinations, dizziness, insomnia, depression, anxiety, and worst of all shocks that traveled through my entire body all day. I have been relatively symptom free for a while now, but recently I have been getting seriously depressed and anxious, and I am beginning to remember why I went on this medicine in the first place. I can't really tell anyone how badly I'm feeling, and I don't know what to do. I honestly don't think I could handle going off the medicine again, but I just don't think its worth it to feel this terrible all the time. I need advice. Should I go back on the pills or what?
The one thing that all doctors agree on is that you never should cut any medicine out cold turkey, especially one for depression. You have to taper yourself off. For example if you take three pills a day cut down to 2 pills for a week or so or even 2 and a half, then down to 2 for a week, then 1 and half for a week or so, then half for a week or so until you can be without them all together. your body gets use to a drug and it becomes part of your body chemistry so that if you go off it all together your body wont know what to do and you will get horrible withdrawal type symptoms and in some cases can increase your depression 10 fold.