#1381 ·
Robert Collins2 said:If we're talking about clinical depression, those symptoms should eventually just fade away on their own. With anxiolytics, though, things get way messier because you've got to deal with that benzodiazepine withdrawal—it’s honestly like some junkie's detox, and it all really boils down to your specific dosage and how long you've been on them. Personally, I'm tapering off slowly under my doctor's watch; I'm dropping the Helix first over the course of a week, while I'll probably keep the Effexor and Lustral going for another six months just as a preventative measure.
I've been taking Helix since the very start of my treatment, starting out at 4 mg a day, and now I'm down to just 0.25. I've been on it for five months now, but don't get it twisted—I didn't get hooked on it, it's actually the exact opposite. I'm planning to be completely done with it in seven days, but look, at the end of the day, most of this stuff is in your head. You can't just sit there like a zombie waiting for a little pill to perform some kind of miracle; that's just not how it works!
In my case, I'm tapering off an antidepressant, specifically Paxil.
When I first started treatment four years ago, I was taking Xanax twice a day for about two or three months. I didn't even notice when I stopped; everything went perfectly fine.
But now, this whole situation with the antidepressants is starting to worry me, because I never expected this to happen. My highest dose was 20mg (just one pill a day), and my psychiatrist recently dropped me down to 10mg, and I honestly thought I was going to die.
So, he put me back on 20mg and told me to check in once my finals were over. Well, I haven't called him yet. 🙈
Because, naturally, I'm terrified that I'll feel terrible again, so I keep putting it off. Knowing myself, I'll probably procrastinate forever unless someone practically drags me to his office.
