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WolfTrusted Voice6d ago

Prozac · researching

My god. It was as severe as you say. The heart should agree with 100 bpm as long as you do not have that many more problems stacked on top of it. I experienced tachycardia, and it's worrying, and incredibly uncomfortable, and it comes and passes, but in theory the norm goes up to even 100 bpm. So ideally it would be under 100 bpm. The "uncontrolled noradrenergic activity" as you mentioned in the previous post is known to cause dry mouth.

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 7 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 7 months — holding | with clinician

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WolfTrusted Voice6d ago

Prozac · researching

What makes you think Rivotril is a good idea?

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 7 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 7 months — holding | with clinician

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CatinaStaffTrusted Voice6d ago

"I am currently quite traumatized. I cannot even get out of bed without my heart rate rising above 100 beats per minute. I had an appointment with a psychiatrist who recommended increasing sertraline back to 50 mg, which I found difficult to accept, and I ended the consultation." — @Bettoben

I'm so sorry you went through such a scary experience! You've been tapering pretty consistently for some months. An option would be to give your CNS a nice long hold. Perhaps the effects of the previous reductions caught up with you. That happened to me once. I'm so glad you held your ground and knew better than to go back to 50 mg! That would have been too much of an updose for your sensitive nervous system to handle. In the meantime, you can try some EFT Tapping and breathing/grounding exercises or anything else that can calm you down. I know splashing ice cold water on your face is good for panic and can immediately slow down our heart rate. Hang in there, you're going to be okay. Keep us updated on how you're doing.

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 18.56 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

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WolfTrusted Voice5d ago

Prozac · researching

I will leave it for more experienced people to comment.

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 7 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 7 months — holding | with clinician

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CatinaStaffTrusted Voice5d ago

How are you feeling today? I hope you're hanging in there okay! I created this document about Heart Issues and wanted to share it with you. I hope it helps! https://taper.community/thread/a6fcd727-db10-4e30-bb01-98fa1342898e

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 18.56 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

⭐

SteveStaffTrusted Voice5d ago

Effexor · active

Yes those crisis are scary, i‘m sorry you had this experience. I would also tend to a protracted experience due to the consistent tapering. I had a hard time to accept this can happen but sometimes it does. Would also be very interested in how you are doing now?

off Stimulants (2000-2013)
off Fluoxetine (2010-2013)
off Lamotrigine (2013-2016)
off Quetiapain (2016-2020)

currently Effexor — 33mg — 13 years (from 300mg) — actively tapering | with clinician

Bettoben4d ago

@Wolf @Catina @Steve I’m not doing very well, guys. I’ve been taking 0.25 mg of Rivotril three times a day and 5 mg of sertraline for a week to see if things stabilize a bit more. I literally swing between being completely sedated and falling asleep (55bpm), and then having adrenaline surges and becoming overly anxious. There have been some improvements these days. Before, just concentrating while sitting on the edge of the bed would raise my heart rate to 150. Now it seems to go up to around 100, and I can go to the bathroom more calmly. The good thing is that my heart rate increases with movement, but if I stay still for a while, it goes back down. What worries me now is not only stopping sertraline, but also having to stop Rivotril. I’ve called a few psychiatrists to see if they can help me with this, but the ones I’ve found have been quite unprofessional. A friend of mine is very motivating and keeps telling me I’m in the final stretch, that I can’t give up now. And thank you for replying. I’m reading this, but I barely have the motivation to respond.

Sertraline/Zoloft:
▸1/2021>100mg, ▸11/22>50mg ▸6/23>25mg (Psychiatrist told me to take half the pills until I finished the box)
✘ Clean 3 Month till massive fall
▸9/23>100mg, ▸1/24>50mg, (I started tapering on my own, because the intention was to have me on 100mg for 5 years) ▸9/24>25mg, ▸7/25>12mg,(starting parabolic with tablet dissolution in water) ▸10/25>11,5mg, ▸11/25>10,3mg, ▸12/25>8,7mg, ▸1/26>8mg, ▸2/26>6,9mg ▸3/26>5,967mg ▸4/26>4,8mg ▸5/26>3,73mg ▸6/26>3,53mg

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CatinaStaffTrusted Voice4d ago

"I’ve been taking 0.25 mg of Rivotril three times a day" — @Bettoben

I'm sorry you're having such a hard time Bettoben. A benzo like Rivotril is highly addictive and can present its own separate issues with both side effects and withdrawal effects. I'm sure you're aware of this.

"I’ve called a few psychiatrists to see if they can help me with this, but the ones I’ve found have been quite unprofessional." — @Bettoben

Doesn't surprise me! They're not much help when you want to come off anything. How long have you been on the Rivotril now?

"There have been some improvements these days." — @Bettoben

That's a great sign! You probably just need to give yourself time to stabilize from all the Sertraline reductions.

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 18.56 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

Bettoben4d ago

"How long have you been on the Rivotril now?" — @Catina

I haven’t been on it for long, I don’t think it’s even been a week, but I was given 7.5 mg of diazepam as an emergency measure. Then the next day I had another episode and I took 1 mg of Rivotril in an emergency. That’s when the emergency doctor came to my home and told me that to stop these crises we would need to prescribe Rivotril to keep things under control. That’s why I was put on 0.25 mg three times a day. I’ve been on it for about a week. According to the AI, it says that in the morning and at night—when I feel most exhausted—I could reduce the dose by half, taking 0.125 mg in the morning, 0.25 mg in the afternoon, and 0.125 mg at night. That way we would slightly reduce the total daily dose, making future withdrawal easier. It would also help address the issue of being sedated all day.

Sertraline/Zoloft:
▸1/2021>100mg, ▸11/22>50mg ▸6/23>25mg (Psychiatrist told me to take half the pills until I finished the box)
✘ Clean 3 Month till massive fall
▸9/23>100mg, ▸1/24>50mg, (I started tapering on my own, because the intention was to have me on 100mg for 5 years) ▸9/24>25mg, ▸7/25>12mg,(starting parabolic with tablet dissolution in water) ▸10/25>11,5mg, ▸11/25>10,3mg, ▸12/25>8,7mg, ▸1/26>8mg, ▸2/26>6,9mg ▸3/26>5,967mg ▸4/26>4,8mg ▸5/26>3,73mg ▸6/26>3,53mg

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CatinaStaffTrusted Voice4d ago

I personally am very concerned about you adding in a benzo to deal with your Sertraline withdrawal. My own opinion is that this is going to complicate matters. I can't tell you what to do, of course, but I feel that I need to voice my concern. Do you feel like the benefits are outweighing the risks right now?

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 18.56 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

Bettoben4d ago

"Do you feel like the benefits are outweighing the risks right now?" — @Catina

If I hadn’t started taking Rivotril, we wouldn’t have been able to stop the crisis, and once you start with one dose, the next day withdrawal symptoms kick in and you have to take another dose.

Sertraline/Zoloft:
▸1/2021>100mg, ▸11/22>50mg ▸6/23>25mg (Psychiatrist told me to take half the pills until I finished the box)
✘ Clean 3 Month till massive fall
▸9/23>100mg, ▸1/24>50mg, (I started tapering on my own, because the intention was to have me on 100mg for 5 years) ▸9/24>25mg, ▸7/25>12mg,(starting parabolic with tablet dissolution in water) ▸10/25>11,5mg, ▸11/25>10,3mg, ▸12/25>8,7mg, ▸1/26>8mg, ▸2/26>6,9mg ▸3/26>5,967mg ▸4/26>4,8mg ▸5/26>3,73mg ▸6/26>3,53mg

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SteveStaffTrusted Voice4d ago

Effexor · active

I want to emphasize i also had these sudden heart rate changes, but not for long. People describe it as „POTS-like“ symptoms. I‘m really sorry you endure this at the moment. I would suggest you try to stabilize the next 2 weeks and see how it is then. Sadly the benzos will give similar symptoms when you taper them, so after feeling stabilized you should first try to reduce the benzos and stabilize again. Stay strong brother and let‘s see how this progresses. I often thought the „symptoms are permanent now“ and i‘m also quite desperate in my check-ins sometimes. But it did always resolve.. 🫂💪

off Stimulants (2000-2013)
off Fluoxetine (2010-2013)
off Lamotrigine (2013-2016)
off Quetiapain (2016-2020)

currently Effexor — 33mg — 13 years (from 300mg) — actively tapering | with clinician

W

WolfTrusted Voice4d ago

Prozac · researching

I would be extra careful about a benzo in this situation just like @Catina says Hence my previous question 🫂

Prozac — 40 mg — 6 months — holding | Zyprexa — 20 mg — 6 years — holding | Depakote — 600 mg — 7 months — **tapering** | Buspirone — 20 mg — 7 months — holding | with clinician

⭐

CatinaStaffTrusted Voice4d ago

"If I hadn’t started taking Rivotril, we wouldn’t have been able to stop the crisis, and once you start with one dose, the next day withdrawal symptoms kick in and you have to take another dose." — @Bettoben

I understand you were in a crisis situation. When I was in my own crisis situation I did take lorazepam short-term, but I didn't know better at the time. If you can find non-drug ways to manage these symptoms you'll be better off in the long run. My concern is coming from a good place, I hope you know that. ❤️

Venlafaxine (tapering) - Current dose 18.56 mg
Trazodone - 50 mg
Levothyroxine - 25 mcg

“Your brain and body know how to heal. Trust the process and keep going.”

Massive Crisis 3.5mg > 5mg

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