Muscle Twitching...

[SuperMegaRichard]

Hi I was taking Lexapro at 5mg and developed some pretty intense muscle twitching because of it. I really want to know about this, I really don't find any information of muscle twitching developing from Lexapro, only found information of it developing from withdraws.

[RabidBadger]

Hi Richard

I'm the opposite. I used to have really bad muscle twitches because of my anxiety but since I've been taking lexapro they don't happen so much.

Best wishes

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

Hey Chris, thanks for your response. I been waiting to hear on this but unfortunately your situation doesn't help me, but I am glad to hear that it helped you out. I am looking for someone who has experienced the same thing as me, I been trying to find the medical reason for it but I cannot. The only thing I can think of is some neuron or w/e was prohibited from or got too much serotonin.

As you know people with anxiety fear the worst from every stupid thing. I just want to get better. :(

[RabidBadger]

Hi Richard

I'm pretty sure the answer is probably psychological rather then neurological.

How long have you been on lexapro?

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

One week. Never had a problem with it before. Its about one twitch ever 5 seconds I would say on average. Sometimes Its its a lot more some times less. So I am estimating about 17,280 a day. Yah I know.

I told my psychiatrist about it and he says its common. I looked it up and things suggest otherwise. Therefor I don't know what to think, its hard to trust him when I caught him in a lie.

Also you know anxiety works, this makes me fear perhaps if my muscles are twitching then it will somehow interfere with the signal to my heart and it might twitch too. But of course I doubt it has happened yet so I am sure I am safe. The muscle twitching isn't as bad as the anxiety it causes. The worst thing about the actual twitching itself is minor annoyances and some soarness.

[RabidBadger]

Hi Richard

I'm sure your psychiatrist has explained to you that when you start taking an SSRI like lexapro, your anxiety will go sky-high before it starts to come down again - probably for about 6 weeks.

This is why I say that it is a psychological problem and not a neurological problem.

5mg is a very small dosage and, I'm not an expert, but I would be very surprised if this amount causes any notable serotonin change in such a short time. My guess is that you are a bit freaked out about taking the tablets and, coupled with the temporary increase in anxiety that they cause, you have reached a stage where your muscles have started twitching which, as you say, amplifies itself.

I'm not going to tell you that it's right to stay on the drug and I'm not going to suggest that you give it up. What I will say is that I suffered about 5 weeks of almost unbearable anxiety when I first started taking it but after that it helped me a lot. If you want to go down the drug route then you have to accept that they take a while to work and they make you worse before they make you better.

Best wishes

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

Actually no, my anxiety didn't really get worst. It got refocused. After day 1 I cried a whole lot and it was like a switch cutting on. Then of course that night the twitching started and I was anxious. I would say it never elevated anxiety at all, if anything it slightly reduced it.

While on it here is what I experienced that is new.

I took 1/4th of a pill for 4 days, the first time taking it my pupils got wide and would flex for about 20-30 minutes, this was about 6 hours after the dose. This happened everyday I took it, this made me worry but I was a trooper and continued taking it. I had a little rumbling of the tummy but gastrointestinal side effects does concern me at all.

When I upped my dose to 5mg my pupils dilated even more than normal. The first day I had like a breakthrough crying and realizing stuff I never had before. Around 3am that night I had noticed the twitching, didn't think anything of it and went to sleep. The next night taking the 5mg I didn't have any revelations, but my anxiety was down quite a bit, really only anxiety that I had was pill related. I did have some extreme confusion to the point that my head was making the "no" motion over and over again. My muscle twitching got worse and got me anxious. By day 3 it was like my muscles was doing a symphony, dancing and jumping all over, mostly noticeable in my legs. I had insomnia that night after the anxiety settled. Got to bed around 10 am.

The next day I only took the 2.5mg dosage and that night I did pretty well, my vision was kinda affected, it was like a film of light was pulled over my eyes.

Today is going to be my second day Lex free. Right now it is as some sort of tunnel vision and I don't blink as much, but I am just chalking that up to anxiety.

[RabidBadger]

Hi Richard

If you're at the stage where you are watching your pupils then no medication is going to help you.

If you can explain to me in pathological terms how an SSRI can alter the size of your pupils then I will listen to your arguments.

What you have is an overwhelming need to know that your physical health is 100% perfect and that is something that nobody can ever achieve.

Best wishes

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

Simple, by increasing serotonin to certain stuff. I been in the hospital from Serotonin Syndrome from mixing 50mg of zoloft and a tryptophan supplement (I wish I knew the mg was on that, oh well). Haha the Cat scan was like heaven, the slight movements of the tray you lay on was like I was on a roller coaster. Basically its like being on Ecstasy if you are not panicking. If increased serotonin is present your pupils will dilate.

Having said that you are correct about me having know the status of my health 100% of the time. Its become an obsession. I really don't worry about how anxiety effects my mood nearly as much as me thinking there is something wrong with my health. Its very hard to get past these ideas.

[RabidBadger]

Hi Richard

There's a big difference between taking tryptophan and taking lexapro. serotonin, as I'm sure you're aware is 5-hxdroxytryptohan.

I've run out of things to say to reassure you but I would urge you to use your eyes, rather than watch them.

Good luck

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

Oh no, just the fact you are taking your time in trying to address my concerns is more than enough.

Right now I feel fairly confident I will live. :)

I just need to deal with anxiety my own way, medication isn't the answer for me.

Basically I need to eat right, try to exercise, simply tackle my stressors no matter how bad I feel doing it, writing down what I think my emotions are (because a lot of people with anxiety don't make the right connections with their emotions, they simple close them off) and analyze them, try to think about that is bothering me and cry like a normal person.

Just simple stuff like that can combine and if not cure my anxiety at least alleviate some of it.

I am lucky to have some sort of willpower, and even luckier to have some form of support system.

Thanks for your posts,
If you ever get bored my AIM is VVisdomCube, emal is SuperMegaRichard@gmail

I am always good for intellectual conversations :)

[RabidBadger]

Richard

I'm 101% sure that you will live.

You can take every measure you want to make your life more healthy but until you accept that you can never be sure about your health, I feel it will all be in vain.

Chris

[SuperMegaRichard]

Yeah, well easier said than done :(

I think my main problem is that I feel that I haven't done anything productive my life. I could have scholarships to many decent universities if I had applied myself. Then the death of my mother came along and I am sad I can't show her anything that I can accomplish.

So basically my problem is guilt and the fear that something may hold me back from living my life. That something is only myself. So basically its a mix of a lot of things.

On a side note, its been about 48 hours since I been off Lexapro and my twitches are slowing down to a bearable rate.