Anyone with experience with paroxetine hcl?

[kenreezy]

Hi guys,

A little background information about my gf:

She suffered with anxiety and panic attacks for about 4 years, but most recently has developed agoraphobia. She's now homebound and I've become for the most part homebound with her due to some sort of separation anxiety as well. Due to the debilitating circumstances, and having tried many natural remedies, she finally gave into her fear of trying medication.

So, a couple days ago she took 1 20mg pill of paroxetine hcl, and within a couple hours experienced almost every side effect possible. Extreme nausea, fatigue, insomnia, blurred vision, etc. The worst was the nausea which was persistent for almost 24 hours. Close to the 24 hour mark she also experienced what she said to be brain zaps, and a sensation of being electrocuted. Due to the severity of these side effects, her DR told her to discontinue the drug.

Has anyone else had a similar reaction to this drug? I know that side effects for most people are unavoidable, but was the amount of side effects and the persistent nausea "normal"?

Best regards,

Ken

[gypsylee]

Hi Ken, welcome to the forum

I haven't actually been on Paroxetine but I've been on a few similar meds. They don't seem to affect me as badly as this but they can be pretty nasty and I've read a few posts on here from people who've had similar experiences. Does she feel okay now?

Cheers,
Gypsy x

[kenreezy]

Thank you for the warm welcome.

she's gradually feeling better as each day passes, but she's still not 100%. To think that she just took 1 pill, and 2 days later she's still coming down from the side effects is very concerning. Her nausea went away a little after 24 hours (which was the main complaint), but she still feels dizzy from time to time and her apetite hasn't fully returned.

I really want to know if anyone has we've experienced the nausea for the whole day. Most of what I read online were people saying it lasts for a few hours after ingestion and tapers down.

Hi Ken, welcome to the forum

I haven't actually been on Paroxetine but I've been on a few similar meds. They don't seem to affect me as badly as this but they can be pretty nasty and I've read a few posts on here from people who've had similar experiences. Does she feel okay now?

Cheers,
Gypsy x

[gypsylee]

Yeah I'm not sure. I haven't heard of many people having such extreme side effects but nothing surprises me with these meds. It's good she stopped taking them.

My main side effect is increased anxiety, which is what I'd be taking them for, so it's horrible. I usually need some kind of sedative like Valium to just get through the first couple of weeks of taking the anti-depressants.

[jessed03]

It's hard to say whether the pill caused that reaction in your gf, or whether it was sub-conscious anxiety. Make no mistake about it, the mind is fully aware it's taking a brain-altering drug, and that's pretty scary no matter what you tell yourself.

I had the same reaction the first time I took citalopram. I can't say whether that first dose made me really unwell, or whether all those symptoms just snowballed out of an initial feeling of anxiety. I guess it doesn't matter really, does it? If something disagrees with you, there's no point taking it.

I did try the drug a year after though, when I was much calmer. I had no side effects at all, which was somewhat telling.

The half-life of paroxotine is insanely short. It's one of the worst meds to withdraw from for that reason. That won't affect her after one dose though. It will be out of her system now. Very few of these drugs last longer than 30 hours. What she's experiencing is almost certainly some remaining anxiety from the initial experience. Some time will help her recover, but try to get her out of that anxious mindset if possible, even if just for a while. Try to change her physiology - again, I know, easier said than done. It went out to a family get together 5 days after my experience and distracted myself a little. It helped. I imagine that's not possible with agoraphobia. Maybe movies or something like that will help.

Anxiety causes nausea and dizziness, so that's nothing to worry about from a medical perspective. When anxious, most people feel that way.

[kenreezy]

Appreciate the feedback.

Yeah I'm not sure. I haven't heard of many people having such extreme side effects but nothing surprises me with these meds. It's good she stopped taking them.

My main side effect is increased anxiety, which is what I'd be taking them for, so it's horrible. I usually need some kind of sedative like Valium to just get through the first couple of weeks of taking the anti-depressants.

[kenreezy]

Thank you for your input...

I know the recovery process should not be rushed for people with anxiety disorders and they have to get better at their own pace, but this is really starting to take a toll on my life as well. The separation anxiety is real and many days I'm missing work or going in extremely late because something will trigger her panic before I leave for work. Taking care of her has become a full time job. I go to work, come straight back, go straight to work, etc.

If anyone has any recommendations, please feel free to post them. We will try anything at this point.

It's hard to say whether the pill caused that reaction in your gf, or whether it was sub-conscious anxiety. Make no mistake about it, the mind is fully aware it's taking a brain-altering drug, and that's pretty scary no matter what you tell yourself.

I had the same reaction the first time I took citalopram. I can't say whether that first dose made me really unwell, or whether all those symptoms just snowballed out of an initial feeling of anxiety. I guess it doesn't matter really, does it? If something disagrees with you, there's no point taking it.

I did try the drug a year after though, when I was much calmer. I had no side effects at all, which was somewhat telling.

The half-life of paroxotine is insanely short. It's one of the worst meds to withdraw from for that reason. That won't affect her after one dose though. It will be out of her system now. Very few of these drugs last longer than 30 hours. What she's experiencing is almost certainly some remaining anxiety from the initial experience. Some time will help her recover, but try to get her out of that anxious mindset if possible, even if just for a while. Try to change her physiology - again, I know, easier said than done. It went out to a family get together 5 days after my experience and distracted myself a little. It helped. I imagine that's not possible with agoraphobia. Maybe movies or something like that will help.

Anxiety causes nausea and dizziness, so that's nothing to worry about from a medical perspective. When anxious, most people feel that way.

[jessed03]

That sounds really tough. I'm sorry you guys are having to go through that.

Psychotherapy is very important as there are clearly some mistaken beliefs and faulty thought patterns that are leading your girlfriend to continue with this dysfunctional cycle of anxious behavior. Getting good psychotherapy isn't always easy though. Strangely it's not as easy as just turning up at a professional's office, as many don't click with their therapist. It can take multiple attempts to find somebody who understands what's happening in your mind.

If you still want to go down the med route, there are other categories other than SSRIs. Usually, doctors advise trying one more SSRI after the first one doesn't work (maybe something like citalopram, as it's "one of the more relaxing" SSRIs), then trying a different class, like maybe an SNRI.

From experience I can say that when you find the right drug, it makes a big difference, and very quickly too. All of a sudden you go from being completely on edge and impossible to deal with, to fairly relaxed and more like yourself again. They can reduce anxiety by up to 70% in some cases, which is just a colossal difference.

Keep hanging in there. Most anxiety disorders do get better when they're tackled head on.

[kenreezy]

Thanks Jess...

You're right about finding the right therapist. There are a lot of BS therapists out there who are only in it for the money and don't give any real advice at all. I felt like I wasted so much money on countless "therapists" who did not contribute at all. However, due to my GFs agoraphobia, all these sessions were done via phone, so maybe that had something to do with it. Nonetheless, I read alot about natural supplements on this forum and we'll start trying that.

That sounds really tough. I'm sorry you guys are having to go through that.

Psychotherapy is very important as there are clearly some mistaken beliefs and faulty thought patterns that are leading your girlfriend to continue with this dysfunctional cycle of anxious behavior. Getting good psychotherapy isn't always easy though. Strangely it's not as easy as just turning up at a professional's office, as many don't click with their therapist. It can take multiple attempts to find somebody who understands what's happening in your mind.

If you still want to go down the med route, there are other categories other than SSRIs. Usually, doctors advise trying one more SSRI after the first one doesn't work (maybe something like citalopram, as it's "one of the more relaxing" SSRIs), then trying a different class, like maybe an SNRI.

From experience I can say that when you find the right drug, it makes a big difference, and very quickly too. All of a sudden you go from being completely on edge and impossible to deal with, to fairly relaxed and more like yourself again. They can reduce anxiety by up to 70% in some cases, which is just a colossal difference.

Keep hanging in there. Most anxiety disorders do get better when they're tackled head on.