Hello all,
Thought is would be good to provide an update for
everyone (a week
later). If you check out the first post, you'll see that
I left off
on Day 2 of tapering down from 6.7mg to 5mg.
I had no
idea what was in store for us that day. I am not going to
sugar coat
anything because I think it is important for everyone to
know what has
transpired in the last week.
So the second half of day two went
south...VERY SOUTH. Once we got
home, in the evening, exhaustion and
nausea had overcome her. She
went and took a nap while I tended to the
kids and the dinner and
all that stuff. That was nothing. The next five
hours were
horrendous...from approximately 8pm until 2am, it was a
living
hell. She became uncontrollably emotional. Totally inconsolable.
She was pulling her own hair, digging her nails into herself.
Crying,
screaming. She had numbers running incessantly through her
mind. She
couldn't concentrate on anything. She journaled, and I
will post it (with
her permission of course), but not today. I
tried for hours to figure out
some way to help...there was nothing.
She couldn't sleep...she insisted
that she had gone crazy and that
it was permanent despite me insisting
that it was only temporary and
that it was the paxil. I kept my composure,
but I will tell you
that this was SCARY as hell. I journaled as well and I
will post
that. It was the first time I felt compelled to let it out. And
while I completely understand that this journey isn't about me, I
will
add below some tips for people who care, who are around this
situation.
Finally, we found something that worked around midnight,
and I read to
her, quietly, one of her favorite books. After a
couple hours, she tried
to sleep and was able too. She got some
rest amid the teeth grinding,
jumpiness and over-exhaustion.
Day 3 : 5.0mg
This was a pretty bad
day as well. I think it was compounded by the
lack of rest. Her body was
terribly sore. Heachache, dizzy,
everything bad that could be...Anxious,
and worried that the anxiety
that she had when she started Paxil was
returning in full strength.
This was another pretty rotten day, but
nothing like the day before.
Days 4-7 : 5.0mg
We decided to wait
longer to drop dosage again because of the
Thanksgiving holiday and some
other events we had planned. These
days got a LOT better, especially in
contrast with day 2 and 3. She
is starting to understand the pattern. I
was glad for the
break...we all needed it. One of these days she had a
really vivid
bad dream...
Day 1 : 5.0mg -> 4.0mg
Pretty
uneventful! In the evening, a little nausea, she mentioned
that she felt
like her soul was shifting to the left or right of her
body, and that it
was uncomfortable...and she was tired, but
couldn't sleep. She had a
restless night.
Day 2 : 4.0mg
Morning has been ok. Waiting for the
worst tonight. Hopefully it
won't be as bad with a smaller step, and with
any luck, her body
getting more used to the dropping.
Tips for
Loved One's/Caretakers
1) You *NEVER* should presume to know what the
symptoms are going
to be like. Day 2 of drop 2 was absolutely HELL, and
nothing like
the first round.
2) You better get in your mind early on
that this process is going
to be very exhausting for you as well.
3)
You will likely feel very inadequate (VERY).
4) Don't panic. The symptoms
are temporary.
5) Be prepared to take on all of the responsibilities in
your
household for days 2 and 3...(or whatever cycle you fall into).
6)
Be supportive. Recognize the accomplishment.
7) I'd suggest not fighting
the feelings, and being supportive of
the feelings, no matter how
irrational they may be. If the person
who is dropping is afraid, let them
be afraid. Remember, this is
chemically related, you are not going to be
able to talk your way
out of it.
8) Stay strong...Even when you think
you can't do it, you can.
9) Always leave the door open
(options)...You can stay at a dose
longer, add a little if you have
to, quit cold turkey or taper at
your own discretion...Don't pressure
to quit.
10) Suck it up...not matter how difficult your caregiver position
appears to be, imagine the fright and angst created by being
completely out of your mind due to medication.
Interesting
revlation by my wife last night/this morning. Glaxo-
Smith-Kline as a
corporation and as human beings are worse than drug
dealers on the
street...the drug dealers on the street don't pretend
to be helping. They
don't HIDE the outcome of medical studies that
they did. The only thing
that is the same is their
motivation...they are both in it for the
money.
Hope some of this helps someone...More to
follow.
sbcglobal.