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Pinkman

Depression

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Has anybody successfully weaned off an SSRI? 

I've been on Sertraline 100mg for about 7-8 years, I felt a difference initially but I'm not convinced it wasn't a Placebo effect.

Now I feel no benefit at all, I'm simply taking them to avoid the withdrawals. I'm quite familiar with these withdrawals as sometimes I'm extremely forgetful with taking them, so get the heightened anxiety, low mood and fcking brain zaps (eurrrrgh).

 

Does anyone have any experience with the weaning off process? Were the withdrawals bad? How long did they last? Are you feeling better/worse as a result?

 

Thanks in advance!

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12 minutes ago, FerrisBueller said:

Has anybody successfully weaned off an SSRI? 

I've been on Sertraline 100mg for about 7-8 years, I felt a difference initially but I'm not convinced it wasn't a Placebo effect.

Now I feel no benefit at all, I'm simply taking them to avoid the withdrawals. I'm quite familiar with these withdrawals as sometimes I'm extremely forgetful with taking them, so get the heightened anxiety, low mood and fcking brain zaps (eurrrrgh).

 

Does anyone have any experience with the weaning off process? Were the withdrawals bad? How long did they last? Are you feeling better/worse as a result?

 

Thanks in advance!

I was on Fluoxetine for about 2 years back in the day which is similar to Sertraline (I think)

 

I was also very forgetful when taking them and just felt I was walking around in a haze and a fog all the time - like a zombie.

 

My GP suggested I wean myself off so I did this over a period of about a month by reducing the dosage each week. I don't recall many side effects tbh but once they were out my system I felt much more like myself. I was still suffering though so had therapy instead and that made all the difference (for me anyway)

 

7-8 years seems like a long time to be on an SSRI so if I were you I'd speak with your GP and get their advice.

 

Best of luck :thumbup:

 

 

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11 minutes ago, Izzy said:

I was on Fluoxetine for about 2 years back in the day which is similar to Sertraline (I think)

 

I was also very forgetful when taking them and just felt I was walking around in a haze and a fog all the time - like a zombie.

 

My GP suggested I wean myself off so I did this over a period of about a month by reducing the dosage each week. I don't recall many side effects tbh but once they were out my system I felt much more like myself. I was still suffering though so had therapy instead and that made all the difference (for me anyway)

 

7-8 years seems like a long time to be on an SSRI so if I were you I'd speak with your GP and get their advice.

 

Best of luck :thumbup:

 

 

Cheers for the reply!

 

Yeah, 7-8 years is quite a long time to be on them, to be completely honest I can't really remember how I felt without them.

The zombie aspect you mentioned especially, I very much feel I'm going through the motions but I'm not quite there, scary really!

 

I tried CBT years back but after a few sessions it wasn't for me.

 

Spoke to my GP yesterday so I think I'm going to start weaning off them.

 

I'm just a bit worried that after weaning off them I will be back to the start again, I need to find something else to help as I struggle with thinking positively in any scenario.

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6 minutes ago, FerrisBueller said:

Cheers for the reply!

 

Yeah, 7-8 years is quite a long time to be on them, to be completely honest I can't really remember how I felt without them.

The zombie aspect you mentioned especially, I very much feel I'm going through the motions but I'm not quite there, scary really!

 

I tried CBT years back but after a few sessions it wasn't for me.

 

Spoke to my GP yesterday so I think I'm going to start weaning off them.

 

I'm just a bit worried that after weaning off them I will be back to the start again, I need to find something else to help as I struggle with thinking positively in any scenario.

I guess you'll never know unless you try? I suppose worse case scenario is you can always go back on them again if things don't work out?

 

I appreciate CBT doesn't work for everyone (my daughter is currently having it but with limited progress) but there are many other types of therapy available if you're willing and open to try.

 

I think a lot depends on timing and where we our in our lives and our personal circumstances. Just because CBT didn't work for you years back, it might do now?

 

One thing I've learnt is that I can't force positive thinking - it doesn't work for me. But what does work is noticing my negative thoughts and not paying conscious attention to them anymore. Once I stopped believing that my negative thinking was real or true, everything changed for me. I just got fed up with making shit up bad - most of which never actually happened! 

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13 minutes ago, Izzy said:

I guess you'll never know unless you try? I suppose worse case scenario is you can always go back on them again if things don't work out?

 

I appreciate CBT doesn't work for everyone (my daughter is currently having it but with limited progress) but there are many other types of therapy available if you're willing and open to try.

 

I think a lot depends on timing and where we our in our lives and our personal circumstances. Just because CBT didn't work for you years back, it might do now?

 

One thing I've learnt is that I can't force positive thinking - it doesn't work for me. But what does work is noticing my negative thoughts and not paying conscious attention to them anymore. Once I stopped believing that my negative thinking was real or true, everything changed for me. I just got fed up with making shit up bad - most of which never actually happened! 

Yeah I suppose you're right, I'm just reluctant because of the bad time getting on/off them in the first place.

 

In terms of the positive thinking you mentioned and not dwelling on the negatives, this is something  I have been able to control - I've cut out alcohol completely and deleted most social media as I recognised these as triggers.

 

I can see myself having another crack at some of the other therapies, but as you say, it's not the most practical of times for me currently.

 

Anyway, thanks for the chat - this part of foxestalk is excellent and genuinely comforting among the usual bile spitting :thumbup:

 

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1 hour ago, FerrisBueller said:

Has anybody successfully weaned off an SSRI? 

I've been on Sertraline 100mg for about 7-8 years, I felt a difference initially but I'm not convinced it wasn't a Placebo effect.

Now I feel no benefit at all, I'm simply taking them to avoid the withdrawals. I'm quite familiar with these withdrawals as sometimes I'm extremely forgetful with taking them, so get the heightened anxiety, low mood and fcking brain zaps (eurrrrgh).

 

Does anyone have any experience with the weaning off process? Were the withdrawals bad? How long did they last? Are you feeling better/worse as a result?

 

Thanks in advance!

Can't claim to have any experience of this (and I'm not a GP) so you may take everything I say with a large side of salt but if the only reason you are taking them is fear of withdrawal symptoms then it sounds to me like you know what you need you to do.

 

I still struggle with the negative thinking but a period of CBT helped and I am certainly a lot better at catching myself and stopping the cycle now than I used to be.

 

Best of luck anyway mate, keep us posted on how it goes. :thumbup:

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15 minutes ago, ajthefox said:

Can't claim to have any experience of this (and I'm not a GP) so you may take everything I say with a large side of salt but if the only reason you are taking them is fear of withdrawal symptoms then it sounds to me like you know what you need you to do.

 

I still struggle with the negative thinking but a period of CBT helped and I am certainly a lot better at catching myself and stopping the cycle now than I used to be.

 

Best of luck anyway mate, keep us posted on how it goes. :thumbup:

You're 100% right I reckon mate, I think I've known as much for a few years it's just taking the leap!

 

I'm going to be making some pretty wholesale life changes this year and I'm hoping this will help me kick on.

 

The human mind is a wacky thing, there's a lot to be said for mindfulness and combatting negative thought patterns - we can never underestimate the power of talking to like minded folk.

 

A lot of my personal beliefs are deep rooted in existentialism, as much as this helps me get over the triviality of everyday life (to some extent) I can't help but feel it's not the most healthy of beliefs for someone who essentially just wants to be content and adjusted.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I live on my own, and I'm used to it. But when you really have no choice, it takes on a different dynamic, especially when your relatively new and small home is also your workplace. I do not miss commuting at all, but I do miss the punctuation and breathing space it gives me. Also, as hinted at above, the novelty of being in a situation wears off.

 

Because of my mindset and outlook, I'm having days when I absolutely despair of humankind. Even people trying to do 'right' are often doing so in manner that makes me feel queasy.

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Has been getting to me for a long while now. Haven't been able to work since March so I'm on UC. Can't find any jobs in my preferred industry because of the lockdown, which has made me question now if I really want to go in that direction anyway. Started looking at other things, one thing in particular I'm passionate about, but that's also been affected by the virus.

 

I'm just so fed up. I desperately need to get off this ****ing island.

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I’ve struggled the last couple of weeks. I have referenced before but I lost my Mum in November after a year long cancer battle. 2019 was a horrid mix of anxiety and depression. Having a new job as well meant I had this nasty complex of thinking I’m not working hard enough whilst failing to recognise it was natural how I was feeling. This would manifest in sleepless nights. I went on a holiday abroad in September for a week and struggled to relax. 
 

2020 supposed to clear the decks. Starting the doing the things which fade the bad stuff and give work a good go. Furlough was good for me mentally. I gotta to press pause on stuff, concentrate on me and I could dictate my moods without an external influence. I did a couple of things I wanted to get started. 
 

I returned to work six weeks ago now as the company understandably decide to risk going early, get a lead on competitiors and have a good go at it. The original enthusiasm has numbed. We don’t appear to be getting new work despite best efforts. Now I have something to worry about and therefore the outlet of a weekend is more important. The local lockdown of Leicester meant I can’t see family and I’m weary of going overly social at the moment. My enthusiasm for running has waned despite making big progress. Throw in City making me lose my temper. I’m just really fed up of the circumstances I find myself in. Very little I can look forward to 

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I've been up and down a fair bit over the last few weeks and it's all been wearing really thin with me too. I nearly came on here Sunday evening after that horrendous couple of minutes as I was needing to vent but I didn't end up posting in here and the last few days have been ok.

 

Evidently the current situation is really getting to a lot of people - in a way I'm glad to see a few more posts in here as I suspected many, like I had been, were keeping things pretty quiet for whatever reason. I think in times like this we're all a little wary of moaning too much because there is such a huge amount of collective strife that we're not wanting to vent to others who might also be in a bad place. At least, for me that's part of the reason. 

 

I hope that we can at least take some solace in hearing each other's struggles and knowing that none of us are alone.

 

@TK95 @Izzy @HighPeakFox@urban.spaceman @Cardiff_Fox Keep plugging away gents, and remember to try and enjoy the little victories.

 

 

Edited by ajthefox
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23 minutes ago, ajthefox said:

I've been up and down a fair bit over the last few weeks and it's all been wearing really thin with me too. I nearly came on here Sunday evening after that horrendous couple of minutes as I was needing to vent but I didn't end up posting in here and the last few days have been ok.

 

Evidently the current situation is really getting to a lot of people - in a way I'm glad to see a few more posts in here as I suspected many, like I had been, were keeping things pretty quiet for whatever reason. I think in times like this we're all a little wary of moaning too much because there is such a huge amount of collective strife that we're not wanting to vent to others who might also be in a bad place. At least, for me that's part of the reason. 

 

I hope that we can at least take some solace in hearing each other's struggles and knowing that none of us are alone.

 

@TK95 @Izzy @HighPeakFox@urban.spaceman @Cardiff_Fox Keep plugging away gents, and remember to try and enjoy the little victories.

 

Thanks mate,

 

I looked back at what i posted yesterday at a similar time to now and realised that in that moment, I was tired, grumpy and feeling low after a tough day. No surprise that I was having negative thoughts about my situation and therefore feeling pretty shit as a result - in that moment.

 

And yet here I am 24 hours later feeling totally the opposite. Today was a good day. I slept well last night, had a snooze this afternoon, went for a walk and felt refreshed and alive.

 

And then I've just received a call from my Mum to say my uncle has been diagnosed with lung cancer and is in a bad way.

 

So my thoughts change once again to sorrow and sadness for him. And then my daughter kicks off with her OCD and crazy behavior while my obese son lays around scoffing more food as my unemployed wife gets more frustrated that she can't get a job.

 

The roller-coaster of life and emotions. Some good, some bad and all part of being human. What I've learned over the years is that our state is always temporary and a direct result of our thinking in that moment.

 

Then no doubt I'll wake up tomorrow and be grateful for all the good things I have in life and feel better as a result.

 

And round and round we go...

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26 minutes ago, Izzy said:

And round and round we go...

Very sorry to hear about your uncle.

 

Your line above struck a chord with me. It's exactly how I feel constantly. Struggle to enjoy anything properly as I'm always thinking about what's around the corner to knock me back down again.

Read books, listened to podcasts tried CBT & tablets. But it always comes back to this. I can't deal with the uncertainty of life.

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1 minute ago, Rain King said:

Very sorry to hear about your uncle.

 

Your line above struck a chord with me. It's exactly how I feel constantly. Struggle to enjoy anything properly as I'm always thinking about what's around the corner to knock me back down again.

Read books, listened to podcasts tried CBT & tablets. But it always comes back to this. I can't deal with the uncertainty of life.

Thanks mate.

 

As humans we crave certainty because we like to be in control. When things are uncertain and we're not in control, we feel under threat and then our 'fight or flight' mechanism kicks in. When we're operating from this survival part of our brain, all we're focusing on is safety and we're not thinking from our rational, thriving brain.

 

It's no wonder therefore that it's a struggle to enjoy things properly in the moment if we're thinking about what's around the corner. And we don't know what's around the corner but we make it up bad and then think it's real. But it's not real, it's just our thinking.

 

I've tried my ass off over the years to try and live in the moment (both good and bad) and it's a constant battle. But when I am present and in the moment, life is a much richer experience for me. If my thoughts are centered on what's happening right now and not drifting into the past or the future, I'm more centered, more connected and more alive.

 

It's taken years or discipline and awareness and I'm still on the journey. Here's another corny saying I repeat to myself over and over:

 

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why they call it 'the present' 

 

:)

 

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All the best Izzy, unfortunately we get crap thrown at us every year that we just have to deal with.

 

During this lockdown I've split up with my missus of 5 years, we've always discussed kids and planned them in our future together but she randomly told me at the start of lockdown she doesn't know if she ever wants them now, this was just as we were in the middle of organising a mortgage together. The breaks were firmly put on and I've gone it alone ever since as I want my own house and space.

 

Wouldn't say I'm anywhere near depressed or anything, but obviously some days you do feel down, but eh, life goes on doesn't it:)

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9 hours ago, Leicester_Loyal said:

All the best Izzy, unfortunately we get crap thrown at us every year that we just have to deal with.

 

During this lockdown I've split up with my missus of 5 years, we've always discussed kids and planned them in our future together but she randomly told me at the start of lockdown she doesn't know if she ever wants them now, this was just as we were in the middle of organising a mortgage together. The breaks were firmly put on and I've gone it alone ever since as I want my own house and space.

 

Wouldn't say I'm anywhere near depressed or anything, but obviously some days you do feel down, but eh, life goes on doesn't it:)

Thanks mate.

 

You're right, crap gets thrown at all of us in life whether we like it or not. I bet there's not one of the 25,000 members on here who aren't going through some sort of shit right now related to either money, health, relationships, family or work worries. 

 

And yet we all succumb to the myth that "I'll be happy when...." (my health is better, I get the right job, find the right partner, earn enough money, my kids are sorted etc, etc) but unfortunately thats all bollux. The world is littered with so called 'successful' people (rich celebs, sports stars etc.) who appear to have all the trappings in life, yet are still miserable and depressed.

 

So happiness can only start from within. 

 

Best of luck to you bud :thumbup:

 

Edited by Izzy
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First time on the thread, not too sure if I even belong here, but I think it’s worthwhile for me to share my feelings. So before lockdown, everything was pretty normal for me as a young lad, with my only worries being girls and what on earth I’m going to do for my future career. For me, I think the routine of work was a bit of a distraction from my mental health, although lockdown has caused me a few issues regards to my mental health, it has allowed me to reflex and identify a few problems. Firstly, I never really realised that I had anxiety issues, but when I came to think about it, feeling sick to the stomach on you very first day of work is acceptable but when you’re 12 months into the job and you feel the same way (even though I quite enjoy the job) wasn’t quite normal. Moving on, I think everyone is prone to feeling down but there was one afternoon/evening which was a bit of a wake up call to take things more seriously regards to my mental health. Although I do often go out with friends and drink quite a bit, it definitely made me realise how much a difference the context of how and what you’re drinking makes. So I had a few beers and was enjoying the numbness of it all, until that numbness started to wear off, then I started knocking back the spirits, rum, whiskey, vodka. In total I probably had about 12-15 shots worth and I was passed out in bed for 18 odd hours. I think the fact I was extremely bored had a part to play in this, as I have no real responsibilities in my life, which can be tricky at times when you have no purpose within the 4 walls you’ve been in without really going anywhere. I’ve drank this much before but this time it felt so much different due to I was drinking all alone and not being in the best of moods. Once I woke up the following morning, I was truly embarrassed and ashamed of my actions. I told myself “What a stupid thing to do that was.” I’ve always felt that it would be incredibly easy to turn to the bottle and this shows it. Since, I’ve banned myself from drinking spirits, just sticking to drinking a couple of beers a week when I’m in company. Like I mentioned before, I don’t know if this is tendencies of depression as I’m not sad about anything in particular, just feeling sorry for myself (which is totally out of character) in general. I don’t know even if I have the right to say I’m depressed considering I’m so young and haven’t really gone through much. Anyway, I just feel like I had to share my experience with my mental health over the past few months. 

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