[Help] Coming off Anti Depressants

[dadams2k11]

It's not for everyone, but I stopped taken Citalopram after I found the Wim Hoff Method consisting off cold water therapy and breathing techniques.

I started with his app doing the breathing and cold showers challenge.

I can honestly, hand on heart, put me stopping my meds down to doing the challenges on the app. I just naturally felt calm and things were clear.

I must confess, I don't do the breathing as often as I did 18 months or so ago, but if I feel lifes getting a bit too much, I do a few rounds.

I shower every day and have a cold shower after 2/3 times a week which keeps me alert, especially now it's getting colder. [emoji846]

Worth a look to see if it's something that you might be interested in.

 

[TugWilson]

Pleas don’t do anything without consulting your GP first.

Sorry, but NSC ain’t the place to ask advice. NHS is.

Good luck.

I was put on ADs 32 years ago , they took me off them during the lockdown because of the increase in their caseload , i had to go cold turkey and that was the NHS .

If 32 years of experience isn`t worth anything , then you tell me where i should go now smartarse , because i have been falling apart for the last 18 months and conning myself that i am getting by . But my heart palps are worse my adrenalin is through the roof , so you tell people not to go where they will meet people in the same position ? FU

 

[Taybha]

Think mine are called paroxatine not got the box on me as I'm away with the little box blue day reminders,I'm not sure I still need them tbh as it's been 5 years since I started them and my GP hasn't ever suggested I'm good to go without them,I reckon I'd be ok but shit scared to try after knowing where I was to actually need them in the first place,whatever the course of action you take good luck and keep us posted how you go without them.

 

[oldboyroy]

Was originally on Sertraline then moved on to Venlafaxine, with the upcoming arrival of the first Grandchild and my staged retirement, I made the conscious effort in early July after speaking to my GP to come off them, went down to half dose for a month to start with, tomorrow marks a full two weeks without any drugs.
Apart from the aforementioned reasons another factor was a couple of doom merchants told me I would probably always have to take them, which wasn’t an option.

Has anyone else on here done a similar thing?

And do you have any observations or pointers?

Clearly it’s a very personal thing, so if anyone prefers to PM me instead, that’s fine.

In the main, despite the unprecedented national circumstances recently, it’s been all good, doing lots of walking, couple of anxious moments but that’s part of life, one of the things my Doc told was to remove all the deadwood from my life but that takes a bit of time

Thank you for reading.

Harty

Hi mate, I can relate to venlafaxine as was on them myself for 12 years after serious depression but eventually after cutting down dose from 300 mg daily to 225 then 150 and 75 it took several years to get down to 37.5 and another year cutting them in half before finally getting off them for good 3 years ago. A couple of days feeling weird/drunk even and that was stopping the lowest dose. Its a tough medication to come off of but hopefully you'll do it.

 

[Half Time Pies]

I was on sertraline for about 12 months several years ago. I would say the most important thing is that you have some other things in place to support your mental health and to turn to when you come off. For me that initially was meditation, counselling, giving up drinking and becoming more physically active. I think without putting these sorts of things in place then there would have been a high chance that I I would have ended up back on them.

Now I do lots of things to make sure that I manage my mental health on top of daily meditation like yoga and Sea Swimming. I have also become very good at noticing when things are getting tough, giving myself some time-out and talking through how I am feeling with my wife and friends.

In terms of the practicalities of coming off, I had one attempt that didn't work as I didn't consult with the GP and tried to come off too quickly. As others have said it's important to get advice from your doctor and come off of them very slowly to give yourself time to adjust.

 

[deakers]

Citopram Kid here. Have been on them for many years, and expect I will be for the rest of my life tbh.

I was told by a Doctor that the first time that you take ADs you should take them until you get better + 6 months.
If you need them again then you should take them until you better + 1 year
Third time, you're on them for life.

Good luck whatever you decide.

 

[Justice]

Pleas don’t do anything without consulting your GP first.

Sorry, but NSC ain’t the place to ask advice. NHS is.

Good luck.

NHS won’t tell you how other people are coping though, it’s good to get a broad spectrum.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Can't help with the question but wishing you all the best in getting your life back to how you want.

This. Luckily not something I need but best of luck to you Harty and to everyone else on this thread.

Pleas don’t do anything without consulting your GP first.

Sorry, but NSC ain’t the place to ask advice. NHS is.

Good luck.

NSC is the place for support though as you can see from the tons of replies. Anyone struggling should reach out for help if they can. That might be phoning a mate or it could just be PMing someone on here or starting a thread

 

[portlock seagull]

I was put on ADs 32 years ago , they took me off them during the lockdown because of the increase in their caseload , i had to go cold turkey and that was the NHS .

If 32 years of experience isn`t worth anything , then you tell me where i should go now smartarse , because i have been falling apart for the last 18 months and conning myself that i am getting by . But my heart palps are worse my adrenalin is through the roof , so you tell people not to go where they will meet people in the same position ? FU

Absolutely uncalled for. Keep your abuse to yourself if you can’t conduct yourself civilly. Administering medicines and decision to continue to take or not when ALREADY on a course of anti depressants is something to discuss with your GP ie a professional. “Consult your doctor” as per the leaflet. That’s is a very different matter to asking for general support on here.

 

[The Wookiee]

Absolutely uncalled for. Keep your abuse to yourself if you can’t conduct yourself civilly. Administering medicines and decision to continue to take or not when ALREADY on a course of anti depressants is something to discuss with your GP ie a professional. “Consult your doctor” as per the leaflet. That’s is a very different matter to asking for general support on here.

If you read the OP, Harty has spoken to his GP and taken his advice - his post is seeking out other people’s experiences of coming off anti depressants. Which may help him and others in his/their own experience.

 

[mjking73]

Agreed. ADs should be consulted with a health professional and there are things like Time To Talk to compliment medication. Although we're not professionals we can give our life experiences to assist if needed.

Harty - if you need anything let me know

 

[portlock seagull]

If you read the OP, Harty has spoken to his GP and taken his advice - his post is seeking out other people’s experiences of coming off anti depressants. Which may help him and others in his/their own experience.

Yep. Just reinforcing the initial message for anyone out there. Medicines = GP

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

May I ask why it 'wasn’t an option' my interest is that I have been on citalopram now for over 12 years , I was on a high dosage but halved it and occasionally have been down to 25% but I think it has kept me pretty steady so continue with it as I don't want to go back to what was a very bad time.

My live has changed significantly and I am in a much better place. I have retired and it was work specifically man management which pushed me over the edge but to be honest I think I was always on the edge of anxiety/OCD and then just fell in a black hole. Not sure if its the drug or change of situation which 'sorted' it so my theory is keep on with citalopram - what's the harm?

With the best will in the world, this thread was bound to cause some anxiety.

I'm a pharmacologist, not a medic, so I know about how drugs work, and how they produce adverse effects, but a cannot give professional advice on the clinical use of drugs.

And indeed, the only advice worth anything is that we should all manage our health by working with physicians. For most of us this starts with our GP. If your mental health is too much of a challenge for the GP practice you can ask to be referred to a specialist.

Here, I appreciate there can be a huge gap in delivery. For example, getting an NHS counselling appointment is near impossible in some places. Thirty years ago I waited 6 months, and the person I saw was useless. However, you should stick with the process if you suffer from anxiety/depression.

So back to you, ignore the chatter and noise. You take some meds and they work for you. If they start to work less well go to the GP and discuss how to deal with this. There is no hidden downside that you haven't heard about, if you are on any drug that has been used in people for 10 years or more. All the newer drugs are here because they have been shown to be potentially advantageous over older drugs (for example fewer adverse effects, but perhaps a less powerful therapeutic effect).

You will have heard about cases where millions take a drug only for it to be found to have serious side effects, perhaps with a cover up by the makers. Vioxx was one (an anti inflammatory). In more recent times we have had companies in America promoting narcotic analgesics (e.g., oxycodone) to the detriment of patients. These cases are rare, and becoming rarer.

So trust your GP, but press him/her when you don't feel quite right. And don't get spooked by whimsical posts on NSC!

 

[Lenny Rider]

Pleas don’t do anything without consulting your GP first.

Sorry, but NSC ain’t the place to ask advice. NHS is.

Good luck.

Bang on the money , but as you will have read I did in July.

What I merely asked and have been buoyed by the response was for any pointers?

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Pleas don’t do anything without consulting your GP first.

Sorry, but NSC ain’t the place to ask advice. NHS is.

Good luck.

I'm sorry but garnering experiences of those in similar circumstances is a perfectly valid method of deciding how to move forwards. Doctors don't know everything.

A very personal example. I'm what is known as a recovering alcoholic. It affected my health, my finances, my relationships, everything. Went to my GP for help - options given were drying out clinic ( at an eye watering cost ) or gradually cut back over time but don't go cold turkey. I tried cutting back but once you have one drink the temptation is too strong not to have another .... and another ..... and another. In the end I went to AA and listened to their experiences - 75% of them ended up going cold turkey against their doctor's advice. So I did it too. The first two weeks were awful but with the help of my family and AA - I got through it and am now sober. The advice I got from my GP was next to useless.

To [MENTION=17322]Lenny Rider[/MENTION] - take advice from everyone and follow the advice that you think suits YOU personally. Good luck Harty.

 

[portlock seagull]

Bang on the money , but as you will have read I did in July.

What I merely asked and have been buoyed by the response was for any pointers?

Countryside would be my advice. Preferably with a dog Leave the headphones off, take time to stop look and listen. The great outdoors is the best medicine of all IMO.

 

[Lenny Rider]

May I ask why it 'wasn’t an option' my interest is that I have been on citalopram now for over 12 years , I was on a high dosage but halved it and occasionally have been down to 25% but I think it has kept me pretty steady so continue with it as I don't want to go back to what was a very bad time.

My live has changed significantly and I am in a much better place. I have retired and it was work specifically man management which pushed me over the edge but to be honest I think I was always on the edge of anxiety/OCD and then just fell in a black hole. Not sure if its the drug or change of situation which 'sorted' it so my theory is keep on with citalopram - what's the harm?

WT’s thank you for your response, “wasn’t an option” was probably borne out of fear and anxiety, getting to 16 stone without really going mad on the food and drink front was a concern.

I know we all put on weight as the years go by, but my GP, the literature the comes with the pills and former fellow ‘users’ had told me about the weight gain connected with the drugs.

Being fatter, also made me more anxious and depressed along with the specific slings and arrows of life, I needed to get off that specific hamster wheel, but only if I thought it would help me lose weight but also maintain my recovery journey.


Touching on what someone else has posted, apologies if this thread has caused anxiety in itself, but I know from experience that NSC is a great place to ask for and offer help and advice with on non footballing matters.

 

[portlock seagull]

I'm sorry but garnering experiences of those in similar circumstances is a perfectly valid method of deciding how to move forwards. Doctors don't know everything.

A very personal example. I'm what is known as a recovering alcoholic. It affected my health, my finances, my relationships, everything. Went to my GP for help - options given were drying out clinic ( at an eye watering cost ) or gradually cut back over time but don't go cold turkey. I tried cutting back but once you have one drink the temptation is too strong not to have another .... and another ..... and another. In the end I went to AA and listened to their experiences - 75% of them ended up going cold turkey against their doctor's advice. So I did it too. The first two weeks were awful but with the help of my family and AA - I got through it and am now sober. The advice I got from my GP was next to useless.

To [MENTION=17322]Lenny Rider[/MENTION] - take advice from everyone and follow the advice that you think suits YOU personally. Good luck Harty.

I’m sorry but that is a very different scenario to ADs and whatever your opinion, you can’t just dismiss GPs years of professional experience based on your opinion in one situation. That’s ludicrous. Anyway, back on topic…

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Out of interest H(WT), what's your take on the proven clinical effectiveness of placebo pills for depression? Some interesting stuff, if not all new, in David Robson's latest book The Expectation Effect.

 

[Weststander]

Genuine question, why do you want to come off them. Is the medication not doing what it’s supposed, or do you feel “better” so don’t need the tablets anymore.

I ask, as my wife is currently on anti-depressants after fighting the idea of taking them for a long time.

I have similar family experiences and that’s my view. Someone in my extended family has been largely depressed for 50+ years and flatly rejects any intervention, a life mainly wasted.