Posted by griz on November 21, 2003, at 16:39:57
Please help. I was discharged from psych hospital yesterday after being there for three weeks with major depression (I suffer from hereditary clinical depression and this was my third admission in 13 years). On top of the major depression, I am suffering enormous grief over my husband's death from cancer a year ago, his father's death a few weeks ago and other more recent emotionally traumatic events. I feel worse emotionally and physically than I was when I was admitted but they insisted I was OK to go home.
I had been on 150 mg of Effexor XR for about six year and it worked fine. With the descent into depression and grief, the dose was raised to 450 mg. I was on that for about four months.
In hospital, they weaned me off Effexor and started me on Prothiaden at the same time. I've been off Effexor for four days and am on 125 mg of Prothiaden. The dose is to be gradually increased although I don't know to what.
I'm a physical and emotional mess. I have a constant headache, very blurry vision and can't read, dizziness, a very upset digestive system, fatigue and lethargy, very dry mouth, sleep the sleep of the dead and wake up feeling very groggy. Emotionally, I get very dark and suicidal thoughts that won't quit every afternoon, feel anxious, angry, tense and fearful, foggy, hopeless and very tearful. Normally on the ball, I find it hard to concentrate, have problems finding the right words and poor memory.
Has anyone else made the same transition? If so, please help me believe the shrink who says the Prothiaden will kick in within the next two to three weeks and that my symptoms are normal for someone coming off Effoxor and going onto a different group of anti-depressants. I'm scared that the Prothiaden isn't or won't work and that I'm not going to get better soon. I don't know which are the Effexor withdrawal symptoms and the side effects of going onto Prothiaden.
poster:griz
thread:282208
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031121/msgs/282208.html