Posted by desperately seeking on May 9, 2009, at 15:56:49
In reply to 18 months on tianeptine (Stablon), posted by sukarno on September 9, 2006, at 8:17:29
I started taking Stablon to help with SSRI withdrawal.The whole process has been a nightmare. Can't even tell whether the Stablon is helping or not. I just know that during the peak of the SSRI withdrawal- 3 months in- increasing the dose of Stablon to 4x daily helped take the edge of the dark thoughts and suicidal tendencies. However, I had other problems associated with increasing the dose like loss of appetite, mania and aggression. So after 2 months on 4x a day, I'm back on 3 times a day- and yes, it does lead to relapsed depression and anxiety. Not to mention really bad withdrawal including fever and nausea, dizziness, weakness and fatigue. But, ofcourse the drug companies don't really elaborate on this when they tout it as a miracle drug...Being on Stablon, I THINK has helped me to think a bit more clearly and rationally during the fog of withdrawal and depression.
I've been on it now for 6 months. I hope to be on Stablon for maybe 3 more months and taper down to 2x daily and then stop eventually. 9 months is around the time SSRI withdrawal is meant to start becoming a bit more tolerable though it takes 18 months to 4 years for real improvement.
Maybe SSRIs have f*ck*d my brain so much, but taking Stablon doesn't feel any different from taking any other drug that alters your mind. Also, it's sugar coated pill (the one i'm taking) and taking that 3x a day can't be good in the long run. Taking it 3x and ordering it repeatedly also becomes a chore and at some point unless I want to be on meds forever, I'm going to have to put the Stablon on the shelf. I think you have to have a long-term goal in mind when you're on these drugs. My goal is to take them to give me a headstart in dealing with the withdrawal and give me headspace from my depression to develop other techniques like fighting negative thinking.
While Stablon is milder than Zoloft etc, all the stuff about it re-building damages nerves and the reversing the affects of stress is hearsay from the drug companies. People do "tests" but no one really knows how the drugs really affect the brain. And it's different from individual to individual depending on personality and temperment. There's no 100 percent guaranteeed proof for it anymore than there is proof for SSRIs. Nor is there any such thing as a magic pill. They only sustain you for so long and at some point you have to think of the long-term.
That said. Everyone's journey is different. If someone had said what I'm saying now to me 3 years ago, I would have disagreed strongly. But I've come to a point in my journey where I've decided I'm ready to make a commitment to fight with everything I've got to be off the pharmaceutical drugs. I read in an article that after SSRIs it's best just to leave your brain to find it's natural balance and not stress your nervous system with synthetic vitamins or other medication. Instead, cut down on stress and eat really nutritious food and practice daily affirmations and health-boosting practices like breathing and acupuncture and gentle walking. IDEALLY. Unfortunately, that's not possible for some people with high-stress jobs or families to support who might have to stay on drugs in the short-term. But, hey that's just me...
poster:desperately seeking
thread:474445
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090505/msgs/894899.html