Posted by Brainbeard on May 23, 2010, at 5:03:19
In reply to Re: Is this Geodon withdrawal » Brainbeard, posted by Phillipa on May 22, 2010, at 21:31:25
Well, Philippa, to explain it further, SSRI's start flushing your brain with serotonin, so that ALL serotonin receptor types get triggered wildly. One of the theories behind the effectiveness of SSRI's is that certain receptors desensitize after a couple of weeks to months. Perhaps even longer for some subtypes. Once certain receptors, like the ones mentioned, have been 'triggered numb', a therapeutic effect could kick in.
The story of 5HT2A-receptors makes clear that it would make sense to add certain drugs to an SSRI to make it work faster and to avoid the nastiest start-up side-effects. Currently, a patented combination of citalopram (Celexa) and pipamperone (Dipiperone, an antipsychotic that is a potent 5HT2A-blocker) is underway. The TCA's that work on serotonin all block 5HT2A-receptors to some extent, which is probably one of the reasons they tend to work faster than SSRI's.
So yeah, you're right, the start-up anxiety provoked by SSRI's is akin to the withdrawal anxiety experienced when quitting Geodon.
(A note to Dr. Bob: I'm trying to keep stuff simple enough to avoid being moved to 'Neurotransmitters', where I wouldn't have taken such pains.)
Current meds: 10mg melitracene + 0.5mg flupentixol; sertraline 100mg; amitriptyline 25mg; gabapentin (Neurontin) 300mg; melatonin 0.3mg. PRN: diazepam (Valium) 2.5-5mg.
poster:Brainbeard
thread:948155
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100514/msgs/948395.html