Posted by g_g_g_unit on April 22, 2011, at 2:05:01
In reply to Re: SSRI akathisia, posted by Christ_empowered on April 22, 2011, at 1:13:23
Hey, thanks for responding. To be honest, I'm still not clear on whether or not it's akathisia because the 'restlessness' I experience tends to vary in nature and intensity on different drugs. For example, on Seroquel, I had a compulsion to move accompanied by agitation, a sense of misery and doom, etc. which was pretty obviously akathisia.
On Prozac, I recall experiencing a Seroquel-like akathisia at the beginning of treatment. The longer I stayed on it, however, the worse my sleep became due to leg twitches, etc. and I remember growing very hyperactive and restless during the day, but without that same sense of doom which I know is a trademark of akathisia. My parents thought I was 'cured' because I was so enthusiastic and playful around my brothers, but I really just felt miserable and out-of-control.
The way I feel on Zoloft echoes my Prozac experience, i.e. I'm hyperactive, playful but with this weird intensity and secretly feel like hell due to not sleeping properly. So I'm not sure if the restlessness is more mood-related, or due to disrupted attention from sleep, or really a mild form of akathisia. I find that nicotine gum improves the anxiety, attention and restlessness.
Yeah, it sucks that I experience such intense side-effects at such low-doses. So while it seems logical to come off the drug, there really isn't much left that I haven't tried, which is why I was wondering if I should try work around the problem or see if it passes with time.
Amphetamine made my OCD worse. I tried Xanax, but didn't particularly like it.
> hey. Sorry about your problems. I personally wouldn't continue taking something that was causing akathisia. I guess you could wait it out or try the lower dose and then call your doc for a benzo or something. Really your call.
>
> If you're this sensitive to meds at low doses during short-term use, I'd be concerned about long-term ill effects. Benzos can be used for OCD; amphetamines are also used. You may want to explore alternative forms of treatment.
poster:g_g_g_unit
thread:983479
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20110418/msgs/983486.html