Lexapro Withdrawal Unwanted Side Effects (Page 6) (Top voted first)

I have been taking Lexapro 10mg once a day for about a year. I have had many unwanted side effects which according to my doctor there are very few side effects from Lexapro. He says it is a clean drug. Wrong. It did nothing to help me and I want off. My doctor refused to give me anti-anxiety meds to help with the withdrawals from Lexapro because once again, there are no withdrawals from Lexapro. Why do doctors lie about this. Why do pharmaceutical companies lie about this? I have read so much about people just losing it while trying to stop taking Lexapro. I have not taken it in about ten days after weaning off for about two months from 10mg to 2 mg a day. My nerves are a wreck, I am extremely irratable, and have slight headaches. This is a horrible drug with many long lasting withdrawal symptoms. The makers of Lexapro, Forrest Pharmaceutical, should be ashamed of themselves. Do not lie to so many people just to increase the market strength of your company.

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I should have asked - what dosage were you on? If it's 15 mg or 20 mg, I think you need to talk to your doctor about the cold turkey method. I was on 10 mg, and I felt out of it (still do in a bit), so coming off of higher doses would probably be even worse. :(

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If you feel really bad, check out the web site i posted on in one of my earlier posts. they have people that have weaned themself off of it. I had to wean off, going down to 2.5 each day and then 2.5 every other day , then every third day.... This was over a 3 to 4 week period.... Then there are "phases" to look out for - depending on how long you were on lexapro will probably depend on the severity of the phases.... There are some reports of manic/deep depression phases 6 months out!! Be careful, dont trust your moods to be just your moods... It could still be withdrawls.... Be kind to yourself and take lots of vitamins and try noni juice. try to really take notice when you are feeling very, very down...

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I was on 20mg for the past 7 months. I spoke with her about it and she just said your fine it will pass. You said you still feel out of it sometimes how long have you been off of it. I really dont know how much more I can take of this. If I went to the er would they be able to help. Anyone who knows how long this last or if the er would be able to help please let me know. Thanks

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Hi, I took 10 mg lexapro for 6 months and ultimately decided to get off because it made me way too tired. I dosed down from 10 to 5 for a week, then 5 every other day but found on the day I wouldn't take it I was totally dizzy so I just stopped altogether. That was 5 days ago and I'm not feeling the flu like symptoms that a lot of you mention, but I'm so dizzy and have brain zaps (as you call them) and it's driving me crazy. Just when I think it's getting better it's not! When can I expect this to end? I'm also irritable and not sleeping well. I'm actually very annoyed that I went on lexapro in the first place. It stabilized my mood for a few months but then it just made me tired and gain weight, and now I have to deal with this craziness coming off of it. I'm happy to read other posts about this so I know what to expect.

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Hello Everyone,
I have been off of lexapro (10mg) for 2 and 1/2 months. I was only on the drug for about 3 months, and about halfway though those 3 months, I started developing jawline, chin, and neck acne. I have never had acne before in my life. I decided to get off of lexapro at that point because of the acne and it making me so exhausted all of the time. As soon as I got off (I did wean off), the acne EXPLODED on my cheeks, neck, and jawline and has gotten increasingly worse ever since. Is this just withdrawal? I was sure that it would have cleared up by now. I am terrified that taking lexapro has ruined my skin forever. Will this acne go away??? I am totally depressed over it and it has ruined my life. I hope that someone will tell me that this WILL go away.
Thanks for any response- I am desperate!
Brittany

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Brittany, Sorry to hear that. It is probably very, very upsetting, but i feel if this is a side effect you are experiencing, then it should pass soon. I have heard about adult onset acne, but maybe this is just from the meds. Have you tried any of the neutrogena deep cleanse sysytems? Is not, they are amazing! Even loreal has some good ones. These are the ones that have glycolic acid in them and they really, really make your skin beautiful.... It does take a few weeks though and you should probably read if they are harmful to use if experiencing acne... This would be good for when the break out is done and you are clear. I wish you all the best. Good luck.

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Yes, you do have many reasons to be optimistic. I have to say, i went into a deep, deep, depression and am only starting to get out of it,,, it's been over a year too. Lexapro is really bad. Not sure if you were on it long enough to mess with your moods, but take everything with a grain of salt. This could kick back up on you... Not the acne, but mood swings... They are harsh. I was on it for over a year... Feels like i am coming out of a tail spin or a mid life crisis. Not on anything now. And never will take anything ever again. Just into more counseling ... Less side effects...lol

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Good Morning!

First of all, I am so sorry that has Lexapro haunted you for so long. Depression is truly debilitating. I also agree that Lexapro is a HORRIBLE drug, and it has basically scared me away from any other medication forever (if I can help it). I didn't trust it going in and I should have listened to my gut. I am also going through mood swings, depression, anger, and difficulty finding my words, too. I was only on Lexapro for a little over 3 months, so my withdrawal period is probably going to be shorter than yours, but I can empathize. I should have stopped taking it when it caused severe suicidal thoughts in the first week, extreme night sweats for the entire time I took it, and chronic exhaustion. I'm sorry that you were victimized by our medical and pharmaceutical system. I just hate how this drug was touted to me as a miracle drug and the doctors look at me like I am stupid when I disclose the symptoms I am going through. You are so smart to have chosen counseling; treating the cause rather than the symptom is always the lasting cure. I am doing the same.

As far as the acne goes, I believe it has basically run its course! Finally!!! I woke up this morning and everything feels basically over! Now I just have to treat the left over marks (chemical peels and perhaps a laser treatment IF needed). Patience and faith (and a little help from my esthetician), and this will all be behind me soon.

Lastly, I wanted to mention Louis Hays to you... her life-coaching points have saved me through my anxiety and depression. If I would have been introduced to her world 6 months ago, I wouldn't have ever even turned to Lexapro. It might seem cheesy at first, but it totally works. It's basically just positive self talk.

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So so happy for you! I love Louis Hays! I have one of her books too! She is incredible. I know this may sound silly, but I am looking in to self healing with reiki and I would love to help others eventually too. Can't hurt. I have a family member that practices it and I am now intrigued by it. It is all about positive healing energy. Good luck!! I wish you the best!!

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Thank you all for this site . I have been taking some form of ssri"s for quite a few years now and weaned myself from Lexapro after 3-4 years of taking the drug.I have been feeling miserable and am taking ayurvedic medication from a good doctor as I live in India and the symptoms are bearable. I take Klonopin asneeded SOS and drink lots of water. The dizziness and spacey feeling has slowly receded, and I'm drinking a lot of water, doing yoga and deep breathing, and praying that the symptoms become less with time.

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This is really for anyone: I started taking 10mg of lexapro. No real benefit but as a male I did experience the sexual side effects I.e. the inability to ejaculate. My doc prescribed Wellbutrin to counteract that part. Soon after I got this sensation in the very tip of my penis-not really a tingling so much..but feeling like I needed to pee constantly. My doc ran urinary tests for uti etc and all were negative. I started to think u had prostate or bladder infections/cancer (health anxiety). My doctor said this was a potential side effect. I tapered off my lexapro quickly as well as the Wellbutrin. I had horrible brain zaps, fatigue, muscle aches etc for three weeks. Then they went away. Now my pee sensation which previously went away is back. I have no other symptoms down there-no pain, no hesitation etc. when I need to pee I pee fine. However the rest of the time the very tip just tingles like I need to pee 24-7. Has anyone else had this? I have extreme health anxiety and though my doc previously said its nothing but the med...now that I am 4 weeks off of it my mind is fighting that logic. All I can think about is this and the thought that its cancer causing it. Please help! It's ruining my life. All other withdrawals are gone though I cannot say that I might not be still having depression. Is it possible to have most side effects abate and then have this pop back up? :( I hate anti depressants.

Thanks,
Joe
25 years old.

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I'm not a doctor, but I doubt if the sensation you're feeling in the tip of you penis is any type of cancer. I'm middle-aged and had the same sexual side-effects (I actually didn't mind the delayed orgasm/ejaculation, or should I say the ladies didn't mind ;) ) Hang in there and it will get better.

I'll never tell a person with depression to 'get over it' but I've found that my problems were more related to getting into a negative feedback loop with my emotions and feelings. I've gotten back into exercising outdoors and trying to literally make myself laugh several times a day along with some other cognative therapy changes.

Hang in there and try to laugh more and just enjoy life as much as you possibly can. Find something bigger than yourself to put your energies into and stop thinking about yourself. It seems to be working for me so far (fingers crossed) and I'm never going to get back on artificial drugs unless I absolutely have no other choice.

Good luck.

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Linda, the dizziness is a definite side-effect of getting off of Lexapro, as well as other anti-depressants. It will get better I promise. I hated that feeling of my eyes and brain being a split-second out of synch with each other, but you'll make it through.

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thank you - I am also taking klonopin which I am down to 1mg a day. I was taking 4mg a day for years!!!!!!! So the past doctors I guess thought this was okay. The only good thing my current doctor did was wean me down to 1mg a day. First of all I have been depressed of and on for as long as I can remember. This new male doctor just wanted me to stay on lexapro. NOT-so I weaned myself off. I have an appointment coming up and I will tell him that I need something else maybe wellabrutin SR or something more affordable. What I really can not stand is this doctor knows I do not have health insurance and would not work on a scale for me. So I pay $90 a month to see this doctor and almost $100 in prescriptions. NOW IF THAT DOESNT MAKE YOU EVEN MORE DEPRESSED. I am tired of the doctor not listening to ME and making money for ten minutes of bulls*** and supporting the drug companies. I am at whits end so I spoke to someone who does counseling that I may use as an option -no drugs included. Also I have no sex drive at all, I could care less. Tired of feeling tired, irretated, short tempered. I do not know when the last time I have been happy! I try to keep strong for I have a 12 year old daughter. I do not know if this matter but I am a 52. Also has anyone had luck with wellabrutin or any other low cost anti-depressant. SORRY FOR THE MISSPELLINGS

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I have been on a variety of antidepressants and anxiety meds since I was 13 yrs old, and this week I will be turning 27. In September 2012 I came off 300mg of Wellbutrin XL with my dr's help. I didnt really need to wean myself too slowly and the withdrawals weren't all that bad. I then started to wean myself off of Cipralex (Canadian version of Lexapro) last month. I was on 20mg a day, so I slowly weaned myself by cutting the pill into quarters and taking one piece away and staying on that dosage for a good 9 days before decreasing more. It has been almost 2 weeks since I have taken any Cipralex. At first the withdrawals didnt seem to be too bad, just headaches, confusion, and strange brain/body zaps.. but a few days ago I started to feel really tired, have had horrible acid reflux to the point of vomitting for 3 days straight now, and I get awful nightmares and am constantly transitioning between hot and cold flashes. I also get severe stomach cramping and also suffer from endometriosis and it seems like coming off this med is just making the pain from my endo worse. I just got hired at a job last month and have already missed two days of work this week alone from being so sick. I am thinking of going to the ER to see if they can give me something to help with the pain of withdrawal, but I am worried they will try to convince me to go back on Cipralex. By the way the reason I am stopping these drugs is because I started to experience seizures while on them. All advice is welcome, I would really love to try to find all natural methods that may be of some help to me while going through this. Can somebody please help?? :(

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2nd attempt to quit, day 6 or so? I've been on some kind of antidepressant as a migraine suppressant since elementary or middle school. The particular drug has changed over the years, but I've been on 10mg of lexapro at least since late highschool (23 now).

I tried to stop it back before starting college. I don't remember much, but I know after a month I still felt like I was swaying all the time--since I'm already prone to motion sickness this was even worse. My doctor suggested just returning to the drug for the time being, because I wasn't having any bad effects from taking it. I did so for the 4 years of college.

Now I'm in graduate school and my doctor suggested switching from lexapro to wellbutrin for unrelated reasons. My mom is a physician, so I mentioned it to her and she thought it was a good idea. Switch from lexapro to wellbutrin, then eventually taper that off to be drug-free. She said that having a replacement drug would make the transition better, but I've been practically bedridden the past two days--but only parts of the day. When I first wake up I actually feel almost normal, but as the day progresses I get worse.

I'm too dizzy to feel comfortable driving. I am nauseated and imagining eating anything makes me want to gag. I started crying yesterday for no reason. My mom talked to my doctor (they work together) and decided I should go back to the lexapro and try weaning it off, rather than abruptly switching drugs. I also have meds to deal with nausea and vertigo. I'm to make an appointment with my doctor for next week.

Last time I tried to quit I couldn't, and I don't know if this time is worse or it just seems worse since I'm living it right now. I can't work or attend classes at this rate. And most people experience *months* of this? I don't think I have the strength of will to feel so bad for so long, and no idea where the end might be since I've heard people quote weeks and months before they were normal again.

I'm afraid that there really is no end to the withdrawals and that if I want to be independent of the drug I will have to live the rest of my life like this.

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Dude, it's ok. Maybe it's better for you to wean off slowly rather than stopping cold-turkey. Don't worry about it. Just take your time and work with your body.

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I've been on 40 Mg of lexapro for 6 years. For the most part it did a good job of treating my depression until recently. Within the past 8 months I've been very depressed, despite taking the anti-depressant. Along with the depression these past eight months I have also been struggling with an inability to take action to help myself. Can't explain it too well, but I was feeling sort of paralyzed emotionally. So I thought I'd stop taking the drug. Here's how I'm managing: asking God to keep me safe each day, exercise--running, strength training, eating healthier and taking omega 3 fish oil, vitamin D. I took my last dose of Lexapro on December 24, 2012.

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Verwon, you cannot possibly be comparison the consumption of orange juice to addictive chemicals. Fellow Lexapro withdrawal sufferers, please do NOT listen to Verwon. That post sounds like one from the Lexapro manufacturer trying to minimize the lies.

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I took my last Lexapro on December 31, 2012. I knew what to expect because I had already experienced similar withdrawal syndromes from other SSRI's in the past. However, this one is and continues to be the worst. I have the brain zaps, dizziness, sensitivity to light and sound, extreme irritability, intolerance, agitation - many of which are symptoms of depression itself. So, it is very easy for people to simply say, "Well, your depression is returning, and that means you need to restart the Lexapro." NOT SO, kids! Listen, as I have persisted through the withdrawals, the symptoms have gotten better throughout January! Now I still have that boing boing sound in my left ear drum when I move about, but the full brain zaps are gone. The irritability has decreased, and I am beginning to feel "clear". This stuff should be off of the market!!!!!!!!! I will NEVER EVER EVER take another SSRI!! It isn't just Lexapro. These meds are affecting our brain chemistry in ways that are unsafe.

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