Prozac Ruined My Life

I was on Prozac (fluoxetine) for about 8-9 years starting when I was about 14 years old. I'm 23 now and for about the last two-three years I started getting weird side effects and feelings that I never had before. I would feel spaced out, disoriented, out of body, dizzy, angry, light/visual disturbances and really wishhy washy, like bi polar feelings and suicidal feelings. I had never had these ever before. I was on the Prozac for severe anxiety and panic attacks. I never had depression or bi polar feeling ever in my life. And I always would get dizzy spells and just feel SOOO spaced out and out of body literally so freaking weird. So when these symptoms started happening I went to numerous docs and they all found nothing wrong physically. Blood tests, check up all normal. So I decided that I needed to get off the Prozac. It was the only med I was taking nothing else. Previously perfectly healthy.I felt it was starting to "kill me" or hurt my body or brain. I felt not right mentally and physically. I just wasn't feeling right at all. So I slowly started to taper off as the doctor told me I could. I was on Fluoxetine liquid 10 ML at first.( which equals about 40 mg) So I tapered off 2ml( 5 mg) every two weeks. It was horrible. I got the worst throat infection and was coughing up weird gunk. Strep was negative and again blood tests normal. But I felt so sick like the flu.. And I kept tapering and it was horrible. Anyhow its been 2-3 years later now and I'm finally off of the medicine. After tapering then getting so sick and having to go back on. And getting sick and going back on again numerous times. I would feel so sick and then take the Prozac again and feel a little better and then sick again. Like my body/brain was used to it and needed it. Every time I would try to taper I would get sick and feel out of it so spaced out. Then take it and feel a little better. So after 2-3 years I'm finally off of it. It's been about one week of no Prozac after 9 years. And Im starting to DIE.. Literally D.I.E..

My blood pressure is abnormally low really low like 80/40. My heart rate is very low. I'm freezing cold.. Cannot get warm. Im SOOO spaced out can like hear my voice outside myself. Really dizzy head feels so pressurized. Shivers wont stop. Random pains all over my body. I have been to my doctor and the E.R multiple times over the last like couple months with these symptoms.. and all tests come back fine. Blood normal. Heart EKG fine. They say oh its anxiety go back on med or take another ssri. I'm so scared to take anything else. This medicine has ruined my body and brain. It is not right! I'm having trouble doing simple tasks. And I'm shivering and my blood pressure is so low and I'm so spaced out. I was a functioning member of society and was doing great. The Prozac ruined my life. I feel like my body/brain like I need the Prozac to live. But when I take it, it kills me and makes me spaced out and dizzy and sick, and when I don't take it, it kills me too. I can't live while on it and I cant live while off of it. I'm scared and I'm basically dying because of this horrible evil medicine. And also my lymph nodes are huge over the last 2 months of tapering and won't go down from being swollen. Their not protruding just really swollen. I keep getting weird things happening to my body. Shivers one day, lymph nodes one day, random pains one day, throat sore one day. Been to docs and E.R. numerous times. Again all blood tests are normal strep and mono negative. Please help anybody with their ideas remarks or opinions. Please help me. This medicine has ruined my life. It is the most evil drug. It has absolutely ruined my life. Please help. I'm at the end of my ropes physically and mentally. I'm losing the battle. This medicine has ruined my brain and body. I don't know what to do. If I take it I feel spaced out and sick with numerous problems. If I don't take it I'm spaced out and sick with numerous problems. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

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I'm so sorry that you are suffering and miserable, that's just awful.

It has happened to others, with Prozac and similar medications.

I was on Zoloft for a number of years, which I later found out was never needed, so I stopped taking it without tapering and I was messed up for several months, before things finally went back to normal.

And that is probably what you're looking at, it will most likely take several months for your body to balance things back out on its own.

These medications work on brain chemicals and after you've been on them for a long time, your body basically forgets how to handle them on its own. Then when you stop taking it, even if you taper, it can still take awhile for things to get back to normal.

Check with your doctor to see if it's safe for you to up your fluid intake. That's a good way to elevate your blood pressure a bit, so it's not so dangerously low. You don't want to go too crazy with it, since that could also be dangerous, but adding an extra glass or 2 of fluids each day could help.

Your lymph glands may never go back to normal, sometimes they just don't. I have several that have stayed up after I had an allergic reaction to an antibiotic last year and my ENT said they aren't anything to worry about. It just happens sometimes. If all your tests are normal, then there's really no need to worry about them.

Rather than trying another medication in this class to help you get by for awhile, something such as a low dose benzodiazepine like Ativan may help. You could ask your doctor about trying one. Its something you can just take as needed, rather than all the time.

Learn more Ativan details here.

Benzodiazepines do have the potential to be habit forming, so if you want to stay away from them, you could discuss some natural remedies with your doctor.

St. John's Wort and Ashwaghanda are both possibilities that are known to help with anxiety and depression. The Ashwaghanda is also known to help your body better adjust to and cope with stress.

Does anyone else have any suggestions?

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Thanks. Yea I'm going to try to stay off of it totally for a while and see if my body can re-stabilize itself. I hope it does and I hope I'm not like this forever. And thanks for the tip I will try to drink some more water that's a good idea. I'm just really scared my body and brain have been changed from the medicine and it wont re-stabilize itself without the Prozac. I am worried though about the blood pressure thing too.. I hope the prozac didn't hurt my heart, or blood vessels or anything. ( I did have heart surgery ( vsd and a pda repair ) as a baby and have never had any complications since. Hope the Prozac didn't cause any problems. (Although my ekg seemed the same at the hospital) On another note: Idk how doctors can just prescribe these "brain drugs" for people or young kids even.. the medicine really has the capability of damaging or hurting their brains, and body. I mean the psychiatrists themselves don't even know why the medicines really helps. Yes they know that they increase serotonin levels in the brain, but they don't know what else it does, especially in the long term.There's so much unknown about what else its doing in the brain. I mean ive read before where researchers at universities have found that these medicines could even be neurotoxic and cause neurodegeneration in the brain. I mean there simply hasn't been enough long term research done on any of these drugs yet to be prescribed to so many people. And the risks are not fully known yet and are not fully explained to patients. 20 years from now doctors will probably figure out that these drugs are very dangerous and not good for people. Its really sick how easily their prescribed to fully functional people.. Eli Lilly ( and other pharmaceutical companies) and the FDA just want money $$$ they don't care about the people, and their long term health. "Oh take this pill you'll feel happy and better" " you need it, it will help you",, yea maybe at first you might feel better and ok.. what about 5,6 7, 8 years down the line?? Your body maybe get used to it and depend on it.. and its killing your body and brain. Im just one of these victims. And as of right now my life has been basically ruined because of Prozac ( fluoxetine). I hope I don't die from it literally. I feel as if its literally killing my body and brain, and possibly even affected my heart. ( just venting and upset because of these naive doctors and people).. !!!!! People need to know that these drugs have not been researched enough and are not safe for you!! The doctors do not know what else its doing in your brain and body!!!! I wish I could go back 9 years and never have taken this horrible drug.

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Dear Victim

I have the same type of experience. I have been on Prozac for 6 years, after which I gradually tapered it off, just to find myself in a worst place than before. I had to go back on it. I am currently on 40mg Nuzak and I have low blood pressure, drowsiness and suddenly anxiety attacks which I did not have before. I am trying to study to be a scientist, but I just feel like giving up. I had to change course so many times before and I cannot compete with "normal" people and the scientific field is very competitive. I want to know could you do something about your problem and if so, please tell me what it is. I don't know where to go and I feel I have been made useless. I do not think people should be on antidepressants for more than 3 months without getting therapy.

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Hi Sweetie- I hope you are feeling better, since it's been a year since your post. I had a similar problem with prozac, and I would suggest you run (not walk) to your nearest Chinese Medical Doctor and EMDR therapist. They both are saving my life from th damage.Prozac caused (among other things wrong with me). Please try. Also, gluten,dairy, soy, corn, nut free helped a lot. Good luck!

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Prozac ruined my life by causing me to make bad decisions. I divorced at 32. I was depressed because of the divorce, but mainly because I was unhappy with my career choice. So, I had reasons to be depressed. I went to a psychiatrist to address a totally different problem; inferiority/shyness. He immediately prescribed Wellbutrin, which made me feel weird and out of control in under a week. The Dr. said it was too soon to feel any effects. BS. He then prescribed Prozac. It relieved the depression, and I felt better for about 7 years. During that time, though, I felt too good. Before, I worried too much, but then I worried too little. I entered into a bad relationship, started smoking, which aged me, and even though I was in my mid-thirties, I didn't seriously consider having children and what my life would be like without them. After the 7 years, I think the drug started to wear off. Around the same time, I got treated with some disrespect by a co-worker. This started a downward mental spiral. I felt like a different person than who I was before, and, while I could remember things, I had difficulty comprehending that they actually happened. I actually went to my previous residences to try and feel the memories of living there. This lasted almost five years, during which I drank very heavily, I think, to compensate for the depression. When I quit drinking, I was depressed and anxious at the same time. I finally went to a different psychiatrist who prescribed Lexapro. It snapped me out of what I was experiencing. The doctor gradually decreased the dosage in order to get me off it. However, I started drinking again, again, I think, to alleviate the depression. Now, 18 years after all of this, I'm still in the bad, sexless relationship. And at 50, I'm having terrible regrets about not having children. I lost an aunt and my father within the last year. I'm losing my family and have none to replace it except for nieces and nephew who live very far away. I'm in total Hell. I know others have children at my age, but I feel it's too late. Even if I decided to, I don't have a partner willing to have children. My life has passed me by. Again, I blame Prozac for not taking my decisions seriously. Is there anyone else out there that has had similar experiences? If so, what helped to alleviate the deep, deep feelings of regret.

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It's sound like maybe you have Depersonalization.Disorder. . . Sounds just like i experienced. Google that and see if you have it? I'm going to start therapy (EMDR) soon to help with it. Maybe you can turn it? I hope this gets better for you soon.

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I've been taking Prozac for the past month now (first 5 mg/day for a week, then 10 for a week, now 20 mg) and have been experiencing everything you are feeling. The dizzy spells, severe spaced-out/out-of-body feelings, feeling extremely faint at times, and head pressure. I am definitely NOT going to continue this medicine. I wake up in the middle of the night feeling like I can't breathe and that I will faint. I wake up feeling like this as well, only to jump out of bed scared when I see my vision start to tunnel and feel very faint. Hearing your story is comforting to me knowing someone else is experiencing everything I am. But I'm so sorry that you've been on this drug longer and that you are feeling these things as well. Today is my first day off it and I already felt slighty better (besides a cough that came on yesterday). I hope that I've quit early enough and I hope I can get back to my old self how I was before my panic disorder. I'm sorry if this message seems unorganized/all over the place, but I'm just so comforted that there's someone else who feels how I'm feeling. You're not alone! Best of luck and health to you!

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Are you on any antidressants I am taking fluoxteine for a month and feeling the same way

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Check out web site cchr threre is much info on this.you probably need a good withdrawal plan. Check out addiction supplements. A natural practioner. The herb milk thistle/liver detoxification.hope you are OK.

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Sorry to hear you are having such a hard time. I took Prozac for seven years. I made a lot of bad decisions while on this drug, but didn't relate my crazy decisions to the drug until after I was off of it a few years. I normally weigh about 125-135 pounds,it fluctuates. But in 2006 I had reached 175 pounds. The doctor told me that it was a side effect (one of the MANY potential side effects) of Prozac. I immediately stopped taking it. No weaning off of it,just cold turkey. I would not recommend this to anyone as I was going completely psycho for about two weeks.I have been off of the Prozac for 8 years now and feel much better. Prozac made me numb but now I have my feelings and emotions back. I read a book some years back that described taking Prozac as the equivalent of a chemical lobotomy. I do not trust the pharmaceutical industry because their main concern is profit, not our health. So I do my best to stay away from any prescription drugs. I know that it is hard to get off of Prozac and I wish you the best of luck!

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Sorry to hear you are having such a hard time. I took Prozac for seven years. I made a lot of bad decisions while on this drug, but didn't relate my crazy decisions to the drug until after I was off of it a few years. I normally weigh about 125-135 pounds,it fluctuates. But in 2006 I had reached 175 pounds. The doctor told me that it was a side effect (one of the MANY potential side effects) of Prozac. I immediately stopped taking it. No weaning off of it,just cold turkey. I would not recommend this to anyone as I was going completely psycho for about two weeks.I have been off of the Prozac for 8 years now and feel much better. Prozac made me numb but now I have my feelings and emotions back. I read a book some years back that described taking Prozac as the equivalent of a chemical lobotomy. I do not trust the pharmaceutical industry because their main concern is profit, not our health. So I do my best to stay away from any prescription drugs. I know that it is hard to get off of Prozac but the withdrawl symptoms do eventually go away. Hang in there! I wish you the best of luck!

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Oh,and hang in there! Once the drug is completely out of your system,the withdrawl symptoms do eventually go away :)

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Hi, I took 4 days of prozac and it ruined me as well. It made me get anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations, lost 15 lbs in two weeks, jittery, and the nerves and tension and stress caused me to to get TMJ, lemme tell you, that's a horrible pain. I've been off it for 24 days and I still struggle daily. I have nerve pains, TMJ, stress, anxiety and I haven't been able to calm down the way I would like too. Prozac along with any antidepressant are evil. I hate the pharmaceutical industry for making it. I heard it's the equivalent of doing coke. It's terrible. I hope we all feel better soon.

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Omg I've been reading these because I too have been off and on procaz for a couple of years ...I haven't been able to hold a real job in over a year I'm lucky if I can just pull myself out of bed most days and when I have to absolutely attend or go to any kind of public gathering I basically robot my way through it its horrible I feel like I'm slowly dying day by day my family kustvlooks at me like I'm some pathetic stranger because I am and I can't do this anymore I don't know who I am !???!

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Hi there. I am really sorry to hear about what has happened to you. It might be a bit late but please try taking something called Curcumin. It's available on Amazon.

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23832433

That is a study showing the benefits of Curcumin in depression. Try this with 5-HTP if it doesn't do enough on its own, but don't take the 5-htp for more than 6 months. Meditation, prayer, etc, all help. I wish you the best of luck. God bless.

{affiliate link added}

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About 10 years ago my doctor told me I had PMDD, and put me on Prozac. MY life has never been the same since I started that drug. I didn't realize it but it was causing me to be really hyper: I woke up at 4 am cleaning my entire house and dancing around my house listening to music and feeling very high on myself. It caused me to be disinterested in my children. This went on for a few weeks until one day I had some kind of weird meltdown while driving the kids to school (was a panic attack I guess, had never had one before). My legs felt numb like I was losing control of my motor function. When I returned back to my house I couldn't stop moving. It was an uncontrollable urge to move and I just kept doing laps around my living room and called my doctor who told me to stop taking it. In the meantime I couldn't stop moving so I would go running. I would run 6 miles, come home, and still not be able to stop moving. So I would go and run it again. Somehow I guess by exhausting myself I could sleep then and the akathasia was starting to go away. But then I started having panic attacks and fear that I was going to hurt someone else. It just went on and on and on until I was pretty much ruined. I was so scared to take any medication again that I couldn't barely take the Ativan that I was given for my panic attacks. I have never experienced such a terrifying feeling of being out of control physically and mentally. After all of this I developed a very deep depression and I still don't know how I survived it. I still suffer from anxiety and depression now and went back on an SSRI after I had no other choice. I was a normal person with some anxiety and my ups and downs before the Prozac, but seriously it made me crazy. I have never been the same. What I learned is that I am really sensitive to SSRIs and was on a huge dose for my body's metabolism. Be careful if you are considering taking an SSRI. Start with a baby dose and go slow. They can really mess you up. Peace.

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In February things were going down hill fast and I thought maybe my paroxetine no longer worked for me. It turned out it was the environment I was living in. Considering I had already started taking Prozac, I'd give it a chance. I tried it for 3 months thinking the bad side effects would eventually wear off. They didn't. I got really sick but figured it was the flu. Then the huge panic attacks started but again I figured they were temporary. They became more frequent and worse. Then the blurry vision started. Then it got to the point where I was considering suicide due to intense thoughts. Then, I got to the point where I didn't want to be around my kids because they irritated me. I had crying outbursts too. 3 months later I had had enough so I went to my doctor in hysterics. He told me to go off the Prozac immediately and put on clonazepam temporary until the Prozac had left my system. I went back yesterday and he said to stop the clonazepam considering I was feeling better and to try going back on the original paroxetine.

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Hi. I've just been prescribed fluoxetine. Should I take it? I haven't touched it because I've read awful info about it. Please get back to me asap.

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Wow, sorry to hear what you're going through. My daughter has been taking prozac for 2 years now. We are hoping she can be off this medication soon too. Have you heard of the NeuroStar TMS? It stands for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. This is treatment uses a highly focused magnetic pulses to stimulate the area of the brain thought to control the mood. I heard this treatment works. Look into this and might help you. My daughter will try this treatment and I'll have her post the result.

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Hi William, I would strongly beg you not to take the fluoxetine or any other psychiatric medication. I took Prozac for 6 weeks exactly and over a year later, I am still severely damaged without the slightest sign of any improvement. I have not slept for for more than 4 hours of broken sleep (wake up every 30 minutes) in over a year now since taking the Prozac. I experience feelings of high voltage electricity throughout my body causing extreme anxiety, heart pounding, and restless legs. I am miserable. Instead, I would beg you to interview several therapists (a lot of them are not helpful, but when you find a good one, they really can help tremendously). Also force yourself to change your thinking--try reading the Feeling Good Handbook, it's a classic. Force yourself to get into community with others if you are isolated; you may not feel like it at first but in time you will begin to enjoy it. And lastly if course, force yourself to exercise daily and eat nutritious foods. Lots of veggies, fruits, lean meats, fish, gluten free whole grains and nuts, reduce sugar and dairy and gluten. Get plenty of sleep, try taking a good quality magnesium glycinate supplement before bed, it helps sleep and anxiety and depression.

Good luck to you, looking back I know this is all I needed. NOTHING is worth ruining your very delicate brain chemistry, or your ability to sleep at night. Your brain is already healthy and if you feel bad, it's your brain's way of alerting you that something is wrong in your life, not your brain. Please don't take for granted your healthy brain; take good care of yourself.

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Re: Victim (# 2)

It's awful and I was on it for decades... check out HBN naturals for fulvic acid, black seed oil (if you don't like you can put in veggie capsules) amazing whole body and brain benefits..healing begins and keeps on giving..with no side effects. Black seed oil healed my uterine fibroids, they literally passed in the toilet for a week..sorry tmi but it's true! They wanted to cut my uterus out. Ugh! You can get better. God Bless and I hope this reaches you with you having improved over the years. Vibrant blue oils is also an amazing essential oil that help with immediate relief..amazing quality.. go go go! You can heal...

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Re: VinnyD (# 5)

Yes me Prozac, detached my head from my heart I made terrible dessisions left my family and fell into a very bad relationship I made an attempt of suicde.
This was yearsa ago. But the effect of this on my daughter lives on to this day. Thank God I am now sorted and have a wonderfully supportive husband.

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This is exactly what's happening to me now. Been off the stuff for 4 years, and have since been diagnosed bi-polar by several doctors. I feel like my anxiety has become unmanageable to a point I can't come back from. Not to mention, I now have a serious problem with benzodiazepines (particularly Xanax). I can never remember a time prior to Prozac that I really NEEDED other drugs. Don't get me wrong, I'm no stranger to substance. But it seems the worst mistake so far was taking the drugs that were supposed to help me. I quit cold turkey after 2 years on them, and I feel like I haven't had a day of peace or rest since. I just feel like s*** all the time now.

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Hi daisies, I appreciate your opinion. My problems with sleep are slightly different. Once I eventually get to sleep I am out for however long my body needs. So I also was given zipiclone to make me sleep but they dont work unless I take two on a night but then they knock me out for too long + destroy my mind. It's said that they work by reducing brain activity which makes sense because its my mind that's restless and heart too pumped up for me to sleep, hands usually sweat regardless of temperature, unsteady hands, but the zoplicone makes my breath taste chemically and leaves my pupils massive the next day. I've tried the fluoxetine but due to the sleeping tabs being so effective I haven't noticed any feelings after taking the fluoxetine. Now I just feel spaced and more socially acceptable than before seeing the doc. Every time I've spoken about it to ppl other than the doc they dont know what to say and look at me like a piece of.... Although that said I strongly feel like there are no words that can change me or my mind state for worse or better. I think my cause is mainly bad childhood + property + introduced to cigarettes before I was ten years old and then cannabis, then coke on my 12th birthday, all my eyes have ever seen is poverty which is cured by drugs. It's all drugs drugs drugs. I'm so sorry for ranting but I just wanted to paint an accurate picture.

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Hi , thanks for the reply but I dont see how frying the brain will lead to anything less than instant dimentia,if anything or anyone made a mistake.

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