Coming Off Antidepressants - How To Get Through The "Electric Shock" Stage
If you've ever tried coming off antidepressants and had problems, you may well understand the "Electric Shock" syndrome, where, however low you manage to get your medication intake, you eventually get these "Zing Zing" effects in your head. Almost like sharp dizzy spells, they're quite alarming the first time you encounter them. If you've never heard of them before, you probably won't have a clue what's causing them.
Some people liken the feeling to electric shocks but, although you can understand what they mean, it's not really an accurate description. Probably, having a vibrating phone going off inside your head would be nearer the mark. The precise feeling doesn't matter. The problem is, how to ever be able to get through that stage. These Zings get more and more violent as time goes by, until you finally give up and go back to your full dose, thinking you're not yet ready to give up.
Well, that's not necessarily the case. You could well have been within a day of completely coming off antidepressants, if you'd persevered. Here's a good tip to try, if all else fails. Once you've got your medication down to the lowest level you can and you're taking it simply to fend off the "Zings", then on the next day you're due to take medication, stay in bed. Don't take any anything, just don't get up, for the whole day, (and night, if you can manage it). This is a technique that's been tried and tested, and found to work by many people. Take a long sleep through your dizzy spells, or whatever you want to call them and when you wake, they will most likely have gone and with any luck, won't return. If they do, try it again. You may have to trade a day or two of your life for this, but it's worth it, to be free of antidepressants.
This way of coming off antidepressants isn't specific to any particular medication, but it's certainly been found to work with SSRIs and there's no reason to think it wouldn't work for others. If it doesn't work for you, there are other ways you can try. For some, the method of gradually reducing the dose works and they have no withdrawal symptoms whatsoever. There are some very helpful support groups around to help you with this and other depression related advice.
You have to remember though, that the usual sound advice for reducing medication gradually must be carefully followed first. The information given here is definitely not medical advice, just anecdotal, so don't go against any advice you've been given by your medical practitioner.
Some people liken the feeling to electric shocks but, although you can understand what they mean, it's not really an accurate description. Probably, having a vibrating phone going off inside your head would be nearer the mark. The precise feeling doesn't matter. The problem is, how to ever be able to get through that stage. These Zings get more and more violent as time goes by, until you finally give up and go back to your full dose, thinking you're not yet ready to give up.
Well, that's not necessarily the case. You could well have been within a day of completely coming off antidepressants, if you'd persevered. Here's a good tip to try, if all else fails. Once you've got your medication down to the lowest level you can and you're taking it simply to fend off the "Zings", then on the next day you're due to take medication, stay in bed. Don't take any anything, just don't get up, for the whole day, (and night, if you can manage it). This is a technique that's been tried and tested, and found to work by many people. Take a long sleep through your dizzy spells, or whatever you want to call them and when you wake, they will most likely have gone and with any luck, won't return. If they do, try it again. You may have to trade a day or two of your life for this, but it's worth it, to be free of antidepressants.
This way of coming off antidepressants isn't specific to any particular medication, but it's certainly been found to work with SSRIs and there's no reason to think it wouldn't work for others. If it doesn't work for you, there are other ways you can try. For some, the method of gradually reducing the dose works and they have no withdrawal symptoms whatsoever. There are some very helpful support groups around to help you with this and other depression related advice.
You have to remember though, that the usual sound advice for reducing medication gradually must be carefully followed first. The information given here is definitely not medical advice, just anecdotal, so don't go against any advice you've been given by your medical practitioner.
