Hello first post Geodon withdrawl (w/response)

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crm5096@... writes:

<<Hello Curtis here

I am 46 and had a manic episode in august in doing my back tracking that led up

to the mania i know i was exposed to high levels of black mold and pool chlorine

.. When i went swimming i would end up with migrane headaches I was also not

sleeping well.

Well i ended up in physic ward and was put under threat of taking geodon or they

would keep me locked up for 30 days or more if i refused so i went on geodon and

it was good for the first month then the side affects started constant daze and

felt like i was coming out of my skin and very serious headaches that i have

never experienced before so i cut my dosage in 1/2 and the side affect cleared

up until November and i had a serious bout of depression and anxiety of which i

have never experienced before it was bad so i went back to full dose in am and

pm until it passed in 2 weeks.

Then I discovered Raw Meal and Super Greens from Garden of life and noticed my

anxiety clears up when i take a dose of it. been on Raw meal and super greens

for a month now and feel good.

I since have been on single dose of Geodon 40mg in the evening for a month and

doing OK i do notice my anxiety levels increase in the afternoon leading up to

my evening dose of 40 mg Geodon. Then doing homework about what i am

experiencing I found this sight along with others who are having the same hard

time and found this group. I always had a suspicion the geodon was causing my

anxiety.

For the last 3 days i have been reducing the geodon by opening the capsule and

emptying some out I do notice even a small amount variation causes me to have

more or less anxiety and presure in my head. The dreams i have on geodon are so

bizzare and strange.

I plan on staying on approx 30mg for 30 days and then reduce again down to 20mg

for another 30 days and go from there. This is one nasty drug and i want to be

free from its addictive grip it has on me. Any tips you can give me would be

most helpful and also let me know what symptoms i can expect to have coming off

this med. >>

** Hi Curtis,

Welcome to the list. I'm glad you found us. You've done a great job finding

what is often at the root of depression, " bipolar " symptoms and some other

symptoms that first manifest emotionally/mentally. That is, people today are

particularly poorly nourished and benefit from high quality supplements. Garden

of Life is one of the brands I often recommend.

To come off Geodon successfully with the least disruption to your life,

decreases should not exceed 10%. Your brain needs time to adjust and begin

functioning properly with less Geodon so it is important to give it time and to

keep the decreases small. The rule of thumb is that a decrease of 10% or less

should be done only after you can answer YES the question " Do I feel as well or

better than I felt prior to this last decrease I did? "

If " yes " is not immediate, it's not time for the next decrease. Forget about

30 days. Listen to your body. It's the only sure way to minimize after effects.

The worst thing you can do for yourself is come off one of these drugs too

rapidly, either in size of decrease or amount of time allowed until the next

decrease.

If you're having strong withdrawal symptoms you have dropped too much. The

first few days of a decrease the worst you should feel is tired, difficulty

sleeping, mildly restless, uncomfortable sensations in limbs, tightness in

stomach, muscle aches, and just about anything else in the world you can think

of. The point is though, that these symptoms should be mild to moderate with

the worst of it over in 3-4 days. You'll still have some symptoms but they

should be mild.

If you cannot function during these times, you decreased too much. Take the

last dose you were on prior to this last decrease. Wait until you feel better

(should be 1-2 days) and then cut your decrease amout in half. You may find as

you get down lower that even small reductions will give you some difficulty.

They can be made even smaller. We'll deal with it if it comes up.

I hope this gives you what you wanted.

You may want to consider adding some magnesium 2x a day into your regimen.

Regards,