1. < Depression & Anxiety

Prozac Withdrawal and Restarting

Posted by joyfulmommy @joyfulmommy, May 10 9:55pm

Hello.
A loved one was on 10mg Prozac and wanted to get off. The doctor said going off cold turkey wouldn't be a problem, so he did. But his symptoms came back worse than ever about 2 days later, so we assume it was withdrawal. Doctor said he could start back in with the 10mg, which he did. But a week since the restart, he's still not back to his normal.

How long should it take till his symptoms level out?

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eliz928 | @eliz928 | May 11 11:08am

Well, I'm not a doctor so take this with a grain of salt. I've never heard or read anything from a realiable physican that recommends going cold turkey off any anti depresessant. I would perhaps ask for a 2nd opinion regarding your loved one's current symptoms.

In my case, I tried to go off Prozac but I was very careful. I started by cutting them in quarters and taking 2/3 every day, then taking one every other day. I tapered off about 1/4 tablet each week for 6 weeks. I did not have what you would call withdrawal symptoms, but I did notice a change in my mood. So, I went back on it after a couple of weeks. I probably should have waited longer to see how long it would take (if possible) for my mood to get a bit happier, but it didn't look promising.

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rosebookay | @rosebookay | May 11 12:13pm
In reply to @eliz928 "Well, I'm not a doctor so take this with a grain of salt. I've never heard..." + (show)
@eliz928

Well, I'm not a doctor so take this with a grain of salt. I've never heard or read anything from a realiable physican that recommends going cold turkey off any anti depresessant. I would perhaps ask for a 2nd opinion regarding your loved one's current symptoms.

In my case, I tried to go off Prozac but I was very careful. I started by cutting them in quarters and taking 2/3 every day, then taking one every other day. I tapered off about 1/4 tablet each week for 6 weeks. I did not have what you would call withdrawal symptoms, but I did notice a change in my mood. So, I went back on it after a couple of weeks. I probably should have waited longer to see how long it would take (if possible) for my mood to get a bit happier, but it didn't look promising.

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I never understand why people don’t get the liquid formulations to taper off SSRI’s. You can make much smaller cuts and do it so much more smoothly. Prozac, Lexapro, Citalopram and Zoloft all come in liquid formulations.

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