# Do you feel kind of stoned during SSRI withdrawal?



## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

Today marks day 3 of being completely off Lexapro after tapering over a month. Needless to say, I honestly feel like I'm high. It feels almost exactly like the first time I did weed. Light headed, relaxed, eyes feel kind of heavy, even music sounds better. Just feel kind of disconnected from reality. It's weird. Has anyone else experienced this? I'm not saying I'm liking it, It just feels strange.


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## jim_morrison (Aug 17, 2008)

It's possibly some kind of dopamine rebound.


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## Takerofsouls (Oct 20, 2010)

I know what you mean, ill go do something then when i finish ill come and sit down to watch tv and not even remember getting up, plus the confusion, vertigo, electric shocks. Definately dont feel normal..


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## jim_morrison (Aug 17, 2008)

I recently quit effexor and experienced zero withdrawl symptoms, oddly enough.


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## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

Smarties said:


> I know what you mean, ill go do something then when i finish ill come and sit down to watch tv and not even remember getting up, plus the confusion, vertigo, electric shocks. Definately dont feel normal..


Oddly enough I have experienced zero electric shocks or brain zaps. I'm taking Omega 3 supplements, which I guess help prevent brain zaps.

I've had no major "emotional" side effects, thankfully. I'm on Wellbutrin and Omega 3 so maybe that is preventing any major depressive episodes. I've tried to taper off before, but I had extreme mood swings and almost felt suicidal. Ever since going on Omega 3, I've had pretty much no depressive episodes during my month of withdrawal.


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## Post_Punk_Proclivity (Oct 12, 2008)

I have never been stoned so it may be the closest I've been to experiencing it having an SSRI withdrawal. I was really giddy and I felt surreal/ spaced out for the most part. And I had a slight headache with some issue of irritability. It was an odd feeling and though not as bad as some have explained it (maybe I hadn't gone long enough without) it's definately not a situation I would want to be caught up in again.


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## Makaveli (Jul 15, 2009)

alex999 said:


> Oddly enough I have experienced zero electric shocks or brain zaps. I'm taking Omega 3 supplements, which I guess help prevent brain zaps.
> 
> I've had no major "emotional" side effects, thankfully. I'm on Wellbutrin and Omega 3 so maybe that is preventing any major depressive episodes. I've tried to taper off before, but I had extreme mood swings and almost felt suicidal. Ever since going on Omega 3, I've had pretty much no depressive episodes during my month of withdrawal.


Was the omega 3 in the form of fish oil, or krill or something else?

I've been advised to go on 2mg fish oil daily by a psych


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## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

It's the fish oil. I usually take about 4mg per day.


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## billyho (Apr 12, 2010)

i feel manic after i withdraw from ssri, all my sexual function returns in waves and i feel sorry for the poor girl who just happens to be sitting next to me that night! :no but anyways, i am hyper talkative with alot of energy. this is why i thought ssri's werent the best for me. anyone have any suggestions of drugs so i can replicate these feelings?


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## Makaveli (Jul 15, 2009)

billyho said:


> i feel manic after i withdraw from ssri, all my sexual function returns in waves and i feel sorry for the poor girl who just happens to be sitting next to me that night! :no but anyways, i am hyper talkative with alot of energy. this is why i thought ssri's werent the best for me. anyone have any suggestions of drugs so i can replicate these feelings?


Irrespective of any suggestions given, please consult a qualified physician, pharmacist or psych that you trust.

=)


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## mikoy (Aug 12, 2010)

I have the same rebound effect when coming off ssri - I think it's dopamine release. I think the thing that can give you this effect is adderall or something like this? I have never tried (adderall is unavailable in my country - only methylphenidate, but I haven't such effect on it). Is a very nice feeling, but it lasted only a week for me (when comming off paroxetine).


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## Recipe For Disaster (Jun 8, 2010)

yes but that was probably because i was smoking a lot of weed during withdrawal to reduce the nausea.


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## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

Still have a lot of dizziness. The "high" I was talking about seems to have subsided. I'm starting to realize the positive effect Lexapro had on my mood. I'm not depressed, but I just feel like I'm in a crappy kind of mood. Like kind of pissed off. Will this kind of anger/pissed off mood subside over time? I just feel so unfriendly and like a ****.


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## popeet (Dec 8, 2005)

Yeah I know exactly what you're talking about alex. It happened to me the first time I took SSRIs -- Prozac. It was derealization, like having smoked some weed plus an alcohol hangover. Things looked fuzzy and felt weird.


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## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

I went back on 2.5 mg. I can't stand this s**t mood that I've been in. I just feel angry and hostile all the time. I guess Lexapro really did help how I felt mood wise. Come to think of it when I weaned down to 2.5 or 5 I felt a lot better and had pretty much no side effects. The Wellbutrin may be aggravating this angry mood though.


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## peaceandlove09 (Aug 10, 2010)

alex999 said:


> I went back on 2.5 mg. I can't stand this s**t mood that I've been in. I just feel angry and hostile all the time. I guess Lexapro really did help how I felt mood wise. Come to think of it when I weaned down to 2.5 or 5 I felt a lot better and had pretty much no side effects. The Wellbutrin may be aggravating this angry mood though.


You might consider lowering your Wellbutrin dose to 150mg if you feel it is making you irritable. I am on 150mg XL and i don't feel irritable at all. Infact, before starting Wellbutrin I used to be SO irritable all the time, and now I am pretty calm to be honest.

Maybe consider low dose lexapro + low dose Wellbutrin

Cheers,


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## irish1016 (Oct 24, 2011)

I am 100% in that same place. I weened myself over a couple of weeks from 10mg a day to 5mg, then to none (as of last Wednesday) and the "high" feeling is not only still there, it's become more constant. How long is this supposed to last? :sus


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## Xande (Jul 18, 2011)

Never felt stoned when stopping taking a ssri. I notice it usually lasts in my body for a bit (like a few weeks) before depression returns though.


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## A Sense of Purpose (May 8, 2011)

Coming off 100mg of Amitriptyline was incredible.

A good 4 days of my life felt like the movie 'A Scanner Darkly'.
It was this surreal yet vivid feeling whereby i was only conscious of my
brain and body to the most minimal extent. 

Most intense derealization
and depersonalisation i have yet to experience.


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## reflecting (Apr 19, 2011)

I have withdrawn two times from SSRI and both times I got a really good week after that ("high" / close to hypomanic)... I also guess that the SSRI decreased dopamine and that the receptors downregulated - resulting in a nice feeling after unleashing the dopamine again...


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## Deolia (Dec 7, 2011)

*Hi*

I seem to have the same symptoms as you. I would love to read more about what you are experiencing


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## philosophy (Oct 15, 2010)

When I cold turkeyed off remeron I felt that way for a week. Although I completely felt spaced while taking it as well.


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## InsomniacMike (Jun 20, 2014)

alex999 said:


> Today marks day 3 of being completely off Lexapro after tapering over a month. Needless to say, I honestly feel like I'm high. It feels almost exactly like the first time I did weed. Light headed, relaxed, eyes feel kind of heavy, even music sounds better. Just feel kind of disconnected from reality. It's weird. Has anyone else experienced this? I'm not saying I'm liking it, It just feels strange.


I know this post is very old and your probably way off the Lexapro by now, but I've just stopped my Lexapro 20mg like two weeks ago, and Ive been noticing that I feel really off, sort of like a 'stoned' feeling I guess you could say. I'll be walking and out of no where I become depersonalized, it feels like I'm not even in real life anymore. I don't know how else to explain it


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