Brain Shivers.

[serafaery]

These Effexor withdrawals are seriously hardcore. It is so hard to get off this shit. I get The Effexor Wiggies (goes by many different names, the most popular of which seems to be "brain shivers", but is also called "brain zaps", and "electric shock-like sensations", though physicians apparently prefer calling it "extreme dizziness with nausea") if I don't take any for two days. Even if I just take a tiny dose, two days later my brain is doing flipflops in my head and I'm trying not to puke. I try to take just a tiny, tiny amount to take the edge off until I can sleep through it. It makes me feel oddly empty and hungry (I think this has caused at ~ten pounds of weight gain, seriously) no matter how much I eat. Bleargh. pHunk says he still gets them. He went cold-turkey about six months ago, now. Do Not Want.

...

Willow is still doing really well.

...

Dancing last night was just about the most fun I've had all year, I think. desultorie invited us to the Fez to celebrate her birthday, and pHunk's little sister invited us just for fun, so we had lots of people to dance with. We just couldn't stop. We were all drenched in sweat and sore and tired and kept saying, "OK, I need a break, I'm done" but would just keep dancing, hehe. My feet hurt, my hips hurt, my head hurts a tiny bit (I was drinking, too), but it is all worth it because damn that was a good time.

Comments

[ghost-nymph.livejournal.com]

oh no, you were on effexor? that's the worst anti-depressant i've ever tried to go off. i know exactly what you mean about the withdrawals... they are terrible. at least they are weening you off but are you taking anything else in it's place? if not, i'd recommend st. john's wort on the ways you don't take effexor...

[serafaery.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Effexor is hardcore to get off of - I've read testimonials from heroin addicts who said Effexor withdrawals were worse. :o I am going really, really slowly, because I've read that if you go off of it too fast the weird zappy sensations can last years or even be permanent. pHunk says he only gets them if he's really tired and they're very, very mild, but still, I don't want to have such long lasting effects of this stuff.

I have switched over to Welbutrin in the meantime, and it's working beautifully. It's not as good at treating anxiety, but I'm getting through it as best I can - fortunately my anxiety is not terribly severe. I get anxiety attacks sometimes, but never full blown panic attacks.

[chavtasticjinx.livejournal.com]

oh man, there are real names for that????
I always called it 'the sparkles' :o

my ridiculously huge ass sympathizes with the weight gain :(

[serafaery.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I like 'the sparkles' - that's apt. It does feel sparkly/tingly, definitely. Sometimes if I'm getting withdrawal symptoms while I'm up and about, the zaps make my feet feel like they're sinking through the floor when I walk. wtf

I am down with various sizes of asses - variety is the spice of life! But yeah, I think it's physically impossible for me to not gain weight during the holidays, and having Effexor Zappies on top of it is not helping!