Dui symptoms and conditions

I have been on Paxil off and on now for about 5 years.... the current length of treatment for the past 1 1/2 years. I need to be on it ( or something for that matter ) for my panic disorder. I am a 36 year old nurse/ manager and some days was almost debilitated by panic attacks. Depression was part of it, but not nearly as much as panic. I must say, that I have been experiencing memory loss now for about a year.... I thought maybe it was due to overwork/ stress...which I do understand it COULD be. However, I find it interesting that I am seeing so many more people with memory loss than I imagined. Is it due to stress in this type of people's lives, or is it in fact, the drug Paxil?
Keep in mind this is an SSRI ( Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor ) ~~ even though there is no solid evidence (YET!) this is a side effect of the drug, I would bet my license on the fact that that it is!
I have tried time and time again to wean myself off of Paxil.. ( with and without my Dr's advice )--- I did succeed for a few years to be without the medicine, however being on a slew of other meds in the interim did not help as much for the panic as does the Paxil. Paxil, honestly, scares the hell out of me!
Besides the "numb emotions", memory loss, sexual appetite decrease, yawning, lack of sleep, etc... the side effects of coming off of it are worse! As I read earlier, it IS addictive, indeed! The brain gets used to the drug being there ( as with any addiction ), and the "surges" of dizziness, sweats, and out-of-body-like experiences I experience coming off of the drug are excruciatingly harder to bare than the depression itself. Those above symptoms of withdrawal are just that....withdrawal!
Once your body is "allowed" to reuptake serotonin (as it is supposed to), this is when those symptoms raise their head...sometimes for weeks or months until they subside.
I would welcome anyone with help on this matter---is there another Drug out there that can help with anxiety/depression symptoms, and not cause the plethora of side effects we have all discussed here?
Diane

I was taking Ambien for about a year not knowing about any side effects I was having. I'd wake up in the morning and wonder who had the mid-night meals, there would be missing laundry (found washed and folded). But what made me stand up and take notice was that one night I apparently drank, got into my vehical had drove to the store, not getting anything and not making it back home either. I got into an accident hitting a block wall, and not being awake during any of it. I totalled my vehicle and by the grace of God I didn't hurt anyone. I am now fighting a DUI all because I had taken Ambien and was alsleep during everything. I know realize the mid-night meals and laundry bandit must have been me..

I started Zoloft about four weeks ago for extreme anxiety and major periods. I am 43 yrs old., and a single mom of two children . I am not a "drinker", I will go out when the kids are w/ there dad and maybe have a few glasses of wine. that's like once every two months!
Last week after meeting a friend and having some wine, (two glasses) I was pulled over by the police and got a dui. I could not walk a straight line, was confused and exausted. I am going to loose everything for this. My car, license for ten years and maybe jail. Has anyone ever experienced these kind of side effects while drinking when starting out with zoloft? I looked as though I had twelve glasses of wine. Please help me, I trying to keep my faith.

It was a beautiful thing to sleep...after a lifetime of insomnia. But then my boyfriend confronted me about my silly behavior at night -making elaborate desserts and leaving a big mess. I would have no memory of this. He told me I looked like I was wasted. I gained ten pounds. One night, I went out in my car to get ice cream! I had no memory of this trip, but I dented my car and knocked a tire out of balance. I have read other postings of people who have tried to drive and been arrested for DUI! Scary.

Still, this didn't worry me nearly as much as my declining health: tremors, fatique, depression, lethargy and worst of all severe all-over muscle pain, sinitus... I was becoming completely debilitated and suicidal because I couldn't work, travel, play...etc. Just suffering all the time. I've been off Ambien for one week and my symptoms have suddenly lifted! (I also increased Zoloft)

I still don't know if it's a coincidence or just a temporary respite. I miss sleeping, but I can't believe I feel so much better! Has anyone else had severe body pain with Ambien?