Sleep etc 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've been on synthroid now for about a year. My dosage is VERY little (0.075). My doctor keeps running blood tests every 3 months and assures me I am within the "lower-end" of the norm, but I still feel tired, sleep deprived, wake up with night-sweats and I keep gaining weight...

I am only 24 and have just been told that I need to take this medication for the rest of my life, it\s pretty depressing. I keep asking if there are other ways to lose weight and feel more energized. He tells me that I need to keep taking this medication and has put me on a "sleep hygeine" routine where I go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.

Does this "disease" mean I will always be overweight and tired for the rest of my life? I would like to know if someone else with more experience with this medication can give any sort of advice? Feeling a little hopeless about it and not really interested in complaining to my doctor anymore.

Thanks:)

I have found since taking this drug that my bowel movements are very difficult. I am not actually constipated, but feel almost impacted. I have never experience this problem before, and attribute it directly to this drug. I am curious if I am alone in this problem.

Thanks

Been on NR for 10 months. I had been off the pill for a few years after being on it for 15 years straight. The 1st few months on NR I noticed the mood swings from the insertion and removal of the ring, otherwise it was ok. I also lost about 9 pounds. But it has stated to creep up on me that over the last 6 months I felt like I had to really work hard to focus on anything. Very spacy and possibly depressed, critical of myself and others and a bit obsessive about certain things. This was nothing like the laid back person my friends knew before. Then I got a urniary tract infection and a few months later, after very painful sex, I got a yeast infection. Since the yeast infection a week ago I have gained 5 lbs. I hope it is bloating and will go away after this period. It feels is like my body is completly out of synch. I have felt extreamly tired over the past 6 months. It wasent a constant tiredness, but when it came on it was very difficult to stay awake, at work, in meetings etc. I also could not get out of bed sometimes, I had the achy bones and sorness that others have experenced. I kept looking at my nutrition intake to make sure I was getting what I needed and I should have been fine. I keept wondering what is wrong with me...... Then one day I wonderd if the extreme need to sleep, and the general feeling of not beeing fully conected to my surroundings could be this ring and the hormones. I am thinking of going off it to see if my life, sleep, etc. improves. I also wanted to mention that the NR website does not address if there are any issues with using a yeast medication over the counter or the pill. I have seen on other websites that both can cause issues. When I called NR they could only comment on the Monistat, Miconazole-That it will increase the level of hormones-and it is safe to use. Now scientifically if the levels go high enough it can cause spontanious ovulation......but they could not comment on that. They had no information on Diflucan- the pill for yeast infections or its possible affect. How is it possible they do not know if common medications can cause you to potentially become pregenant or have other side affects. I now truly question if this company has did the research in shlud to be on the market.

I was prescribed Levaquin (500mg. for 10 days) for pnueamona. By day three I wanted to jump out of my skin. I felt like I was going crazy, I had the shakes, dizziness, trouble catching my breath, couldn't sleep etc. I called the the doctor and he said keep taking the medcine. By day 6 I had it...I no longer could take it, I stopped the medicine, come to find out I talked to other people and they had the same symptoms...sometime of bad reaction...I have been off of this for two full days and still feel strange....This medicine is not good....they need more warnings....

Just a quick update about my husbands law suit with doctor who gave him 6 shots of kenalog for gout in his feet, legs, and knees. Russell ended up rushed into hospital with steriod induced diabetes and was told he would be inusulin dependant for the rest of his life, although his records went missing from hospital shortly after he was admitted. the doctor acting for the solictor came to examine him and has told us he has found letters from the hospital to our doctors and the interesting fact that I think everyone should know, he told us that the manufactors of kenalog suggest a maxium dose of 80 ml he told us Russell was injected with 320ml. We were also told that even though what he went through was very frighting because he did not die, we haven't got a positive case for sueing the doctor. ( but we still are continuing with the law suit)
Russell is not using insulin anymore as the steriods have came out of his body and his pancreas started again, although he is now classed as diabetic type 2 ( diet controlled)
Regards
Tina and Russell ***

I was prescribed Yasmin last week. I had not been on birth control for years (bad emotional side-effects with each kind I tried) and decided it may help with regulating my period and reducing bloating. Well, I have taken 4 days of it, and I feel horrible! I have been nauseous for three days, could not sleep, etc. After reading your posts, I will be going home and throwing it away. I am awaiting a call from my doctor about the nausea, but I think that all of your testimonies are enough to make me stop right now!

Please let me know if there is any harm in stopping the pill right after starting it? Thanks!

Oh, my gosh. I wish I had been aware of this site 13 years ago. After reading all the postings, I know now that I'm not alone. Thank you to all for sharing your stories - they've really helped me. Please have patience with me as I am going to unload my lengthy story now. I am currently going through my third treatment of Lupron and am 40 years old. After my first treatment at age 27 for severe endo, I became terribly depressed and had severe panic attacks. This was very much unlike me - I had no history of depression and was an optimist. I also acquired all kinds of vaginal infections which my doctor had no answer for even though he tested me for everything and said it was not related to the drug. Oh, and let's not forget about that great insomnia which really, really helped my performance at work. As most doctors say, and worse yet, I believed them -- "it was all in my head" and had to get more prescriptions to sleep, etc. Like a dummy, after my second lap surgery in which they had to remove my appendix as well because of the endo, I went through another treatment of Lupron. Just lovely. Had serious problems concentrating, vision problems and yes, had my first and only migraine - I thought I was dying. I even went to the emergency room at my doctor's request. Dear God, they gave me a spinal tap because they thought I might have Spinal Meningitis. But, of course, I didn't have anything but a migraine. It was just that wonderful drug Lupron. I didn't make the connection until I came to this site. Finally, and even though I was an athlete for a long time (although I've picked up a very bad habit of smoking and occasional drinking now), I had spinal fusion surgery for my neck two years ago because my discs were deterioriating... any connection to Lupron? I think so. What a vicious cycle. If I had known then that I wouldn't have children so manyyears ago, I would have elected for a hysterectomy right then. I would have been much saner, much healthier and wouldn't be going through the treatment again for endo. Now, since reading everyone's postings, I don't know what to do. I just had my second monthly shot of Lupron and I'm still bleeding. Can't wait to see what the next round of side effects will be. Do I sound bitter? Shame on the medical community. All this time I thought there was something wrong with me and that I had caused all these physical problems - it was like my body betrayed me and I blamed myself which made everything even worse. It lowered my self esteem, shrunk my breasts (yikes!), and made me feel like crap. Thank you again, for listening. This has been a great help to get this off my chest. I welcome any comments.