Surges 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

This is a weight of my shoulders.
I have been experiencing many of the symptoms that have been posted here and cannot begin to tell you what a relief it is that I'm not alone. I have been using the Nuvaring for 6 months. Some of the pros were convenience, larger breasts ( I went from a full C to a DD), and more lubrication. My side affects were extreme leg pain, excessive weight gain (about 30 pounds), increased appetite, fatigue, head aches, irritability, heart rate increase, dizziness, gas, bloating need I say more? Last night I took it out immediately because I finally put all the pieces together. It's amazing to know that I'm not alone in all of this. The weight gain was so fast that I have stretch marks that are extremely deep and I have belly fat for the first time in my life it has sprung right on my stomach. I'm only 19 so this is quit concerning for me... I went from 165 to 195. I have stayed around 165 for 5 years and the fact that I put on this thirty pounds was extremely concerning. I am grateful I know what's the issue, and hopefully with more energy and a decrease in appetite, I will be well on my way to my old self.

I am on Femcon right now and today is my fist day of my brown pills. I have been nauseous for the past three weeks consistently. The hot flashes during the night started a few days ago and culminated in sleepless night filled with waves of emotional surges such as fear, sadness, and of course anxiety. My mouth has been dry for the past couple weeks. I have not gained or lost any weight, but I am also quite careful of what I eat. I have been spotting for the entire month. I would say my energy levels have also decreased and I have been more irritable in general. I will no longer taking Femcon and feel that I have been given a medication that caused my moderate to great difficultly. I am almost tempted to head up a class action law suit, as I have lost sleep, missed work, and struggled with too many issues to just forget about this. If anyone else is interested, please keep posting. I read the Femcon website and I do NOT see any of these side effect listed anywhere. Did I miss something?

Hi i have been on synthriod for 10 years now and until 2006 i started having serious surges in my heart rate as well as my hair constantly falling out. i have been to my (endo) doctor so much about all these problems all the tsh test and blood work are fine and normal he says, but you know I really wonder had i not ever gone on this synthroid in the first place would my body be doing this. the papitations i get are so bad, and worse when i eat and settle down in the evening. nobody knows or understands me, but you all who post on this forum because you are all going threw the same thing too.

have been taking toprol 25mg for only 5 days for rapid heart rate and feel worse on it then i did dealing with the rapid heart rate and occasional flutter. trip to the er told me i was fine. cardiologist and family practitioner want me to increase the dose to 50mg and tell me the following are not side effects though i am experiencing them: jolting surges of chest pain on the left side (never had before taking toprol), nausea and loss of appetite. i also have depression/anxiety, dizziness, insomnia. i hate the feeling of the medicine as it kicks in. they say if i take more i will feel better. they also prescribed and told me to take xanax for anxiety. last night i tried taking half dose to see how i feel. i don't feel better...feel worse. i am afraid i will be on this for life. i just want to be a normal person and feel normal. i can't work, can't function, and my husband can't deal with it anymore.

I took Toprol XL 25 mg for three months after my doc said my BP was really high one day. I experienced horrible side effects---too tired, lethargic, depressed, no desire to do normal tasks, sort of like a walking coma. My BP fell to the 110/65 range. I switched to 12.5 mg for four months, and that's when I developed debilitating BP spikes over 200/110 every month--I had never had a BP spike before in my life. They were caused by the lower dose of Toprol, I believe. Changing to 6.25 mg last week to get off was even worse with the surges, but I felt great and had some energy!!! My doctor put me on Clonidine for the spikes and things are going well. Some Internet posts say that even at tiny doses of Toprol, it can take 3 weeks to get the spikes to stop!! Such a nasty drug! Ask your doc if something else will work for you, and consider Clonidine for that period right after stopping it. After I detox from Toprol, I am not sure I will even need BP medication because it is so low and I am losing weight, eliminating salt, etc. Good luck!

In August 2005, I nearly fainted from dehydration and went to the ER. I am a 47 YO Female and perimenopause may be a factor in my condition. At the ER, they found my BP was 230/130 and put me in the hospital overnight until I could have a stress test late the next day. Then I was put on 25 mg Toprol. My BP came way down, but within a week or two, I was lethargic, couldn't wake up, had no personality, couldn't accomplish the most mundane things. I also had frequent panic attacks that would send me back to the ER with BP in the 200 range. At the beginning of Nov., I went to 1/2 Toprol (12.5 mg) and felt much better (better than dead, that is) but still had surges in BP to 200 3 or 4 x a month; depression, and lethargy. At the end of Feb, my doc had enough, and this is day 3 w/o Toprol---I take Alprazolam 3X a day until we figure out what is next. Eating high-potassium foods, no alcohol, no caffein, has my BP in the 125-140/70-90 range the last few days. I FEEL LIKE A HUMAN BEING AGAIN! The headaches are awful, but I don't care, and they are getting better. Toprol is a bad drug because it stops adrenoline instead of regulating it. None of my friends on BP medication of other types have these problems! Get off Toprol!

I was taking Diovan 80mg for about 4 months and was told prior to taking it by my physician that it had little to no side affects. I experiencined a great deal of weight gain, fatigue and bloting. I found it almost impossible to loose weight even with everyday running and dieting. In addition, often heart rate surges during sleep, and great swings in mood/depression. It assisted in bringing my blood pressure down significantly but ultimatley stopped working. I am now on Lotrel.

I don't know if this is related to recent S-M IV of 1GM/day x 3 days + extended graduated taper off with prednisone.
There is excruciating pain in legs, more left side than right but both. Every atom, waist to toes hurts on maximum volume, in surges and dips of indescribable pain, for hours and hours. Usually back to normal, daily pain level of raw skin with sunburn on waking after so so sleep of 4-5 hours daily.
I have chronic, secondary progressive MS of 14 years. Ambulatory with walker and cane. Also exposed to Agent Orange in heavily sprayed areas of I Corps, Vietnam, 1968-69. I have 100% service connected, permanent and total, combat related PTSD rating.
I am on Methdone and Percocet 3 months, and just started Lorazipam. M&P do not work at prescribed dosages. Yesterday I took 8 10mg Methadone pills and 6-7 5mg Percocet tabs, and it was inadequately bearable, and I barely made it out alive, again.
I'm going to the VA soon to see what they say, but I would greatly appreciate any advice some nice, knowledgable person may take the time to give.
Thank you