Zaps symptoms and conditions

Lexapro is the only antidepressant I have been able to take without significant nausea. I tried zoloft, wellbutrin, cymbalta -- all with a lot of nausea that did not subside over time. With Lexapro I have no nausea. My sex drive is a little lower, but is right back to normal if I skip a pill. Of course, I don't skip more than one day in a row because of the Head Zaps. As others have noted on this site, the Head Zaps from withdrawal are crazy.
Any time I've gone off Lexapro I've eventually decided to go back on, because it works for me. Yes, my emotions are mildly muted, but not much and without Lexapro I'm a reactive basket case! Lexapro also takes care of my irritability. I have to say, my quality of life is much better with this drug -- it has a positive impact on my relationships, work-life, parenting, self-image, mood, anxiety, irritability. I also take Adderall -- this is the second time I've been on an ADD med -- the first was Concerta and I got off of that as soon as I could -- it definitely made my life much more manageable but I couldn't tolerate the "speediness": racing heart, hyper. Adderall has been MUCH better, positive effects without the drawbacks, and works well with my Lexapro.

i, too had the head zaps with lexapro. they happened when i stopped taking it and also if i missed a dose. i thought i was the only one who had them and i could never really describe them to anyone else. they sucked though. i also gained about 15-20 lbs on lexapro but i'm not sure if it was related to the meds. when i was on lexapro it kinda made me a sociopath...i didn't really care about anyone or anything. it didn't make me happy or unhappy...just made me not care about anything. i almost ruined my relationship. honestly i never really felt like i needed medication. so i was on it for about a year and one day just decided to stop taking it...not the best idea cuz the withdrawal symptoms were pretty bad. in addition to the head zaps, i had migraines and walked around in a fog for awhile. i was also super cranky bc i stopped taking the Pill at the same time so some of the side effects could have been hormone-related. needless to say i was kind of a mess for a few weeks afterward. but i'm fine now.

I just HAVE to add my story here!! I was on Lexapro 20mg for 2yrs. All was pretty well. It somewhat controlled my anxiety & panic attacks (I have GAD) and it helped stabilize my moods (I am Bipolar), BUT I DIDN'T like that it made it to where I couldn't cry when I wanted to but yet cried at inappropriate times! I basically came to a stand-still with the lexapro and it KILLED my sex drive, so bad that my relationship was at risk (well, thats what I think, cuz no man is happy with NO sex!!) So, I SLOWLY came off them over a month, and even though it was very slowly, the WITHDRAWAL from this drug is just a horrible experience that I hope none of you that are taking now, will ever have to go through what I did!! I seriously thought at one point I was going to die!! I was severely sick for one week-- nausea, vomiting, the runs, hot flashes, cold flashes, the shakes, internal tremors, severe migraines, dizziness when I sat up or stood up, and I got bad electrical zap feelings in my hands & brain (which, even one month & 3 weeks later, I am still having!!) But to you all still on them, I also had weight gain on them, head rushes, dizziness, headaches, internal tremors, and I didn't like that it made me generally dumb!!! Since coming off, I still have the "duhhh" moments, getting less & less, thank goodness, now if only these darn "Zaps" would go away. But yeah, the side effects of this & the withdrawals are HORRIBLE!!! I will never take this again!! So much for newer drugs eh!!

When i was 13 i was put on paxil for major depression. I stayed on it till i was about 17 after a downward spiral of depression that lead to a suicide attempt. After that the doctors decided that Paxil wasn't benefiting me anymore and decided to take me off of it, cold turkey. At that time i was on 40mg.
I started getting zapping headaches, muscle spasms, i was sensitive to light, my body ached, i had hot flashes, pretty much anything over stimulated me... i was irritated with just hearing anyone talk, i was completely out of touch with anything around me and i didn't feel like i was real.. I basically shut myself in my room for over a month getting over paxil. My family was afraid i was planning suicide.
After that, it's made me afraid to take any of my prescribed antidepressants, but i just cannot go through that again. At the time they put me on it, there was nothing that said that it was addictive, i was even told that there was no proof that it was addictive.
Also, I still experience the headache zaps to this day, and im 22 now, and i never had those type of headaches before paxil. I really think my mental illness is a lot worse from paxil. I have depersonalization disorder now, my short-term memory's crap, im more uncoordinated, im a lot more depressed and social phobic.. i know part of it could be from not taking any meds at all.. but i know that paxils really screwed me up, and i would have been a lot better not taking it at all. I just wish they would have warned me before putting me on it, or warning me before taking me off.

The Dr. gave me Effexor xr 75mg for my depression and 0.5 mg every 6 hrs of Xanax. Since then he lowered my Effexor xr to 35mg. During that period I gained 20 lbs and now I have excessive sweating constantly at least 5 times a day just as if I was coming out a flu like symptom.

My depression is still there buy not as bad but I started to get worried about what was causing the excessive sweating until I saw this site. I will set and appointment with the doctor tomorrow and see what the next plan of attack will be.

I know I was really bad with panic attacks and depression but know I could like to not take any more medications at all. With the help of God and I will recover from my depression and panic attacks. I had depression, panic attacks rasing heart beats, could not focus, memory loss, constant crying, fear. I when to the ER twice tacking I had a heart attack. All heart exams normal.

Now I have to deal with getting off the pills and live a normal life. How can I do this?

I am going on day 4 of stopping my Effexor cold turkey. I was on 300 mg and taking 20 mg of Pexeva. I am stopping cold turkey after being on this medication for three years. The withdrawals are terrible, I don't know why any doctor in their right mind would ever prescribe this medication for anyone. I have those wonderful brain zaps every ten seconds, the only thing that momentarily makes me sane is food, as if the 30 pounds this medication has gained me aren't enough, stopping it is going to pack on another 30. I am a bundle of anger and rage directed at anyone within distance. I am at the toilet every night waiting and praying that I can just throw up. When I finally can fall asleep I am jolted awake in a puddle of sweat having just had yet another nightmare. And when I say nightmare, I mean the kind that have me screaming out loud in terror waking my husband. Minor daily tasks are ignored due to the fact that putting one foot in front of the other is too much to handle. I can't stand this feeling and only pray for the day that it will stop.

I started taking Wellbutrin three weeks ago. I had been taking Zoloft for four years and it had been working fine except my insurance company tripled the cost and I was beginning to have to take more to get the same results. I thought Wellbutrin might be good alternative after doing some research and my doctor thought it would be good for me to try out. Well, since I have been taking Wellbutrin I have become emotional (wanting to cry at things I would never cry at before), more irritable, my husband says "I am not the same person", dizzy, two sips of a beer gave me a horriable headache which lasted until the next morning, I had to sit down on a bench at the mall because I felt like I was going to faint, and worse of all my brain became very "fuzzy" feeling. It was like my short term memory was damaged. I am taking a Spanish class and was doing well (A's). After I started taking Wellbutrin I could not concentrate enough in class to learn, even saying to my professor, "please skip me, I am not feeling well". It was humiliating. I have maintained a 4.0 in every class I have taken since 1999 and completed a masters degree last year. So, all in all-this was my experience. Maybe if I had taken it longer, it would have been different, but it was like torture for me. One positive note....I felt absolutely no internal depression after a week of taking it (other than being upset about the other symptoms). It worked really well in that area.....so, maybe if others do not have all the symptoms I experienced, it would be a very good drug to take for depression-just not for me!

head zaps and dizziness, diarrhea after forgetting to take the meds for three days and deciding, 'what the hell' i was supposed to get off these anyway...well...it's been a week and a half...it's getting a LITTLE better, but the brain zaps are nuts. I hate them. I want to know when these will end...does anyone know? please?????

I started taking Zoloft October of 2003. I started with 25mg & slowly graduated to 200mg. Over the past year I have gained 25lbs. even though I exercise 4 days a week for an hour & watch what I eat every day. I couldn't understand why I was gaining weight when I was watching so well. I asked my doctor about weight gain with Zoloft & he said that it actually makes you lose weight. I finally decided to check out websites about the side effects & I was so shocked at how many other people had weight gains also. So I decided to take myself off of Zoloft. For about a week I dropped down to 100mg a day but then deiceded to quit cold turkey & have been feeling like crap ever since. I have severe headaches (which I very rarely ever get), constant feeling of nausea, electric zaps that start at my feet & shoot up through my body, feeling when I turn my head too quickly like my brain is slow to catch up with my eyes & I feel like I'm gonna fall if I don't hold on to something or just relax for a minute.

I realize this is my own fault because I quit cold turkey on my own without consulting with my physician, however I want other people out there to know that you aren't going crazy that the withdrawal symptoms are real & really bad.

I just want to know how long before I start to feel normal again without constantly feeling sick on my stomach.

I started taking 50 mg of Zoloft about 1 year ago and eventually went up tp 150 mg. I gained 20LBS in 4 months!!! My doctor specifically told me that these meds would NOT MAKE ME GAIN WEIGHT! She had NO IDEA WHAT SHE WAS TALKING ABOUT!! I started tapering off the meds a month ago and took my last dose on the 22nd of June. Since then I have felt so tired, but the worst part is the electric zaps. It feels like I am being hit with a tazer gun or lightning or something. ALmost everytime I move I get a jolt through my whole body. I want to cry!!
While I was on the meds, I had heavy spotting between periods. My doctors couldn't figure out why it was happening. I have been trying to get pregnant and I think that Zoloft is the reason I have not been able to conceive.
I would also wake up with terrible night sweats and developed Hypothyroidism while taking this medication. I am 28 years old, and thought I was starting to go through Menopause!

I can not wait for these side effects and withdrawal symptoms to end. I will NEVER take this type of medication again. It is not worth it. I told my doctor that I would rather be depressed than feel the way I did while tkaing this medication.

Good Luck to everyone on this board.

I am a 20 year old male, 150 pounds, and I've been taking Zoloft for about 8 months now. First I started with 50mg daily for anxiety/depression. It helped a little, but I was boosted up to 100mg daily after about a month or two.

My anxiety problems quickly diminished, but I was having crazy mood swings. Happy one moment, depressed the next. Now I get those crazy head zaps and fogginess almost every day I take it. Side effects also include churning/unsettled stomach, disconnected feeling, "pins and needles" every time I move my head (like coming down from acid), zombi effects, jaw tension, restlessness, lack of motivation, severe headaches, grinding teeth, and vivid dreams (not a bad thing). It hasn't effected me sexually though. Haven't had any real problems with weight gain either.

I highly recommend smoking marijuana occasionaly to reduce side effects. Although pot isn't recommended by others, I find that it really helps to even you out while on this medication. It quickly and effectivly relieves jaw tension, restlessnesss, headaches, unsettled stomach, and that crazy-ass fog headzap thing. That is the worst part of Zoloft for me. I can deal with all the other small side effects, but when it feels like you are a zombie coming down from acid, you just wanna punch the doctor who prescribed it to you.

Perhaps I'm taking too much, or not enough. I have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow, so I'll see what he has to say.

I'm glad that the drug helps with my anxiety, but I'm not really sure if all the side effects are worth it.
If you haven't experienced the zombie thing yet, just stop taking Zoloft for a day or two and you'll know what I'm talking about. DON'T MISS A DOSE OR YOU'LL START CRAVING BRAINS! BRRRAAAIIINNNSS!!!!

I was switched to effexor after 80 mg of Lexapro produced no results for my depression. My Dr. slowly increased my dosage from 150 - 225 and then to 300. Supprisingly, I had only one side effect which was a ringing in my ears, only noticeable at night when I went to sleep. Unfortunately, I had no good effects. After 4 months, I decided to get off of it... and weaned myself down 75 mg a week. Only had a few of the zaps in my head, but really no problems otherwise... I feel even more depressed, because my doctor said this was his "big gun" and that it would work. Since it didn't work... what now?

I just cold turkey on effexor 75mg cause I couldn't get the money to pay for them.They helped me when I was on them,but I haven't taken them for a week.What scares me is the zaps that I feel in my head.If I was to go back on them will it disappear,my doctor is on vacation.I don't know what to do.I need to get more or what? Thanks Gail

I have taken Zoloft for 3 months ,it didnt work for me.So I decided to go off without talking to my Docter(Big Mistake)I have had these dizzy spells ,I guess some people call these head zaps,its been 2 weeks now still having side effects.I think this drug needs to be re evaluated .I think it my be doing more harm than good.