Jump to content

Paroxetine


Recommended Posts

Hi! I've been on paroxetine for a month and a half now, and I'll be getting my next appointment with my psychiatrist in early December. I'm unsure whether I want to keep going with this medication. The first week was really tough, but I got through it. I don't think it has been doing much for my ocd. This last week, I've noticed a couple of bruises on my legs and on my arm and after reading the package insert, I understand that can be one of the side effects. My hands are also very swollen and although I don't think my weight has increased that much, I feel extremely body conscious. These might be silly things, but they have me doubt if this is the right medication for me and, of course, I will discuss this with my doctor. Either way, I would like to hear your
thoughts on paroxetine. 

Link to comment

Hi VNDO,

They don’t strike me as silly at all, I think you’re wise keeping an eye on any side effects and absolutely right to want to run them by your doctor, I would too.

Over the years on the forum I’ve learnt one thing when it comes to medication...everyone responds differently to taking them. Some notice a significant improvement, while others (like me) find the cons outweigh the pros and choose to knock them on the head. There may be another medication you’re more suited to, but at best it will only hopefully help ease some of the anxiety, it’s going to be the CBT your psychiatrist is providing where you’ll notice the most changes to how you’re feeling.

Link to comment
33 minutes ago, Hal said:

Hi VNDO,

They don’t strike me as silly at all, I think you’re wise keeping an eye on any side effects and absolutely right to want to run them by your doctor, I would too.

Over the years on the forum I’ve learnt one thing when it comes to medication...everyone responds differently to taking them. Some notice a significant improvement, while others (like me) find the cons outweigh the pros and choose to knock them on the head. There may be another medication you’re more suited to, but at best it will only hopefully help ease some of the anxiety, it’s going to be the CBT your psychiatrist is providing where you’ll notice the most changes to how you’re feeling.

Hi, thank you for your answer Hal! 

I will definitely discuss this with her. I went with paroxetine as she said that it had the highest chance of helping with my ocd. She explained all the cons and I agreed to try it. I do feel better, my mood is better, but I have not seen any changes in my rituals or on anything related to my ocd. If paroxetine was indeed helping me with that, I think it would be easier to cope with the cons it brings. The bruises are something I'm actually worried about and really want to discuss it with her. She was very upfront that not everyone is fine with this medication, especially due to the weight increase and she put me at ease about changing to some other drug (I don't recall the name). She also said that it takes some time for the medication to actually do what is supposed to do, so until my appointment it might start helping with the ocd, I don't know... these side effects are relatively new as well... Sorry about the long answer ?

Link to comment

You might find the bruising resolves itself, but you’re absolutely doing the right thing wanting a professional opinion about it.

From what I gather it can have that side effect by itself, but for the time being it might also be worth steering away from taking any NSAID’s...apparently taking the two together can also cause bruising? 

It’s so tricky isn’t it, weighing it all up...if you’re feeling better mood-wise tho’ I would take that as a massive positive and something that will go a long way to helping you during the therapy. The thing to bear in mind with meds is they can only do so much...I wish they alone could stop the thoughts/rituals but that’s just not possible, unfortunately. People tend to think of them as water wings to help their mood and lessen the anxiety while tackling the OCD with the CBT....that’s where the shifts and progress are really going to happen for you?

(btw your reply isn’t long, believe me....I’ve been known to give War and Peace a good run for its money?)

Link to comment

8 to 12 weeks is a better estimate according to posts I saw. Keep trying. 
 

After a few months meds can become the compulsion.  So some doctors prefer to not prescribe them for too long. 

Link to comment

Unexplained bruising shouldn't ever be ignored, especially if it can be associated with the introduction of a new medication.  Bruising means bleeding, probably by ruptured capillaries  and could happen anywhere in the body.  As suģgested, avoid NSAID's (aspirin, ibuprofen, paracetamol....and alcohol) which can also add to this risk.  Have a word with your GP if this continues/worsens

Link to comment
2 hours ago, Handy said:

8 to 12 weeks is a better estimate according to posts I saw. Keep trying. 

4-6 week onset for improvement from SSRI's is the standard according to medical literature.  
 

2 hours ago, Handy said:

After a few months meds can become the compulsion.

SSRI's are non-addictive.  Though they can have withdrawal symptoms, taking medication on a regular basis as prescribed by a doctor is not a compulsion.  

Link to comment
On 18/11/2019 at 09:10, VNDO said:

This last week, I've noticed a couple of bruises on my legs and on my arm and after reading the package insert, I understand that can be one of the side effects.

I agree with @Caramoole that bruising is something that should be taken seriously.  Definitely avoid aspirin and other NSAID's while taking the drug until you resolve the bruising question.  That might be worth giving your doctor's office a call rather than waiting if it doesn't resolve itself relatively soon or gets worse.
 

On 18/11/2019 at 09:10, VNDO said:

I've been on paroxetine for a month and a half now, and I'll be getting my next appointment with my psychiatrist in early December.

As I mentioned above, the generally expected time frame for full effectiveness of the medication is 4-6 weeks, so a month and a half should be plenty of time.  Its possible the dosage you are on is too low to get full benefit, or that the medication is just not very effective for you.  That said you mention that your mood has improved which would be an improvement worth keeping in mind.  Your rituals, especially if you have been engaged in them for a while aren't going to just go away, you'll have to break yourself of those habits medication or no.  The medication might make it easier, but in my own experience, even with medication I still benefited quite a bit from CBT in helping me to avoid compulsive behaviors.

FYI, the alternative choices for SSRI's to treat OCD would be one of the following:
- fluoxetine
- citalopram
- escitalopram
- fluvoxamine
- sertraline

All of the medical literature I have seen (which is far from all of it, so there might be other info out there) suggests that as a group SSRI's are more or less equally effective as each other.  Unfortunately the results can vary quite a bit from individual to individual so there's some trial and error involved.  It may be that of the patients your doctor regularly sees paroxetine has been more effective than others, but of course if they try paroxetine first to begin with that means the odds will be weighed in favor of that drug :)  So the good news is you've got at least 5 other possible drugs, not to mention dosage levels to consider if paroxetine ends up not being the right choice for you and you want to consider using medication as part of your treatment plan.  Hopefully you can chat with your doctor sooner rather than later and get these issues and questions resolved.  Hang in there!

Link to comment

The only thing I take that is not prescribed is paracetamol as I suffer from a lot of headaches and migraines. The bruises have me actually worried, as they showed up out of nowhere. I had one on my arm, a very big one on my right leg and another one on my left leg. Two of them have disappeared by now, but I'm keeping my eye out for more. The doctor said that it would take approximately a month for the medication to start to work, but I don't think I have seen many changes.

I will definitely talk to the doctor about the other medication she also advised, as I don't think, for me, the cons of paroxetine at this moment, outweigh the benefits it brings me (i wish I could remembre the name of that other medication - I'm not 100% sure if it is sertraline ?).

With paroxetine, she wanted to start on a low dose, see how it worked and then build up from there. Maybe you're right and it's too low a dose for me to do anything ocd wise. 

Link to comment

From what I can gather paracetamol in combination with paroxetine is less of a risk factor with bruising than an NSAID, but I really would exercise some caution there too, at least for the time being until you can run this by your psychiatrist or GP. 


 

Link to comment

I had done some research as well and didn't think it do any harm, but now I don't know ? I stopped taking meds for migraines because it says in the package insert of paroxetine that I can't combined them and instead my psychiatrist prescribed me some other medication for it. As far as paracetamol goes, I didn't find any info that advised me not to take it, so I thought it would be ok. I will check with the doctor in my next appointment regardless!

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...