Seroxat in the News

For those of you who took an interest in the UK Seroxat litigation, a full judgement has been posted online here.

The judgement stipulates, "...the Claimants should pay the Defendant's costs of this litigation; those costs are paid on an indemnity basis from 21 June 2018 and there should be a payment on account of costs in the sum of £4.5 million."

With one case over, newer ones may be looming with regards to Seroxat causing birth defects, unless, of course, cases like these can't go to trial due to the Statute of Limitations coming into play.

"...the researchers noted that, compared to control groups, paroxetine-exposed mini-brains developed with up to 75% fewer oligodendrocytes, the support cells that are crucial for the proper "wiring" of the brain."

"The scientists, who published their findings in February in Frontiers of Cellular Neuroscience, used the mini-brains to determine that the antidepressant paroxetine, commonly called Paxil or Seroxat, suppresses the growth of synapses, which are the connection points between neurons, and leads to significant decreases in an important support-cell population. Paroxetine, which can cross the placenta in pregnant women, currently comes with a warning against use in early pregnancy, largely due to a known risk of heart and lung defects. Some epidemiological studies also have suggested that paroxetine raises the risk of autism."

Full story here.

Bob Fiddaman

PHE Review Dilutes SSRI Problem

Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone who worked hard to get this review to the table. The list is extensive, you all know who you are.

This post is dedicated to three warriors who were active within the prescribed harm community, they all recently died by prescription drug-induced suicide.

Thank you for fighting the cause:

Jo Dennison

Kata Balint

Shelley Johnson 

This post is in two parts. Part one is about the recent PHE review regarding the evidence for dependence on, and withdrawal from, prescribed medicines in the UK. Part two is about the current suicide 'expert' in the UK, Prof. Louis Appleby, and the president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Wendy Burn. Both parts are intertwined, one is about dependency, the other is about self-harm fatalities. I'll also be calling upon the current suicide prevention minister, Nadine Dorries, to carefully consider the serious issues raised here.

Report of the review of the evidence for dependence on, and withdrawal from, prescribed medicines.

Today is World Suicide Prevention Day and Public Health England (PHE) released a public health evidence review of available data and published evidence on the problems of dependence and withdrawal associated with some prescribed medicines.

Coincidence?

PHE review expert reference group members included Yasir Abbasi, Navjot Ahluwalia and Louis Appleby.

Abbasi has received honorarium for advisory board meetings or travel and accommodation for conferences from Indivior Pharma, Martindale Pharma, Bite Medical Pharma and Mundi Pharma.

Indivior market and manufacture Opioid addiction treatment drugs. Martindale, now known as Ethypharm, manufacture a whole host of drugs, including, but not limited to, painkillers. A Google search of Bite Medical Pharma shows no such company, but Bite Medical Consulting do exist. It appears as though they are a communications company. Safe to say that this means they ghostwrite. Some of their clients include Abbot and Lilly, both drug companies who market and manufacture brand and/or generic antidepressants. Mudi manufacture and market addiction medicines.

Ahluwalia carries out expert witness work and is the Executive Medical Director and Consultant Psychiatrist for Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust

Appleby is a Professor of Psychiatry who leads the National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England and directs the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness. More about Appleby later.

The Review

The review covered many aspects of prescription drugs, in particular, the withdrawal and dependency problems people face when trying to come off them. There was, however, a mixed message for the SSRI family of drugs.

Benzodiazepines, z-drugs, opioid pain medicines and gabapentinoids are associated with a risk of dependence and withdrawal.

Antidepressants are associated with withdrawal

PHE found that dependency exists on benzos, z-drugs, opioids and gabapentinoids but not antidepressants (SSRIs).

The 152-page review includes a definition of dependence. PHE writes:

Dependence ~ An adaptation to repeated exposure to some drugs and medicines usually characterised by tolerance and withdrawal, though tolerance may not occur with some. Dependence is an inevitable (and often acceptable) consequence of long-term use of some medicines and is distinguished here from addiction.

I'm confused?

Are SSRIs addictive or do people become dependent upon them, or is it neither?

On withdrawal, PHE defines it as: Physiological reactions when a drug or medicine that has been taken repeatedly is removed.

I'm still confused.

Confusion aside, it's nice to see they recognised the daily stigma patients, former patients and drug safety advocates face on a daily basis whenever they publicly share their adverse experiences withdrawing from SSRIs.

The recommendations made by PHE are as follows:

1 ~ Increasing the availability and use of data on the prescribing of medicines that can cause dependence or withdrawal to support greater transparency and accountability and help ensure practice is consistent and in line with guidance.

2 ~ Enhancing clinical guidance and the likelihood it will be followed.

3 ~ Improving information for patients and carers on prescribed medicines and other treatments, and increasing informed choice and shared decision-making between clinicians and patients.

4 ~ Improving the support available from the healthcare system for patients experiencing dependence on, or withdrawal from, prescribed medicines.

5 ~ Further research on the prevention and treatment of dependence on, and withdrawal from, prescribed medicines.

(1) You don't have the data, the drug companies have it. You will never be allowed to see any of the raw data.

(2) You cannot guide if you don't have the data

(3) Where will this information come from?

(4) Improving? This would imply that support is already in place and just needs tweaking. It isn't. It never has been!

(5) Research is meaningless without the raw data

For what it's worth, recommendations are meaningless words. I've written about this terminology before, it gives people false hope and allows those in charge to continue as they were, so to speak. It's not a law, it's not a rule, it's not punishable if prescribers fail to adhere. Call me cynical, but I dare say meaningless recommendations also serve to help systems stall buy some more time to avoid real action.

Back in 2010, a jury at the inquest of Canadian teen, Sara Carlin, returned a list of 17 recommendations. Sara died a violent, akathisia-induced death after ingesting an SSRI known as Paxil in Canada, better known as Seroxat in the UK. These iatrogenic deaths from drug-induced delirium and self harm are typically labeled suicides by coroners. So it is possible Prof. Appleby and organizations purported to reduce suicides could recognize the loss of Sara today. But it is improbable that will happen given Sara's death doesn't help them promote more drugs ("treatments").

Today, nine years after Sara's death, guess how many of those 17 recommendations have been implemented?

None.

Nada.

Zilch.

Sara's death was a kick in the butt for me personally. It made me rethink why I became an advocate/activist. People are dying as a result of taking SSRIs and whilst withdrawal/dependency/addiction (delete where necessary) are important topics, I feel iatrogenic deaths also need to be immediately addressed.

The SSRI withdrawal issue will never be resolved as long as there is no alternative drug in the pipeline waiting to be promoted. In the meantime, the public will continue to be informed of recommendations that are little more than token gestures. These gestures may serve to keep some advocates quiet and give med organizations and rampant prescribers a break from public scrutiny and accountability. As I tweeted early this morning, barbiturates were viewed as having no problems until benzos arrived on the scene. Benzos were viewed as having no problems until SSRIs arrived on the scene. SSRI risks will be played down until a different class of drug arrives on the scene to take a lucrative centre stage.

Don't worry, folks, that may happen sooner than you think. A new way of administering depression treatment is already on the market. Spravato (esketamine) is used as a nasal spray to treat treatment-resistant depression (TRD)

TRD is basically a term used when all else fails or when the drugs a person is currently taking stop working. Janssen, the drug manufacturer, provided the FDA with modest evidence it worked and then only in limited trials. It presented no information about the safety of Spravato for long-term use beyond 60 weeks. Now get this, three patients who received the drug died by suicide during the clinical trials, compared with none in the placebo group. But hey, this never stopped the FDA from granting it a licence.

Come back to this blog of mine in 10 years and you'll probably see me writing, "I told you so."

Eventually, and if they have their way, drugs like esketamine will flood the market. Then, and only then, will prescribers speak out en masse about the terrible dependency SSRIs cause.

The Apple That Burns

Earlier I mentioned the three PHE review expert reference group members. The third, Louis Appleby, leads the National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England. He is failing on a grand scale.

A few weeks ago Appleby chastised a member of the prescribed harm community on Twitter. Appleby was soon joined by the Royal College of Psychiatrists leader, Wendy Burn in the condemnation of the website host of antidepaware. The website promotes awareness of the dangers of antidepressants and includes links to reports of inquests held in England and Wales since 2003. The antidepaware author lost a son to SSRI-induced suicide in 2009 and since the creation of the website, in 2014, has tried to make the public aware of the dangers that are, in the main, dismissed by prescribers.

Appleby and Burn were wrong to target a fellow-advocate, particularly given antidepaware has done more than what they have to reduce the ever-increasing rate of suicide in the UK. Many other advocates threw their support behind antidepaware. Appleby, the man who apparently takes all forms of suicide seriously, responded by blocking them. He even blocked parents whose children have died as a result of SSRI-induced suicide.

With this in mind, I threw out a question to both Appleby and Burn on Twitter, a straightforward question that neither has answered despite being asked by me in nine repeated tweets. I have also sent both an email, and both have failed to respond. Here's the question they refuse to answer, or even acknowledge: "Can SSRIs induce death by self-harm?"

One has to ask why Appleby and Burn are refusing to answer a simple, relevant question. Burn in the past has claimed how important informed consent is but when push comes to shove she cannot provide me, or the public for that matter, with an answer regarding whether SSRIs can induce death by self-harm. Instead, Burn's Twitter timeline has been full of Lithium promotion, cat photos, and Play-Doh images.

Both Appleby and Burn need to resign. Appleby's treatment of those who inquire about SSRI-induced deaths has been abhorrent to watch from the sidelines. Burn's failure in recognising the SSRI withdrawal problem also needs to be condemned, as does both of their silence stances surrounding informed consent.

Shortly, I'll be writing to the current suicide prevention minister, Nadine Dorries, to voice my concerns regarding Appleby and Burn. I've written to ministers before and they've been pretty useless in their responses. I don't expect Dorries will intervene but I have an ethical obligation to try.

Suicide Prevention Day is about prevention. By refusing to speak with safety advocates and the bereaved just because their children, wives, husbands, brothers or sisters died iatrogenic deaths does nothing to reduce suicides and increase awareness of adverse drug effects that precipitate these violent, avoidable deaths.

If you want to prevent something from happening, you cover all bases and not just the ones that suit your blinkered views. Shame on Burn and shame on Appleby for keeping me, and others, in the dark regarding informed consent. Informed consent is a basic human right. Without accurate info, there can be no real medical freedom of choice.

On a final note, I want to also condemn Wendy Burn's college in general. On the day when suicide prevention was the paramount message they tweeted the following:

Those online resources they refer to include medications that are associated with suicidal thoughts and suicidal completion. Shame on them.

If you think all of the above is just the rantings of a conspiratorial mad man then read how Wendy Burn and her colleagues treated a fellow psychiatrist when he brought to their attention the dangers of Seroxat, a drug, that after many years he is still trying to withdraw from.

"You’d think that my colleagues would be generally sympathetic. However, I have been marginalised, ignored and vilified as a troublemaker — and a leading member of the RCPsych even wrote to my employer questioning my sanity." ~ Peter Gordon, Psychiatrist

Full story here

Bob Fiddaman

The Truth About SSRI Withdrawal/Dependence

The following legal brief has rarely been seen by members of the public. Read through it and you'll understand why.

It's a fascinating read and highlights just how GSK hid the withdrawal issues surrounding their popular antidepressant, Paxil.

Many readers will find the following PDF too much to bear. Many will be angered by it, and rightly so. I hope many of you will pass it on to family, friends and even healthcare professionals.

For me, at least, it's the most damning document to ever surface out of litigation. The litigation in question saw GlaxoSmithKline settle with over 3,000 plaintiffs who had struggled to taper off Paxil. Much of the evidence was sealed as part of the 'gagging order' - However, this legal brief gives us an insight into the incestuous relationship between GSK and the FDA. It also shows us how GSK carefully manipulated the system thus putting thousands of future patients through utter misery with debilitating side-effects of withdrawal.

The Yugoslavia trials, mentioned in the document below, are very interesting. Glaxo sponsored the two phases of these trials. In Phase I all patients were given Paxil, in Phase II some were switched to placebo. It was at this stage that the placebo patients began experiencing severe withdrawal issues. Glaxo chose to define this as "relapse" data. This would give them the ammunition to announce later that patients who stayed on Paxil continued to enjoy a normal, "depression free" life, but those abandoning the drug would suffer relapse back into a depressive state.

Back in 2015 I, under the Freedom of Information Act, requested from the MHRA the protocol for this particular clinical trial and whether or not that protocol included information and/or guidance on Paxil withdrawal. The MHRA wrote me and said they "didn't hold that information."

Here's the legal brief.

Bob Fiddaman

Guest Post - Benzo Addiction - 'My Story' by Barry Haslam

Although this blog is, in the main, about the dangers of SSRI type medications I have, over the years, also read many horrific stories about those who, through no fault of their own, have become dependent to benzodiazipines. Barry Haslam (below) is one such victim. His account regarding his time on Ativan is strikingly similar to other guest posts on this blog.

Barry, now a sprightly 73, has been campaigning for many years and during my own 10-year research into this murky world of pharma and limp-wristed regulators his name has always popped up from time to time, hardly surprising as he has been banging the drum loudly for many years.

Described by some as 'a pain in the ass', Barry gets things done and with the support of his wife, Sue, whom he has been married to for 45 years, he is a force to be reckoned with.

Be sure to watch the video at the foot of his guest post.

Barry is a fine example of someone standing up to be counted - at 73 he shouldn't have to be doing this, he chose to because he wants to, he chooses to help others because he knows the hell of benzo withdrawal. He chooses to because he is a humanist.

As employees of the British drug regulator sit and drink their lattes they should take a long, hard look at the work that Barry has done, work that they get paid to do yet are failing miserably to deliver.

Take a bow young sir.

Bob Fiddaman.

My Story by Barry Haslam


My story starts in 1976. I had a nervous breakdown whilst studying for my Accountancy Technician examination ( which I passed with distinction ). Plus I was holding down 2 jobs and bringing up a young family. My daughters where then aged 5 and 7 .

I was then prescribed a series of benzodiazepine /antidepressant drugs for 5 years. This information was gleaned from my medical records at a later date (from 1976 until 1986) I have complete memory loss, no memory at all. Then in 1981 I was prescribed 10 mgs daily of the drug Ativan, until in 1985 I was being doctor prescribed 30 mgs of Ativan daily. This amount of Ativan is equal to 300 mgs of Diazepam daily or 15 mgs of Klonopin daily. In addition by this time my headaches where so severe, because of the Ativan, that my doctors where prescribing me 12 opiate painkillers daily.

"My drug induced coma destroyed 10 years of my memory bank permanently."

As a direct result of this horrendously prescribed drug polypharmacy I had become extremely violent towards my wife Sue, who I love dearly. I never actually hit her but came close to doing so. After another violent episode, I actually realised in a moment of lucidity that it must be the drugs causing my perverse behaviour. I am actually a very quiet person but the drug Ativan turned me into a Monster. So on the 19th of March 1986 I withdrew myself from all prescribed drugs, with no help at all from my doctors, who where clueless or frightened of their medical negligence towards me. The factual contents of this story were taken from my medical records years later when I moved to another doctor and my wife, Sue, also verified the drug regime I was on at the time. My drug induced coma destroyed 10 years of my memory bank permanently.

By this time I had lost half my body weight and was down to 7 stone, my rib cage could be clearly seen. The withdrawals where horrendous over my 15-month self-withdrawal period. Vomiting daily, hallucinations, sweats, creatures crawling under my skin and scalp, severe headaches, stomach and urinary problems, intense neuropathic pain all down my right leg, horrendous nightmares where I was frightened of going to sleep, manic anger, joint pains and many other symptoms. I withdrew at home during this entire period.

Due to benzos being stored in the blood, fat tissue and the bone marrow, my immune system was badly affected. I have permanent brain damage (proved by 2 MRI brain scans which show atrophy ie shrinkage.) I also suffer with hypothyroidism, daily chronic migraines, memory and concentration problems and spinal arthritis. Despite these iatrogenic drug-induced injuries I love life and its challenges. My lovely wife, Sue, has supported me throughout. We have now been married for 45 years and have 3 lovely grandchildren.  I can now watch them grow up, an experience denied to me with my own 2 daughters which I regret dearly.

I have now been campaigning at local, national and international level on this public health scandal and government cover up for the last 28 years. The following questions need to be asked to those responsible, certainly in the UK where government departments and ministers have thrown this issue in the long grass, terrified of taking the lid off this Pandora Box, prescribed drug epidemic, where no one has ever been held responsible or made accountable for this national scandal.

Why have the doctors and psychiatrists ignored the 1988 Committee on Safety of Medicines Guidelines on the prescribing of benzodiazepines?  Ie. prescribe for 2 to 4 weeks only?

Why are the same physicians making the same mistakes with the newer Z drugs which are a benzo by another name?  These drugs act on the same brain receptors and transmitters.

Why are alternative therapies such as CBT not more available for patients rather than being given addictive, mind-altering chemicals? Benzodiazepines are a derivative of ammonia.

"For decades the British Government have perpetuated iatrogenic drug addiction by sweeping the issue under the carpet and walking away from accountability to its citizens."

Why have we over 1 million dependent on benzodiazepine, which has been deliberately allowed to grow by the medical profession and weak and ineffective government?  Warning signs were there in the 1970s and 80s. The Committee on Review of Medicines in 1980 stated that the efficacy of benzodiazepines was 4 months only for use as anxiety and 7 to 21 days for use as a hypnotic. So what went wrong? The above CRM fudged the issues by stating that that from 1960 to 1977 only 28 persons had become dependent on benzodiazepine drugs. Complete utter rubbish and a massive cover-up by all concerned as during that period 350 million scripts were issued to patients. A SCANDAL OF GIGANTIC PROPORTIONS.  Swept under the carpet by those very health officials whose responsibilities should have been to innocent patients and not the Profit and Loss Account of the Pharmaceutical Industry and its shareholders. For decades the British Government has perpetuated iatrogenic drug dependency by sweeping the issue under the carpet and walking away from accountability to its citizens. Cowards the lot of them.

"All our work at Tranx is done by volunteers, ex-benzo patients and carers with no remuneration, just the love of helping people recover their way through drug dependency and return back to themselves and their families."

In 2004 I managed to ‘persuade’ Oldham Primary Care Trust to fund a Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Service for persons living in the town. We estimated that at the time we had 5,200 such long-term prescribed benzodiazepine drug dependents in our area. The contract to provide such services was won by a Charity called Addiction Dependency Solutions which has over 30 branches in the North West of England. It is the only National Health fully funded service in the country and it is still ongoing and successfully withdrawing patients from benzos, z drugs and painkillers. Plus ADS also link up with Oldham Tranx of which I am the Chairman. Tranx has now been giving peer support to the prescribed drug dependents and surrounding districts for 25 years now. All our work at Tranx is done by volunteers, ex-patients and carers with no remuneration, just the love of helping people recover their way through drug dependency and return back to themselves and their families. We put our ‘acquired’ knowledge to good use. Plus we also refer to Professor C.Heather Ashtons of Newcastle University Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Protocol and I count Heather as a good friend and colleague. She is a remarkable lady.

It is this combination of an NHS fully funded facility allied to a voluntary support group such as Tranx that I feel is the way forward in order to tackle this man-made epidemic.

I invited the Minister for Public Health in England to Oldham a couple of years ago to see for herself the progress that we are making. At the meeting, she turned to speak with the Director of Public Health in Oldham and asked “ How did you get involved in all this? “ Smiling he pointed his finger at me and said, “ It was because of Barry, he was a pain in the backside with us, so we had to actively look for a solution to Oldham’s prescribed drug problems.”

So by being a pain in the butt to health officials I have managed to obtain such services to help those who are in desperate need. I am only a little guy and no braver than the next person but I do know right from wrong. This prescribed global prescribed drug epidemic is so wrong. Can I please say to my US friends and fellow benzo patients and ex-patients, never give up hope because YOU can make a difference as an individual and as a group.  We keep fighting for recognition, justice, and dedicated services.

God Bless You,

Barry Haslam
Chair, Oldham Tranx. England.

Oldham Tranx
The Link Centre for Independent Living,
140 Union Street, Oldham OL1 1DZ
on Mondays from 11:00am - 1:00pm

Contact Barry

SSRI Tips and Tricks on Withdrawal

One thing you won't see on SSRI patient information leaflets is how to combat the withdrawal effects. There are literally dozens and dozens of Facebook groups offering support to those struggling the debilitating withdrawal effects of SSRIs such as Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft etc. These groups are patients who have either gone through or are going through SSRI withdrawal - they shouldn't be dismissed, in fact, they are far better than what health care professionals have to offer.

The drug companies or medicine regulators won't help, to do so would be an admittance that SSRIs can, for many, cause serious problems when withdrawing and if they admit there's a problem then this will be a sign that they have licensed a drug, or drugs, to the public that can make matters worse rather than rectify or subdue the problem they were originally prescribed for.

When one takes a look at the patient information leaflet one sees the phrase that the benefits of taking an antidepressant outweigh the risks - the risks being thoughts of self-harm, suicide and akathisia, which, in essence, is a pre-cursor to completion of suicide.

Health committees spring up every now and again, their sole purpose, it appears, is to recognise there is a problem withdrawing from SSRIs and, well, and nothing. They offer no advice, they don't tell us why - they merely give you hope by stopping the carousel, asking you for your story then, putting you back on the carousel, ergo leaving you to deal with your problems by yourself - they will of course throw out the one line that covers their arse, "Talk to your doctor."

Most people that have wrote me over the years have told me that their doctors either up their dose when they experience withdrawal or change/substitute one SSRI for another - these patients then leave armed with a prescription and a ticket to ride the carousel.

For years the line 'Talk to your doctor' has been used as a tool by the pharmaceutical industry. To promote the use of SSRIs adverts have appeared on TV, in magazines, by proxy on radio shows where the host has been paid vast amounts of money to persuade listeners to use a certain brand of drug. When the problem of withdrawal kicks in, pharmaceutical companies and medicine regulators continue to use the 'Talk to you doctor' line, knowing that any prescribing doctor does not have a clue how to help people suffering severe withdrawal - Okay, there are some who know how to help, eg; Healy et al, but these are few and far between - perfect for the industry and regulators because it means they continue passing the buck, at the same time avoiding potential lawsuits for defective products.

Speaking of lawsuits, in 2002 GlaxoSmithKline settled with over 3,000 plaintiffs who had claimed that Paxil caused serious withdrawal problems of many kinds, resulting in patients unable to stop taking the drug. The settlement (with each plaintiff) saw them sign a confidentiality agreement whereby they could not discuss the award (monetary) they received from Glaxo. Here's how it works...

Any lawsuit claiming severe withdrawal effects from an SSRI will be denied and defended in a number of stages.

A - We warned them (the patient) already.

B - It was the condition whereby the patient declined into a spiral of decline, ergo this caused depression and the patient suffered anxiety as a result of his underlying illness and coming off the drug that was treating his underlying illness.. (In other words it wasn't a withdrawal effect, it was agitation caused by him stopping the drug.  We utterly refute this claim as our drug has benefited millions of people world wide...yadda yadda.

Prosecution team will point out that even by the drug company's own admission their drug can induce severe withdrawal effects and this is where the pharmaceutical company will argue point C.

C - Yes your honour, but we don't believe that to be the case in this particular litigation, we believe it to be the underlying illness that caused what plaintiff deems as 'withdrawal effects'.

When they feel the case slipping out of their hands they offer a settlement, one which they don't have to admit any wrong-doing.

It's a game and pharmaceutical companies play it to their advantage.

Brain zaps

One problem that exists with SSRI withdrawal is the "brain zaps" - if you've never experienced these you are one of the lucky ones - the only way to combat these (to make them go away) is to stop withdrawing and start taking your medication again at the prescribed dose (back on the carousel you go)

Looking through the Facebook support groups it seems the brain zaps is one of the more common side effects - it's played down by pharmaceutical companies and regulators.

In laypersons terms, or to use an analogy, brain zaps is basically your brain trying to deal with something it has become accustomed to over the months, years you having been taking the drug - it's no different to any other reduction you may encounter apart from the fact it gives you this feeling like your brain is being poked by a cattle prod, resulting in your whole body jerking, twitching. Turning your head too quick gives the effect of dizziness - this 'dizziness' is, once again, played down by the pharmaceutical industry and regulators. When reading the patient information leaflet you will see 'dizziness' as a common side effect - it looks harmless - hey, what's a bit of dizziness? For some the dizziness is best described as feeling like a cartoon character, you know they type, the kind of characters whose eyes are able to be pulled out before being let go and retracting at high speed back into their sockets.

More often than not withdrawal will cause this problem. You may turn your head and feel that your eyes do not follow your turn, they are left temporarily stationary in their original position. Once your head is turned it will take them a split second longer to follow the movement of your head - this will cause you the 'dizziness' referred to in the patient information leaflets - this is what taking, or withdrawing from an SSRI, can be like for a lot of people. The vast majority of which find it difficult to describe this 'dizziness' to their doctors.

The brain zaps  (your brain wanting it's normal daily fix) is your brain reminding you to feed it. For months or years you have been feeding it a regular dose - so, if you lived on three potatoes, chicken and vegetables for a year, and that meal satisfied you, gave you a sense of being full upon eating it, it then stands to reason if someone came along and removed a piece of chicken or potato, you'd be pretty pissed off - your meal wouldn't satisfy you anymore  - you'd be left unfulfilled and you'd probably reach for a snack to fill the gap that the missing potato or chicken piece had left. Same goes for when you are tapering from an SSRI - Your brain has become used to it's regular meal of potatoes, chicken and vegetables.

Now, imagine if just one pea was taken from your daily meal, it wouldn't be so bad, and you probably wouldn't even notice it, right? This is how you have to taper. Personally, I came down by just half a milligram per week. Some weeks, when I wasn't ready to drop another half, I didn't. My body, my rules.

The God Factor

Throw a stethoscope around a neck, give that stethoscope-wearing person a title, such as 'Dr', and you have before you a person that can fix any ailment you may have. These people have been through years of training, they are clever, so much more intelligent than you and I, right?

Wrong.

They have been trained to basically spot symptoms then use a medicine to treat that symptom - that is all - they don't have a magic wand, they do not have healing hands - they are not your modern day Jesus Christ nor indeed should they be treated as such. They are just normal people who chose a career path because they felt the need to want to help people - it's admirable that any human would want to care for another human - Sadly, the pharmaceutical industry is a machine that is constantly striving to see a niche in the market - to take control of that niche they first need to target the agents who sell their wares - namely; your prescribing physician. They, through various methods, convince the young Dr going through med school that they are the good guys, that depression is a disease that can be stabilized and controlled. Somewhere along the line financial and marital problems have become a disease as have fears that have been with us since the year dot. Shyness, being anxious because you have to give a speech are just two examples - both treatable with an array of meds, or so we are told.

If you've read this far down then you are probably here because of the title of this post, "SSRI Tips and Tricks on Withdrawal."

It's important to know why you are here and reading all of the above will, hopefully, give you the reason. You are not crazy, you are not in the minority, you are not abnormal - the drug you were prescribed was licensed by a regulator based upon the benefits you may receive from it. To date, the British drug regulator, cannot list one single benefit for any of the SSRIs on the market. They claim that these invisible benefits outweigh the highly visible risks - You've been duped ladies and gentlemen, just like your prescribing physician. (Source - Correspondence between myself and the MHRA)

So, the zaps - horrible aren't they? Kind of make you curl up into the fetal position because that's the only way you can cope, right?

There is a way that may or may not help you. It's free, it doesn't involve putting anything into your body apart from tap water (or bottled water if you prefer) - in fact, water is used a lot in these series of tips.

You won't see these on the patient information leaflet because, well, because the whole idea of selling sickness is to not warn you about the severe side effects you may experience.

1. If you decide to taper do so in the winter months and not the summer months. I can't quite put my finger on why you should choose the colder months but I know, through my own tapering experience of Paxil withdrawal, that it seemed to be worse when it was warmer outside.

2. Never try to quit by going cold turkey. Don't attempt to taper by missing doses every other day. Don't attempt to taper by halving your pill, although for some (Cymbalta for example) there is no liquid formulation, which brings me on to tip number three.

3. Taper using the liquid formulation (if you can) - Don't ask your Dr for the liquid, tell him/her - Dr's are there to help you and, at the end of the day it is you that is suffering the withdrawal, it is your brain crying out for its extra potato each time you skip or halve a dose. Tell your Dr you want to be prescribed the liquid - Do not ask.

4. Go at your own pace when withdrawing, this is not a sprint, it's a marathon and may take many months or even years to get completely off the drug. Again, many Dr's will dispute this, if they do then give them the middle finger - remember, this is your plate you are eating from and not theirs.

5. The dreaded brain zaps - Okay, this is my own personal tip, it helped me somewhat.

Run a bath full of cold water. Find a suitably sized bath towel and soak the towel in the water. Wring the towel and wrap it around your head in the style of a turban. Keep repeating this process once the towel starts to dry or if the zaps appear again.

6. Run cold water over your wrists (the part where you feel your pulse)

7. Go for walks (again the winter months is probably best) - Don't overdress - wear loose clothing - this may be difficult as you have probably gained a lot of weight during your time on your SSRI. Walk and push yourself - don't just walk around the block, find a park, tell yourself you are going to lap the park just by walking - treat the cold weather as your friend. Treat the walk as a way of helping you and not as a chore - at the same time weight will fall off you - let the daily walk be your addiction.

8. Drink lots of water, up to 8 pints a day - yes, it seems a ridiculous amount but you are basically helping flush out the culprit causing you the problem - If you can't manage 8 pints then just drink as much as you can - in any event, water is good for you.

None of the above will cost you a single penny - give it a try and write to me in a few months time to let me know if you feel you are on the road to recovery after using these tips.

In the meantime, good luck - you will get there - maybe once you do, you can advocate and help others stuck in this rut of SSRI withdrawal, particularly children.



Bob Fiddaman
Former Paxil addict.

Seroxat Withdrawal Woes Continue for British Patients

Despite Glaxo denying that there's any real problem with getting off their antidepressant, Seroxat, many patients are still struggling to do just that.

What do Glaxo do about it?

Nothing.

What about the British drug regulator, the MHRA?

Nothing.

So, it's left to support groups created, in the main, by former sufferers of Seroxat withdrawal. One such support group is Paxil Paroxetine, Seroxat..The truth in getting off safely, a Facebook group where over 1,000 sufferers of Seroxat withdrawal write about their daily plight, a plight which both GlaxoSmithKline and the MHRA ignore. How caring they both are!

The group was created by two former Seroxat users, one of whom is still on Seroxat, he is still, after 14 years, trying to withdraw. The other, a former nurse, slow tapered for 56 months (almost 5 years) to get off just 20 mg of Glaxo's powerful antidepressant.

GlaxoSmithKline will have no doubt seen the comments, they will have, no doubt, cringed at some of the tales on there but, as is the norm, they will have also ignored them and classed them merely as "anecdotal evidence". Same can be said for the MHRA.

In the meantime, it's patients helping patients because the manufacturer and those responsible for regulating the product that comes from the manufacturer are too busy burying their heads in the sand over the whole Seroxat addiction issue. Hardly surprising, given that the current CEO of the British drug regulator is the former World Safety Officer for GSK. I mean, if they acknowledge a problem now then questions will be asked why they missed the problem years ago, right?

Here's a selection of reader comments from the Facebook support group, each one being accompanied by support and advice. Something neither GlaxoSmithKline nor the MHRA offer.

Coming off of this drug is absolutely horrendous. Any change in dosage and it's like I fall into the fiery depths of withdrawal. I have a husband who is trying his best to be supportive, and 4 beautiful boys that can't understand why mommy is so sick, and so angry. I'm trying my best to get through this, and praying God doesn't make me suffer long. This is absolutely miserable.

After dropping too much too fast in December/January --9mg down to 7mg then down to 5 mg , and withdrawal hitting hard last week-I up-dosed to my last stable dose last Friday (went back to 9 mg). By later Saturday and Sunday I was feeling quite better. Then Monday came and I was terrible again and still am. Nausea, vomiting, racing inside, ruminating thoughts, can't regulate body temp, flushing with any bit of stress, extreme crying spells, agitation, etc.

I was on Seroxat for 12 years, I did some awful things to myself whilst I was on it, I came off it only because I was pregnant with my son and it would have caused serious harm to him, which I found out 3 months into my pregnancy. The withdrawal was awful I had to go onto liquid form it was one of the hardest things I have ever done.

I've been taking Seroxat for 17/18 years. I have been trying for years to come off it, by using the suspension liquid form. Reducing it by 1 ml has given me the shakes in the past. I managed to get down to just 1.5mls using a syringe. 

I have dropped my dose from 40 mg to 20 mg. Been a little over a week now.  Been on it for 14 months now. Gained 40 lbs. never interested in anything anymore. So far since I dropped my dose, I get God-awful brain zaps and I'm very irritable. The insomnia is driving me and my family nuts.

Been 2 months on 10mg after tapering down. Waking up with a bad headache, not sure if from disturbed sleep because of the disturbing dreams.

As of last Wednesday I have finally tapered myself off Seroxat after 15 years. Feeling really awful. Contrast dizziness and headaches. Feeling faint all the time. Struggling to focus at work too.  Feels like I am sea-sick, drunk and hungover all at the same time.

There are many more.


GlaxoSmithKline will be defending allegations later this year in the UK that Seroxat causes serious adverse events in a number of people who take it - they claim that there is "no merit in the claims".
They had previously, via lawyers, tried to get the litigation stopped but were denied by the presiding Judge (Back story)

Contrast the above withdrawal comments with those from 2007 that appeared via an online protest petition, here, here and here and one could suggest that there are no merits in GlaxoSmithKline's defence. Let's hope, when those previously unseen documents are aired in court, that someone might see fit to open clinics for those still suffering at the hands of Glaxo's infamous antidepressant, let's hope too that Glaxo will have to foot the bill.

Groups such as "Paxil Paroxetine, Seroxat..The truth in getting off safely" should be applauded, they are doing the work (unpaid) that both Glaxo (paid) and the MHRA (paid) should be doing.




Bob Fiddaman.

Seroxat - Project 1059 Laden With Withdrawal Problems

GlaxoSmithKline are defending allegations that it's antidepressant, Seroxat, known as Paxil in the US, causes severe withdrawal reactions when patients have tried to taper of of it. They have settled similar allegations in the US with over 3,000 claimants, all of whom went on to sign confidentiality agreements - the official line of that particular case was that it was "resolved."

Later this year sees GlaxoSmithKline defend the same allegations, this time in the UK. The case has been running for 8 years plus and at no time have GlaxoSmithKline, via their representative lawyers, Addleshaw Goddard, made any offer of settlement to the 105 plaintiffs in the case.

So, there's a kind of stale-mate. 105 claimants allege they suffered severe withdrawal reactions when trying to wean themselves from Seroxat - Glaxo have maintained that "We believe the product is not defective and that there is therefore no merit in this litigation."

No merit?

Let's go back in time, to the year 2000.

James Ballenger, MD, was chair of the Medical University of South Carolina’s Department of Psychiatry, and he had been carrying out a long-term panic disorder study in 2000, Seroxat was the choice of drug. The study was cancelled by GlaxoSmithKline (then SmithKline Beecham) after they learned that Ballenger's findings had found something that they wanted to keep quiet - Severe withdrawal effects in adults that take them!


"There are some data that no amount of spin will fix."

As with most clinical studies, Glaxo had, just like they did in Study 329, hired a ghostwriter to draft the positive results from Ballenger's study.

Once again, just as in Glaxo's infamous 329 study, Sally K. Laden was handed the job of turning bad into good. Sadly, for Glaxo at least, even Laden couldn't spin the results of Ballenger's study, (known as "project 1059")

Internal emails between Laden and Daniel Burnham of SmithKline Beecham show Burnham write the following...

"The issue of discontinuation sx [side effects] vs. relapse is obviously a concern of the J Clinical Psychiatry reviewers... Thus we have decided to terminate further work on this manuscript."

The industry prefer to call withdrawal issues "discontinuation problems".

What is striking about this correspondence is Laden's response to Burnham...

“We understand your reasons for cancelling this project. There are some data that no amount of spin will fix, and these certainly fall into this category.”

This, to me at least, suggests that Laden was familiar with spinning poor results into bad.

Laden then told her bosses at Scientific Therapeutics Information, Inc. (STI)...

“Yes, Virginia, there is a God. SB cancelled our project 1059 (long term panic disorder study). Reason: the side effect data was terribly unfavorable to our favorite antidepressant. And we hate when that happens!”

Definition of 'terribly' -  very, extremely, hugely, intensely, immensely, dreadfully, incredibly, extraordinarily, seriously.


In a 2012 interview with investigative journalist Dyan Neary, Ballenger said...

“What that study in retrospect probably showed for the first time was that there’s withdrawal from the medicine…your body might miss it.”

Hmm, dependency anyone?

Question we really should be asking here is why didn't GlaxoSmithKline, when they knew of the severe withdrawal problems, carry out their own study into these problems raised in Ballenger's study? Why did they sit on this information? Myself, and others, would then not have had to endure the horrific withdrawal problems - had myself, and others, had previously know about these "terrible" side effects, we would never had taken Seroxat.

The prosecution rests, m'lud.

Here's the emails. (Click to enlarge)

Something for Glaxo's UK lawyers, Addleshaw Goddard, to mull over, perhaps.

Bob Fiddaman.

Competing interests

I am one of the 105 claimants in the UK group action.

Fortitude Law Take on Seroxat Cases in UK

The Seroxat group action has been running for almost 10 years now. GSK have, for whatever reason, refused to make any kind of settlement to the 107 claimants who have alleged that they suffered severe withdrawal at the hands of Seroxat and, more importantly, were not warned about this dependency problem.

In 2010 the group action came to a grinding halt. A legal battle, behind the scenes, was unfolding and claimants, of which I am one, had their public funding withdrawn. This is quite common in UK action against pharmaceutical companies.

Sufficed to say, the group action was put on hold (stayed) whilst the legal wrangles were ironed out.

Good news is, we now have new representation.

Fortitude Law, a law firm based in London, are now representing the UK claimants and are set to return to the High Court to confront GlaxoSmithKline and show them evidence that Seroxat caused these withdrawal reactions to the claimants. I assume it will be the same evidence that US courts were shown back in 2002 when 3,000 or so claimants alleged that Seroxat caused them dependency. Glaxo resolved that case yet refuse to do the same in the UK.

The Fortitude Law website has now gone live and they have a contact form on there for people wishing to ask questions about the current group action.

Fortitude Law can be found here.



Bob Fiddaman.

MHRA Missing Key Seroxat/Paxil Withdrawal Information

You may remember that back in July I wrote about the Yugoslavia paroxetine (Seroxat UK, Paxil US) trial (here and here)

In 1988 GSK, then SmithKline Beecham (SKB) sponsored clinical trials in Yugoslavia. The purpose of the trials was to show how Paxil (known as Seroxat in the UK) could, when stopped, cause a relapse in depression. SKB never took into account that those relapsing (after stopping Paxil) could have been suffering withdrawal symptoms.

With the results they wanted, SKB then provided the FDA with apparent evidence that showed patients staying on Paxil continued to enjoy a normal, "depression free" life, but that those abandoning the drug would suffer relapse back into a depressive state.

Seeing as Glaxo are a British pharmaceutical company I decided to write to the British drug regulator (MHRA) to request, under the freedom of information act, information relating to Glaxo's trials in Yugoslavia.

My email to them read...



Dear Sir/Madam, 

Pursuant to the federal Freedom of Information Act, I request access to and copies of a a clinical trial in Yugoslavia that commenced in 1988.

The trial was, as far as I am aware, sponsored by SmithKline Beecham (SKB) and was known as the "Yugoslavia trial" or "relapse trial."

I am specifically requesting the protocol for this particular clinical trial and whether or not that protocol included information and/or guidance on Paxil withdrawal.

I look forward to your reply within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely,

-- 
Bob Fiddaman




The MHRA have now answered this request.

Are you holding your breath folks?

The current Chief Executive of the MHRA is Dr. Ian Hudson. Before joining the MHRA, Hudson was the World Safety Officer for GlaxoSmithKline (then SKB)

Later this year GlaxoSmithKline will be defending allegations in the UK regarding Seroxat withdrawal. One of Glaxo's experts to be called will be Dr. Rashmi Shah. Shah was employed by the MHRA between 1987 and 2004. Positions held were Senior Medical Officer, Senior Clinical Assessor and Senior Medical Assessor.

You can draw your own conclusions.

Bob Fiddaman.

C-Day for Eli Lilly

I do love it when pharmaceutical companies enter into trials (litigation) in the small hope that they can persuade judges to toss cases on points of law.

Litigation fascinates me and it's something that has been very much part of my reading materiel over the past few years or so. I should have studied law, I guess it's never too late - sadly I have the memory of a sieve and don't think I could soak and retain any information given to me... and then sit a bar exam. So, it's just a hobby of mine to read through court transcripts and depositions.

There are many stages of litigation before it actually gets into court. In the main, both sides try and strike a deal that will suit both parties, those making the claim and those defending the claim. Pharmaceutical attorneys are in the business of saving their clients money so they will do pretty much everything in their power to make it difficult for plaintiffs. America is different to the UK in the respect that Pharmaceutical companies, when facing group actions (class-action lawsuits) try to consolidate them all so they are heard in a specific state, a state that may have a different set of rules (laws) than any other state, a state that normally gives them a better chance of success (due to favourable laws)

Pharmaceutical attorneys also apply for "Summary Judgement". In a nutshell this means that they apply to a judge and ask him to strike the cases against them because, "they will argue that no factual issues remain to be tried and therefore a cause of action or all causes of action in a complaint can be decided upon certain facts without trial."


One recent motion for "Summary Judgement" came in the cases Herrera v. Eli Lilly and Company (case no. 2:13-cv-2702-SVW-MAN) and Hexum v. Eli Lilly and Company (case no. 2:13-cv-2701-SVW-MAN)

Eli Lilly and Company are defending cases brought against them regarding their antidepressant, Cymbalta. The crux of the claim is that Lilly failed to adequately warn the plaintiffs and their physicians of Cymbalta’s true withdrawal risks. Lilly filed a motion for "Summary Judgement" and the judge (Judge Stephen V. Wilson, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Los Angeles) denied them this motion. Now, Lilly go to trial to face the allegations and, more than likely, they will use points of law throughout the trial, or rather they will exhaust every single avenue to try and get the cases dismissed. If this doesn't show the average person how guilty they are then I don't know what will.

The beauty of this trial is that Lilly are up against a formidable team in Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman. The Los Angeles based law firm have quite a history when going up against pharmaceutical companies. They, along with three other law firms are representing over 2,000 plaintiffs who allege they have suffered injury, and in some cases, death, due to symptoms suffered while attempting to discontinue Cymbalta.

Cymbalta has been prescribed widely and there have been many reports of severe withdrawal reactions to it. Lilly, just like other antidepressant manufacturers, chose to either ignore these reports or, as the case may be, play down the reactions, ie; blame the illness rather than the product. It's a classic stance of the pharmaceutical industry and, it has to be said, a classic stance of those who regulate prescription medications (FDA). You can judge for yourselves if you think it's difficult to taper from Cymbalta, here.

These cases are ones that I shall be keeping tabs on. The first starts Tuesday Aug. 4 in Los Angeles.

Oh to be living in California right now. I'd pretty much drop everything to be present at trial, I'd pretty much like to see Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman in action and Lilly attorneys too.

I like a flutter now and again - I'm betting that Lilly will, at some point during these series of group actions, cave in and settle. First though, they must try to find legal loopholes to avoid paying out millions of dollars, those dollars being the profit they have made on Cymbalta. Profit that came about due to their failure to warn against the horrific withdrawal reactions many have had to endure.

Let's get these items of disclosure out into the public domain, let's see how Lilly played down the risk.

Yup, I do love it when Pharmaceutical companies refuse to offer settlement. It makes blogging such a pleasure and enlightens and educates me.

Sad, I know but, hey-ho, some folks like to knit, some like to go to the gym.

I like to read and disseminate information regarding the dangers of these drugs and the way that pharmaceutical companies, such as Lilly, hold back information from the public purely to keep their pockets bulging and to keep their shareholders happy.

More coming soon.


Bob Fiddaman.

Seroxat Withdrawal Diary (Guest Post)

I do love it when people contact me with their Seroxat stories. Although they are harrowing to read I do feel somewhat privileged to spread these accounts via my blog, if only to warn others and/or offer guidance to those who are suffering Seroxat addiction.

This guest poster wishes to remain anonymous, his story is familiar. His story is a classic example of what is not being done to help people suffering Seroxat addiction.

I don't necessarily agree with some of the methods used by Anonymous but he did what he had to do because, as I have said many times, there is no help whatsoever for people who have become hooked on Seroxat.

The British drug regulator, the MHRA, read accounts like this all the time. They sit in their ivory towers, shrug their shoulders and continue to ignore the Seroxat withdrawal problem. GSK don't wish to help those suffering either, by doing so they would have to admit there was a problem with withdrawal - and if they admitted there was a problem they would pretty much lose any withdrawal cases against them through the courts.

I think that when anyone forms associations with GSK, be they Channel 5, Jenson Button or Dame Kelly Holmes, they should all sit down and read stories like the one you are about to read, it's just one of many hundreds - others can be found here, here and here. 

People or companies in privileged positions should be speaking out against GSK and not supporting them.

Upon reading them maybe then, the aforementioned, should head on over to YouTube to play the song GSK chose to play to their reps at various Seroxat presentations in the US. (Here) - There's an alternative version of the song here.

Bob Fiddaman.

"If ‘discontinuation reactions’ occur in patients stopping [Seroxat], the majority will experience symptoms that are mild to moderate in intensity, and are usually limited to two weeks."

Mary Anne Rhyne, GlaxoSmithKline spokesperson - 2005

Seroxat Withdrawal Diary

I was prescribed 20mg Seroxat at aged 17 (Feb 1998), my Dr diagnosed depressive symptoms following major knee surgery ( I snapped my cruciate ligaments playing football), I went from being extremely sporty and fit to being unable to play football or any other sports for years to come. I have no recollection of life pre Seroxat as I was only 17 I do not know if my personality now is as a result of the drug or whether or not it will change when I come off of it.

I attempted to withdraw from the drug at least three times over the years in the 2000’s however this was done as a take one tablet one day, then miss a day routine which has since been recognised as ineffective.  My attempts to withdraw from the drug only every lasted a week at most  as I would become almost suicidal and suffer extreme physical withdrawal, fainting feeling’s sapping feelings, nausea and extreme flu like symptoms I would also became aggressive and emotional.

There never appeared to be a good time to attempt to come off this drug for a prolonged period as I was at university then full time employment, now 17 years later I have developed endocrine problems which to be fair I may have had all along  and may always have been as a result of Seroxat, I believe it can have an effect on prolactin levels which in turn cancels out testosterone and causes erectile dysfunction and loss of libido, I now attend an endocrinologist for this and receive a depot injection of nebido (testosterone) every three months, historically I was prescribed Viagra over the years also but this ceased about 7 years ago due to NHS criteria changes for prescribing the drug.

On 08/08/14 my first child was born, and that along with other reasons prompted me to seriously get off Seroxat as I was more educated and aware that there was now a liquid tapering method which can be successful.

Here is my withdrawal account for the last six months attended G.P in Jan feeling terrible and dose increased to 30mg, spoke to my endocrinologist 3 days later and discovered the medicine may be causing some of my problems. I attended my G.P again who agreed on reduction of Seroxat / withdrawal.

06.01.15 approx. - prescribed liquid paroxetine and was on 15ml to start (30mg), tapered down 1ml per week to 10ml (20mg) by 14.02.15) during this time experienced anxiety, mood swings stomach cramps, faecal incontinence due to irritable bowel) - prescribed quetiapine 25mg to assist with anxiety, could not tolerate it and so stopped after a few doses.

It was becoming more difficult for me and so I was referred to a psychiatrist and cpn to help with the withdrawal stage from 20mg (10ml) was prescribed trazadone 50mg to help with anxiety again made me too drowsy and made my body ache so only too a few doses.

Agreed on a 1ml every two weeks tapering regime with psychiatrist, was prescribed buscopan for stomach cramps and mebrevine for irritable bowel / incontinence.

14.02.15 - 10ml (20mg)
28.02.15 - 9ml (18mg)
14.03.15 - 8ml (16mg)
28.03.15 - 7ml (14mg)
11.04.15 - 6ml (12mg)
25.04.15 - 5ml (10mg)
09.05.15 - 4ml (8mg)
23.05.15 - 3ml (6mg)

My physical symptoms got significantly worse throughout this period and on top of this the frequency of my mental health symptoms increased from irritability a few times per week too 24/7  extreme mood swings agitation, crying uncontrollably, insomnia, out of body feelings and feeling like I was going to die.

Around the 3ml point I was prescribed 2mg diazepam to help with this, they were not effective and this was increased to 10mg daily of diazepam, I was also taking 30/5000mg of co co-codamol up to 8 times per day for migraines i was suffering.

After prolonged discussions and by taking advice from the protocol by Dr David Healy it was agreed that I would move to a halve and halve approach, i.e take halve your dose of Seroxat ie 1.5ml and the equivalent dose of Prozac - 0.80ml think thinking being the longer half life of Prozac will help with withdrawals and I should stay on this dose of Prozac whilst completing my withdrawal from Seroxat I have now been taking the following regime which I started yesterday -

(As an aside I was warned that there was the possibility of serotonin syndrome with this approach which can cause all the symptoms I am currently having as well as convulsions fever and ultimately death, I was also warned that taking 2 x SSRIs simultaneously had a magnifying effect which could cause heart problems and so I am booked in for an ECG today. I was also warned to expect increased irritability during the first week of taking Prozac, so may need to continue taking 10mg of diazepam daily, im now worried about withdrawal from this and the codeine I have been taking.)

01/06/15 - 1.5ml (3mg) Seroxat & 0.80ml 3mg approx of Prozac
08/06/15 - 1ml (2mg) Seroxat & 0.80ml 3mg approx of Prozac
15/06/15 - 0.5ml (1mg) Seroxat & 0.80ml 3mg approx of Prozac
22/06/15 - 0 Seroxat & 0.80ml 3mg approx of Prozac

If I make it too that point my plan is too come off Prozac as follows,  I have been told I can do It rapidly given its longer half life

23/06/15 - 0.60ml of Prozac
24/06/15 - 0.40ml of Prozac
25/06/15 - 0.20ml of Prozac
26/06/15 - finished

I then plan to see how I react as the Prozac should theoretically be out my system by 02/07/15 and I want to recover for a few weeks before returning to work to ensure I am physically and mentally well enough.

I realise this most recent plan may not work but this is my care plan agreed with my psychiatrist.


Update 21/06/15

The last three weeks have been extremely difficult but the use of halve Prozac and a tapering dose of 0.5ml Seroxat every week as advised by Dr Healy has to an extent been successful. I doubt I would have managed to do it without using this method and if I had been given the option six months ago when I first met with my G.P /Psychiatrist I would have used this method right from the start.

Essentially I reduced from 3mg or 6ml of Seroxat onto start on  01/06/15 - 1.5ml (3mg) Seroxat & 0.80ml 3mg approx of Prozac. I stuck to the plan above and reduced the Seroxat by 0.5ml or 1mg (weekly) whilst maintaining the 0.80 or 3mg dose of Prozac throughout. I administered my last 0.5ml dose of Seroxat today along with my maintenance dose of Prozac 0.80ml and as far as I am concerned that is the last time I will ever take Seroxat.

I plan to reduce the Prozac by 0.20ml increments over the course of four days starting tomorrow and by that point be SSRI free aside from the residue SSRI chemicals that remain in my system and store in my fat cells.

The last 21 days have been very difficult both mentally and physically and I have been monitored weekly by my CPN. All the before mentioned physical symptoms have became worse with more frequent diarrhoea, the aggression has reduced but this has been replaced by 24/7 anxiety, panic attacks, complete and utter distress, palpitations, sweating etc, this is the symptom I find most difficult to deal with ( I feel like im going into an exam magnified by 1000x or have just had a near car crash) I realise it is my body's fight or flight system kicking in but it is constant and for no good reason apart from withdrawals. I have had to suffer these symptoms during the day however I have joined a gym which I now attend 3 times per week in an attempt to reduce the extreme adrenaline / anxiety feeling, boost my mood and also try to destroy the reaming Seroxat living in my fat cells. The Gym has helped slightly during the day but at night my mind is thinking about three different subjects at once and I am in a constant state of panic. I have been prescribed 10mg diazepam which I have been taking nightly for the last 21 days to enable me to shut down and sleep.

"The other symptom which has continued but increased in its severity is the feeling of unreality." 

I have also been having very vivid dreams which ultimately are negative in nature and terrifying , for some reason they are mostly set around when I was 17 and commenced Seroxat, I feel my memories may be regressing to when I started it now that I am almost off it. I have continued to have emotions swinging wildly however the aggression is no longer present.

I continue to have Headache’s however I have reduced my use of co-codamol 30/500 from 8 per day to 2-4 per day. As mentioned I have had terrible Nausea (feeling like I have just woke up from a general anaesthetic ( I know this feeling as I have had 7 major operations) , Diarrhea which is very acidic (bile salts) and has led to me needing to use baby wipes, nappy sacks and bepanthan to prevent a breakdown of my skin integrity, not only is this painful but it is extremely degrading and embarrassing for a 35 year old man.

The other symptom which has continued but increased in its severity is the feeling of unreality, an example of this is when I walk around a supermarket in a dream like state oblivious to everyone around me, I feel like I have a haze over my eyes and the immediate world around me is not real for periods of time, I know there is a clinical term for this but I am unsure what it is.

Overall I feel rundown and exhausted, I am very anxious about being free of Seroxat after 18 years and worry about the symptoms persisting and for how long they will persist, as I am due to return to work in in one weeks time on a phased return. I am also concerned about coming off the diazepam now and I will need to discuss a tapering regime for this with my psychiatrist also.

Mentally I feel very alert (super alert due to the anxiety) so I would not say I was depressed or showing any need for future antidepressants, at this point in time and continue to believe that I do not have clinical depression and actually I strongly believe I never did and was miss diagnosed / prescribed this evil medication. I continue to have a lot of anger towards Glaxo Smith Kline and I will pursue legal action as far as I can against them.

As an aside I spent time tonight disposing of all my antidepressant tablets , I had boxes of them in a drawer which I did not want to be reminded of. I felt this was a useful exercise, and gave me some closure on what has been a very long journey.

I will update again in the coming week’s if and when I come off my remaining dose of Prozac on how I feel post Seroxat and Prozac back in the real world and at work after a six month absence.

Update 22/06/15

I have felt severely ill all day agitation and aggression is back, I smashed my laptop earlier today over a petty incident and spent the next three hours sobbing in remorse £75 mistake!. I have developed severe flu like symptoms and have a fever, I am due to meet my CPN tomorrow to discuss how I will cope throughout the next week.

Update 25/06/155

A week before my last dose of Seroxat I felt a dental abscess developing on a historical crown / bridge don 8 years+ ago. I went to the dentist’s and was prescribed a 5 day course of amoxycillin 150mg per day despite the leaflet that comes stating dental abscesses should be treated with a dose of 3g daily, I called back and questioned this but got no where. Finished the course around the time of my fever developing 22/06/15 temp between 37 – 39 degrees and only reducing with paracetamol, gum and tooth still sore so back to regular dentist who prescribed me metranidazol antibiotics 3 per day which I am due to finish tomorrow. However on top of that I developed a wheeze, I have asthma and a severe sore throat cough so I felt the infection had spread, seen an out of hours G.P at hospital after initially being fobbed off by NHS 24 and was diagnosed with upper respiratory tract infection and given yet another course of antibiotics, this time clarythromicin 7 day course 2 per day, these ones seem to be working but I need to take them on top of the last dental ones and I'm feeling sick and have a metallic taste.

The upshot of all of this going on is I am physically exhausted and so have no adrenaline problems at present, I do however feel very nauseous, can’t know if this is withdrawal or reaction to infection / antibiotics.

I spoke to my Psychiatrist today about how to manage any symptoms of anxiety should they return when I am in my work place. I asked about beta blockers as an alternative to diazepam and she agreed this was a good suggestion and licensed for anxiety but ruled it out due to the contraindications with asthma. Instead we have agreed that I will take a 5mg diazepam in the morning if anxious and a 5 at night and also add in zopiclone a sleeping tablet if I feel the 5mg diazepam does not put me too sleep.

I was also at the dentist today who took an x-ray and confirmed I will require root canal treatment over the coming months and also a surgical procedure in my upper jaw bone as the infection is has spread to my bone and so my gum has to be slit and a hole drilled in the bone to treat the infected area, this will all be done over the coming months in a dental hospital. He explained that I must be very run down for internal root infection which on a sealed tooth of over 8 years to trigger infection, it has been internal not external, i.e no cavity just bugs taking a chance to grow as my immune system is so low at present, I feel this is as a result of the last six months withdrawal.

Due to infection there has been no gym this week which I am disappointed about but hope to return 3 x times weekly asap.

I took my last dose of Prozac also this morning approx. 0.20ml again don’t know how im reacting to that with everything else going on. On the positive side the anxiety has massively reduced since infection started and I have slept the last 2 nights without the need of diazepam.

I return to work on Monday 29/06/15 for a half day on a phased return so hope I am physically well enough to get out my bed and go otherwise I am going down to half pay. I have a full 8 week phased return to work after a six month absence organised, I’ve had to use accrued P/Hs and A/L for this which will leave me with no holiday’s for 4  months however I have accepted this and my manager has been very understanding and accommodating.

I am now officially SSRI free apart from the Prozac half life and Seroxat deposits in my fatty tissue cells, I aim to get rid of the latter by hammering the gym to destroy historical fat, only good things can from this. I have been T-total since Jan and I now avoid caffeine and drink plenty of water. I'm taking multi vitamins and eating well. I still have the diazepam and co-codamol issues to deal with but im sure I will just taper off them slowly as I get better. Only time will tell how I will deal with being SSRI free after 18 years but im positive that I have beat this drug addiction and hope to never take anything like it again, I truly believe I will be a stronger healthier person at the end of this journey and despite it being six months of hell it has been worth it.

Update 01/07/15

Still feeling a lot of anger towards GSK and I am being consumed with a need to seek justice for six months of physical and mental torture, and I am finding it difficult to understand why something is not bee done about this legally and by the NHS. I feel as though I am now going through a process similar to that of grieving, i.e anger, sadness etc, unfortunately I am stuck it seems at the anger stage. Physically I do still have a lot of anxiety and a racing mind, however I do not feel depressed (the whole basis of prescribing the drug in the first instance!). My physical symptoms have settled down and my chronic diarrhea has also settled down. I have attended a half day at work and coped fine and have another half day tomorrow.

I had root canal surgery yesterday and the dentist explained to me that filling which was inserted 8 years ago was done poorly and as a result it came out as a large black sludge of infection, which in turn has traveled to my Jaw bone and has been systemically poisoning me for the last 8 years and will continue to do so until I get the affected bone operated on and removed. So again it is difficult to tell physically whether I am feeling ill due to withdrawal or dental infection, another case of medical negligence, which has not been picked up until now despite numerous x rays of my mouth.

I am now taking extra strength omega, three 15ml per day which contains very high levels of EPA DHA, (seven seas extra high strength = 2300mg of EPA &DPA per 10ml) as a comparison most 100mg omega capsules contain approx 200 – 300mg of EPA & DPA so you would need to take 8-10 capsules instead of 2 x 5ml spoonful’s to get a dose effective enough to repair brain cell function, these chemicals are known to repair brain function as well as your immune system and a whole host of other things I can find no negative trials on this only positive ones.

I continue to take 10mg of diazepam to make me sleep, I tried the prescribed sleeping tablet but I woke very quickly after taking it as my mind was still racing, I have only stopped taking Seroxat about 10 days ago after taking it daily for almost 18 years! I also stopped taking Prozac approx 5 days ago so again due to its half life this should now be out of my system.

Update 5/07/15

For the last three days I have felt happiness and calmness that I have not felt for over six months, I am still slightly agitated and find it difficult to unwind at nigh time so continue to need 10mg of diazepam nightly to get to sleep, the sleeping pills are not effective for my particular needs. My aim is too stay on the diazepam during my phased return to work (next 7 weeks) and then see if I'm coping with being back at work full time before attempting a phased withdrawal from this drug also. My 30/500 co-codamol intake has also reduced from 8 per day to 2-4 per day max.

09/07/15 

Most of my physical withdrawal or discontinuation symptoms have ceased, my bowel movements are normal and regular and I have much less headaches. I do still feel a bit anxious but no where near as much as I did during withdrawal and I feel this is improving every day. The sleeping tablets were not suitable for me a woke very quickly after taking them and even with 5mg of diazepam I only slept for a few hours. I continue to take 10mg of diazepam nightly and 15ml of cod liver oil daily. I have agreed with my psychiatrist that I will remain on a weekly dispense regime of 10mg nightly until I am back at work full time this will be another six weeks as I am now 2 weeks into my phased return to work, I have complete 4 half days over two weeks without issue, my first full day is tomorrow. I then intend to withdraw from the diazepam at a rate of 2.5 mg per week over the coming weeks and I am looking into Pal McKenna’s sleep hypnosis cd/ mp3 as an alternative as I feel a lot of my issues sleeping is to do with post-traumatic stress from discontinuation syndrome and a severe assault I suffered 2 years ago. Hopefully my limited use of co-codamol will also reduce further over this this period also however post-surgery pain from upcoming dental surgery my put a spanner in the works there.

One really interesting ting came out of today’s meeting with my psychiatrist, I explained to her I had purchased a gadget called a Microsoft band which is a smart watch / exercises band but also measures sleep very accurately. It clearly shows that I am having very poor sleep at night waking on average 9 times per night and I am having very little quality sleep (REM sleep) mostly light sleep, the diazepam and withdrawal may be to blame for this as when I wake in the morning following a bad night’s sleep and I then go back to sleep for a power nap It is mostly REM sleep, in fact yesterday I had more REM sleep in a power nap of 2hrs than I did the night before during a 7.5 hr sleep.

My psychiatrist asked me if it tracked my resting pulse which it does and this is the bit I found really interesting. When I was at the height of my discontinuation syndrome distress I was sent for an ECG to monitor the risk of serotonin SSRI’s Seroxat and Prozac simultaneously, my heart beat at that point showed as 120 beats per minutes, very fast for a resting heart in fact classed as (tachycardic) however post withdrawal, or at least over the last week I have owned the band my heart beat has been between 70 and 80 – normal, this could probably not be used in a court of law but to me it does show a  physiological correlation between discontinuation syndrome and an increased heart rate probably associated with anxiety etc.

I have spoke to my GP and gave him a copy of this medical account for my G.P notes should the case every come to court and have requested that he completes a yellow card warning for me in relation to Seroxat after reading them, which he has agreed to do.

Overall I am feeling better by the day, I'm almost certain now that I do not have and have never had any underlying mental health condition and I am glad I came off the drug despite how hard it has been.

I will see my psychiatrist again in approx 12 weeks when I should be off the diazepam and continue to see my CPN fortnightly or as required.

Rational for my anger and mistrust

In the last 10+ years Panorama ran four different documentaries on the scandal involving this drug. There is evidence of (bribery), deliberately hiding negative medical evidence during trials in order to get the drug licensed and prescribed and denying any responsibility for a drug which they have created knowing it has severe side effects when attempting to withdraw from it as well as causing birth defects and unfortunately in the US it has been deemed to be responsible for suicide’s and homicides.

In the US GlaxoSmithKline have settled out of court with those unfortunate enough to have been prescribed this drug with the caveat of gagging orders so further legal action cannot be taken in countries such as ours , however to date not one penny in compensation has been paid to British victims of a drug which is their best seller I believe and also the most widely reported drug for side effects to the MHRA (medical regulatory body in Britain) above drugs such as diazepam etc.

I will personally seek legal advice on taking this matter moving forward, given that it is public record that GSK deliberately hid negative withdrawal clinical trial information from the regulatory bodies and I was also prescribed as a minor off licence again this has been banned since 2003. I will also perhaps start lobbying MSPs to take up this matter as I have read hundreds of cases similar to mine on the Seroxat users group and through the blog of Bob Fiddaman, we cannot continue to be dulled down and forgotten about with more pills from the physicians and pharmaceutical companies that created and prescribed this monster in the first place.

Further research has highlighted how deep rooted and endemically corrupt this situation is, as a starter the current CEO of the MHRA (the people who are supposed to protect NHS patients from faulty drugs is a Dr Ian Hudson, who coincidentally used to be the World Safety Officer for SmithKline Beecham (now GlaxoSmithKline), what hope do we have of justice when this is the situation we are faced with?

My feeling towards prescribers of mental health medication G.Ps and psychiatrists is that they inherently want to stabilise what they see as poor mental health and have very little knowledge when it comes to dealing with making your symptoms worse to make you better, i.e dealing with withdrawal from SSRIs in the correct manner.

They need to understand that there will be a large proportion of the population who for whatever reason were misdiagnosed and put on these drugs without having clinical depression either due to naive incompetence or more worryingly due to bribery and propaganda from pharmaceutical companies on GP’s, (evidence of this in Bob Fiddaman’s blog) or have recovered from reactionary depression but discontinuation symptoms are makings physicians think they are still depressed. This drug has been designed to mimic the symptoms of mental illness when withdrawing and so unless you have knowledge / conviction and the determination to be drug free, then the millions of patients in Britain who are on this drug will be caught up in the perpetual cycle of either continuing to take the drug (ideal situation for GSK financially and massive drain on NHS resources ) or be put onto alternative mental health medication as psychiatrists do not have the skill base to differentiate between withdrawal and actual mental illness.

My hope is that all G.Ps and psychiatrists start to recognise the real problem that is “discontinuation syndrome” from certain SSRI medications and that they use Dr Healys protocol or even better develop their own to challenge this problem instead of just resorting to swapping for another antidepressant which is the easy option for them. The drugs companies like GSK are having their cake and eating it due to this perceptual cycle of drug prescribing and I would not be surprised if this was their intention all along given the profits involved.

References 
http://fiddaman.blogspot.co.uk see all 4 Panorama episodes about Seroxat on here
http://wp.rxisk.org/antidepressant-withdrawal-vs-story/ - read the 86 comments / accounts
http://www.Seroxatusergroup.org.uk/articles.htm
https://truthman30.wordpress.com/