What Withdrawal Symptoms Depression Patients may have when Discontinuing the Latest SSRI Drug

WITHDRAWAL symptoms have posed one problem common to almost all potent anti-depressants. The newsest of such drugs, Lexapro, is no exception. Though Lexapro's side-effects during treatment are usually mild and manageable, its withdrawal symptoms can be severe, particularly if treatment is stopped abruptly instead of tapering off.

Withdrawal symptoms can occur even if a dosage is missed since the body 'assumes' that the treatment has been withdrawn. Withdrawal symptoms have been seen to occur within eight hours of a missed dosage, regardless of the quantity of the dosage.

While Lexapro fares better than most other anti-depressants in the intensity of withdrawal symptoms, there are a few drugs whose withdrawal symptoms are even milder than Lexapro's though slower in their therapeutic action.

More than 50 different symptoms have been reported with antidepressant withdrawal. These include:

• Dizziness


• Nausea,


• Fatigue,


• Headache,


• Gait instability and


• Insomnia

Why withdrawal symptoms: Withdrawal symptoms are considered normal with antidepressants that have a short half-life. A half-life is the amount of time it takes for half the quantity of drug to clear from your body. Drugs such as Effexor, tricyclics, MAOIs and many other SSRIs including Lexapro are cleared relatively quickly from the body, hence they cause withdrawal symptoms. But, Prozac causes the least amount of withdrawal symptoms because it has a long half-life of two to four days. Important information about withdrawal symptoms of anti-depressants: Not all Lexapro users suffer severe withdrawal symptoms. Those who do, suffer it for a week to two months. In contrast:

• 
  Effexor withdrawal symptoms are seen in almost 80% of users and the symptoms quite often last more than two months.

• 
  Paxil withdrawal symptoms are seen in over 50% of users.
  

• 
  Deprex is a natural alternative for treatment of depression. It is slower to act, but it does act and that too without the side-effects or withdrawal symptoms seen with Lexapro and other anti-depressants.
  

• 
  Prozac causes the least amount of withdrawal symptoms due to its long half-life of two to four days.
  

• 
  Serzone, Wellbutrin and Remeron are the newer anti-depressants and rarely give rise to withdrawal symptoms.
  

Lexapro withdrawal symptoms are usually tolerable if the treatment is tapered off instead of being abruptly stopped. Always get a tapering program from your doctor instead of devising one yourself.