Coming off prozac?

[Anonymous]

I've been on prozac for about 5 years now and i want to come off it. I've been weaning myself off for the last month or so by taking one every three days or so. Usually i would take 1 or 2 per day of 20mg. i started having side effects recently and i don't know how long i should be weaning myself off for?

[super147]

You should have begun tapering a little more gradually in my opinion. I would have tried something like:

2 weeks x two days on, one day off
2 weeks x one day on, one day off
2 weeks x one day on, two days off
2 weeks x one day on, three days off
2 weeks x one day on, four days off
2 weeks x one per week
Then stop.

Something like that. You could even get down to half doses, breaking a tablet in half. The longer you reduce the tablets over, the less likely you are to suffer with side effects. People on some medications even get down to braking open capsules and counting the individual beads inside, reducing them by a fixed number each day. It sounds kind of neurotic but if it avoids your head feeling like it's been humped by a donkey then it's worth it.

[TadCurious]

If you're gonna discontinue a drug you should do it according to a plan with your doctor.

[Tabbie]

Talk to your doctor. Seriously. Antidepressants affect different people in different ways so only your doctor can determine what's right for you, and even they can get it wrong so you really need to have a plan in place with some mental health professionals to help you through coming off it if that's what you want to do.

Good luck man <3

[mermaidrocketship]

You shouldn't be weaning yourself off. You need to call your doctor to make a plan. Prozac affects your brain chemistry A LOT. A doctor needs to monitor it.

[Anonymous]

Only come off if your psychiatrist tells you to