I've recently been prescribed antidepressants (I won’t go into details as to why.) So they gave me Cipralex (SSRI), and that worked out, with no changes, for about four days. And then last night (~6PM EST), I got this weird feeling. Now, I’ve never had a panic attack before, but for some reason I knew that’s what was happening to me, except without the mental anxiety! I had heart palpitations, SERIOUS pressure on my chest (so much so that breathing was a problem), excess sweating, intense lightheadedness. I decided to try and sleep it off, but in the morning it was just as bad.
Thankfully I had an appointment with my doctor already scheduled today. It was a standard checkup to see how I was reacting to the medication. So of course I tell her how messed up I am, so she immediately takes me off the Cipralex and switches me to Wellbutrin (DARI/NRI). Of course that isn’t going to deal with what she tells me is an adrenaline attack. So apparently the high levels of serotonin in my body (thanks to the antidepressants) are having this effect on me. We discuss it and agree that because of my heavy drug use in past years my brain can’t deal with serotonin the same way it normally should. I used to be a serious drug addict, and we figured that the main drug causing the problem was speed, which seriously fucks with your serotonin.
So there I am, fucked up as hell. Feeling like I’m about to die, shaking like you wouldn’t believe, my heart is going a hundred miles a minute, I feel like a have a man standing on my chest. The doctor gives me all kinds of shit: A prescription for Clonazepam and Propranol in order to relax my muscles and slow down my heart (stopping heart palpitations). As I mentioned before she gives me the Wellbutrin (which deals with dopamine and not serotonin, so I should be fine because I’ve never really used dopamine-centric drugs.)
The whole thing is just very scary. I already feel like shit (which is why I’m on the antidepressants) and now this shit happens. Honestly, last night I was busing home from Ottawa to Montreal, and I thought was going to die. I was on the edge of reality and life. Fucking adrenaline attacks.
Now I’ve taken the two relaxing drugs she prescribed me and I’m finally feeling semi-okay (after about 24 hours of symptoms). I’m scared, is I guess my main point. What if I’m not okay? This sucks.