Withdrawal From Stelazine (Page 2)
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I have been on stelaine for 25 years with short breaks but I am trying to stop it and getting nasty withdrawal effects. I have reduced from 7mg to 3mg daily but have headaches anxiety and sense of unreality. I fell perfectly rational and know it is not the ill ness returning. I am seeking advice from someone who has managed to get of this drug or for any tips. I am planning to cut down 1mg per month but am already apprehensive about this.

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I think the liquid form of Stelazine is still available. As long as you have the right "dropper," you'd be good to go...unfortunately, Stelazine never was manufacturer in XR from because it's usually a q12h drug.

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Uh, the prescriber, assuming he's a REAL psychiatrist, can tell you exactly what to do. So can an OB-GYN. You're correct, for safety''s sake, regardless of the official labeling, I don't recommend any of my pts take meds during the first rimester. Sometimes, it can't be helped. (Not always in psychiatry, but in IM, too. My Mom had pneumonia while carrying my id sister; Amoxicillin was new then and motherland baby were fine, but years later, our old pediatrician told me he was "nervous as Hell."

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Wow! You did a great job! The math works out, too. I've never had to w/d a patient from quite so much Stelazine, but this definitely is viable. Full marks, dude!

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You're tapering schedule is obviously not what a shrink would do. 1mg a month is unrealistic. We often use the 10% rule 10% taper once or twice weekly.SEE A SHRINK WHO HAS EXPERTISE IN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY (we don;'t have a sub-specialty cert for itv yet, but I have a PhD join Pharmacology.) Offhand, I'd raise your Stelazine to 12015g daily, but I don't know all your medical details and it's illegal to give specific medical adsice via the Internet unless one of my parents' em-ails me and say, "Doc — that Klonopin 2mg three times day makes me too dropsy. Should I stick it out or would you think cutting it to 1mg/TID might be a good idea, too > "

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I"m a shrink and have prescribe Stelazine. It was named for girlfriend or wife ("Stella") of the head of the team that developed it for Smith, Kline & French. Now that we are seeing the "next best excellent thing — the Atypical Antipsychotics — can be just a toxic in long-term severe side effects as any of the originals. This drug needs to be tapered, It comes in 1mg, 2mg and 5mg tabs and, I believe, also in a liquid form (in case you REALLY need to super-titrate a W/D dose.) I wish I could say I"m sure a Board-Certified shrink didn't just tell you to stop, but as Executive Chief of Psychiatry for two huge hospitals in the NYC area, I've seen worse.

Editor's note: We do not verify the credentials of our users and nothing stated in our forums is intended to be taken as medical advice.

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Hi

I've recently been put on the liquid as the tablets are no longer being manufactured but I'm experiencing some problems. Is the liquid weaker than the tablet and, if so, how much liquid must I take to compensate?

Thanks so much for any help.

Jimmy

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Hi Buster. Are you out there? Did you have problems with insomnia after getting off the stelazine?

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Evelyn, I take the generic form of stelazine called trifluoperazine.

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Buster, I've been on 1mg stelazine for many years and have tried many times to go off, and have stayed off for a while but then feel the need to go back on.
When you got down to 1mg and less, did you just use a pill cutter? Do you think I should decrease 1/4mg at a time for 3 months each? It's just very difficult to cut the pill equally.

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Hi - My mum was put on liquid Stelazine a few years ago - are you in the UK - if so the tablets are no longer available through the NHS. Not the call for it any more as more modern drugs have replaced Stelazine. Mum did have a problem as the pharmacy didnt have the correct syringe to use to draw up the correct dose. She under dosed herself which led to anxiety attacks, nightmares and a regression back to earlier problems. Once the problem was sorted though she has been fine on liquid. Make sure she is given the correct syringe as the amount taken is crucial.

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Hi,
My mother in law has been on this medication for 45 years... in the last month her pharmacy have not been able to get tablets and have put her on liquid.... Does anyone know what the problem is??? The last time we went through this she ended up as an in patient. Is anyone else experiencing problems? Can anyone suggest a pharmacy company l can speak to to get them to supply my MIL's pharmacy? Many thanks

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Hi, my mum has been on Stelazine now for 45years and has tried over the years to come off it. She has now decided that taking it gives her a better life than not on it.

Recently she began having acute anxiety attacks and we eventually discovered that she had been under dosing herself. Once the medication was increased the anxiety attacks stopped.

I don't believe that anxiety attacks are withdrawal symptoms but the symptoms of the illness returning when there is insufficient Stelazine in the system.

Why do you so desperately want to come off a drug that is helping your brain by supplying missing chemicals? If you had diabetes you would take your medication without question.

It took me decades to make the decision to go on anti depressants but once I did I was so cross with myself for holding out for so long, they changed my life. For the majority of the time I'm now depression free, it took 12 years of medication.

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Hi my mum was on stelazine and we had real problems getting the tablets.it was causing her stress as she had schizophrenia.i was also getting worried that she would become unwell.i spoke to a pharmacist who suggested flupentixol.this had worked really well instead of the stelazine.

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The generic for stelazine is trifluoperazine. As far as I know they are the same and trifluoperazine is available by prescription everywhere. Just google it.
.

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Best wishes to you.

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Alright. I'll make an appointment to see the doc again ASAP and get my dose raised back to its original levels. Thanks Evelyn.

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The anxiety is due to your illness which the lower rate of Stelazine can no longer control - not all that you are experiencing is withdrawal symptoms.

Why do you so desperately want to come off Stelazine - has it not worked to control your brain chemical imbalance - would you be wanting to come off your insulin if you were diabetic or you anti rejection drugs if you had had a transplant - why not accept that your brain is not producing the right sort of chemicals it needs to function normally without the help of Stelazine. My mother caused us so much heartache and fear everytime she decided that she didn't want to be on medication. It took us some time to get her to understand what it was doing for her brain and that coming off the drug made her ill again. She is 85 now and she is a she is a wonderful person who is happy and able to live life to the full.

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Well done Fiona - good luck with your University course. My mum went on to be able to work as a nursery nurse, returning to the profession after she had raised us 3 kids.

I shall let my sister in the UK know that the pills are being made. I would feel so much happier about mums welfare if I knew she was taking a dose that could be reliably be the amount prescribed.

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Hi Justin - please stay on your prescribed dose so that you can have a good life. My mum has been on just a very small dose for over 40 years and each time she tried to reduce it, returned to her original behaviour. Which was horrendous not just for her but for her family to deal with.
It took many years before she accepted that to live an active happy life she would have to take Stelazine for the rest of her life.
It is not a sign of failure to be on this medication - the brain as with any part of the body can misbehave - for example if you were diabetic you wouldn't stop your medication just because you didn't like taking it. Stelazine replaces a chemical your brain is not making enough of.
A few months ago I stayed with my mum for four weeks (I live overseas) she was desperately anxious and having terrible nightmares. The reason - she was not getting her prescribed dose - the syringe she was given was the wrong size and she had been underdosing. It was a frightening time to wakened by her screaming.
Please - for those desperate to give up, the symptoms you describe are not the drug withdrawal symptoms but the schitzophrenia symptoms returning.

It may not be what you want to do but the Stelazine gives you a chance to have a normal life.

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Im 29 years old schizophrenic and I have been on 5mg stelazine. Recently I asked the doctor to cut it and he reduced it to 2mg and i have been suffering the abovementioned effects because of it. (Anxiety, morning jitters, sense of unreality). Please help!

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