It is well known that antidepressants can interfere with a person's sleep, but it's less clear what happens after they stop taking the drug. One of our earliest blog posts from 2012 was written by someone experiencing terrifying nightmares while withdrawing from Cymbalta. The post received a number of comments from other people reporting the same problem. It would be … [Read more...] about Sleep Problems After Stopping Antidepressants?
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Coming off Depakote
I stopped Depakote - See Going on Depakote. First Try This was a nightmare to cold turkey off. I felt crazy, like my brain was going to explode and was on fire. I kept an ice pack on my head for days and listened to meditation tapes. I am not sure how I managed to survive let alone work. The psychiatrist of course thought I needed to absolutely be on a mood stabilizer. I told … [Read more...] about Coming off Depakote
Going on Depakote
Beginnings Childhoods are difficult to remember in detail. My first few memories were about the age of 2 1/2, maybe 3. I had chickenpox and I got an encephalitis. I didn't know that this is what it was until years later, when I became a medical provider. My experience was that I visually hallucinated (the one and only time in my life). I saw a wrought iron fence around my bed … [Read more...] about Going on Depakote
Not the RxISK Manifesto
Last week's RxISK Manifesto post featured an article then just published in BMJ. The BMJ picture that went with the article looked like this. This gives entirely the opposite message to the article. The article says a doctors job would be a lot more interesting if they listened and encouraged anyone consulting them to become researchers rather than problems. It also … [Read more...] about Not the RxISK Manifesto
RxISK Manifesto
This post is close to identical to an article that has just appeared in the BMJ - Clinical Judgments, not Algorithms, are key to Patient Safety. Immediately on taking a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), most people have some genital anaesthesia.1 This may be aggravated on withdrawal of the drug and can remain for years after treatment has stopped, constituting … [Read more...] about RxISK Manifesto
PSSD Patient Experiences
New paper "If you wish to have such “syndrome” continue what you are doing ... read obscure studies and reviews in obscure databases and I can guarantee to you that you will have it till the end of your life!" Anyone who has experienced a serious side effect from a medication will know how difficult the conversation with your doctor can be. In our new paper, “Post-SSRI … [Read more...] about PSSD Patient Experiences
Business Opportunity courtesy of Impeto Medical
Some months ago we had organised for 6 volunteers with PSSD to get tested for peripheral neuropathy, using a Sudoscan, made by Impeto Medical, who are based in Paris. By chance we found that there is a genital adaptor for the Sudoscan that has been in use for several years in Paris, leading to a publication over two years ago. Through a colleague, we got in contact with Dr … [Read more...] about Business Opportunity courtesy of Impeto Medical
Device Wrecks & Regulators?
RxISK is powered by people working behind the scenes - picking at threads and sometimes finding something rather different to what they expected. One of those who can't resist a loose thread is Suzanne Stevens, who has been interested in our Sudoscan problem. Many of you suffering with PSSD or related PRS, PRSD and PGAD conditions have been emailing Impeto Medical in Paris … [Read more...] about Device Wrecks & Regulators?
Ecclesiastical and Pharmaceutical Risk Benefit Calculations
The Catholic Church has been convulsed in recent years by sexual abuse scandals. There are two aspects to this. One has been the harm inflicted on children from the abuse but in many instances as much if not more damage has arisen from the secondary harms these children and later adults have incurred in their efforts to get believed. The second aspect has been the Church’s … [Read more...] about Ecclesiastical and Pharmaceutical Risk Benefit Calculations
Sudoscan Saga & Propecia/Finasteride Survey
Sudoscan Several months ago, we became aware of a device called Sudoscan made by Impeto Medical, based in Paris. It’s mainly used to assess peripheral neuropathy in the hands and feet. But the company also have a special adaptor for Sudoscan that has been used to test genital function and found disturbances where other tests haven't. This is custom-made and isn’t commercially … [Read more...] about Sudoscan Saga & Propecia/Finasteride Survey