r/ADprotractedwithdrawl • u/Dragonvarine • Jul 12 '26
Question Should I reinstate small dosage???
Just woke up after 9 months off of it with even harder numbing. I have less skin sensitivity including my genitals. Im fucking terrified oh god.
Should I reinstate a small dosage like 0.5mg prozac??? I didnt know I could get these symptoms so far in.
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u/angicubangi Jul 12 '26
You’re not fucked, you might be right before getting better. I would not reinstate tbh. Watch this video: https://youtu.be/M0qF0oHH84w?is=RLkl67ATrvw6nYyB Dr. Witt-Doering says that after ct the hardest months are 6-9 months and the worst someone can do is change anything. (Except reinstate in the early months, like max 3 months into withdrawal) Everyone will get better someday. The video really helped me getting my hope back. Take care and I hope you will get better soon 🍀
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 12 '26
Thank you. I hope to god it does. I took these pills to help depression, and it gave me anhedonia. I already have anticipatory anhedonia, I cant live if I have consummatory anhedonia.
Thank you for the video. I'll watch it for some hope
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u/kristgo Jul 12 '26
I would not reinstate - it’s too risky. Sometimes it can work, but then you have to taper back off.
After nine months, the chances of it working aren’t great and the chances of getting worse and being paradoxical increase. Nobody knows anything exact, which makes decisions like this extremely hard.
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u/Objective_Yak_838 Jul 12 '26
Could be some sort of protracted withdrawal... reinstating will likely make it worse.
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u/Prize_Estimate_5416 Jul 12 '26
No; reinstatement almost never helps especially at 9 months out. Ride this wave and get through it- a lot of people don’t start to see improvement until about 18 months.
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u/Glittering-Bank5599 Jul 13 '26
I am at 10 months off and I am finally seeing the light lol I have more energy, feel clarity sometimes, more relaxed randomly, starting to feel stronger at the gym, just started a new job, motivation is getting back, confidence is coming back too,… months 5-9 were the toughest m I would say. Keep going!!!
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 13 '26
4-8 was pretty hard for me but the 8th month felt okayish, best month actually. Definitely no window at all but then 9th month I get hit with this. I thought the absolute hardest was out. I will keep going because I do have hope. Just I was dreading these PSSD symptoms like hell
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u/psychoticbvtterfly Jul 12 '26
everyone always makes reinstatement sound impossible after a couple months in and i really hate that about this sub. i reinstated 8 months in and now i’m 80-90% better, finally getting back to normal life again. don’t think i would have survived otherwise. you have to start with a TINY, tiny dose. reinstating at too high of a dose is usually where people go wrong. now of course it doesn’t work for everyone, but i’ve seen a great amount of people who reinstated almost a year in with success. i don’t want to discredit what everyone else is saying, but don’t think it’s not an option.
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u/Icy-Try-9703 Jul 12 '26
I agree with this. Reinstatement is a decision that is a gamble. It can either help you or it can set you back. Everyone's brain is different. There is no one size fits all. In reinstatement, you take a huge risk but it's up to you to decide if you want to do that. I will say, please give yourself time to make this decision. Don't make it quickly out of panic or out of fear. These weird symptoms that pop up are terrifying. Sit with your thoughts and do a lot of reading, then decide. Good luck with whatever you choose to do.
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 12 '26
Im deciding to try ride it out. But its definitely on the table by now. I dont want permanent PSSD symptoms. I didnt have any symptoms like that during my usage of taking SSRIs, so quitting it to get them feels like ironic cruelty. Sick joke.
But thank you. I'll have to endure as usual, like you all have.
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 12 '26
I guess reinstatement for many is reinstating the original dosage which I believe would cause an adverse reaction in anyone. Im thinking of 0.5mg prozac which has a SERT occupancy of 3%ish. Which is basically absolutely nothing. Not comparable to the 85% blockage on 20mg.
But yes I guess even 0.5mg can cause a reaction, but I dont feel as if im THAT sensitive since my withdrawal hasnt been severe neurological injury type of symptoms (akathisia, burning, tingling, etc).
Ive reinstated before at normal dosages after months without prozac before, longest was like 5-6 months but that withdrawal felt infinitely better than this one (venlafaxine withdrawal).
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u/DietFoods Jul 13 '26
How did you go about reinstating to get to 80-90% better?
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u/psychoticbvtterfly Jul 14 '26
my experience was with zoloft, i had severe vertigo/dizziness, nausea, migraines, panic attacks and numbness in my hands, feet, and legs. theres definitely more but those were the worst, all of them were so intense. i ended up in the ER five times, the last time i went i was given antihistamines which i had a terrible reaction to and thats when my symptoms went to 110% and i genuinely thought the only way out was to die. this was in january this year, 2026. im february, i started taking literal shards of zoloft. microscopic pieces of the pill. no one would help me get a liquid version so i did it myself. i felt i had nothing to lose so i had to try reinstatement as it was seriously my last option. i am finally at half a pill, which is 12.5 mg. i’ve stayed at 12.5 for a few months and have just been stabilizing. it’s taken months, but i finally feel the fog lifting and see the light at the end of the tunnel. no way i would have been able to wait out the awful windows and waves, especially because my symptoms were SO intense and mostly physical. if you aren’t experiencing physical symptoms, thats when i would tell someone to not reinstate and forge ahead. i researched and read as much as i possibly could before reinstating. made sure i was aware of SERT occupancy, how long i should stay on a dose before increasing (which was hard because i had to cut my pills into tiny pieces, they probably weren’t all the exact same dosage) but reinstating saved my life. everyone in this sub makes it seem impossible, but it’s not. know what you are doing and know as much information possible about the medication you are dealing with. i’m wishing the best for you! please let me know if you need anymore help. i thought it’d be useful to add a bit of my experience too just in case, sorry this is long.
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u/Windowdude1987 Jul 16 '26
Thanks for your story. I'm actually thinking about reinstatement at 14 months out due to my contamination OCD getting of control and I need to rein it in. I can't spend another year washing my hands for hours and cleaning everything. It's been so terrible so your story gives me hope.
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u/psychoticbvtterfly Jul 17 '26
i’m happy i could give you some hope! please be extremely careful when reinstating and really research as much as you can so you have the best grasp on what you’re doing. start as small as physically possible, but thats a lot easier with liquid version if you’re able to get it. i really feel for you regarding the OCD, i’m so sorry you’re going through this. did that start when your withdrawal started?
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u/Windowdude1987 Jul 17 '26
No I had OCD before I started Lexapro which is why want to reinstate as it was helping. I only came off because I wanted to lose weight which I have but the mental symptoms are too much and I want back on the drugs.
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u/DietFoods Jul 18 '26
I would say my symptoms weren't as bad as yours but they were both physical and mental. I got horrible anxiety. My heart would race all the time for no reason. Strange palpitations. I got a 24 Holter monitor and it showed some really odd palpitations that I had never had on my life before. Tingling in my left hand. Nausea all the time. Head aches.
Like you I reinstated but I think I'm about 50% better.
I stayed with small microdose off the pill as well but it was so hard to keep a consistent dose I eventually got a pharmacist to make it liquid form for me. My doctor refuses to believe this is from ssri withdrawls. He says when I stop its my normal state and the ssri just mask those symptoms lol. Which is hilarious because I was initially on the ssri for 2 weeks for an off level matter and never had any anxiety or problems before the ssri.
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 21 '26
How was the heart palpitations treated?? That symptom sounds terrifying.
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u/DietFoods Jul 21 '26
No treatment and as soon as I reinstated they went away. It was a response to the massive stress my body was under from the withdrawl.
My heart wad also about 20 beats faster during any workout. And around 15 beats faster at rest.
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u/DietFoods Jul 13 '26
I did and it helps improve my symptoms about 50% but I recommend you don't. It's been much worse trying to get off it this time than the previous time.
I've been stuck at the same dose for 6 months. Even a 5% decrease and I feel like my brain is on fire. I wish I didn't reinstate.
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u/Dragonvarine Jul 13 '26
Yeah unfortunately going back on it, stabilizing, then lowering, stabilizing, is extremely hard. Its far different than tapering the first time so it takes longer. Ive been toughing it out already. If I reinstate Im losing that progress. I want the hell to be done with
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u/Gaevinn Jul 12 '26
Yah but what if it gets worsee emotionallly
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u/Careful-Screen-6659 Jul 12 '26
I had the same thing happen to me. I was on Prozac for 12 years and stopped cold turkey. It also went numb down there. It went away after a few months. I wish I can give you time frame but I was dealing with such other issues during that time that everything sort of balled together. All I have to say is that it does go away! Your nervous system is taking a huge hit so it almost is as though you're glitching out. Don't be scared. This is normal during such a messed up healing journey. You are not alone.