I have been on Olanzapine or over 6 years now from when I was diagnosed Borderline personality traits and all I can say is that I have endured 6 years of living ■■■■. I have been taking 10mg every night for that time and piled on loads of weight, felt lethargic no confidence and started experiencing heart pains. I have had absolutely zero social life in that time and felt unable to think or communicate with other people. I decided just over a month ago to stop the treatment and now am starting to feel much better. I have lost a stone in 2 weeks and look much better ,I am now able to think clearly and have much more energy and motivation to do things. To help me stop the Olanzapine I have avoided alcohol completely (this always put me back to square one in the past). I am finding it difficult to get off to sleep without the aid of the drug but more excercise through the day is helping with this. I will never return to taking this drug again as I feel it has robbed me of 6 years of my life.
dear markuk
my experience of olanzapine is very similar to yours. but my worse nightmare is trying to come off it. its taken me months of very distressing anxiety symptoms every time i reduce (once a fortnight). however, at night when i suffer the most i drink a glass of cider which helps me thru and calms me down. i'm currently on the tiniest dose of 0.5mg at night, so NEARLY there. another month should see me off it entirely. my advise to anyone even considering reducing is to do it extremely slowly. and wait till your settled on the lower dose a couple of weeks before reducing again. i believe it's called \"discontinuation syndrome\" and has a high incidence coming off olanzapine and is not true withdrawal symptoms.
My partner suffers from bipolar. He has been on olanzapine for a year and similar to markuk he has missed a year of his life and a year of his children growing up. Whilst on the drug I can only discribe him as being like a zombie and just breathing and not living. He was a slim, intelligent Telecoms engineer but whilst on olanzapine he is too druged up to do anything and spent most of his time asleep. He is carrying so much extra weight it is hard for him to function. He is very determined to make himself and his family happy and has joined a gym, stopped taking the tablet and stopped smoking. I don't recomend drinking to anyone in similar positions as I think it just prolongs the agony and is a mask rather than a cure. Healthy eating and lifestyle is hopefully what is going to help my boyfriend live a long and happy life. I'm very proud of him because I think he's opting out of the easy option of being a vegetable (something that society wants). It is far easier for doctors to recommend these drugs as they drug up the patients so that they do not have to deal with them. Anyway, it's early days I'm keen to know how markuk got on being olanzapane free
I have been taking olanzapine for 5 years. To be honest, I had no symptoms, except possibly weight gain as a result. I have been slowly coming off it. My dose was 5 mg/ night. Coming off it was no problem. Almost like I wasn't even taking it. I have a minute amount to cut out and then I'm done with it. My doctor gave me 3-month periods of cutting back , eg. 1/2 tablet at a time, but I thought this was ridiculous to have to wait this long, so I speeded It up, and there were no symptoms at all because of the withdrawal of this drug, unless you want to count ... A better mood. It will be so nice to be drug free. I do think it was helpful when I was taking all of it regularly with sertraline, which I am in the middle of giving up too. So Good luck, everyone. I'm fed up taking pills.
I'm at a loss as to why my psych prescribed this for me. I am weaning off diazepam & zopiclone. I've had some serious bowel probs,(long story) now nearly resolved, have severe osteoarthritis, and I experience phantom limb pain due to below right knee amputation. I was prescribed Tramadol for my arthritis. It gave me anxiety hell. After 4-5 weeks, I weaned off over 2 weeks, then just stopped ct. Was quite happy with no anxiety. Then a dear friend suddenly turned nasty & insulting, harassing me with hurtful emails, all over money. This was the last straw, on top of all my health issues, & weaning off the 2 meds, which was causing some anxiety, but nothing major, a little down at times too Told my psych. She prescribed olanzapine She said it's non-addictive. I researched it, as I hadn't researched valium & zopiclone when put on those, and they caused many probs, (I was put on valium to supposedly help with my tinnitus, zopiclone as I'd had a bout of sleeping trouble, due to pain) so, after reading up on this olanzapine, I'm wondering what the heck is she doing to me? She'd told me zopiclone is non-addictive, when it's now found to highly so. I can vouch for that! Well, after reading as much as I could on olanzapine (zyprexa), there is no way I'm going to take this med. I am also on Mirtazapine 60mg, nortriptyline 10mg, zoloft 25mg, oxycontin 20mg, & 30mg, oxycodone hydrochloride (endone) 5-10mg prn, pandadeine forte, which is 30mg codeine with 500mg, paracetemol 4 daily, Gabapentin 1800mg, in divided doses daily. Also as stated above, diazepam 5mg 3-4 daily, zopiclone 7.5mg 2 daily, not nightly, (It's a sleep med) but daily. I want to get off all these brain, soul & mind destroying poisons, except perhaps gabapentin as phantom limb pains can be unbearable when you can't rub your leg, foot or toes etc. I no longer suffer depression so will wean off the 3 anti-deps next, then the painkillers, as they no longer work on y arthritis pain. I'm a great believer in Natural Therapies, and already my bowel probs are nearly resolved by taking Chinese herbs. All that needs to be done now, is to have my bowel prolapse operated on. I can now eat solids again, after 5 months of near starvation, & losing 16 kilos from lack of solid food,(but that's another story). Olanzapine is the issue here. Why would my psych prescribe this, when I am not bipolar, schizophrenic or manic/depressive? I'll never ever again mention I've been a little anxious or a bit down. I was referred to her 10 mths ago, to sort out my meds & start me on a weaning off valium plan (which she didn't do) and all she's done is prescribe more dangerous drugs such as seroquel to begin with. I weaned myself off that after 2 weeks of weirdness & nausea. Told her & she then prescribed sertraline 50mg. Too much, I felt so ill on that dose, but was a little depressed at the time so I cut the dose 25mg, as I wanted to trust her & give it a fair go Still on 25mg, but feel I could do without it. Next was the dreaded zopiclone & I trusted her again when she said it's non-addictive. I was having a little trouble sleeping, due to pain. Became addicted so fast that I began needing it during the day, as I was highly anxious when I was put on Tramadol. After weaning then stopping Tramadol, I do get a bit of anxiety if I don't take zopiclone, but can't wait to be off it. I DO NOT like drugs controlling me! Unfortunately, I find I still want zopiclone during the day. I'm down to 1 & a 1/2, but am prescribed 2 a day.
I WOULD NOT TOUCH OLANZAPINE WITH A TEN FOOT POLE! Not after reading the horror stories from people on this med. Thanks for 'listening'. 
I'm sorry other people have had problems. I started two days ago - I am not sure of my diagnosis, I think it might be bipolar II or it might be personality...there is a lot going on with me and the docs never agree what is phsyiological/neurological and what is personality... and neither do I!
I started 10mg at night. Previously I had been in a hellish depression - not getting out of bed, not answering the phone to others. If I tried to sleep at night I would hear loud screams and crashes, I would wake up just as I am falling asleep with horrible anxiety and very unpleasant restless leg syndrome. My nice GP gave me Olanzapine to help me sleep, reduce anxiety, reduce the strength of the urge to withdraw totally.
The first night I fell asleep very quickly and slept for 10 hours. I normally get headaches when I oversleep but I felt ok, if sluggish, and disorganised/clumsy. Before I fell asleep I felt a wonderful calm for about an hour. My restless leg was playing up but there was no way it could keep me awake.
Second night, I took some painkillers for toothache. I also took the Olanz after eating some toast last thing. It took me two hours to get to sleep - they were great, I felt incredibly quiet in my head and just... watching a film. I can't explain how long it's been since I had that quiet sense of normality. Actually I think the painkillers were a bad idea, I had a bright closed eye halluicination before sleeping - it was very beautiful but probably not what the doctor is looking for!
Today, I feel calm. My inner voice still goes nine to the dozen, but my head is usually in one place at one time now. I can concentrate long enough to write without my head racing ahead and confusing all the points I am trying to make.
The most impressive thing is how I feel around other people. I feel anxious and self-concious but that's maybe because, for the first time in memory, I have the intuitive sense of what others are saying with their body language - I don't look at them as a bundle of limbs and parts of faces and words that could mean any one of a hundred things - I can quickly glance at someone and get a feeling for their mood from their body language.
Communicating normally seems a bit easier when I am not trying to analyse and cross reference every single word! At the same time I am still anxious, probably because it's a big change, I almost feel like I am starting from scratch with social skills, an area I had been working on for the last year. I can start to see how I come across to others. What it hasn't stopped, is the mild paranoia. And I did feel pretty low midway through the morning, but it was just thirty minutes, as opposed to all day.
I might even be a bit hypo, lol, because things appear very clear and very solid - the last time this happened I was probably full blown manic.
Anyway, so far so good. What it has
I know someone else who took this for a long time. It helped initially but killed her sex drive and made her put on weight. In the end it probably stopped helping her because she became delusional and suicidal. I remember visiting her at the ward once, half an hour after taking the olanz, and she tried to walk out with a crazy look in her eyes. She now takes aripiprazole, which seems to help more. Like me she also takes 300mg of Venlafaxine, she has tried mirtazipine (worked too well!), sertraline (made her impulsive, just like me), and is now being switched to citalopram because she still lacks motivation. It might be working, she just phoned me up and told me she is fed up with bumming around LOL.
She also takes a lowish dose of Lithium. I guess I will end up on Valproate because of the closed eye / last thing at night hallucinations which are almost like Temporal Lobe Epilepsy. the bangs and screams as I fall asleep are called Exploding Head Syndrome (!!!!), this is a rare condition that I think is also linked to TLE. Bipolar itself like a cousin to TLE, which is why drugs like Valproate are prescribed for both conditions.
The lesson here is that every drug affects people differently. Keep pestering your doctors - don't be afraid to ask - let them know that you don't expect a miracle but you think something else might work better.
Um thats not Olanzapine that's c causing all those effects, I also dont think yocu have borderline personality traits. They tend to hand out that diagnosis the same as ADHD, its an easy resolution to label a patient and medicate them without doing any real work identifying an actual mental illness. I would say that you are more in the Schizo-affective or a mood disorder such as bipolar with social anxiety disorder. Don't continue to see this doctor as they are obviously not out to help you/. I took seroquel first and then they put me on olanzipine the only thing I will say is the waking up I took adderall with the seroquel but my doctor wanted me to try without while starting the olanzipine which if I cant have the adderall Im not continuing to take this medication.
I've been taking olanzapine for 7 years. i was on high dosage 15mg then 10mg. now am on 5mg due to biopolor disorder.
It is a terrible drug. I put on 9 stone, i am always tired, and my memory is frustratingly bad. This drug reduces dopamine levels in brain which effects thought. I am always slightly constapated and needs loads of sleep to function. I tried to get off it. i went cold turkey and had insomnia and felt sick, had no appitite. i lasted 3 weeks until axiety (induced by withdawal effects) was too much to bear so took half dosage 5mg. I slept that night i took it again 14 hours.
Can someone please help me. Has anyone had simular expreiences to mine but managed to successfully get off the drug? Please tell me how long it took. and how you would reccomend i do it?
It sounds like Olanzapine totally messes up all the neurotransmitters in the brain. The fact that it reduces dopamine is terrible because we need dopamine for giving us get up & go, cognition & clarity of thought. I can understand why jeff said he's not willing to stop taking Adderall like his doctor recommended he try while taking Olanzapine. He could end up being a total zombie because of reduced dopamine. Adderall increases dopamine. It is an upper, while Olanzapine is a downer. I'm just so glad I did my research on Olanzapine after being prescribed it. There was no way I was going to take it after reading about the devastating side effects! I'm now also free of valium, zopiclone, tramadol & zoloft, having stopped cold turkey, & I'm weaning off Mirtazapine. Looking back to when I was prescribed all those incredibly nasty drugs and the hell I was suffering daily while on them, made me realize my prescribing psych didn't have a clue and didn't care. I'm so glad I suspected the combination of all these meds were making me so ill physically & especially mentally. I'm now very stable mentally, very happy & calm, my tummy pains are a thing of the past and life is good again. I'll never understand why my psych (who I never saw again & cancelled my last appt with her, back in June), had prescribed Olanzapine as I'm neither bipolar or schizophrenic but would have ended up with these neurological disorders it's supposed to help with, if I had taken it. If I hadn't researched it and began taking this drug, it would have caused a severe imbalance in the neurotransmitters in my brain. I'd be very overweight and would have worse bowel problems & probably other physical issues. It would have destroyed my life! I'm only on 3 meds now, for arthritis & phantom limb pain, & weaning off 1, as opposed to the 8 or 9 that the psych would have had me on. What a joke! Makes me wonder how her other patients fare. I was fortunate I had the foresight to study the effects these meds would have on the brain's neurotransmitters. I discovered more natural ways to re-balance these neurotransmitters. Yes, medication is sometimes needed to kick start the process of re-balancing them. Getting the right ones can be tricky though. But Olanzapine? Hmm!
Anyone prescribed the medication Olanzapine, should research it on the net first before going ahead and taking it. Be careful!
My story is somewhat similiar to some of yours in that i feel that this drug 'olanzapine' has stolen 10 years of my life.Ever since getting sectioned in 2004 i hae gone through what i can only describe as an absolute nightmare in the mental health system.I used to be young,outgoing person with my whole life ahead of me,iam nearly 32 years old now.When i was first addmitted to hospital i refused 'medication' as i knew i didn't need it,until one day the doctors gave me the ultimatum 'take these tablets,otherwise we will start to inject you' (horrible i know) from that day on i took 'olanzpine' .In hospital they gave me no insight into the drug or it's terrible side effects.On coming out of hospital i gained 5/6 stone pretty much imediately & was sleeping for 16 hours a day.I was put on lots of other medications along with the 'olanzapine' & even tried other medications,but always ended up back on the olanzapine,which i have been on,on its own fo the last 6 years or so.I spent over 2 years on sleeping tablets because i couldn't sleep as my eyes were rolling in my head & it took the doctors over a year & half to recognise that it was a condition callled oculogyric crisis which is caused by the 'olanzapine' ,for this they tried me on 2 different medications to combat the 'eyes rolling' side effect of the olanzapine,one was called procyclidine and the other orphenadrine,both of these drugs had there own side effects whic is 'sleeplessness' which to be honest just made things even worse.The doctors agreed that iam extremely sensitive to the olanzapine & i get all of the side effects,but insist i need the drug otherwise i will end up back in hospital & its for my on good.Other side effects included sensitivity to sunlight & red skin aswell as all the common side effects associated with olanzapine.After reading yor stories about 'olanzapine' i felt compelled to share some of my story about the drug (and yes,this is just some of it) as i thought i was completey alone on this medication.I'am determined to come off 'olanzapine' this year with or without the help of the mental health system,as i don't want to spend the next 10 years or even the rest of my life on 'olanzapine'.This medication is supposed to help,support & improve your life,not destroy it.
btw - my diagnosis is paranoid schizophrenic . . .
looking forward to getting off 'olanzapine' and taking control of my life once again 
peace
x
Oh, that's so awful for you, bonna! Were you diagnosed as being paranoid schizophrenic before taking Olanzapine? It sounds like this drug has exacerbated any symptoms you may have had. There are better ways to improve your well-being and mental health, than using Olanzapine. When dopamine & serotonin are low, schizophrenia & panic disorder can occur. Foods high in tryptophan, such as cottage cheese, wheatgerm, chicken & turkey and many other foods, can help to re-balance these 2 neurotransmitters. Trytophan, available by prescription, also helps with sleeplessness. Extensive research into neurotransmitters & hormones, has found that most mental health issues stem from an imbalance of both the neurotransmitters in the brain and hormonal imbalances.
Best wishes for getting off this nightmare drug. and getting your life back in order!
Hey Christine,No i was NOT diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia on been admitted to hospital where they first put me on medication,i hadn't had any contact with the mental health system up until that point,to be honest it was the police who sectioned me,i did NOT see any doctors/nurses before been admitted to hospital who gave me any kind of evaluation,i think the police had no idea of what to do with me other than to take me to a mental institution.I think in the UK this is quite common,the mental health system i a messy business to be quite frank,i definitely think your right though in that the olanzapine & my experience in hospital exacerbated any symptoms i had,and if the police & the doctors had have dealt with me more effectively i wouldn't have to go through that or be on medication for 10 years,like i say its a messy business
I think doctors & pyschiatrists have no idea in how to deal with patients on a one to one personal basis & alot of them don't seem interested in your well been whatsoever & medication is an easy way to deal with people & basically brush them under the carpet . . .
I feel the time has come to take a stand for my life & future happiness . . .
i have had enough of been a drugged up zombie dancing to the beat of the mental health systems drum haha
thanks for your wishes
peace
x
Hello HOW TO GET OFF THE DRUG SAFELY
I've just found your forum. I have been olanzapine for eight years. I had two psychotic breaks. One in 1992 in the Netherlands and one in my home country down under in 1998. Both due to emotional upsets (ok boy troubles). Prior to 2005 I was on Navane (old anti psychotic) and at low doses. They took this drug off the market, with out warning so I suffered greatly withdrawal syndrome and then suffered trying to find a drug that suited me.
I finally settled on 2.5 mg of Olanzapine in 2005. I am sensitive to drugs so didn't tolerate 5mg which a new doctor tried me on. In fact this was disasterous and I ended at mums for three months with little energy, nautious, dizzy and headaches. I thought I had a virus. I dropped the drug to 2.5 again and experienced all kinds of difficulties. I had anxiety for months (never had before), mouth ulcers which the dentist said was a virus in my mouth but wasn't.
I did some ringing around and even managed to talk to the drug company.
I LEARNT
When reducing olanzapine alternate doses ie if you start at a regular 5mg then take 2.5 every second day. Do this for some weeks before dropping to a level 2.5mg
Do not skip a dose, take some every day even when you get down to the minute dosages.
This process takes MONTHS not weeks.
My pharmacist says if you have a problem at any level go back to the level you last felt good at then stay for a few months until you drop again.
I am now on 1.25mg and have been for 2 years because I am weaning off another drug first which has taken some time. I use a pill cutter. If you save offcuts remember to wrap them in tinfoil or glad wrap until the next day.
I am doing so under doctors supervision. I have a great doctor though I mainly get advice from my pharmacist.
There are some excellent videos on youtube interviewing doctors from Finland treating first time psychosis. They give medication as last resort but do family intervention (talking) and address the problems people present with that caused the issue . Very high success rates in stopping symptons and reoccurances.
Thanks christine for your info on neurotransmitters
Good luck Adam. Stick at 5mg for a while until you feel settled ready to alternate 5mg and 2.5mg
Marbel
Some good advice Marbel.
I've been on Olanzapine for years, though not bi polar or schizophrenic. On 2.5mg. I don't like all the side effects.
I tried to come off the medication recently, just by stopping it. I was fine, then after two months I got some terrible withdrawal symptoms and had to go back on it.
I can well believe it takes months of slow reduction of dose, before you are free of it.
Withdrawing slowly seems to be the only safe way.
Jon
My experience of being on Olanzapine 5mgs for years was fine as I did not get any negative side effects and I felt well on it - working and functioning well but I objected to taking medication. I tried to stop taking it after a year and even with tapering the dose I had overwhelming free floating anxiety, insomnia, nausea, vomiting which disabled me. This was far worse than the psychotic episode I was originally medicated for.
The Drs would not believe me when I explained it was withdrawal effects they insisted it was a returning of my psychosis. I knew it wasn't but as returning to taking the drug cured me I was stuck. I have tried several times to come off it by reducing the dose slowly but always the anxiety, insomnia and nausea returned - all be it to a lesser extent with a slower reduction. I am now on 1.25mg every other day by cutting the tablets in half and I wait until I feel good on a dose before I reduce it again. Not sure if I can quarter the tablet as it is tiny but I suppose I could try to stop completely now and put up with effects.
I would carry on taking it to feel well but I cannot rule out that it is causing my neutropenia and increased heart rate. I am amazed that such a small dose can prevent the withdrawal effects but trial and error proves to me it does. Of course people say it is psychological but the return of the nausea often reminds me when I forget a dose and if I stay with a dose after a couple of weeks I return to normal. It is reassuring to hear similar stories from other people.
Psychiatrist just want to medicate and if you get side effects they give you another drug to combat the side effects and so you can end up on a cocktail of drugs. They had me on 3 drugs for a psychotic episode that was caused by the trauma when my brother died suddenly. I believe I would have recovered without medication but as I was sectioned and very psychotic I had little choice. I physically fought them for days as I did not want to take medication but they held me down and injected me. I eventually agreed to take Olanzapine but it was as I was feeling more rational and in touch and now I feel I was getting better anyway. I will never know what would have happened had I not taken Medication but I do know how difficult it is to get off of it. They are starting to use Olanzapine for children with ADHD in America. I feel the children are heading for a cocktail of drugs and many serious side effects.
I hope everyone is filling the yellow card to report adverse effects available at pharmacies.It took them many years before they recognised that there were any withdrawal effects and even now they do not think it is a problem. The drug companies would have many more of us on them by over claiming their usefulness and trying to deny the side effects if they could. I am always suspicious when the drug companies are involved in the research. If everyone speaks out they may find it more difficult to prescribe it for trivial conditions as they are doing now. Eating disorders, sleeping problems etc They have stopped prescribing it so readily for the elderly after it was highlighted that there was an increased risk of dying as it was being used for patients with dementia related psychosis or to calm them down.
There is research and articles being published about the withdrawal effects and we should speak up to add weight to these papers.
I have been on olazapine for nearly 2 years. It works well as I had an episode of psychosis with delusions and hallusinations (sorry about spelling). This medication solved these problems but I am now stuck on this drug and have tried coming off, even really slowly, but it seems I have to go through a hellish period of fear, massive anxiety attacks, mood changes, no sleep, severe lows, loud inner voice coming back, heart racing. The only way to stop all this is to give in and take olazapine. The fear of not being able to sleep and go through this nightmare is as bad as being ill in the first place. I often wonder if I had been able to stay in the mental hospital and left to recover from my breakdown or episode of psychosis, maybe it would have taken a bit longer, but I wish I had never been forced to take this drug. If you have a choice do not take olazapine, I repeat, do not take it.
Hi Michael
what dose of olanzapine are you on?. I have just weaned myself off citalopram (anti depressant) with a great success and no side effects. yippee. took ages but worth being able to get on with life with no disturbance. I am going to come off my olanzapine this year. I am on 1.25 mg at the moment. My plan is in two months time (giving my brain time to settle with out citalopram) to start alternating 1.25 and half this dose again.
So i will take 1.25mg one day and then .625mg the next. 1.25 the next etc
I will do this for six weeks before dropping to a daily .625 for three months and then completely stop.
I know this sounds absolutely ridiculous at such low levels but honestly if i just stopped cold turkey I would be a mess even at these low levels.
I have been on a regular 2.5mg for some ten years prior to this and my body would not tolerate 5mg. I wonder sometimes that if I should be come psychotic again what will they put me on?
marbel
Hi Marbel
Even the smallest amount of change makes a big difference so it sounds like you have the right idea.
I was on 5mg in the beggining, a couple of years to 1 year ago. For this past year I have been on 2.5mg only because I went against the psych doc who wanted me on 5mg. I am due to come off in July this year but I knew it would take a long time coming off, and I wanted to do it in the spring and summer happier sunny long day months. More chances to get out and exercise in the nicer weather.
I found it easy coming down to 1.25mg it took a 4 week period, cutting 2.5mg tablets in half. I use a new tablet every day and just throw away the odd amount. I have not told doctor that I am coming off so I still get 2.5mg tablets.
Within the next 2 weeks I reduced to nearly half that again, so approx 0.625 but this was slightly too quick and I curled up in a ball with extreem panic / anxiety attacks lasting hours. All it took was being unable to sleep for one night and a tiny amount of everyday stress and it set them off.
I had a fear that my mental state was going back to the episode of psychosis again but I realised that this is withdraw symptoms.
With some regular gentle exercise, determination and controlling the fear I will beat this.
There is no help out there, everything I have experienced with mental health has been about money.
Limited councelling, tablets thrown at you with too high a dose, the medication is to shut everyone up.
They dont even make smaller tablets for each of us to come down off this olazapine. We have to guess small cuttings of tablets.
To Marbel
In case you're not aware of it, there is a pill cutter available at the drug stores, to help with slicing the pills.
I once tried coming off Olanzapine but am back on it. I seem to be fine with it, just had this notion I would be better off without it. I was wrong. Possibly some time in the future, I will give it another try. I don't have any worries about taking it now. Good luck!
I have now been off Olanzapine for a few weeks and have survived with only minor episodes of nausea, insomnia and anxiety. See previous post as I did it very slowly.
You are right Michael you get very little help from the Mental Health system. You have to do it yourself.
To be informed to make the choice you need to know the real rates of re-occurrence of your original condition if you stop taking the tablets.As the withdrawal effects are recorded as a re-occurrence the true rate recorded by the research is not accurate. It is very difficult to get unbiased information. I just know the side effects from Olazapine such as developing diabetes, blood dyscrasias and raised blood cholesterol can be quite serious.but it was what it did to my brain when I stopped the first time that convinced me I wanted to be drug free if I could. .It has taken a couple of years but I have done it..
Good luck to everyone who decides to come off the drug.