Look on your test results and see if the MCV value is high or out of the upper range. That would be a clue then to get the B12 tested.
When you take SSRI drugs for a long time, the cells stop making serotonin. This is because the serotonin you had is staying in the synapse (connection between neurons), and more is not needed.
When you discontinue there is a lag then for the cells to wake up and start making serotonin again. About 90% of all serotonin is in the body and only the rest in the brain. So the whole body suffers when the drug is stopped. For example, serotonin is a major factor in GI motility, and also found on blood platelets.
This is a complex explanation of what serotonin does in the body:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin
You can see that messing with it with drugs will totally upset your balance over time...and recovery of all the systems affected will be uncomfortable and perhaps protracted.
As people wean off, using the amino acid tryptophan can help with withdrawals since it is the precusor used to make new serotonin. You can also try 5-HTP which is also made into serotonin, and faster. Tryptophan has to be used away from protein containing foods for best results.
PharmaGaba is useful for anxiety but it works on GABA receptors and won't help with serotonin loss.
Low B12 leads to all sorts of nerve pains and symptoms. Your test should be at least 400pg/ml. If any lower than that (US lab ranges still go down below 400pg/ml) you need to supplement with activated B12 called methylcobalamin.(take on an empty stomach.
Here is our B12 thread:
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread85103.html
B6 and magnesium also are involved in serotonin chemistry.
There is a nice lotion you can now get and rub directly into your feet once a day. Morton Epsom Lotion... available at WalMart, Walgreen's and online at Amazon. This is very helpful and inexpensive and easy.
The drugs you took are pretty sophisticated and will take some time to recover from. Using the correct supplements may shorten that period for you.
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All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.-- Galileo Galilei
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Weezie looking at petunias 8.25.2017
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