I stopped using Prozac after 3 years and now am having side effects, what should i do!?

Most cities have urgent or immediate care centers where you can be seen by a physician on an immediate basis for minor medical needs. You could see a physician at one of the clinics in Houston whose office could verify your prescription with the practice in San Diego. It would help to take your prescription bottle with you as well as the contact information for your prior physician's office. You could also establish a relationship with a new physician in Houston but that is likely to take longer. Let us know how you do, and good luck.

Anon,

I want to be sure about the symptoms you are asking about.

By "a funny feeling in your chest," do you mean pain? a tightness? a dull ache? What sort of sensations are you having?

And with your throat, is it sore? Scratchy? Are you hoarse?

Do you have a fever? Can you take your temperature?

And by "stopped and then restarted Prozac suddenly," can you be more specific? An example might be "I hadn't taken any for a month and then last week I started taking them every day" or something like that?

What dosage are you taking?

Are you taking any other meds?

And is this an old prescription? Are you stopping and starting in order to not run out? When was the last time you were able to see a doctor about this?

You really are not supposed to stop taking Prozac suddenly. You must wean down over a period of time to avoid the side effects. Here is what drugs.com says:

"Do not stop suddenly taking this medicine without checking first with your doctor. If you have been instructed to stop taking fluoxetine (Prozac), ask your doctor how to slowly decrease the dose. This is to decrease the chance of having symptoms such as agitation, breathing problems, chest pain, confusion, diarrhea, dizziness or lightheadedness, a fast heartbeat, headache, increased sweating, muscle pain, nausea, restlessness, runny nose, trouble with sleeping, trembling or shaking, unusual tiredness or weakness, vision changes, or vomiting."

Here's that page:

http://www.drugs.com/cons/prozac.html

If you'll get back to me with answers to my questions above, I'll see if we can refer your question to one of our medical experts. But from what you've said so far, it seems like it could be either a reaction to the on/off medicine OR you might just be getting sick and it doesn't have anything to do with the medicine.

Hi, Anon,

It can be so difficult and frustrating to try a medication only to find that it doesn't work for you, or that it has awful side effects that you can't tolerate. It's terrible to be feeling bad in the first place and then have to deal with not knowing if the medication you're trying is going to make it worse.

That's the problem with a brain medication like an anti-depressant. It's kind of like luck of the draw. I personally had a good, not to mention lifesaving experience, while taking Prozac. Prozac, along with talk therapy, literally saved my life when I was suffering from Postpartum Depression. But Prozac isn't a good drug for everyone. I've heard of people who've had the best luck with Cymbalta or Zoloft, but when I tried those medications, they were horrible for me. For me, only Prozac worked and it wasn't hard for me to eventually wean off of it when I was recovered and ready to stop taking it.

I really wish we knew more about the brain and why a particular medication is good for some people but bad for others.