Posted by Larry Hoover on January 24, 2005, at 11:41:08
In reply to Re: MAYBE WE SHOULD RETHINK THE BENADRYL GUYS!!! » Larry Hoover, posted by dancingstar on January 24, 2005, at 10:54:15
> Lar,
>
> For purposes of withdrawal, does it appear to be safer if people use either the antihistamine without the SSRI or the SSRI without the antihistamine, or does adding the antihistmine into the mix automatically create a problem, do you think, if they have been previously taking a SSRI or an SNRI...or don't you have a clue or not want to say, also, I'm thinking, a valid answer :-)?It really depends on which drugs you're considering. See below.
> This makes me so mad. When I mentioned that I had been taking Benadryl to get over the E-withdrawl, my poor internist was shocked to hear that it worked, and he hadn't known anything else about it except he was very glad that it helped. He had wanted to give me P, but I wanted no part of the stuff. From what I understand, many if not most are taking a combo of an anithistamine and Prozac at the same time to help them with symptoms, and this could really be a bad idea!~
>
> BebeYour internist may not have heard of Benadryl as a treatment for withdrawal side-effects because it's very likely been discovered quite by accident.
What I see throughout your post is a shifting back and forth between the general and the specific. There are some combinations of antidepressants and antihistamines that are a problem. Others are safe.
It is not okay to just think "I'll take an antihistamine to counteract the side-effects of withdrawal"....the drug to consider is *one* antihistamine, diphenhydramine (Benadryl). You can't just substitute willy-nilly for Benadryl. Based on the data on the tips page, chlorphenhydramine is a possible alternative to Benadryl. The modern non-sedating antihistamines are not acceptable because they require processing in the liver, and most modern antidepressants inhibit liver function.
Prozac works to help with withdrawal because of its very lengthy half-life. It virtually self-tapers in dose. Prozac and Benadryl together are also safe.
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:13781
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050124/msgs/446772.html