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How
to Get Off Psychiatric Drugs Safely
Copyright Notice
Patent Pending
Forward
A Note
From James Harper, Founder, The Road Back
Table of
Contents
Part One
Chapter
1.
The Road
Back Basics
2.
The Four Simple Steps
3.
Suggested Nutritionals for The Road Back Program
4.
Things
You Need to Know
5.
Things to Be Aware Of
6.
General Pre-Tapering and
Tapering Instructions
7.
Daily Journal
8.
Graph Your Success
9.
Pre-Taper For: Benzodiazepines, Anti-Convulsants, Anti-Anxiety & Sleep
Medication
10.
Pre-Taper For Antidepressants,
Antipsychotics, and ADHD Medication
11.
How to
Taper Off Benzodiazepines, Anti-Convulsants, Anti-Anxiety and Sleep Medication
(Slow and Gradual Taper)
12.
How to Taper Off
Benzodiazepines, Anti-Convulsants, Anti-Anxiety and Sleep Medication
(Fast and Gradual Taper)
13.
How to
Taper Off Antidepressants, Anti-Psychotics and ADHD Medication
(Slow and Gradual Taper)
14.
How to
Taper Off Antidepressants, Anti-Psychotics and ADHD Medication (Fast
and Gradual Taper)
15.
Once
Off All Medication
16.
What to Do If You Have Already
Started to Taper Off Your Medication
or
Just Quit Cold Turkey
17.
How to
Taper Off Multiple Drugs
18.
What You
Can Do If You Have Never Taken Psychiatric Drugs
19.
Science
Behind The Road Back Program
Glossary
References
Additional Testimonials
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The nutritional supplements used in this program can be purchased
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health care providers.
You can order directly from the manufacturer.
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Chapter Thirteen
How to Taper Off Antidepressants, Antipsychotics,
and ADHD Medications
(Slow and Gradual Taper)
If you are taking a medication that is
a time release or can only be reduced by the pharmaceutical company available
dosages, use chapter fourteen,
How to Taper Off Antidepressants, Antipsychotics and ADHD
Medication (Fast and Gradual Taper).
Now that you have completed your pre-taper program, you are
ready to start the reduction of your medication. Not knowing what each of you
may have experienced personally, I do know that the vast majority of people who
are ready for this step tell me that they have some trepidation starting the
taper, as they have had terrible side effects when they have tried to quit
before.
You might have experienced the “electrical zaps” in the
head that is very common with stopping antidepressants, a return of depression,
anxiety, fatigue, extreme aches and pain, or even wound up in a mental hospital.
Now, as incredible as this might seem, this step should be the
easy part of The Road Back
Program!
Note: If you are taking
Cogentin along with another medication, you will need to rotate the reduction of
the Cogentin and the other medication.
Example: If you are taking
Cogentin and Haldol, you would reduce the Haldol first, wait 14-days and then
reduce the Cogentin, wait 14-days and then reduce the Haldol once again, wait
14-days and then reduce the Cogentin again. Repeat this process until off both
medications. Reduce the Haldol and Cogentin by the same percentage with each
reduction.
The Taper
The
safest method to reduce
medication:
If you have tried to taper off these medications before
and suffered withdrawal side effects, I suggest that you at least start the
taper slowly. Reduce
the medication by 10% every 14-days for three reductions and have success, and
then move to the next method for reducing the medication.
I have been told by people that the 10%
reduction every 14-days is far too long. When I asked them, “How long have you
been trying to get off the medication?” the answer was usually a few years
without success. This is where,
slow, and steady wins the
race every time.
Again, if you had a problem in the past with tapering off the
medication, use the 10% reduction schedule. Have success reducing the medication
at least 3 times, see for yourself that you can do this and still feel well, and
then you and your physician should decide if you should reduce the medication at
a larger reduction.
Make sure you work with the prescribing physician before
changing the dosage of your medication.
▪
Ask your
physician to write a prescription to accommodate a 10% reduction.
You will need to use a compounding pharmacy to fill
this prescription.
▪ It is important that the compounded drug be identical to the drug you are
currently taking.
▪ Changing to a generic drug may not act the same and withdrawal side effects
can begin.
▪ Switching from one drug to another because it has a longer half-life will
create withdrawal side effects from the drug abruptly stopped.
▪ Do not switch from a tablet or capsule form of the drug to a liquid.
▪ Do not switch from a time release to a tablet form or liquid form of the drug.
▪ Unless the pharmacist can assure you the medication is
exactly the
same, avoid this method.
▪ Only reduce the medication 10% every
fourteen days. The 10%
reduction is based on the original dosage of the medication. The 10% reduction
is based on milligrams.
▪
Never skip any days taking your medication.
▪ Always take your medication at the same time each day.
▪ If you take your medication more than once each day,
make sure the total
reduction of the medication is no more than 10%.
▪ Take each supplement at least ˝ hour apart from the drug,
but ideally, 1 hour apart. It is much better to take the supplements 1 hour
after taking the drug, instead of before the drug.
▪ Continue with your supplements and “super foods” at the same
times and amounts established during the pre-taper.
▪ Take each supplement at the same time each day.
▪ Continue taking your “super foods” and supplements at
least 45 days after
you take the last dosage of your medication.
▪ Remember to keep your Daily Journal filled out each
day and keep taking all of the supplements exactly as you were at the end of the
pre-taper.
Once you have reduced the
medication by 10% 3 times you can increase the reduction for the remaining of
the taper to a 20% reduction every fourteen days.
Taper Procedure:
-
Keep taking all supplements exactly as you did at the end
of the pre-taper throughout the taper process.
-
Keep your Daily Journal up-to-date each day.
-
Compound medication for a 10% reduction.
-
Reduce medication by 10% every 14-days, at least during
the first 3 reductions.
-
Only reduce the medication every 14-days.
-
Make sure you have at least 7 consecutive days of feeling
very well before reducing the medication again. If this requires you to
reduce the medication every 21-days, do that.
-
Never skip any days of taking medication.
-
After 3 successful reductions at 10% and fourteen days
have passed begin reducing by 20% every 14 days.
Tapering can be this simple.
What to Do If Side Effects Begin
It is important to know what to do if side
effects begin while tapering off the medication.
Withdrawal side effects can happen, but addressing
them early and knowing what to do will usually make them short lived and keep
them mild as well.
In this book, mentioned several times is, “With little to no
side effects,” but if you were to purchase a $250,000 automobile, it would still
come with a spare tire, just in case!
Use the following steps if side effects take place while
tapering.
If a withdrawal side effect turns on during the taper.
Do not reduce the medication again until the symptom goes
away. This usually only takes a few days, or less, and then you can resume the
taper.
Do not start making wholesale changes to your daily routine.
Proceed with the following steps, in the order presented. Once
the withdrawal side effect is eliminated, give yourself 7-days, and then
continue with the taper.
-
Review your Daily Journal and look for changes you might
have made to your routine. If you located a change, go back to exactly what
you were doing before the change and all should be well shortly. Give the
withdrawal side effect 7 days to go away. If nothing is found, move to
number 2.
-
Usually, the withdrawal side effect will be a side
effect you had before doing the pre-taper. Review the Daily Journal and
locate the exact step of the pre-taper that eliminated the side effect.
* The exception to this is with
antidepressants. The
“electrical zaps” tend to only happen when an antidepressant is reduced.
Increase the Ultimate Omega 3 immediately at the first sign of a head
symptom or the “electrical zap.” Increase the Ultimate Omega 3 to 5 softgels
in the morning and 5 softgels at noon immediately, if this side effect
begins.
Usually, the side effect will subside the same
day or the next day with the increase of the Ultimate Omega 3.
If you are not already taking the Calsorption and
CalesiumD, you should being doing so at this juncture to help avoid any return
of the “electrical zaps.” Taking 5 grams of Calsorption daily along with 800 mg
of CalesiumD daily is recommended throughout the rest of your taper and for
45-days after the last dosage of medication.
If the head side effect remains mild, but is
still present, continue taking the 5 Ultimate Omega 3 until the symptom abates
and then return to your previous amount of Ultimate Omega 3. Wait 7 full days
and then continue with the taper.
If the head side effects are severe and you
find it difficult to function in life due to the pain of the symptom, go back to
the last dosage of the antidepressant you were at before this reduction and
remain there for 14-days. Going back to the last dosage you were at should get
rid of the “electrical zaps” quickly.
The next time you reduce the antidepressant
and each reduction thereafter, increase the Ultimate Omega 3 to 5 softgels in
the morning and 5 softgels at noon 2 days before you reduce the medication, and
remain at this level for 5 days after reducing the medication. This approach
should avert the occurrence of the “electrical zaps.”
If the “electrical zaps” continue with this
approach, you will need to lower the medication at a slower reduction. Talk to
your physician and have your pharmacist find a way to fill the prescription to
allow for a more gradual reduction. This will handle the taper for you.
* End of antidepressant exception.
* Antipsychotic drug exception:
Antipsychotics can have as a side effect when tapering, psychosis, hearing
voices, seeing things that are not there or episodes of extreme aggression.
Increasing the Body Calm Supreme has proven
to be effective for these side effects.
Increase the Body Calm Supreme to 1 capsule
every 2 hours during the daytime and 1 to 2 capsules at bedtime for sleep.
Continue taking all other supplements as established in the pre-taper.
* End of antipsychotic exception.
Continued #2
-
Usually, the withdrawal side effect will be a
side effect you had before doing the pre-taper. Review the Daily Journal and
locate the exact step of the pre-taper that eliminated the side effect.
Increase that supplement slightly when you
take it during the daytime or at bedtime, and this should handle the side effect
quickly.
Once the side effect is gone, wait 7 days
before reducing the medication again.
If the side effect is not eliminated, this
needs to be looked at a few ways before taking any new action.
Do you still rate yourself at a 7 or higher
on the 1-10 scale for anxiety, sleep and other feelings? If so, keep taking the
slight increase of the supplement that handled the side effect earlier for the
next 7 days and then continue with the taper as long as you remain at a 7 or
higher rating.
If you have fallen below a 7 rating, proceed
to number 3.
-
Each supplement used with The Road Back Program has
a specific purpose.
Using a supplement a little differently is
sometimes needed to overcome withdrawal side effects.
Begin taking the Body Calm Supreme every 4
hours during the day if you are not already doing that.
Once the side effect is eliminated or reduced
to the point of you rating yourself at a 7 or higher once again, wait 3 days
and then reduce the Body Calm Supreme back to the amount you were taking.
Make sure you keep taking all other supplements
exactly as established during the pre-taper.
-
If you found that number 2 handled the side effect, and
the same side effect begins again with the next reduction, 1 day before you
reduce the medication, increase that supplement slightly and stay on the
increased amount for 4 days after you lowered the dosage.
This approach should help stop the side effect from ever being present with
all future reductions.
-
If number 2 did not fully eliminate the side effect, you
will need to give yourself a little additional time. Stay at the increased
amount of the supplement that you increased doing number 2, and relief
should come within 7 days.
-
Sometimes there is just a bump in the road as you
taper off a medication. There is no rhyme or reason for withdrawal side
effects to begin. You might have decreased the medication 6 times with ease
and at the seventh reduction, a withdrawal side effect begins.
This usually goes away using the steps above, but sometimes it just
persists.
There are two solutions. Reduce the medication once again or increase the
medication back up to the last dosage you were doing well with are the two
options.
If you are going to increase the medication, give yourself at least 14-days
before doing this. Give your body a chance to adjust. If the withdrawal side
effect is unbearable, do not wait the 14-days but complete all steps above
and then proceed with this option.
Increasing the medication back to the last dosage should be the first choice
from these two options.
There are those times when reducing the dosage does handle the withdrawal
side effect. For whatever reason, your body is reacting to that certain
amount of medication and nothing you do will get rid of the side effect
except to be on a different dosage, whether a higher or lower dosage.
If you went back up on the dosage of the medication to get relief, and
withdrawal side effects started again when you returned to this level, the
answer is usually to reduce the medication again rather quickly and get to a
new lower level.
Make sure you talk to your physician about this and keep him or her well
informed as to how you are doing and
what
you are doing.
Once you are off the medication, make sure you keep taking the
supplements for 45-days.
Read the chapter, “Once Off All Medication” and follow the
ending program completely.
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