Meds are addictive, considering stopping

I am currently on three meds; Olanzapine, Citalopram and Bupropion. I am considering stopping taking at least the Olanzapine and the Citalopram. I have gained fifteen to twenty pounds since starting them, and I have experienced bad withdrawal symptoms when I've tried to stop taking them, without my pdoc's advice... I feel that I am addicted to them now that I know how bad I feel without them, and this really scares me.

If I do stop taking them all together, how long will my withdrawal symptoms last? When stopping Celexa I have had dizziness and a zapping, electricity feeling in my head. When stopping Olanzapine I feel like I have a fever, or my body is made of wood - very hard to describe - I can't sit still and my heart races.

I'm hoping if I get off these drugs I will lose the weight. I'm kind of scared though, because things were really bad before meds... I don't know what to do.

Any advice?

Hi ((((((((((((Pink_Lotus)))))))))))))

I stopped taking Celexa's "cousin drug" Lexapro cold-turkey because of the weight gain thing too, and it was even on the advice of my doctor. BAD idea. Really. Going cold turkey off an AD is absolutely brutal, and best be avoided, because the withdrawal effects can really mess with you and put you out of commission (inability to function) for a few days to a week. Not fun, not fun at all. If you want to stop the drugs, talk to your doctor about tapering (slowly) off of them.

I also didn't lose the weight after getting off of the Lexapro either. Sucks, but its a common side effect of a lot of ADs. Most likely you'd need to exercise more and watch what you eat to lose the weight it put on (in my experience).

Hope that helps, but please talk to your doctor. You could do yourself a lot of harm going off of them by yourself without medical supervision.

Hi,
I second Christina's recommendation not to stop taking your meds without your MD's recommendation. My MD guided my withdrawal from Paxil, and it was a difficult process. I mostly remember the irritability that I felt as I tried to wean myself off the med. But I suspect it would have been even worse if I had gone cold turkey.

I wish you the best.

Arlington