PLEASE READ THIS, I FEEL MY LIFE HAS BEEN RUINED: I took paxil from December until May, at which time I just stopped taking them because I thought they were causing me to have strange sensations in my head (little shock-like surges or rushes). Everything seemed fine, although I was still having head rushes every now and then.

Then, on August 5 my world came crashing down around me. I awoke that morning about 6:00 a.m., went to get out of bed and fell to the floor. Everything was spinning around, I was so dizzy that when my husband got me back on the bed I could only lay on my stomach. I was so sick to my stomach and I could feel that I was about to lose control of my bowels. I asked my husband to call 911, which he did. Then I had him help me to the restroom. He was dragging me because I was so dizzy and so limp. Much to my embarrassment, he had to hold me on the toilet and help me clean myself afterward. This was most embarrassing, as I am very shy and have never even been naked in front of him, much less had a bowel movement in his presence.

When I arrived at the emergency room and after I was stabilized, the doctor prescribed Meclizine to me for dizziness. He assumed that I had an inner ear infection, although my blood work looked good. When I first arrived at the emergency room, my body temperature and vital signs were all low. When we left, my husband was having to hold me up because I was still so dizzy. I ended up not being able to work for over a month and a half. I had to go on medical leave.

When I did go back to work, I was still not well. Whatever happened to me had affected my vision, speech, balance, and had caused me to have electrical sensations rush through my head, the dizziness is awful. I have felt like I have water in the back of my head. I call those days my water-head days. It feels like a build-up of water pressure in my head and I can hear it moving around. I cannot sleep on my right side at night due to the violent dizziness I experience. Also, when I turn my head to the right when I am laying down, not only do I become violently dizzy, I hear a loud scratching noise in my head. All along, I thought it could be the Paxil, but I was no longer taking them.

On September 13, I had a Cat Scan (with die injection) just to rule out a stroke or brain tumor. On that same day I had an Echo Gram on my heart. Pretty normal. Since all of this has happened, I, have developed, for the first time in my life, high blood pressure. I changed doctors and on December 21, I had an MRI and an MRA (head & neck). All was normal. No signs of deep inner ear problems, no problem with blood supply to my brain. This is all good, I am happy.

Today is December 29, and last night I decided to look on the internet for Paxil's bad side effects and BINGO, ALL OF MY SYMPTOMS. This has been ongoing for months and truthfully from the onset of my taking Paxil in December 99. I need some relief from the dizziness. My vision is much improved, although for the first time I have to wear glasses to see good. Long distance vision too. I only hope that this has not affected my health for the rest of my life. Like the high blood pressure I now have.

In my opinion, no one can have these kind of side effects (all documented with my doctors) and not have future problems. They should take Paxil off the market. I do believe that Paxil has ruined my life for the last year and has cost me money in doctor bills and in missing work. Being a correctional officer, I must be at my best every day. I cannot go into a cell with 24 inmates and worry about getting dizzy and passing out. This could be life threatening to me. If this continues and does not stop, my job could be at stake. When will this all go away? I am no longer taking Paxil and would never consider putting something back into my body like this, ever again. Please try to help me find out the long term effects of this awful drug. I feel permanently messed up from this.

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