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Paroxetine for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder User Reviews (Page 2)

Brand names: Paxil, Paxil CR, Brisdelle

Paroxetine has an average rating of 7.3 out of 10 from a total of 47 reviews for the treatment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. 66% of reviewers reported a positive experience, while 17% reported a negative experience.

Reviews for Paroxetine

  • Carl
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • April 25, 2024

"I've been on 40 mg of paroxetine for the past 3 and a half months for my OCD, depression, generalized anxiety, and agoraphobia. I have never felt better in my life. Depressive episodes, anxiety, and agoraphobia have disappeared, and finally I can live my life like I'm supposed to. I started working out regularly and developed healthier habits. It also helped me overcome my gambling addiction. Ejaculating has become a struggle though, but I'm not too worried about it at the moment as my sex drive is still present. One side effect that I hate is alopecia. One side of my beard disappeared completely; it's like I never had hair growing there in the first place, but again, I'm not too worried about it. It truly is life-changing; my performance at work increased, and my relationships became stronger due to my confident outlook on life. Whoever needs to take it should really give it a try."

9 / 10
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  • Lynn
  • Taken for 10 years or more
  • July 1, 2018

Paxil (paroxetine) "I have been on Paxil for 15 years (except when I was pregnant) It's been great for my OCD, but still makes me feel tired and I've gained weight that's hard to lose on it. I'm switching to something else that might be more energizing and doesn't pile on the pounds. Overall, I think it can be an awesome drug for anxiety and OCD in my experience, but there are a lot of side effects compared to other SSRIs."

5 / 10
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  • hls
  • Taken for 5 to 10 years
  • September 9, 2022

Paxil (paroxetine) "There are a lot of negative reviews of Paxil floating around in cyberspace, but I can confidently say that it saved my life. 8 years ago, I was going through an incredibly stressful period, resulting in a nervous breakdown. I had always been an anxious person but my OCD became unmanageable at this point. I was suffering from violent intrusive thoughts and lived in a near constant state of panic. My mother had been prescribed Paxil for similar issues, so with the help of my psychiatrist I decided to give it a try. Within weeks, my intrusive thoughts had lessened and I felt true peace for the first time in months. I remained on a tiny dose of 10 mg for 7 years until recent circumstances required me to switch to Zoloft. However, I am actually thinking about going back to Paxil at some point as I prefer its more sedating effects. The only reason I'm not rating it 10/10 is because of the side effects: I did experience a significant decrease in my sex drive and gained some weight."

8 / 10
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4 Report

Frequently asked questions

  • Fidog
  • Taken for 6 months to 1 year
  • February 11, 2021

Paxil (paroxetine) "This drug can do a lot for people with depression and maybe anxiety but it does not help OCD. I took it for 6 months and while my mood was great, the ocd was still very severe. I ended up weaning off of the drug very slowly since it wasn’t doing much, and it was the worst nightmare I’ve ever experienced. Not only did by ocd/anxiety come back tenfold, but I started getting severe hot flashes, night sweats and suicidal thoughts. My doctor told me as long as I eat healthy and get exercise, the withdrawal symptoms will start to dissipate. However, after 8 months of being off this drug now, I am still going through severe withdrawal and will most likely have to go back on SSRIS again at the end of the month. I would advise anyone with OCD or even depression for that matter to stay away from this drug, because you’ll NEVER get off it"

2 / 10
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  • Bizsh
  • Taken for 6 months to 1 year
  • March 21, 2024

"Paroxetine has been a lifesaver. Due to breastfeeding, I was unable to go back on fluoxetine, and sertraline was not working for me. I was offered paroxetine for OCD, which had gotten significantly worse after having a baby. When I first took it, I was not expecting the initial side effects. It felt like I had taken a stimulant - my eyes were fluttering, I was grinding my teeth, and I felt scattered. Yawning was a strange symptom. So when starting paroxetine, I would recommend having someone with you and slowly increasing your dose if you have these symptoms. Each day, this got easier and less overwhelming. Now I don't overthink, I don't have adrenaline surging through my body due to anxiety. I don't have to check everything and can just get on with my life. I'm so grateful to have found paroxetine. For some reason, it makes me sleepy in the afternoon, and I now need an afternoon nap, which I have never done before. I take 20mg in the morning."

10 / 10
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Are you taking this medicine?

  • Dess
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • January 24, 2020

"Hello everyone. I'm using paroxetine for almost 2 months it was given to me for OCD . My doctor told me to use half of 20 mg dosenevery day for one week and after that take a complete 20mg each day. I couldn't tolerate the complete one so I continued to use a half each day . It helped me with obsessive thinking and anxiety but I also suffer from side effects such as constipation and difficulties in orgasm . I tried to quit but I was awfully dizzy For two days. Now I stated using it again. In fact it helped me in one way but ruined me in another way . Thank you paroxetine!"

3 / 10
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  • Orand...
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • April 16, 2021

Paxil (paroxetine) "Took this drug for around 6 months for severe OCD as well as panic attacks and depersonalization and it helped a lot, got my anxiety and obsessive thoughts under control and made it easier to deal with them. There were plenty of side effects such as sexual dysfunction, weight gain, increased apathy, drowsiness/tiredness and etc however most of them have subsided after quitting the drug and the withdrawal was not that bad either because I tapered slowly."

7 / 10
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  • Axxxl
  • Taken for 10 years or more
  • March 25, 2016

"I have taken this drug for over 20 years. Five years before starting it I had successfully reduced my symptoms using my knowledge of behavioural therapy by about 70% (I have a degree in Psychology). Before I took this drug my condition was well under control, I was happy, highly functioning and professionally succesfull. I took it to "prove" my OCD was a "real" illness. It gave me no benefit but I kept taking it. In the 15th year I became obsessively suicidal. Worse followed. I have been trying to get off the drug 5 years. I have become a dysfunctional, barely human wreck. Hallucinating, delusional, depressive, continually suicidal. My deficits are innumerable and far worse than ever before I took it. It has literally destroyed my life."

1 / 10
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  • Kazi...
  • Taken for 2 to 5 years
  • May 25, 2020

"I was suffering from OCD for many years. I was not aware of the problems. My doctor prescribed Oxat 20 mg which contain paroxetine 20 mg. I have consumed it for 2 years. My OCD symptoms reduced 50%. But I can't get rid of paroxetine now. When I stop taking it I have diarrhea and loose stools. I feel sleepless. I am now down to taking 5 mg paroxetine daily. How can I get rid of it?"

7 / 10
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  • Cryst...
  • November 12, 2016

Paxil (paroxetine) "Paxil made me gain 5 lbs.. I noticed most of it was in my abdomen. It also made me very tired. I gained 15 lbs. overall. I was taken off it, but my energy wasn't coming back. It turned out I had a thyroid problem due to my carbamazepine, which controls my epileptic seizures."

2 / 10
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  • Sophi...
  • Taken for 2 to 5 years
  • November 2, 2023

"I got prescribed this for my OCD and general anxiety. I tried a couple other medications: Prozac, which worked okay, I guess, but gave me such bad acid reflux that my throat was burning from acid almost every time I took it. Zoloft, man, where do I even start? Almost ruined me, but that's another story. Now I'm on Paxil and can say it works very well. You might feel a bit woozy/high for a week or two like I did (which will start a few days after starting the med itself), but after you get used to it, it works wonders (at least for me!). I am far less inclined to carry out my obsessive thoughts and get less anxious socially and during exams at college. I am just less anxious about everything in general and feel more content than I did before. The only drawback is sometimes I get these weird 'zaps' as I call them, like inside my nervous system. They're just annoying, don't think it's serious, hasn't actually affected me to my knowledge. All in all, great med."

9 / 10
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  • OCD...
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • August 14, 2013

"I have been taking this medicine for 2-3 months over now and it has certainly noticable improvement. It used to take me 4-5 hours on bad days to sleep on bed because I had to do certain form of ritual. With Paroxetene my anxeity is reduced and people who think it did not work, should actually give an attempt to not repeat stuff and control and then with the help of medicine you wont panic as we do while not on medication. Hence they say behavioural therapy is must with medicine. I hesitated to have shower since my ritual was not completed correctly. With help of my very loving husband, parents and doctor I am recovering. Some days are bad without medicines but I am happier than before. Hopefully I will over come this one day"

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  • Anon
  • Taken for 1 to 2 years
  • July 12, 2017

"I was prescribed Paxil for three conditions: Anxiety, Depression and OCD. The OCD was only diagnosed a month ago. One of the biggest issues I had with Paxil was that the side effects were a living nightmare for the first 20 days or so... We're talking about nasty trips, confusion, dizziness, fatigue. You name it. I probably suffered it and more. The actual use of Paxil as a form of treatment has been hit and miss. By treating my OCD, I noticed my depression was getting worse. On days where my depression was better my Anxiety would flare up. It was like trying to balance each condition and either way one was going to be playing up. I am now using Paxil in conjunction with other medications for my issues and have to admit this has helped"

6 / 10
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  • Dor...
  • June 16, 2020

Paxil (paroxetine) "I have been taking this medicine for 2 and a half weeks, I have been feeling better ! I feel like my old self again I’m less anxious and obsessed about sleep. Paxil is a life savior"

10 / 10
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42 Report
  • lovicia
  • August 1, 2013

Paxil (paroxetine) "Helps take the edge off anxiety to where I can control it better. Also helps my social anxiety a lot and little with obsessive compulsive disorder. Overall it helps a lot!"

9 / 10
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63 Report
  • denver
  • March 12, 2008

Paxil (paroxetine) "It has worked for me!"

10 / 10
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53 Report
  • Spanky
  • Taken for 5 to 10 years
  • February 26, 2018

Paxil (paroxetine) "I'm a happier, calmer person. Just ask my wife."

10 / 10
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26 Report
  • not...
  • January 4, 2009

Paxil (paroxetine) "I used Paxil for a while and it worked but it caused me to gain 50lbs. I also had a difficult time weaning myself off it."

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  • Yippie
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • December 14, 2016

Paxil (paroxetine) "Be careful with this drug"

1 / 10
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16 Report
  • hones...
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • May 17, 2022

Paxil (paroxetine) "My sister suffered from extreme OCD, She was prescribed this med, It was really terrible for her, hysteria and panic attacks became very frequent, It was a nightmare for us."

1 / 10
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  • Rasik...
  • Taken for 2 to 5 years
  • March 29, 2019

"Paxil CR has yielded very good results in treating my chronic depression, panic disorder and OCD. I convey my gratitude."

9 / 10
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7 Report
  • mega
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • May 27, 2015

Paxil (paroxetine) "I get depressed, had low energy and serious sexual side effects, Prozac is better tolerated"

4 / 10
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10 Report
  • teste...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 1, 2018

"10 mg a day induced me panic attacks, extreme anxiety and depressed and terrible stomach aches. I stopped after a week or so."

1 / 10
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  • Nir
  • August 30, 2016

"Started Paroxetine 1 week ago. No changes so far. I'm very tired and drowsy during the day."

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  • steff
  • April 29, 2008

"I have been taking this medication for the past year and a half and have found that it didn't help me much with my OCD but i have heard from friends that it has help them with theres"

5 / 10
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3 Report

Reviews may be edited to correct grammar/spelling or to remove inappropriate language and content. Reviews that appear to be created by parties with a vested interest are not published. This information is not intended to endorse any particular medication. While these reviews may be helpful, they are not a substitute for the expertise, knowledge, and judgement of healthcare professionals.