Mayby

Strangely, I developed Lhermitte's sign too after some panic attacks (2 months before I got HPPD with an SSRI). I was then tested for MS too (MRI) and they found nothing...

Hi! I was wondering who of you have neck problems?

I'm starting to think that what we see might be related to some problems we may have with our neck...

A stiff neck seems to be a common symptom among people who see visual snow, trails, starbursts, etc. Personally, I had a car accident 4 years ago and got a whiplash. Never had any pain until last year (about the same time where I got HPPD with an SSRI).

Just a survey to see if that's something we could investigate more...

Hey!

I was just wondering if any of you have been put on an antibiotic while having HPPD, and dit not get affected by it.

After reading some posts about antibiotics, I'm kind of afraid of getting sick and having to take antibiotics... I couldn't bear getting a more severe HPPD.

I know I shouldn't worry about diseases that I don't have, but I do...

My main symptoms are visuals and anxiety! But my anxiety lessened a bit in the past week. Thank God! But I have the full range of visuals : trails, starbursts, negative afterimages, and a bit of visual snow. I hope this will go away soon! I saw an eye doctor yesterday and she said my eyes are fine, and that's probably migraine related :s. Strangely, I don't have any headaches...

Hi!

I just want to give you the list I made with tips from people who got better! Feel free to add things if I forgot something :

1. Ignore the symptoms, do not study your anxiety, stop searching on Google and forums (Oops!)

2. Stay sober

3. Eat healthy

4. Take supplements, especially the brain-related ones (magnesium, Omega 3/6/9)

5. Exercise

6. Wait...time heals all wounds (really?)

7. NSAID (for headaches)

8. Sleep well

9. Hydrate

10. Read

11. Make brain-related exercises

12. Believe in the fact that you can be cured and that all efforts you make will help you

13. Do things that make you happy

14. Reduce stress, try meditation

15. Low GI diet

16. Benzo only if necessary

I am currently trying almost everything listed (except maybe the fact that I should quit Internet and the forums, and the diet...I make efforts to eat well but I'm not checking on the GI of every food I eat). No improvement until now. Almost 3 months since the onset.

Again, feel free to add things if you think of something else!

Thanks ferret for your story! Very encouraging!

Mgrade, thanks to you too! Could you please describe what were your symptoms? Did you have only visual snow too? Or you had the full blown version with the trails, starbursts, afterimages, etc.?

No I didn't have HPPD before the SSRI. It all started when I stopped the benzo that I took for about 2 weeks after the SSRI that made me hallucinate. However, I did already have extreme anxiety before the meds and I still have. It seems that we can also get HPPD-like symptoms when you get derealized (I am), and you can get derealized from extreme anxiety. So MAYBE I would have it even if I hadn't been on the meds... who knows...

Yeah...I smoked weed at the beggining of April...but I'm quite sure that's not what has triggered it. However, I know I won't touch it again!!

Thank you for your answers! I hope everything will fade in time!

Everyone here seem to be stuck with the condition however. That's not very encouraging

I was prescribed Ativan for Anxiety on April 23rd, and I took it as needed (not more than 0.5 mg) until I saw MY doctor in May, who prescribed me Cipralex (SSRI), and said that I could continue Ativan just for the time the SSRI kicks in. But as I said, after 3 days on the SSRI, I started hallucinating (I didn't take Ativan that day, but I think I did the other 2 days).

So I stopped the SSRI, and continued on Ativan for a while (not every day, and never more than 0.5 mg).

About 2 weeks after hallucinating on the SSRI (and after slowed down the Ativan), I started to have the visuals... So I completely stopped Ativan too. It's now been 6 weeks since I took my last Ativan. And I still have all the visuals... I'm afraid it's going to stay forever...

Hi Guys!

I'm writing because I seem to have the same symptoms than you, but I never took hard drugs!

However, in May, I took an SSRI (anti-depressant) for 3 days before it made me hallucinate! I immeditately stopped taking it, but 2 weeks later I started to see weird things :

1. Negative afterimages, espacially in the morning.

2. Trails

3. When I close my eyes after looking at the window or inside my fridge, I can still see what I saw with my eyes open.

4. Light sensitivity

5. Starbursts around lamp posts and car headlights (the most frightning).

6. Feeling that my eyes are cameras (derealization?)

It's been about a month since everything started and I'm very afraid that this is some sort of HPPD that won't go away.

I have to say that I cold turkeyed from a low-dose benzo that I took every 2 days for 1 month and a half. Maybe this is just a matter of time too.

I don't know what to do to get better. My anxiety is quite high because of this and I don't want to go back to meds since that's what started it in the first place.

Are there any success stories on this site? It seems like everyone here is stuck with this and no one seems to recover. Maybe I'm not searching adequately...

Thanks!