Paxil was introduced into the US markets in 1992, after which the manufacturer of the drug, GlaxoSmithKline marketed Paxil as “non habit forming.” This has been found to be incorrect by several experts and one curt judge, while studies have actually shown that Paxil Withdrawal is one of the most difficult side effects of Paxil to recover from.

 

To date there has been approximately 5,000 formal complaints made against GSK and Paxil. A good deal of these complaints stem from the 2001 World Health Organization (WHO) report ranking Paxil as the most difficult antidepressant to withdraw from.Soon after in 2002, the U.S. FDA published a new product warning about the drug and the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations (IFPMA) claimed GSK had misled the public about paroxetine and breached two of the Federation’s codes of practice.

 

Now with the new product warning, claim of the IFPMA, along with the quote of Charles Medawar, head of Social Audit: “This drug has been promoted for years as safe and easy to discontinue…. The fact that it can cause intolerable withdrawal symptoms of the kind that could lead to dependence is enormously important to patients, doctors, investors, and the company. GlaxoSmithKline has evaded the issue since it was granted a license for paroxetine over 10 years ago, and the drug has become a blockbuster for them, generating about a tenth of their entire revenue. The company has been promoting paroxetine directly to consumers as ‘non-habit forming’ for far too long” have all led to GSK acknowledging the occurrence of the discontinuation syndrome which includes serious discontinuation symptoms.

 

With Paxil’s initial marketing campaign deeming the drug “non habit forming” and recent events actually showing that Paxil is actually one of the most difficult antidepressants to stop using, many have begun to file a Paxil Lawsuit against the manufacturer of the drug. Many of the plaintiffs in these lawsuits claim that there was not enough warning placed on the labeling of Paxil and that the plaintiff would not have taken the drug had they known of the difficulty in discontinuing Paxil. If you feel that you are experiencing side effects from stopping Paxil, consult with your doctor as soon as possible.