Two friends of mine and I share a common experience--Paxil withdrawl, and it was horrible for each of us. My knowledge is based only on those three experiences, though, so I hope you'll talk to your doctor too!
That said, the dizziness was something we all went through, along with other strange body feelings--heavinesss/lightness, tingling in the hands and feet, an inability to remain still. The mental effects were worse, though. They both had nightmares and I had insomnia, along with anxiety and depression, worrying and despairing over things that, once my mind was clear, I could see were relatively minor.
I think there are some
Paxil withdrawl stories in the other drug forum, too. It sounds, though, like you were very lucky (tho' I'm sure it didn't feel that way at the time!). I've been on quite a few different antidepressants, and Paxil is the only one I've had that strong a reaction to quitting.
Since the symptoms that caused you to start taking it seem to have passed, I genuinely hope you won't have to go back on it. I was on another SSRI for a few years, and as a result developed tardive dyskinesia--a late-developing side effect of antipsychotics and, they're not learning, some antidepressants, that causes involuntary movements. It may be permanent, and though I felt the drug was a blessing at the time, I wish I'd fully understood/been informed of the risks. Should you need motivation to go/stay off the Paxil, I suggest Dr. Joseph Glenmullen's _Prozac Backlash: Overcoming the Dangers of
Prozac,
Zoloft, Paxil, and Other Antidepressants with Safe, Effective Alternatives_. You can read a few pages on Amazon, or the whole first chapter on The New York Times web book section. I just received the book yesterday, but that first chapter was enough to convince me I'll never go back to SSRI's--now I just need to find out what those alternatives are!
Well, pardon the rambling response. I hope there's something helpful here, and that this finds you with your withdrawl symptoms behind you. Best of luck,
Martha
Paxil 
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