Hey Steve and Popi,

How are you both feeling? I'm just past the 2 week mark of being on Citalopram now.. I've had a couple more days of more anxiety- more like my brain is sort of buzzing and I feel uncomfortable and restless. I hope this feeling passes.. I took a xanax one day to help those uncomfortable feelings.. I've also had a pretty bad panic attack where I experienced weird tingling feelings thoughout my body... I guess I'm just going to tell my psych doctor when I see her next week..

Are either of you still feeling side effects? Have they gotten eny better- or worse?

Hi sh137-

Have you taken lexapro before? I've heard some people have good results with that one too.... Hope you're doing well too..

Hey everybody,
I just wanted to let you know that I think I'm doing a bit better on this stuff now! I've been taking it for 19 days total now, 11 of those with 20mg. For a while it seemed like the anxiety was a whole lot worse, but for the last two days I've noticed a change. Maybe I'm imagining it but my anxiety seems much reduced, the weirder side effects are gone, and I've had two pretty nice days. I'm less nervous around strangers, which was a problem I've always had. The only persistent problem I'm having is insomnia, and I'm hoping that will go away with time. I also have very vivid dreams, and overall I enjoy them (except one terrifying nightmare which I won't share, because it even disturbed my friends when I told them!)
Anyway I'm feeling hopeful and thought I would encourage those of you who are starting off to stick with it a little longer. I'll let you know if my good streak keeps going! Maybe all the side effects were worth it after all...

Hi somethingwurkee,

How are you doing with the celexa now?

xx

That sounds great Steve! I liked the dreams too! I miss them now. I'm not sure when you take your tablet but taking it in the morning helps with the insomnia. xx

Alright people. I started taking Citalopram six days ago. Anxiety comes through in waves, which didnt happen before, I wake up early and thats about it.
I'm so happy others are going through this aswell. My friend used to be on citalopram and said they make you feel a little uneasy for at most 2 or 3 weeks, then it's back to reality. I quite like that spaced feeling I get from time to time as its relaxing. My mind is constantly on 'Go' so it feel nice to relax. To be honest it's not that I really felt much worse than I have before I just thought I would see if they help or not. I wake up early feeling anxious, thats the worst for me. But as soon as i take a pill and get up etc I feel better. I know its hard but its mind over matter. Might get myself a CBT book as I most certainly cannot afford the real thing. But I am going to call the free councilling thats available tomorrow. The thing is one of my friends had an idea that sometimes talking about something makes it more important than it actually is. And I do sort of understand where he is comming from. Im only talking about my experience, I think that if I go back to a counciller for 8 weeks then it will give my mind something to be anxious about, Yet if I just "get on with it" and see how the meds do etc it might be better for me. Im not sure but its an idea. Anyway, will there ever be a point where the taking of the meds will feel beneficial? I do hope so. Well to be honest I'm giving it 6 weeks and if I don't like it by then then I'm off. We'll see. Anyway, like I said, its good to know im not alone.

Peter

HI PeterWabbit

The free counselling thing sounds like a good idea. If you don't like it, you can always stop, but you might as well give it a try. I do agree that focussing too much on something can make it worse but you can also use the counselling just to get things off your chest - it may help to lighten the load. Anyway, hope the citalopram does some good xx

hi my name is krystal im 23...

i battled with panic disorder and as a result got depression back in 2007 as a result of self-medicating (weekend use only never addicted) i begun lexapro 10 mg with xanax (to counter act the increased anxitey) in oct 07. and weaned my self off with dr advice in june 09.. its now sept and tada relapse... (good times) im now on day 5 of going back onto lex ( not fun) i had my mental breakdown yesterday massive panic attack etc.. but today is better and i keep reminding myself i have gotten over these side effects b4 and i got better and i can do it again..

this time i have better ammo.. cognitive behavoural therapy! i have also changed my diet so wish me luck and i shall keep everyone posted!

This post has been edited by PRT: Sep 21 2009, 04:26 PM

Hi Krystal, welcome to the Lexapro/Celexa forum

It sounds like you're doing a lot to help yourself out so I really think you have a good chance of making it this time. DIet and exercise can be such a big help in combatting depression. Let us know how things go.

PRT xx

Hi, I have been on Lexapro for 9 days now. The side effects are bizarre, but I'm sticking with it, hoping it will help. Something I think is helping to reduce how the side effects affect me is exercise. My neighbour, bless her, has been knocking on my door every day and telling me I have to go for a walk with her because she's trying to lose weight and won't do it without help... I can't seem to accept help from others but can't say no to helping someone else??? So she's figured out a pretty clever way of helping me!!! Anyway, I don't feel like going for a walk, but once we've been walking for half an hour or so I feel a lot better.

Hi and Welcome chikapea

It is wonderful to have you. I think you have an awesome neighbour, as the exercise will definitely help and I am glad that it does make you feel better.
Please make yourself feel at home.

Trace

Hi lucey,
Thought I'd give an update. At the 11 day mark and everything pretty much remains the same. More anxiety and like you uncomfortable and restless.
I get the feeling I have a long way to go yet. I hope you are feeling better these days. Peace. ............................POPI

Hi all, I am chelsea. Just started using cipralex while they are weaning me off of effexor.
I have had nausea, dizziness and been extremely tired... although, I have only been on it for 6 days and I started feeling all of this about 4 days ago.... When i missed my period :(

I know.. tmi.. but im a little frusterated wondering if it is the cipralex causing me to miss my period ( as I have read this) or if i might be pregnant which stresses me out even more because it is so not planned and im not ready (ik have a 3 year old with behavioural issues)

I am glad i have found a community that i can share my down days and up days with..

On top of effexor i am on trasadone too. so technically three different anti depressants.
BLAH

I was also disgnosed with borderline personality disorder and severe depression. My mood swings are the reason for the switch from effexor to cipralex.

Well now i feel i have talked your ears off.. ciao for now

Hi and Welcome to DF chelseamb

It is great to have you here. While weaning off one med and starting another one, there may be quite a few side effects. Perhaps its an idea to take a pregnancy test, just to know if it really is the meds or not.
Please make yourself feel at home.

Trace

Hi again everybody,
I'm doing better, so I thought I would encourage everybody who is still going through the weirder side-effects. It took about 3 weeks until most of the stranger side effects went away for me and I was starting to feel the benefits of it. I think it is really helping, although I am still having panic attacks every several days. I am going up to 30mg starting today to see if the panic attacks will respond to that, and the pharmacist said I may get some of the strange side effects back for a little while as I adjust. Oh well! I hope that the insomnia does not come back too bad, because I absolutely hate the benzodiazeprines he gave me to help me sleep. Those things ruin the whole day by making me groggy. I prefer to be sleep deprived and anxious to being a zombie.
Hmm.. reading back this post doesn't seem as positive as I intended, but I actually am doing so much better before I started this. It takes a lot longer to work than my doctor implied, but I have a good feeling about how it will work out. Panic attacks and sleep problems aside, I feel more like myself, more positive, more energized, less anxious. The brain-buzzy feeling, crazy ups and downs, etc all went away. Good luck everybody!

Hi and Welcome Stevethecat

I am so glad that you are doing much better and it can give others so much hope. Its great to have you here.

Trace

Hi!

My name is Sheri and I'm 30 years old. I have had depression/anxiety in the past and was on Lexapro for a couple of years. I weaned off of them earlier this year, but have had a relapse of anxiety and now I'm on Citalopram (mainly because it's cheaper). I am on day 8 of taking it and I found this site while searching for side effects of citalopram. I have been having hot flashes, dry mouth, nausea, bloating, increased anxiety, and loss of appetite. I really hope the majority of these side effects go away soon! I don't remember having so many effects from the Lexapro, but I was really down when I took them, so I probably just didn't notice. I'm glad that others are writing about their experiences because it's reassuring that I'm not the only one going through this! I just need extra support while the side effects are going on....I know I'll feel better once it's fully in my system....it's just the side effects that are making me crazy/more anxious!

Hi hawkears

The majority of them will go away within a couple of weeks so stick it out if you can. You may not have had the same effects with Lexapro. SOme people take the same drug at different points in their lives and one time get side effects and another time they don't. It appears to be so random!
Anyway, you'll find a lot of people here who understand. I hope the citalopram works for you.

PRT xx

I just started taking lexapro 7 days ago. Its definitely have a huge impact on my mood and behavior, mostly good. I've spent most of the last year speaking in monotones, having no variety in my day to day interests and conversations, so i've decided not to tell my friends why i've been acting so differently - lol, as a mystery factor. I mean, i do WANT them to notice I'm doing better, but i don't just want them to belittle my success and improvement by associating it with what some people might consider "the easy way out."

HI meme(etc)!

I think you're not giving yourself enough credit. After 7 days, the lexapro won't be the cause of all your improvements, so maybe you're doing something right too. Glad it's helping though. And yeah, you don't need to tell your friends. xx

Hi again everybody,
I've been taking this stuff for 5 1/2 weeks now, and feel pretty normal! I've gotten the panic attacks down to only one or two per week and am feeling much more functional, like my old self. All my friends say I am much better. When I switched from 20mg to 30mg my sleep problems and insomnia went away. There is a problem however- now I want to sleep too much! I keep getting really sleepy between 2 and 5 and it's all I can do to keep from taking a long afternoon nap. I'm a busy person and can't afford to nap every day! Has anyone else experienced this? Is my dosage too high? Or will this just go away with time?

Hi All
well, I have been on Prozac for 4 months...started at 20mg now bumped up to 30mg
I find i have way to much tension in my jaw area...and I still have anxiety
I did read, that prozac and Paxil can cause tension in the jaw area...which is not good for me, as I suffer froom TMJ from time to time.
I have doc appt on wednesday..and I am really considering switching over to a new med
IE: Clelexa...the thing is..I hate to start , basicly from scratch again....but this tension in my jaw and head...is driving me insane..and anxious...
Any opinions...should I switch over....or increase the PROZAC maybe
I do take Ativan on an as needed basis...and so far I am up to 2mg a day...and I dont like that...but it helps to relax the jaw muscles...Im so worried i will be dependent on ativan..and scare..
thank you..
I have read about Celexa...maybe it will work differently....

Hi Stevethecat, that's brilliant news!! With regards to the sleeping, I found that on 40mg, and it never went away. But 30mg is obviously less than this and you may just not be used to it yet. I would give it 4 weeks from switching and see how you feel then. If you're still having the same problem, you might want to ramp down a little. You shouldn't get your insomnia back as that's usually just a start-up effect.

PRT xx

Hi Kassiegal.

I would think that at first you may want to discuss adjusting your dose of Prozac. Did you get the tension at 20mg too? The doctor will be able to answer better whether changing the dose will help with this symptom or not.
It's not an unknown symptom on Celexa either though. I did get it from time to time and people have reported excessive teeth grinding and similar on Celexa which obviously adds to jaw pain. It tends to happen at the higher doses (over 20mg).
I understand that you're not comfortable with 2mg of ativan a day and agree that it's not a long-term solution. Hope you find something that works.

PRT xx

Thank you...PRT...yes, the jaw tension was there at 20mg too
I am being treated for anxiety, and depression....but when jaw is tense..I still get anxietys...
I have been laid off of my job...so I basicly set around all day....and I know I am on the computer way to much
Maybe I need to adjust my life style...maybe jaw is worse..because of posture..and too much typing...lol
I amjust so bored with my life right now...I went from working everyday for 12 years to nothing at all now...
where I live..on a farm..small town...not a lot for me to do...
maybe my problem is just bored and lonely...who knows...
but thank you....

Hey Kassie,

Don't blame yourself, I really think it is the meds, a lot of people do get that side-effect. I have gone from working full-time to working 3 hours a week, so I know how you feel! Luckily I'm a bit closer to civilisation than you are. Maybe you could do some kind of distance-learning course or something to keep your mind active? Or take up photography! Sorry, that's random, I'd just like to do it! xxx

I must be the lucky one for I have yet to have any real side effects on Lexapro. On the other hand felt fine after the first week but now on week 4 and very depressed and seem to be worrying alot again. I'am going to bump up from 10mg to 20mg I hope it works.

HI johnboy

I hope the bump up works for you too. Sometimes people can feel a bit more depressed in the first month or two before the meds kick in fully. I'm really glad you're not having any nasty side effects - gives a bit of hope to those thinking about starting meds.

PRT xx

Hi everyone, I'm Drew, and I started taking cipralex for GAD/SAD about 6 weeks ago. I have been at 20 mg, and I'm side effect free now, but I'm ramping up to 30 mg because 20 mg didn't seem to be doing much.

Anyway, just saying hello.

Hi and Welcome to DF drewmandan

I am glad that you are now side effect free, please keep us informed how the increased dosage goes and please make yourself feel at home.

Trace

Well, it's now day 3 of 30 mg. I'm alternating between feeling hyper and totally drowsy on an hourly basis :). Pretty much in line with what happened last time I upped dose. Today my SAD wasn't as totally crippling, so that's cool. But it's still too early to tell.

I was on paxil 10 years ago for about a year. It made me emotionless and i gained 40 pounds. I had to come off it cold turkey when i found out i was pregnant. The withdrawl was awful and took like a month to subside and I swore I would never go on any of these meds again. over the years my depression has been getting worse and in the last few month i have been having panic attacks. I was given lexapro in june which i thought was the cause of the attacks as they started with the start of the medicine. I only had one before the lexapro. i stopped the lexpro and the doc gave me zoloft and adivan. well the adivan is good and the zoloft seemed to help a lot with the attacks but within two weeks of taking it i had to stop due to depression so sever i was suicidal. so for the last two months i have been barely functional with the depression. the doc has now prescribed celexa. i am terrified to take it. i dont want to be in an emotionless stupor from this drug. I am so desperate i dont know what to do anymore. life is about quality. from what i read in these forums these drugs dont offer much quality of life. and when you gotta come off you suffer only to go back to your old ways. what is the point. for every positive post about these drugs there is like 10 negative. and this is all i am being offered from my doc. so i have come down to choosing the lesser of two evils. life on the drug and it's effects and side-effects. or life off which isnt much better. has anyone found a way to manage or end their depression without the use of these drugs?

Hey pfdwife3, I'm really sorry you've had such bad experiences, both with the meds and with the depression! I really hope you find something that works for you. This is my first time on Celexa, so I can't tell you anything about getting off it, but I can tell you a little bit about the panic attacks. I had really bad anxiety problems that were causing me to become depressed. When I started the Celexa, the panic attacks did get worse (or at least more obvious) at first. I had lots of other crazy side effects too, and terrible insomnia. However, the doctor said to just give it a try and not judge it until at least 4 weeks. I'm really I glad I did! The panic attacks subsided bit by bit, and by 6 weeks they were completely gone. I'm happier, less anxious, just as energetic, and finally getting lots of stuff done. I don't feel less emotional at all, except that sometimes I have to find new ways to motivate myself to do work. I think before I was allowing myself to be motivated by sheer terror, which is not a good way to go through life. The only real side effect is that I need a little more sleep, but honestly, maybe I always needed more sleep and the anxiety problem was just keeping me awake all the time.
Anyway if you do try the Celexa I wish you the best! Try to be patient if you can, because it might take about 6 weeks, various side-effects, and several adjustments to your dose...

Thanks for your reply Steve. Your take on it almost makes me want to try it. I took one last night and had a terrible night. Even with the ativan i took with it i woke up around 12 with an attack which i managed to calm myself down and get back to sleep but my husband said i got up twice in the night and wandered around my bedroom and even took his pillow right from under his head which i don't remember at all then i woke up again at 4 a.m. with another attack and generally felt like crap the next day. so i think i am gonna skip these meds and find a way to do it on my own i figure the depression at it's worst isnt as bad as the way they make me feel and i never had panic attacks before i started these drugs so who knows maybe it is just my fate. hope all is well with you!

Wow - this forum is a lifesaver. I'm glad I've stumbled upon it and that it has kept me semi vertical during my first few days of celexa. I was taking prozac for 10+ years. Hated the side effects, libido loss, etc but the biggest SE I could no longer tolerate was the memory loss! I finally found a "real" doctor (my GP was doing my scripts for my prozac) and asked what is new out in the field.

I stayed in prozac for so long since I didn't want to deal with the ugly ramping up/off and trial and errors of new/other drugs. Well, I'm unemployed now and now seems the best for screwing with my body...

But let me just say - those first few days on celexa almost made me quit everything forever! I'm glad to say that the SEs aren't as bad now 4 days in - but it really does make you stop and think - how good is this for my body if it causes such bad side effects?!?!?!

Thanks to everyone for being so brave in chatting about the shared depression we have. I hope that at some point all of us will find what works for our bodies and we can live great full lives!

Hi and Welcome to DF Alameda Gal

It is wonderful to have you here and I hope that you make yourself feel right at home.

Trace

I will be starting on Celexa 20mg on Tuesday. I am weaning off the Zoloft. I am hopeful that with Celexa and Trazadone I will be less agitated. I really have been on edge for the past couple of months. My doctor told me to increase to 40mg in two weeks, by then I will be off the Zoloft. One question I have is this...If I reacted badly to two other SSRI's will I have a good chance of the same reaction on this one? My doctor wouldnt answer me, but I think he didnt know the answer! I just hate being so on edge and even mean at times. It is not my real personality. It's like I become a nervous wreck and even paranoid. I am wondering if another type of AD would be better for me. But I am willing to give this one a try.

Hi and Welcome Razia

I hope the Celexa works for you. I can't answer your question, as I am not a professional and have not taken SSRI's, but I think that at least giving it a chance is a good thing.
Please make yourself feel at home.

Trace

Hi All,
I am new to the forums.
I was taking Wellbutrin and later Lexapro until about 2 years ago when I stopped do to sexual side affects. I have been good on and off for about 2 years but lateley I have been feeling worse so I was put on Citalopram. This is my 5 day on 10 mg and am I supposed to be going to 20 mg in 2 days. I have not had any real side affects other then a little stiffness, sleepiness, headaches and very minor sexual side affect until today. I felt nausiated and had to go to the bathroom and started to do something simular to dry heaving but not exactly. I am used to some of the side affects from LExapro but the Citalopram is causing me to feel tingling in my head. I hope this is just the side affects that go away after a week. A litte afraid of what the side affects are going to be when I bump up to 20 mg. Would appreciate experiences.
Thanks :

This post has been edited by fritz269: Nov 10 2009, 07:27 PM

Hey guys, new to the forums and very glad that I found my way here.

I have been taking 150mg Wellbutrin SR for awhile, and my doc recently added 20mg Celexa (10mg for the first 6 days and 20mg afterwards (first 20mg dose was today) ). WB SR gives me energy, but I still suffer the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Hence, the addition of Celexa.

I have experienced nausea, increased anxiety, agitation, insomnia and headaches. I was beginning to wonder how this is better until I read from others here that these SEs often subside with time. I am going to give this a chance, suffer the temporary side effects, and hope to come out better on the other side.

Thanks to all who have shared their story.

Hey everyone, new to the forums and on my week 7 of celexa, i'm up to 40 mg of it, and I can't say that it is working. The depression is still there, although now I just sleep most of the day since i've been out of a job, so it hasn't been too too bad. I'm still yawning mid-day lol. I don't think this celexa's going to do me any good, although I've also been on other things that didn't work so maybe it's just me.