Hi Lizard,

I am going in to see my psychologist this week and will talk to her about my sleep problems. I have tried taking sleepmeds in the past but none of those really worked for me. I have trouble relaxing and stopping my thoughts that are runnning through my mind. But I will try meds again, I am so desperate for a good night sleep by now......
Today is day 16 of prozac...no change yet.....
Sarah-nicole

Day 22........not kicking in yet! I will see my psychiatrist in two weeks, this weeks appointment got cancelled, hopefully by then I will have noticed some change.

Sarah-nicole

This post has been edited by sarah-nicole: Mar 11 2006, 12:04 PM

Hello. This is my very first post and it's nice to join you all on this forum.
I have been taking 20mg of Prozac ( for Depression ) for 7 days now and I am finding the side effects quite hard to live with. I have been told they improve over the following weeks but it has left me feeling worse than before and I am thinking of coming off them. The side effects I have been feeling are, lethargy, tiredness, anxiety, headaches and nausea. I am also feeling more than a little confused and slightly "woolen headed". The side effects mainly occur within four or five hours after I take the tablet ( which I take in the morning ) and lessen slightly as the day goes on. Would it be a good idea to take the tablet last thing at night as the worse of the side effects will then happen during the night?
I look forward to hearing from you all. Steven.

Welcome to DF, Steven!

You may have a good idea, to take the med before bed. I would suggest you call your doctor and ask his/her opinion about that.

You are right that usually the side effects start to disappear about the same time the med becomes more effective, after several weeks up to a couple of months. It is hard to wait so long, but remember that this med is working on important brain chemicals. It takes a while for the body to adjust and get over the side effects, as well as for the body to benefit from the positives of the med.

I hope you will try to stick with it. In most cases, though the first couple of months are hard, folks find that an antidepressant helps tremendously. Talk to your doctor, and keep talking to us here. You will find lots of support!!

Karen

Thanks for the welcome and your reply. I wen't to see the doctor today who advised me to keep going with the Prozac so I suppose I will. Also though I will be reading a few of the threads on this forum as it helps a lot to feel that you aren't alone.

Steven,
I just wanted to let you know I had some of the same side effects at the start of Prozac. I had to take 20 mg in the morning because it made me "speedy". After taking it for about a week, I spoke with my Dr and we cut it back to 10 mg for a couple of weeks before moving back to the 20 mg. This pretty much eliminated the side effects for me. Just wanted to let you know your not alone.

Good Luck,
Tommy

I am on day 15, and it seems to be working. My mood has leveled out and I don't seem to be as bothered by the little things that go wrong throughout the day. My husband has noticed the difference and is really pleased with the results so far. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Great, Rosie, that you are beginning to see the positive effects! It really is worth sticking out the start-up period. It helps when others tell you they can see you are doing better. :)

Karen

Thankyou Tommy.
I asked my doctor about reducing the amount by taking it every other day and she said that it would probably have the effect of making me go up and down instead of putting me on an even keel. I never really thought of asking about dividing the dose ( although I am taking a capsule which may release the Prozac in a predetermined way that may be upset if the dose is taken with the powder dissolved in juice ). Anyway I have decided to just try and grin and bear it for a while longer and hopefully see the results in a week or two.

Yes, don't break the capsules !

My Dr called in a prescription for the 10 mg and I took that every morning. When it was time to go back to the 20 mg I just took 2 of the 10's till they were gone. Anyway I'm sure your Dr knows what he or she is doing, it just takes time. Thats what everyone keeps telling me.

Hang in there,
Tommy

I started out 1-1/2 years ago on Prozac, first 20mg, then 40, then 50mg. I was also on Klonopin for anxiety which is what I think made me tired, but I sure slept well at night. I was a light sleeper. Then my dr prescribed Welbutrin to energize me, 300mg time released. I was actually feeling really good, like a new person, only a bad day here and there.
In the past month or so, I've been relapsing. Dr says it's mild ADHD and prescribed Aderall (?) which I haven't started yet. It's supposed to make me more alert and calm and focused, I am none of those things now. I fall asleep everywhere. My Dr chose Prozac because it wasn't supposed to cause weight gain (I was dieting) and I have lost weight, which makes me feel better.
I think it was worth the wait. If this new drug doesn't work I'll be trying some other anti=depressant.

Thankyou Tommy.
I feel a little better today hard to tell if it's the tablets or what. I didn't sleep good last night, I took my tablets at 3.30 in the afternoon and felt alright all last night but was wide awake when I got to bed so had a bit of a restless night. O.k now though.
I agree with the post earlier that it is important to demonstrate how you feel on this medication and report when it begins to work as this gives some hope to those who are just starting on the medication so I will be giving regular up to date self assessments on how this is working for me.

I have just tried to start a new thread but was unable to. I wonder if I could just post it here.
It regards the one thing that I find absolutely the most difficult thing to deal with as far as my depression is concerned. It is the fear that I will lose my mind and control and somehow hurt myself or (even worse ) someone else. This is something that I can't bring myself to talk about to my doctor but I have told my partner and my brother. I can live with just about every other feeling that this condition afflicts me with but I absolutely dread this one. I have two small children and when I feel this way I usually go and lie with them and cuddle them and this sort of eases it. Has anyone else had this fear or heard of it and if so how have they dealt with it? It's as though my mind has picked on the singularly most horrible thought to dwell on and made this the rock bottom of my depression. I never had these thoughts before I had kids.

Oh, boy! That sounds pretty scary, SA! I definitely think you should talk to your doctor about this; it may be anxiety or something else that can be treated. You may want to read around other threads here, too. I just read something in our MNESN room about an irrational thought or fear someone else is having. The thread is titled something about smashing fingers. Sometimes just knowing that you aren't alone is a big help!

Please talk to your doc about this! Oh - now that you have over 5 posts, you should be able to start new topics yourself. If you still have trouble doing that, send me a PM.

Karen

Well I have been a little more upbeat of late as the side effects are wearing off and I can atleast face getting up and back to work. I have been feeling quite good since Wednesday or Thursday and was hoping this is the start of the medication working for me, however, when I woke up this morning I felt not so good again, really uptight and edgy. I was expecting quite a linear improvement in my mood but does it sometimes happen that the improvement is staggered and often goes at two steps forward one step back?

Definitely, steven alex! You will read in this and some of the other med rooms, about people who have had exactly that experience.

As hard as it is to be positive when the depression tries to rear its head, I think you are on the road to recovery. You've had some good days and they will get to be more frequent. Remember that even folks who do not have depression still have occasional bad days.

But what you describe does sound very typical of the healing process. About the same time the side effects begin to fade, the med begins to work better and better. When the bad days happen, we panic, fearing that the med isn't working after all. But keep in mind those good days, and know that they will be happening more and more often as the med continues to build up in your system.

Congratulations! :)

Karen

last time i went on prozac just before xmas i felt it work within days!!! but then i stupidly came off them for 4 weeks and now im having terrible aniexty and depression.

ive been back on 20mg for almost 2 weeks, after a week i felt good but had anxiety, and now 2 weeks on i feel worse than i ever have done before.
saw the doctor today and she wonts me to continue with the prozac and also gave me diazepam to help ease the serve anxiety side effect. i just hope and pray that im normal soon, i cant even leave the house at moment where im so scared!!

prozaz worked in the past and i know it will work again once its really kicked in

Keep going Raverbaby. I was feeling just like you only a week or so ago and was really close to coming off the tablets, I went to my G.P and was persuaded to keep with it and I am pleased I did. Not a hundred percent yet but definately improving and feeling less anxious. Like I say just keep it up and keep calling in on this forum it really helped me over the bad couple of weeks when the side effects became hard to take. Best wishes. Steven.

well its been 3 weeks now since ive been back on prozac and im defo on way to recovery!! feel happy, sociable and able to go outside and do normal things. ive still got the valium just incase my anxiety starts again, but thankfully that side effect has gone now!

Wonderful, wonderful, raverbaby! And it is still early; you may feel even better over the next month. Hooray! :)

I am really happy for you Raverbaby and like Ados says things may improve over the next month or so. Congratulations and best wishes. Steven.

I started Prozac 4 or so months ago and it took me roughly 5 weeks to begin to notice any difference. I was also taking Seroquel when I started Prozac so it was a little difficult to tell which was making me feel better- although we knew that the Seroquel worked instantaneously.
I would recommend both Prozac and Seroquel to anyone who suffers extreme anxiety- the Seroquel as an immediate relief for panic attacks and extreme anxiety as it works instantly and has a sedative affect and the Prozac for long term relief of anxiety.

Hi all,

I have been on prozac since Jan 31 at which time I was switching over from
paxil. I never noticed any change so I guess they offset each other. I
am on 40mg a day now but I am also on a combo of other meds to keep
me feeling really good. I may go up on the prosac to see if it will work
well enough to drop some of my other meds. Is anyone on 60mg or higher?
It seems like a high dose to me but I usually require a hose dose.

Thanks and best wishes,
starr

i've been taking it for a month and a half.
its made an improvement but not too drastic or anything

I began taking prozac years ago so to be honest I don't recall how long it took to kick in. I tried many other drugs, which didn't work, before trying prozac. Once on my doctor prescrided prozac he had to increase the dose a couple of times before it did begin to work, I remmember that much.

hello everyone, i have started my first dose of fluxetine today after stopping taking dosulepin (was on it on and off for around a year), i've just taken 20mg and my Dr said take 20mg once daily for two weeks then go back to see him, I just wondered what the differences were between the two AD's?, i did notice horrible weight gain with dosulepin so im hoping this will not happen with fluxetine?


Is there any other side affects i should watch for? and does anyone know if its safe to take with tramadol as i have been taking that for a while for my ongoing back problems :(, Lastly, does the sex drive problem affect mainly women of men too? (im male you see!)

Thanks guys and girls

Hmmm, I am not familiar with your previous med, so hopefully someone else can help with that question.

Some folks do have trouble with weight gain on the SSRIs, but not necessarily. If you do have trouble, you may want to work at upping your exercising (which can also help depression). And of course talk to your doctor about your concerns.

As far as I know, the crummy sexual side effects tend to be an equal problem for men and women. That is the only side effect I've personally had that really causes me a problem. I've decided that the benefits of the AD, since it really is life-saving for me, outweigh that side effect. But, it sure is frustrating!

the AD i was taking maybe a UK only thing?

so far seems ok, had a really good sleep but didn't want to get up but im used to that from the other AD i was taking, the major problem though is that i seem to have a banging headache that is really annoying but that maybe from stopping the other AD as it may be a little early for any side effects from fluoxetine?

This post has been edited by puffer: Jul 4 2006, 02:05 AM

Could be the headache is from getting off the old AD, from starting the new one, or maybe you were just going to have a headache anyway and it is nothing to do with your meds! Sometimes we seem to blame everything on side effects, and it isn't necessarily the case. But you could be right, too. Just hang in there and of course, if things get really bad, contact your doctor. Hopefully your new med will kick in soon and you will see a big positive difference!

im not sure if its to early to see a difference as its only day three but i do feel more relaxed than usual and seem a little more positive, my headache has totally gone today :), no side affects apart from one odd one, since i started taking them i never feel hungary and i seem to have to force myself to eat! is this common? i find it a good side effect though as im always trying to eat healthy and would rather not getting hungary rather than eating rubbish 24/7!

I'm glad you're feeling a bit better!
Yes, ADs can affect appetite (in either direction).

I have been on Fluoxetine for a week and the only thing I can notice is a dry feeling in the mouth. Is that disappearing over time? For the rest, I am waiting... Thahks

I wonder if the time of response depend on the dosage administered. It would make sense that the higher the daily dose, the less time it takes for the Prozac to build up in your system.

Middle - generally the side effects such as you describe will go away as you become adjusted to the med.

White - that makes sense to me, too!

Thanks Ados... It was a bit worrying indeed, but you made me feel better. Don't want to run around for a year wqith a dry mounth!!!

Hey! I have been on it for nearly a month and I must say it worked pretty quickly in that I feel better and have not cried as much on it, however I am sooo sleepy! I am tired quite alot which I do not like at all!

Saying that and having read about other member's difficulty in sleeping and with nightmares, I

Sorry!! Didn't finish what I was saying...

I don't have that difficulty and before the prozac I did!!
So it's a case of some things work and others don't, it's really strange how we are individually affected by the same med....

Anyway..peace!

I didn't give the prozac enough time to kick in :(

6 weeks.

After suffering nearly every side-effect possible at some point , the fluoxetine (20mg) has finally started to help with my depression. I still feel mild to moderately depressed sometimes but I don't feel the gut-wrenching, guilt laden, all consuming heavy blackness of depression at its worst . It's like the fluoxetine has put up an invisible barrier and it wont let me go past.

Like with all psychiatric drugs it can take up to 8 weeks to get the full benefit. Prozac also helps with anxiety and PMS (for those who have that malady). The other factors to consider while starting up on any med, is how fast our body metabolizes anything. Some of us have quicker or slower response time. Doseage also plays a factor. As a note, Prozac should be taken in the morning and not at night. Since this is an "upper", when it is taken at night, sleep or getting to sleep is sometimes impossible.

For those with the dry mouth side-effect, try chewing gum or a bit of lemon zest during the day. They both help in salivation production. It works.
Sheepwoman