Day 13 fluoxetine

Thank you for the encouragement, Kate. I've been on 20mg for 10 weeks now and have more good days than bad days with the anxiety and depression. I still have the runs every morning and have lost 13 pounds in 10 weeks. But my appetite is getting better. After about 4 good days in a row, I crashed yesterday with severe anxiety. Had to call the doctor. He said it's just a blip and I will continue to see improvement. Just need to hang in there. I also take .25 clorazipam morning and night. Not sure how I feel about that med. It makes me very tired. But at least I am sleeping at night (and sometimes a nap during the day too). Keep putting out the encouragement. We need it. Cheryl

Hi Cheryl

Yes some people do get an upset tummy on these meds (or the opposite)!!  Make sure you get plenty of fluids if its affecting you daily still.  Maybe have a word with your doctor as he may be able to suggest/prescribe something for that side effect.

That's how this meds works - the good days get better andbetter, and you can have a long spell of feeling great followed by a crash.  Yes its a blip and if you just let if be there, know if will pass, carry on, try and go about life in a relaxed manner ... you'll find that the blip will pass.  You might get many blips along the way, but hey get less as time goes by.

I don't know much about clorazipam but understand its a tranquilizer to help with feelings of panic.  Maybe in time when you've recovered enough and hardly having anymore anxiety feelings, you could discuss with your doctor to come off this one?  Never stop any meds on your own though xx

Sleeping is good - a lot of people do suffer insomnia when taking SSRI's, but this side efect does usually wear off.

Just keep going - you sound like you're well on way to recovery.  Its fabulous when you get there.

K xx

Thank you for replying - I have read that it can take a few weeks to kick in. I can cope with the sickly feeling and jitters as they tend to get better as the day goes on. It's the not sleeping. I have succumbed and am going to docs today to see if there is anything they can give me to get over this hurdle

Yes the side effects can disappear throughout the day - I remember it well.  The sleep problem can be tough, but again it is temporary but is probably harder to deal with.  Good idea to see your doctor.  He should be able to prescribe something.  This is just happening as your body adjusts to the medication.

It can be a few weeks for the side effects to calm down, but it can be much longer before you feel any benefit from the meds.  Just keep persevering with them - same dose.  On and on.  You'll find in time depression, anxiety or whatever else will start easing off and you'll feel happier, lighter .....

K x

Thank you for replying. Sometimes I just feel so alone with this. I went to docs and she gave me zopiclone- I took half last night and had a good sleep - downside I now feel groggy !! It's just like a massive circle - I won't take this again and like you say I will just have to slog it out. The doc did say that the side effects should start going after a couple of weeks which is where I am now so fingers crossed

I'm so jazzed! Today is the first day in ten weeks that I was able to sleep in without weird thoughts running through my brain. I feel good this morning. Even happy! Was able to eat some breakfast without having to force myself. I think I'm getting better. Yay!! It's been worth it to persevere and stay on the meds. I had a really crappy day on Tuesday but it was just a blip. I get more good days than bad ones now. Keep exercising or active and keep fluids and protein in you. Vitamin D and B12 are necessary too. You can do this.

I used to feel alone too and never talked to anyone about it - thought I was the only one in the world feeling like this ...... but you'd be surprised just how many people have this too.  The more I began talking about it, the more I found people around me suffering.  Maybe keep the zopiclone for when you really, really feel like you need to sleep.  Yes, it shouldn't last long - it really does get better.

K x

I have been on 20 mg for nearly two weeks due to a breakdown and serve anxiety! I feel ten times better than last week I ended up in hospital because I didn't know what was happening to me felt like I was on a wall and was gonna go over it! Awful I cannot eat hardly due to feeling sick to my stomach and sleeping is a pain when I wake up I just cannot seem to get back to sleep! It's like someone has put a battery in me I feel full of energy but but at the Sane time if that makes sense! Dies it get better?x

Yes I am on week 6 20mg per day and I feel like normal again, appetite back , no nausea, I can sleep and my anxiety is under control. Stick with it you will get better , like I always say when you are trying to alter one of the bodies main organs with medication you are bound to get some resistance

Hi Kirsty

Yes, as Woo says, it does get better.  Really it does.  It takes time - some people getting better quicker than others.  The first few weeks are the worst as your body adapts to the medication.

Doesn't matter what dose you're on either - you'll still get the same side effects and still go through the same recovery process.  Just let your body adapt.

Recovery often comes in waves too - some days will be better than others, and your mood and emotions may be up and down for a while.  It should all balance out in time and you'll begin to feel happier, lighter, able to think, able to eat and sleep ...... and free from anxiety.

Keep at it - perservere through it all.  The end result is so worth it.

K xx

The loss of appetite was severe for about eight weeks for me. Lost 13 pounds. I'm at 10 weeks now and I'm pretty much over that part. It will get better. I never had any headaches or pain but I've heard other people discuss that. Stick with it. I'm feeling so much more like myself again.

I am just starting week 3. I did sleep last night which was good but I still have no appetite and I am forcing food down. Still lethargic, woozy and jittery. I have felt some weakness in my knees but not all the time. I just keep reading that it gets better so I am battling on. I just want to feel normal again.

That's what I want to feel like me again! I am going to stick with it too I do feel a lot better than I did 3 weeks ago but friend of mine who has been on it many years it can take up to 8 weeks to get over side effects and feel better, she says it changed her life

How long it takes to stabilize is extremely individual. I'm at ten weeks and just really starting to feel like "me" again.

Hi Allison, do you take the Fluoxetine at night?

Hi I actually take it in a morning however since posting this discussion I am into week three and feeling so much Bette. My sleep pattern has returned and my mood feels great. The only sie effect now is the nausea and jittery feeling on a morning. I have taken a lot from this forum and it has really helped me over these last weeks.

I'm glad to hear that. I started week 4 yesterday and even though I have seen improvement during this time, I still take a quarter of a 3mg Lunesta pill. Can't sleep without it.

Also, I noticed that when I go into a department store,the mall, or church, I tend to feel "pressure" in my head, sort of like a headache. Once I come out it eases. Any idea what can cause this? Could it be the depression and anxiety?

im at week ten and i get that pressure head feeling constantly more so when im at work or go places, but not home. it's so weird, and it freaks me out.

Let me know if it gets any better for you. I'll be completing four weeks next Wednesday. I hope to see more improvement in the upcoming week. I hope you get better day by day.