Day 7 of 20mg Citalopram, finally feel okay but no sex drive
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Day 7 of 20mg Citalopram for depression and anxiety. I wasn't told anything about what the side effects would be. Took my first one in the evening and within hours I felt terrible (which floored me as I was on my knees mentally):
Days 1,2: dry mouth, sweating, shaking, seeing weird patterns when I closed my eyes, unable to sleep, muscle spams, increased anxiety, dilated pupils during the day, sensitivity to light
Days 3: weird patterns eased up but largely the same
Day 4: physical symptoms eased but anxiety was the worst I have ever experienced in my life (and that's saying something), I was literally shaking at one point
Day 5: Anxiety largely gone, just felt a bit detached and spaced and body has a strange feeling (kind of like the day after taking MDMA)
Day 6: Same as day 5 but starting to feel washes of hope and calm
Day 7: Feel pretty good today, still a bit spaced out but much more lucid and relaxed (success!) and thinking quite positively and clearly
Honestly, I felt dreadful the first few days but feel pretty good now. If it carries on like this that'll be good.
However, I have always had a very high sex drive. Even in the lows of anxiety and depression it has never abated and intimacy with my wife is very important to me.
Within hours of taking the first tablet my libido was completely gone. I was completely impotent the first few days. I could then get aroused with a lot of effort. Today I managed to climax but it was a lot of work.
Without TMI I have this wierd feeeling in my lower legs and hands, hard to explain but I feel it in my genitals too. It's a weird kind of numbness. I am hoping once this goes I'll be back to normal but can't be sure.
I am frightening myself to death with online stories of people who never get their sex drive back. On the NHS website it says sex problems usually resolve after two weeks but may not at all. Funnily enough, my GP is calling me at the two week mark to see how I'm getting on.
Let's say things don't improve by then and I don't wish to accept them as a side effect the options are to go onto another SSRI or stop these.
My questions are:
- If I go cold turkey after two weeks of 20mg am I likely to get much withdrawal?
- I think if I went onto another SSRI it would be Sertraline or Prozac. Am I right in saying I can just stop one and start the other (Sertraline at least, not sure about Prozac)? If you go from one to the other are the side effects likely to be any less worse seeing as I'll have a fortnight of another SSRI in my system?
- Finally, interested to hear any other positive stories about libido
Thank you!
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