1. Community
  2. Mental health
  3. Fluoxetine

long term use fluoxetine & coming off ?

Posted , 2 users are following.

andy16601
andy16601

am   mid   50s & have been on F(20mg)  5yrs.  & thinking of  coming off over  time.any   thougts?

helped but not sure better to stay on or come off.

thanks, longtermer smile 

0 likes, 6 replies

6 Replies

  • sarahB2890
    sarahB2890 andy16601

    Posted

    If it's helped why go off?

    Will you be able to function without it?

    • andy16601
      andy16601 sarahB2890

      Posted

      good qu

      ​always  have had mild D & E - took it at stressfull stage

      ​probably could function

      ​want to  come off gradually though

  • katecogs
    katecogs andy16601

    Posted

    Hi Andy

    You can take these meds for life if needed to - I take Citalopram (a different SSRI) and have taken them for 15 years, reducing my original dose from 20mg to a maintenance dose of 10mg for years and now 5mg.  

    Ive come off the meds before and during my meds free time I took a natural over the counter meds called 5-HTP and l-tyrosine for a year which worked really well.  There are no side effects at all with it and you can stop / start it whenever as there's no withdrawal from it either.  It works quicker too.  You must not take it when you're on Fluoxetine or other prescribed SSRI's though.  That's something to think about if you decide to come off meds.

    I restarted Cit because of family illness and the stress of it became way too much for me, so went back onto my meds before I fell into a dark hole.  Am fine again now.  I plan to come off my meds again and go back onto 5-HTP and l-tyrosine again some time.

    If you're unsure, you could reduce your dose and see how you get on taking that for a long time.  You could reduce again and see how you go then?  I stayed on my half dose for years before halving again - each time I've felt good.

    K xx

    • andy16601
      andy16601 katecogs

      Posted

      thanks appreciated and hope you stay well - will check out if I can get unto 10mg fluoxetine - if available and appreciate the over the counter stuff.Always bit down and would like to juggle stuff a bit now I am feeling a bit better - I found it did knock anxiety a bit and helped but will pursue some of the very helpful suggestions . 

      take care,

      ​Andy

      ​

    • katecogs
      katecogs andy16601

      Posted

      If you find the reduced dose doesn't suit, then you can always go back to your original dose.  You might have some withdrawl symptoms like headache etc for a few weeks when you reduce, but it'll pass.

      I did the same when I was better, decided to play with the meds to see if I could cope ok on a half dose.  It was, and stayed on that for years.

      Good luck, and hope it goes well.

      K x

       

    • andy16601
      andy16601 katecogs

      Posted

      many thanks thats the sort of solution I was hoping to explore - if it works on half dosage well and good - if I need to step it up at some stage so be it.

      probably better to err on the side of caution - these meds are effective for dealing with chemical imbalance.

      will keep you posted how it goes.

      ​v.best ,A​

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.