8 Weeks on Escitalopram and still having a number of issues - advice please!!

Sleep is, for the most part, fine. A good 7-8 hours a night.

perfect!! I have problem issues with sleep so I changed escitalopram to Remeron.....

Before you said the magic world... you cannot distract yourself from anxiety....

You have to unlock this, otherwise its difficult with the pills.

You have to be patient too. I saw the first results with escitalopram not before than 4 months, 15mg.. but it was summer and had succeed to distract myself from anxiety...

Wish you good luck and God bless!!

Thank you arietta - I have had anxiety for some time and I could deal with it until all this happened. The problem it, the anxiety comes out of nowhere, but now it is fueled by all the physical symptoms not leaving. I could give it another 2 months, but if things are getting worse at 8 weeks, I don't see much hope...

No I am sure that you will see much difference to the better. Be positive and patient... try to be busy all the time to distract from it... be well soon!!

I certainly hope so! I am trying to keep as busy as I can.

Thank you again Arietta - Bless you

matt

keep going 2 months is early. i have been on 4 different ssris in 19 years it has always taken me about 6 months to recover. usually around 4 to 5 months i start feeling better. when drs say it takes 4 to 6 weeks change that to months. i ve been where you are alot of people on here has. the last 4 years have been rough for me because i didnt give each med enough time to work i will never be guilty of that again! i was on paxil for 13 years and decided to stop then i recovered on zoloft in 6 months and decided to come off then i tried this for a few months then that for a few months anxiety building more and more. and drs will say this is not working lets try this lets try that! i ended up on lexapro. the ssris work the same it just depends on which side effects hang around after you recover and if you can live with them. ssris do not work fast. they cause more anxiety when you first start as in a few months . your body has to adjust and then you have to recover. when you change meds or dosage then your recovery time starts all over. your body will have to readjust each time you change. try to give this dosage time. upping the dosage will not make it any faster. but remember everyone is different and all drs are different. anxiety makes us doubt everything and it amplifies everything. airetta is rt sleep is a necessity. excercise helps and being with friends and family helps. and try and stay away from dr google! i used to have to make myself do things. also ive read and experienced that when you go back on a ssri that you were on for a long time it does take a little longer to recover. try and give yourself more time. you should start feeling better in 2 or 3 months!! reach out to katecogs for some good advice. she is on the celexa forums. she also has a blog that explains how all this works. i have a few good resources if you want me to private message you. hang in there and good luck!!

Hi Brian,

The detailed way you re wtitting shows a man much more experienced than us.I still have some questions about these pills and would appreciate to write you in a private message. Also you refer to katecogs. Did not understand quite well how can I search for. It was really nice your support to Mats.... be always well!!

Thanks for your reply Brian.

This all started 18 months ago when I asked the doctor to guide me off my Citalopram. I was on it for PTSD and recovered in about 18 months, but he insisted that I stay on it for the rest of my life. So that is what I did.. for 11 years. But then I decided it cannot be good for me to keep taking them while I am well. The doctor told me to halve the dose for 2 weeks and then stop.

A month later it all hit. Awful anxiety, hives, itching, tinnitus - the works. I was in a wreck, so I went back on them 6 weeks after stopping. I had CBT sessions, read countless books, and after a year like this, there was some improvement, but still a little way to go, but it seems that the Citalopram were not going to get me there. But I had stretches of anything up to 10-12 good days. By comparison to now, life was good.

Then I was switched to the Duloxetine which gave me all manner of physical symptoms. I stuck with it for almost three months, but much like now, the physical symptoms were making my depression and anxiety much worse.

What you are saying is going to take a lot of will power as I find myself in exactly the same place. I have these physical symptoms (although different) that are counterproductive to my recovery. I am aware that some SSRI's just do not work for some people and of course it worries me that I am being pushed further into an abyss that will be increasingly more difficult to come out from. I could understand if this phase was linear, but it is not. I was a little better for 4 weeks whilst I tried my best to ignore the physical symptoms, but they have got on top of me and I can no longer ignore them. And after 18 months of trying to recover, my will power is nothing like it once was...

I have read a lot of posts by katecogs, so I might look her up for some advice.

Thanks again for your post Brian - all advice is greatfully received...

Matt

airetta you both can private message me if you need to. thats just fine!! i can send yall some resources. in this website under search you can type in katecogs and her name will come up under forums she is full of info on this she will be happy to talk to you. sometimes it takes a bit for her to reply. yall are very welcome! i had support from here when i was bad off. took me a while to find these forums. avoid the negative post. theres not many neg posts on this site.

matt i too decided to stop my paxil after 13 years i came down slow over a years time and one day bam anxiety hit me again . that was 5 years ago! ive recovered about three times in that 5 year time period. mostly the reason why it took 5 years is because i didnt give the ssri a good 6 months to work. another reason is i wanted to quit taking them. and one had a side effect of heartburn for a year even though it worked i decided to change because of that side effect. ive been bad off before and as a man it took me years to admit that i have anxiety. but when i did i learned all about it and the recovery process. when i would go to dr complaining after 3 months he would just change med or dose. ive discovered that you have to give it more time than that. ive decided to stay on them. ive also seen many counselors and cbt. it sounds like you are having a tough time rt now. it may be a combo of withdrawal and start up side effects.? when you first start the ssri it adds more seritonin to you brain per say. you feel a lot better for a few weeks. then your body says wo we got too much seritonin. so your body doesnt create as much then you start feeling bad again. your body goes back and forth adjusting all while you are recovering.

i also know you cant fight it or control it or try and fix it that only makes the anxiety/ fear cycle worse. its hard but you have to just let it be. im to good at that one! hang in there matt!

Brian - my thanks again to you for your detailed reply. Whilst I do not want to discredit anything you have said, as it may well be the case for many, but having tried to walk yesterday,,, just a few yards only to loose my legs and fall... and then today suffer what I can only describe as a 6 hour panic attack, which terminated in a PNES seizure which lasted for over an hour and took medics to come out an pump me full of tranquillizers... I am not taking the risk. This is not "normal" anxiety - this is dangerous. I have never had anything like this in the years I have had anxiety.

I have been able to get through anxiety such as public transport, big supermarkets and so forth, but when you can't even walk or remain calm in the comfort of your own bed, alarm bells start ringing.

matt the last reply second to last sentence was ment to say im not to good at that one ! yes we are all different with the meds therapy anxiety and depression! i hope the drs and your care givers find whats going on soon. i wish you the best and a speedy recovery!! will be praying for you!! keep going there is light at the end of the tunnel!!!

Bless you Brian.

I sincerely believe there is indeed hope there for people that find the patience and time to discover what they need to do. My situation is not aided by doctors not knowing how to correctly care for their patients, so in order to take over my own well-being, I need to rely on resources that I have access too, which will be a combination of adaptogens, supplements and prayer.

Thanks again for your support.