Anyone NOT had any side effects on Citalopram?

Hi,

I've just started taking a course of 10mg (4 days in) and like everyone else here, seem to really be struggling with certain side effects:

Really bad nausea, I'm hardly able to eat anything. Feel like I need to be sick, yet cant bring anything up

Constantly feeling anxious

Feeling tired throughout the day, and then waking up during the night and not being able to get back to sleep

Increased heart beat

Feeling spaced out

I know my body needs time to get used to taking this, however I feel I just need some support to say the symptoms will get better??

I have a follow up appointment with my doctor on Wednesday but wanted to get some real life feedback from people taking CIT.

Thank you

Hi Danielca,

I was exactly the same a month ago. You feel like you can't stand it at times but I just kept reminding myself why I started CIT & I felt the only other option was to keep on suffering the anxiety which was getting out of hand & I couldn't face that either so I decided to bite the bullet & take whatever CIT threw at me. There were days when I just stayed in the house & lay on the bed whenever it got too much.But now, at the start of my sixth week, I feel a lot better, the side effects are less & the anxiety is reducing nicely so hang on in there, it WILL get better, don't be to hard on yourself, spoil yourself a bit & in a few weeks you'll feel fab & wonder what all the fuss was about

Take care,

Loulyn x

hi everyone hope your all doing ok

can anyone tell me what depersonalized is? i have seen it a few times on here recently and have no idea what it means

amyx

Hi Everyone

and thank you all so much for your support and kind wishes, Yes I am dreading tomorrow, but not feeling anxious so that is something to be grateful for, but I hope I don't chicken out as need this MRI will let ye know how it goes, appointment not till 5.20pm,

Hi Amy

depersonalized is like a feeling of watching yourself act, while having no control over a situation, as if watching from outside of your body. making life seem dreamlike, but it does go away, I had it early on but not anymore.

Hi Danielca,

Stay strong you will get there, every day is an accomplishment. did you feel any of these feelings before you started CIT and were they the reason u went onto CIT remember its not all side effects I promise most of it is the anxiety, so remember that its just your mind making you feel bad, but you will get this under control with the CIT once your body adjusts to it. I can look back now and realise a lot of my feelings I already had before the CIT does anyone else think this????

G your doing great, stick in there, let us know how u go at the doctors.

Hi Tom,

Welcome on here, most of us have never posted on forums like this before, but find it a great help in knowing we are not alone, lots of folk suffer this and all make it through, its great to have support which helped me make it through the rubbish side effects and anxiety etc, another couple of weeks should see you improve.

Please stay strong a lot of us at later stages can all look back and say we have all been where you are now and persevered and are now grand, so keep up the CIT stay positive, we are all here for you.

Take care all,

Anne

Hi everyone,

I'm on day 4 of my increase to 30mg, and still struggling with horrible anxiety and low mood. I've been off work Friday and today, but going back tomorrow and I'm terrified! For the last few days I've been crying all the time and getting panicky, I've been taking diazepam and propranolol to stop myself having panic attacks. I reacted like this when I first started taking cit so I'm sure they are just side-effects. I hope it calms down soon xxx

Hi Anne

They had music playing from an iPod dock when I went in for my MRI, but switched it off as I entered so I suspect it was for the previous patient. Just as well as it was too MOR for me!

If you do have something to prepare for, on which you can concentrate, then I recommend doing so, preferably with your eyes closed. As you can imagine I didn't get far with the school budgets , but the tactic was to try and remember some of the lines!

The Pregabalin is working and that was what was doubled last Tuesday, up from 3 x 50mg daily to 3 x 100mg. But it is giving me a foggy confused mind at present which I hope will disappear, I get confused enough as it is without having meds to make it worse...! I become a pensioner officially next week, so I have an excuse to be a doddery old fool according to my girls. Hopefully the pain will reduce further once the meds take full effect after two weeks.

Once again, go for it tomorrow! Lots of us hoping for the best for you. Tell yourself a few jokes while you're there to lift the tension, but don't give away the answers to yourself too quickly!

Take care - look forward to hearing how you get on.

Chris

xx

I have been on Cipramil for years and just now coming off them, for many years I didn't have any side effects and all has been good and they helped me tremendously. Just before coming off them I have been looking at the internet and realise that I have had symptoms like severe sweating, muscle and joint pain, weight gain I just put all these things down to being 55 and menopausal.

I have been reducing my medication now for 2 weeks and my sweating has already subsided, I can't wait to see if the muscle and joint pain in my feet improve I have spent a fortune over the years trying to get help with this issue but no one has been able to help me.

The side effects with coming off is worth it and I can't wait to this drug is completely out of my system, which I believe could take up to year.

This is a wonderful forum and thanks to you all I have learnt so much I feel I have been some what ignorant with that little pill that I have popped for so many years.

Cheers

morning everyone,

i havent posted much re ently as i had been away staying with my mother in law.we all had a lovely time and it was very sad to leave yesterday but i was also glad to be back and see my mum.

im not sure how i feel today my husband is back at work this afternoon after 2 weeks off (i dont thunk i would have got through the first two weeks if he had been working due to the awful side effects).

im looking forward to getting back into my rputine with the children but at the sametime worried a bit about how i will cope which is silly really as there my children and its not like i havent done it before.

i had a pretty rubbish night but dont feel to bad today apart from the dodgy stomache.

anne, thank you for telling me about the depersonalized - i hope i dont get it it sounds aful. good luck for today i hope it all goes well - i read in a couple of your posts about symptoms not being side effects but a result of the anxiety i wonder if thats whats happening with me and the shakyness as its only on one side and its not really bad i have wondered if its just my mind playing tricks and its not actually happening.

anyway enough from me for now off to get the kids their breakfast then we will be going to my mums allotment later

hope you all have a good day

amyx

Anne, I just want to wish you all the best for your MRI today. You've been such a support to so many people here, and I'm sure we're all wishing you well for today.

Big hi to everyone else and I hope you're all doing well.

(Doug, I'm really pleased to hear things are looking up for you. Long may it continue!)

Have a good day all,

Spence x

Hi Anne - all the best from me too. You have been a rock for everyone on here

Spence/Doug/Rick - hope your all making progress as I think you are all at a similar stage

to me (day 41 for me)

I feel I'm progressing although feeling low at the moment - just what I need when I'm about to

go to a wedding

Hope everyone is having the best day they can

Mike

Hi all,

I finally had the courage to go and speak to my GP yesterday about my 'black days'. I have suffered with these since my late teens (i am now 38). I have been married for 4 years now and have 2 children (3 and 1). With pregnancy i seemed to handle the bad times better or they didnt come as often and i then went on the contraceptive implant and after a while i didnt seem to get low anymore.

I had the implant removed for other reasons a few months ago and 'bang' it hit me like a brick wall. Low mood, angry, crying, couldn't concentrate, just wanted to shut myself away. With a husband and 2 children this was hard. My husband is a good man but doesnt really understand.

The GP told me it was hormonal and was masked by pregnancy and the implant, but it has all come back since being removed. He has prescribed me with 20mg of Citalopram. I took my first tablet last night. I dont really know much about it but reading the threads i am a bit worried about what side effects i may get and how long it wil take to feel 'happy' again.

Rebecca x

Hi Rebecca,

Welcome to the forum, you're in the right place to get help & advice from others who are taking Cit and experiencing the good and bad that it can bring.

First of all, well done for going to the GP to ask for help - it's a big and scary step (I remember it very well) but it means you want to feel better so is a great start. With regards to the Citalopram and the side effects etc, try not to worry about it too much - everyone is different and so everyone will react differently to it. If you do experience side effects, they are normally relatively short-lived but you will need to persevere for at least a few weeks to allow your body to get used to the drug being in your system. For me it's taken maybe 8-9 weeks before all side effects have pretty much subsided, and I'm only left with minor things that I can handle OK at the moment.

It's also taken me the same amount of time and 2 dose increases (started on 10mg, then to 20mg and now 30mg) to get to a point where I'm starting to really feel like it's making a difference. Again, everyone is different and 20mg might just be right for you, but if it's not don't be afraid to tell the GP you aren't seeing the improvement you expected and ask for an increase.

I hope it all goes well for you, feel free to post here if you need help & support along the way - there are some great people on here who've helped me through the last few months, and I'm sure they'll do the same for you.

Take care,

Doug. x

Hi all ... Anne, I hope as well that all went ok with the MRI today it's a "trying" experience to say the least.

Doug ... sounds like you're doing great, good man, thats great to hear

Mike ... I'm doing ok thanks. Still a bit shaky with times of what I'd call "medium" anxiety but definitely an improvement overall. It's slow and still frustrating but things are coming back.

Rebecca - has your GP done tests on your hormone levels? It certainly seems related and maybe they can treat an underlying hormonal problem? Don't worry too much about side effects, as Doug says everyone is different and you may just have minor ones, I did first time around and it really wasn't too big a deal.

Amy, thats great you had a good time at your Mums and I'm sure everything will settle down fine once you get back into the "normal routine".

To all the other "new" posters - everyone really is different so everyones side effects will be slightly different. They will go away in time just for some of us it takes a bit longer than others.

One thing ... I got some self hypnosis mp3's from a well known UK hypnotherapist (I probably cant say his name on the forum but he's been on tv a lot ) .... one for stress and one deep relaxation one. There's no doubt I felt better today after going through the stress one. It may help some of you (or it may not but maybe worth a try!)

Time for a decaf coffee - I miss my "proper" coffee and my wee Jack Daniels but my bottle is waiting patiently for me here

take care everyone,

Rick

Hi everyone,

thank you so much for the kind wishes, well I did it, I didn't back out !! but it was awful, having the mask locked on really scared me, but I did my deep breathing from beginning to end lol made them turn off the music as I couldn't hear anyone speaking. The reason I had to have the MRI is because I had 2 mini strokes when my Mam passed away last year, so I knew it was important, and this morning I read a post on facebook about a lad back home in Ireland that at the age of 28 had 2 strokes in holidays and now has locked in syndrome, and he is fighting to get out of hospital and go home to be cared for at home, imagine not been able to move anything except your eyes, not been able to speak, not able to scratch an itch, not able to wipe hthe tears from his face, it sounded horrendous for the man, and it made me think it's a message I need to do this. So I just concentrated on getting it done and over with, and IT IS whoo hoo.

Chris,

I thought about my presentation for my Wales visit just like you said and that passed a few minutes, as the noises changed and took my mind from it, lol Hope your improving with your increase, are you on holiday just now, yes you get the best holidays eh???

Linda good luck with your cutting down and out of Cipramil we are all here to support you.

Hi Amy

Glad you had a lovely break, and depersonalize doesn't last long, to be honest I only had 2 episodes of it. Its hard when hubby goes back to work but you have done it before and will again, u are a great mum and don't ever forget that, what you experienced before wasn't down to your feelings but the way the anxiety took over your brain and made you feel like that, and we have all experienced that, but its the anxiety etc not you and we cant stop it until we get help which is what you have done and are now on the road to recovery, stay strong try alternate thinking when your hubby goes to work think I will get some housework done, go to the shops visit a friend, meet your Mum for coffee, try not to just go sit in her house, yes go to the allotment so nice to get back to nature, take it all on board you know you can do it, look how well your holiday went, its just your brain making you think things, it will go away. Most of all accept the feeling s and tell yourself its just a blip and your going to be well again.

Spence thanks

Paul thanks too, so glad its all over for now. hope your feeling better, stay strong you will have a fab time at the wedding, friends and family are a great support.

Hi Rebecca,

You are only starting your journey so I hope its an easy one, remember we are all here for you, but please persevere as you need to and then all will be grand. there is light at the end of the tunnel. please remember you were already suffering Low mood, anger, crying, cant concentrate, so don't think of these as side effects, it will take a bit of time for your body to adjust to the CIT then all these things will stop.

Thanks Richard x I so miss my morning coffee too, the decaff is ok but its just a drink not a fix ha ha

so thanks once again for all your kind wishes you are a great bunch !!!!!

Take care and be strong remember deep breathing

Anne