Anyone NOT had any side effects on Citalopram?

Thank you so much Ann.

Mrs VN mine is being spaced out over 6 weeks. Will start a 20% of my normal hours and slowly increase from there. I only work part time anyway so it will be a really gentle pace for me. I promise you'll be fine. Don't worry what anybody else thinks. Its about you getting better x x

Well done and Good Luck Emma and Mrs VN - keep us posted on how you both go. I'm sure it will be another success story to keep us going.

Emma, love to hear about 'the light coming on'. Looking forward to it, but gee it can be hard to be patient.

Maria - definitely keep with a doc who is sympathetic. I find it hard enough to talk about this to anyone, never mind if they put you off. I've been very lucky to find a doc who assures me I'm not crazy and that lots of people go through this. Amazing what a difference a sympathetic ear can make.

I'm back to the docs again this week to see about counselling and assess dosage. It's only been two weeks though the meds definitely havent' kicked in, I was feeling just a bit better and able to cope and the side effects have eased off. then yesterday at work, sitting at my computer and reading the emails to start the day and panic attack just hit and I was overwhelmed so much I didn't even know what email to read or which problem to deal with first. So popped a pink pill and got some stuff done, but was scatty the whole day. Not great since most of the office is still on leave so I'm looking after my stuff, their stuff and just waiting for something to slip.

So that's why everyones successes are so important to hear about - I seriously cant' wait to feel something other than panic, sad or just empty (and then guilty, because other than what's going on in my head, I have everything to be happy and grateful for - that's the real kicker of this, huh?).

Have a great day everyone and restful night sleep.

Carol

Hi Carol,

Thank you for your comment.

I took 3 months off work to get myself onto the road to recovery.

The only way I can describe how the tablets work when at the right level is that you face a difficult situation and you feel able to think logically and deal with it. Where as I think you are still in the cycle of worrying and then panicking. Do your work colleagues know your situation? I have told my colleagues so that they can offer me support if and when I need it.

I.can thoroughly recommend counselling it is good to talk to somebody separate about your thoughts ajd troubles.

Have a good day x x

Hi all

I hope everyone is doing ok.

I managed to get through my uncles funeral in England over the weekend. I was exhausted by the time I got home. I was driving to the airport on Friday morning with my sisters and I had to pull over to let one of them drive. I was so spaced out - I wasn't fit to drive.

I saw my psychiatrist this morning. She's not sure what name to put on my condition. She did admit I wasn't "psychotic" in the way you would normally think, but she says my thoughts are quite obsessive over this one issue. She likened it to post traumatic stress disorder, except I wasn't physically hurt in the incident.

She has kept me on the cipramil 50 and the seroquel 300. I was told I might need 6 months of these tablets and will probably be on cipramil for longer. I've to go back in 2 months for a follow up appt.

Talk soon

Beco

Hi everyone! Just wanted to send a quick update on how I got on at work today, it went really well! It was lovely to see everyone. Everyone seemed genuinely pleased to see me, no one asked any tricky questions and i had lots of welcome back hugs! I'm absolutely shattered now though so I'm going to do my mindfulness exercises and go to bed with my book! I just wanted to let you know how it went as I had been anxious about it and had lots of good wishes from you guys. Also, as I know a few of you are off to work too I wanted to let you know it was no where near as scary as I expected it to be. Other than a few butterflies in my tummy last night and this morning it was absolutely fine. I even had a cup of tea waiting on my desk for my arrival!

Beco, I'm so pleased that things are starting to move forward for you, I know you've had a really rough time so I'm really glad things are starting to shift in the right direction. It must've been a relief to have some clarification over the diagnosis too, I think sometimes professionals are so used to using words like 'psychotic' they can bandy them about without thinking about the emotional impact or giving a proper explanation. That must've been reassuring as I know you were really alarmed after your first visit.

Take care everyone

Xxx

Well done Mrs VN. Was thinking about you.

Going to gp tomorrow but might tentatively start dipping my toe in the water re trying to go back to work too. Am sleeping quite a lot and am still having trouble with my vision especially with fluorescent lighting but will need to see how I get on.

Hugs and positive thoughts to everyone and keep fighting the good fight.

:-D

Well done MrsVN

You sound as if you did great today. You must be so proud of yourself. Onwards and upwards from here.

Hope you get a good sleep tonight.

Hope everyone else are doing ok.

Beco

Hi Beco,

Great to hear from you as we worry when we don't hear from you regularly, I am glad u got through the funeral and it was very wise to let your sister drive, as Mrs VN said good to get clarification on the word Psychotic as used by ur doc, as it scared you however it didn't scare us we knew ur weren't the traditional uneducated sterotype of the word, we knew it was just a word used by professionals to describe a large amount of feelings. so I hope ur feeling better about this, we know ur as sane as the rest of us.

Mrs VN well done on a successful day back at work, looks like you work with lovely people, enjoy ur phased return, and don't overdo it. remember we are all still recovering. xx

Good positive thoughts Diane if you are considering heading back to work too, even having a litle visit ther like Mrs VN did to see how u feel in the work environment, I felt been at work gave me a focus, and everyone has been so nice and considerate its made me appreciate what nice folk I am surrounded by.

Chris I hope ur doing Ok not heard for you in a few days, hope the medication is kicking in for the pain, not sure if you are on Gabapentin for the nerve pain but it is really helpful. been on it for 5 years now.

Carol, take it easy, you need to stay calm and relax and persevere you will make it and be so happy you have come thru the other side, yes its hard at the start but we are all here for you. xx

Take care all and be strong we are getting there. !!! love n hugs as today is national Hugging Day !!

Anne xx

I registered on here tonight because I am about to start day one on Sertraline tomorrow and thought I would check out what people are saying about the side effects.....

so after an hour of reading Im left thinking do I really want to go down this road.......

Then I thought I would have a look at Citalopram and see what people are saying about it and hey presto very similar side effects.

I spent the best part of 5 years on Citalopram and I can say I never really had any of the harsh side effects, the first week or so things just felt a bit odd, a lot of yawning, little bit of drowsiness and occasionally the odd flash which I can only describe being like a visual "glitch" like in the film The Matrix.

I spent most of the time on 60mgs as I felt that when I tried reducing the dose they just didnt cut it for me.

So If anyone is setting out on Citalopram and feeling apprehensive about it... DONT there are no rules to say you are going to suffer before it gets better, Its certainly made me feel better about starting out on Sertraline

Welcome, Dom! Did the doc say why they want to put you on Sertraline rather than back on Citalopram, if that worked for you first time round?

Hi Jules,

Because I suffering a combination of Depression, anxiety, racing mind, sleeplessness and loss of appetite, Its actually the Crisis Team from the local Mental health unit that had recommended it for me.

I was prescribed the Citalopram when I felt suicidal and angry and had generally just had enough with life.

Hope that makes sense

Welcome on here Dom, we will be with u all the way!! let us know how u go with the Sertraline, you should be fine if u managed the Cit so well, stay strong u will be grand.

Anne

Thanks Anne

Good luck, Dom. This is a really supportive group of people, and we'll all try to help you through the first tough weeks until the meds kick in.

I'm still going through it, at day 8 of 20mg, along with some others, and then there are those on here who are now reaping the rewards of sticking with it, and are supporting us.

It's so reassuring to know you're not alone going through what is a very isolating illness!

Hi Everyone,

Ive just signed up because Ive taken my first Citalopram 10mg this morning and Im feeling sick and strange already.

I've resisted taking antidepressants for years, I felt that at times I just needed talking therapy, but the GPs Ive seen just seem to prescribe antidepressants straight away. Anyway things changed last year when I was assaulted at work and since then ive been diagnosed with PTSD.

I was prescribed paroxetine originally but after only one tablet I felt so ill, I couldnt see, felt sick, dizzy etc, I couldnt even stand up. So I was reluctant to try again, I wanted to try Diazepam as I had a job interview and was really anxious but the GP wouldnt prescribe it, she said it was too addictive and short term and I needed something longer term,

So here I am on Citalopram feeling a bit scared.............