Changing citalopram after 13 + years onit
Posted , 3 users are following.
has anyone changed from citalopram to something else after 13 +years being on citalopram currently on 30mg I've just lowered my dose on the 20th November and still not feeling myself so doctor has said maybe I need to change altogether going to 40mg isn't an option as I was getting alot of palpitations on 40mg so that's the reason I went down to 30mg. I still get palpitations but not as bad ect so don't really no if it was the 40mg or just my anxiety playing up either way I've been on 30mg for over 7 weeks now and still not feeling right. has anyone changed from citalopram and was it a good ending ? I've not tried anything else so I'm really worried nothing else will work for me. thank you for reading and hopefully hear back some good replys thank you
0 likes, 8 replies
cheryl20077
Posted
its been 8 weeks since I lowered my dose do anyone think I should wait abit longer to level out again
TaraLin cheryl20077
Posted
Hi Cheryl,
I was on Celexa/Citalopram 20mg for about 7 years and then off for three years before I found myself in a stressful time and needed medication again. I was then prescribed Lexapro/Escitalopram. Citalopram and Lexapro are very similar.
Per Google: "Celexa and Lexapro are both antidepressants in the same class, however, they are not the same. Celexa is a racemic mix of the R-enantiomer and S-enantiomer of citalopram. Lexapro contains only the S-enantiomer, which is the more active isomer responsible for the serotonergic effects."
That's Greek to me, but I interpret it as meaning that Lexapro has one of the two ingredients of what Citalopram has, and is more simple in that regard. I do believe Lexapro was formulated later and intended to be an improvement on Citalopram. Lexapro worked for me so you might have luck with it as well. But, if you want to try something entirely new because Citalopram didn't work well for you, then that might be a better option as well. I wanted something very similar to reduce my chances of experiencing new/unfamiliar side effects.
I have noticed that for me, both drugs caused some heart palpitations when I first started using them but they gradually went away. I think it is a common side effect, but I wouldn't want to experience it permanently. Palpitations can be frightening and uncomfortable. Like I said, mine went away, but I also was taking lower doses.
I would bet that dose changes (both reduced and increased) would cause side effects and this might be why you are experiencing the palpitations. 7 weeks is a pretty solid amount of time to still be feeling them, but I'm not a medical expert, and I know that time-frames are vastly different for a lot of people. Some are improved in 3 weeks and others take many months. It's definitely a journey and I would recommend having a couple medical experts to reach out to while you're adjusting.
Best of luck to you!
Tara
cheryl20077 TaraLin
Posted
hello Tara thank you for your reply when u went on different meds Lexapro/Escitalopram did it work for you ? or do you think citalopram worked better? x
TaraLin cheryl20077
Posted
Both Celexa and Lexapro worked for me. I was in very different times of my life so it's hard to say why each time took more or less time to adjust to the drug. When I first tried Celexa, in 2009, I don't remember suffering from side effects or an adjustment period. When I first tried Lexapro in 2018, it took about a month to adjust to, but I was taking it in combination with Ativan and coming off Xanax, so that whole process took at least half a year to really come around from. The second time I went on Lexapro was last March and it took about three weeks for the worst side effects to lift, but a good two months before I felt good enough to consider getting off five months later it to lose 10lbs. The side effects of getting on are always really hard for me, much harder than withdrawal. This time I decided to try Celexa again because I was hoping it would be easier to adjust to... and I also remembered Celexa having less long-term side effects.
If I could go back in time I would have never gone off the Lexapro the last time. Bad decision. I have since learned/read that when you get on one of these drugs, it's best to at least be on for a year before deciding to get off, and that yo-yoing on and off can make it take longer to adjust and feel better when you do go back on, if that makes sense. For me, Lexapro had more long-term side effects, but took less time to adjust to initially. The long-term side effects that I hated was the 10-15lb weight gain that wouldn't come off no matter what I did, and the lack of libido/ability to climax. That really sucks for anyone, but as a 38 year old woman, I really didn't appreciate it. But... time has taught me that crippling anxiety is the bigger bear.
cheryl20077 TaraLin
Posted
yeah I've not had any sex drive in many many years and I'm only 35 now so that doesn't really bother me. I'm on week 7 on reducing citalopram so I'm thinking give it abit more time to settle. for me I just have an imbalance in my brain as nothing happened to me I've had a good up bringing ect so can't think of anything other just a natural imbalance xxx
cheryl20077 TaraLin
Posted
forgot to add I'm also on pregabalin 150mg a day for anxiety and that's caused me to gain weight which I hate, going to ask doctor about comming off that as ive only been taking it 6 weeks x
TaraLin cheryl20077
Posted
I don't have any experience with pregabalin. Time is key with the SSRIs... hopefully it's only better from here on out!
ian90586 cheryl20077
Posted
Hi Cheryl. Everything Tara said is true, Escitalopram is a purer version of Citalopram and therefore more potent without the unneeded effects of Citalopram. I put your dilemma to a psychiatrist and he said he would switch you to Escitalopram at half the dosage,so that would be 15mg of Escitalopram. Hope that helps,good luck.