Cit for social anxiety?

Just googled and found various success stories from people using beta blockers to one lady who uses a hair dryer every morning to bring it up (clearly for her it's a heat thing) it stays red for an hour or two but then she found it would stay clear for the rest of the day and she could do interviews/public speaking without flaring up.  her theory is that whilst she doesn't Beleive it's a heat promoted condition, she feels the heat brings the histamine or whatever it is out and has always made it worse.  It does sound very frustrating for all sufferers that there may be so many different causes, so perhaps it is a trial and error situation until you fall on finding the actual trigger.  If it is anxiety triggered, then yes Cit should help but it does take time xxxxx

Thank you for the reply. It is very frustrating as there are so many different triggers but it is definitely triggered the majority of the time by thinking about it and worrying about it but yes, it can also be heat related or brought on when I eat. I know there's no miracle cure but I was hoping citalopram would help. 

Yes Chris I would say this is a reaction to feeling embarrassed or awkward rather than an actual physical ailment. Mine was blushing. I would always blush in front of people so the point where I felt very uncomfortable talking to people. That has gone now thanks to cit and therpay xx

Hi Holly I'm 6 weeks into fluoxetine and feeling more relaxed but still getting very anxious in social or business situations like I can't speak confidently and I'm going to mess it up. May ask my GP about citalopram soon...

Hi Richard, do/did you have a similar issue then?

Thanks Holly. I have been on a downward spiral for the last year or so and thought enough is enough!! 

I really hope it does start working soon. How do you know? Do you just start worrying about things less? 

I'm glad to hear you're feeling better. There is nothing worse 

It's very strange as you almost don't notice. I realised it was working when I actually forgot to take my tablet one day. Usually I'd be thinking about how I'm feeling ALL day so the taking the tablet thing was never forgotten. When I forgot I realised it was because I hadn't thought about how I was feeling for ages!! It's a great feeling. And it will come! Just trust it. It's a bumpy ride the citalopram, and alot of people have actually stopped taking it due to the horrific rollercoaster it creates but for me the choice was feel constantly anxious or feel terrible for a few weeks and then better. No brainer!

You will be fine

Thanks Holly. I will just have to ride it out and hope for the best. I feel better knowing it has worked for other people in similar situations. 

Thank you

I didnt have a rash as such but I had what my doctor referred to as 'break outs'.  My skin would just pop open, sometimes as a thin fissure like cut and other times as small patches where the skin would just look like a burn mark and then they would heal to a scab but often would bleed profusely before healing.  I was out one day with friends during the summer and one of them remarked that I must have scratched my leg on something because they was blood trail all the way from my shin down to my foot.  When I cleaned it off, it was a tiny slit in the skin but had bled quite a lot for such a small opening.  No apparent reason and I hadnt knocked the leg.  Doc said it was my adrenal gland overworking due to stress/anxiety and affecting my immune system - basically my body thought it needed to produce large amounts of antibodies as it sensed a 'threat'.  Isn't it weird what the body will do when under siege in some way.  Citalopram did work on the anxiety issues, it took about 8 - 10 weeks to settle in and I didnt just wake up one day and think "hooray I'm cured", I just felt less anxious gradually and my skin stopped doing its weird stuff as a result.  As Holly has commented above, cit does give some issues to certain people, I developed an allergic reaction to it and had to stop taking it which was sad because it really really helped me through some horrible stress and anxiety prior to the severe reaction I had to it.  Have faith, it can and does work.

It is amazing what the body does when it senses threat for whatever reason. Sorry to hear you became allergic to Cit. I will keep going and hope for the best. It's interesting because when I went to see the doctor she said my skin reactions were a 'classic' stress and anxiety response yet there seems to be very few people who have experienced the same. 

As your skin issue is stress related and not an allergy or infection etc., hopefully once the cit starts to work on your stress levels, this will ease off.  In the meantime, something to calm and cool the skin could be a good idea.  An old fashioned remedy that works every time for me, particularly with sunburn, hives, stings etc., is calomine lotion.  It dries to a white coating which is quite visible so you'd need to cover the area up but it feels so lovely on the skin and stops most irritation instantly.  Good luck with the cit, here's hoping you're feeling better very soon. xx