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Citalopram 40mg

Posted , 5 users are following.

linda5211
linda5211

I was taking 40mg citalopram for a few years. Even though they had seemed to stop working. Got referral to psychiatrist and he suggested a different tablet. 3 weeks ago my local doctor suggested withdrawal of citalopram at 20mg each day for 2 weeks then one week of 20mg every second day then 2 days of not taking it at all. Horrid side effects. Constant headaches that normal headache tblts dont work, lethargic, nauseous, dont want to get out of bed etc. I am now on my third day of my new tblt that psychiatrist suggested. But still got withdrawal symptoms from the citalopram. I know the other tablets arent gonna work yet coz I have only been on them for 3 days. Tomorrow i see a psychologist and gonna try a different type of treatment from him, (nothing to do with tablets) so hope that works. Then after that I will see the mental health nurse and I have appt with my local GP to chat with him and keep him updated. I just want these damn withdrawals mainly constant headaches to stop

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • katecogs
    katecogs linda5211

    Posted

    I spent a whole year withdrawing from 20mg by 5mg each time.  No wonder you've got horrid side effects  I know cross tapering to another medicine works different to withdrawing completely but you shouldn't have had any meds free days in-between I'm sure.  Which meds are you now taking?

    • linda5211
      linda5211 katecogs

      Posted

      The citalopram had not been working when they started the reduction and also at same time I was having very severe anxiety
    • linda5211
      linda5211

      Posted

      Was taking 40mg citalopram before reducing started
    • katecogs
      katecogs linda5211

      Posted

      Did you recover on Citalopram?  40mg is the highest dose you can take - some people struggle on that dosage, and a slight reduction can often remedy it.
  • nigel45109
    nigel45109 linda5211

    Posted

    Hello linda, i did something similar to you, after cit at 40mg, got me too anxious. Dropped to 30mg for two weeks, had a sort of meltdown, couldnt stop thinking, was given diazepam and reduced cit to 20mg, then started new anti depressant. Took some cit and new one for a couple of weeks, lowered old one, increased new one and then stopped old one and increased new again. Reduction and swap over took too long, about 8 weeks, got very depressed. Depends on the new tablet, some doctors stop old one, then start new one next day. It does depend on type of new one. Anyway, you are probably looking at 3 to 4 weeks, for the swap over to settle down, before new one slowly starts to work. The swap has worked out well for me, but had a period of about 3 months of feeling really bad, before i slowly started to improve. Stick with it, good luck with physcologist. What is your new med?
    • nigel45109
      nigel45109 linda5211

      Posted

      Okay, so youve gone from a ssri, to a snri. Thats what i did. There wasnt any need to do the taper you did, just makes it worse, especially days without anything. I did a cross over taper, slightly better, but still a waste of time, just meant i got worse before getting better, when no need. This is why you feel so bad. 40mg of cit made me too anxious drop to 20mg, made depression worse. Its worked for me, not yet fully recovered. A snri will work on two happy chemicals, rather than one with a ssri. The new med should work for you. All the best. Stick with it.
    • Guest
      Guest linda5211

      Posted

      Hi my doctor has told me to take Duloxetine as well as cit but I’m terrified of side effects.my side effects are terrible still after 4 months on cit.how are you finding Duloxetine 
    • linda5211
      linda5211 Guest

      Posted

      Well cant say for sure coz today is only my 4th dose plus I MAY be having some trouble with painkiller targin 30mg for my hip coz waiting for hip replacement That could be making headaches worse. Gonna see my local doctor tomorrow and see what he says and maybe ask for a lower dose. I reckon the 30mg targin might be the cause of some of the headaches but not sure. Anyway, will wait and see what dr says
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