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Citalopram failed , does that mean sertraline will too ?

Posted , 4 users are following.

david39076
david39076

I had PTSD about 4 years ago due to an accident at work and managed my way through with CBT and 20mg of Citalopram daily. I was on this for 2 years and eventually weaned off and was ok .... BUT the dreaded anxiety came back after 6 months ish.

I went back to my doctor and said what had happened and how I was feeling and he gave me 20mg of citaloptam again. I was a little bit gutted to be going back on meds but I thought needs must.

This is where it gets interesting... I started taking the citaloptam fully aware what the side effects were etc as my experience with them the time before ... Long story short I was on them for 3 months and by the end of the 3 months I was worse than ever before , I couldn't understand how they worked perfectly in the past but this time round never !?

I came off cold turkey as even putting 5mg of the drug into my system sent me into overdrive with panic attacks the lot ( I wasn't even having panic attacks before I even started the meds)

So 4 months of my life was hell !!! I went to see a specialist in London Harley street and was diagnosed with GAD (general anxiety disorder) he then prescribed me Lyrica ... I heard some right nasty life breaking stories about this drug so I went against the advice of the specialist and didn't take them.

I then decided to go it alone and thought F*ck it I can fight this thing and overcome it , no matter how clean I eat and how much exercise I do and meditation and acupuncture..it was just always there niggling me every day and tiring me out and depersonalising most days.

I went back to my GP after much research and asked for some amitriptiline 10mg tablets which he gave me.

I started these tablets and had some success with them but still didn't eliminate the majority of my anxiety and the side effects were quite bad in respect that it made me very tired and I had to take them at 6pm on an evening so I had half a chance of waking up for work the next morning with a clear ish sort of head. The problem is it was very hard to have any sort of quality of life after finishing work because I knew I had to take it at 6pm and be stuck in the house like a zombie till bed time.

I'm 34 and male and have a wife and 2 young children of 3&5 years old. I don't drink , I don't smoke and don't eat a bad diet of food. I'm really struggling with understanding why I've ended up in this situation.

MY MAIN QUESTION IS .... Has ANYONE at all failed with citaloptam and gone on to be successful with using sertraline??

I'm just too scared to give up another 3-4 months of my life with failure at the end , ending up worse than when I started.

Please help me out guys and tell me your thoughts and experiences.

I just want my life back.

0 likes, 15 replies

15 Replies

  • lillie46665
    lillie46665 david39076

    Posted

    Citalopram worked for me  for a while so did prozac so did mirtrapine

    and amitiptiline did nothing for my mental illness but helped me sleep and helped me with back pain

    I am now on zoloft (setraline) its working for the mo but I dont know how long it will last

    We all have different reaction to medication

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • david39076
      david39076 lillie46665

      Posted

      Thank you kindly for your reply.

      What mg amitriptiline were you using and how long for ?

      I'm desperate to give sertraline a go but I can't afford to be in an absolute mess as my family rely on my income.

      I sometimes feel like I'm doomed forever. I have little to no depression at all , just purely anxiety.

    • lillie46665
      lillie46665 david39076

      Posted

      Hi David

      I was on 25mg of amitriptiline not on it anymore though

      I feel like a guinea pig its trial and error on what drug will work for you.

      Sertraline is working well for me but I still have sleep issues

      Take Care

      Lil

  • diane524
    diane524 david39076

    Posted

    I just started Citalopram 4 weeks ago and am feeling so much better. I am also on Ativan as needed and that has helped with the initial side effects of Citalopram.

    I suggest you do try the Lyrica that your Dr suggests. I am hearing a,lot of people that have problems after they go off their SSR personally - I plan on staying on Citalopram the rest of my life. As long as I feel good. I hate taking meds but quality of life is more important.

    I have also found a,great book that has helped a,great deal with my anxiety, especially the first 3-4 chapters. The 10 Best-Ever Anxiety Management Techniques.

    Best of luck x

    • david39076
      david39076 diane524

      Posted

      Thanks for the reply Diane , I've gone past the stages of worrying about being on meds, I would stay on the med that worked for me for the rest of my life if i manged to find it 😞

      Like everyone says "I wish there was one tablet that sorted everything" but they're all so different in so many ways.

      I just can't understand how some days I'm riddled with anxiety and other days I'm totally fine , and these are the days where I convince myself I'm ok and don't need anything. Then probably have another 3 days plus feeling like I'm going to have a heart attack with chest pains and tight jaw amongs everything else.

      What a bummer !

  • tess33005
    tess33005 david39076

    Posted

    Hello David,

    I have been on many anti-depressants over the years and I am also a nurse. My experience with sertraline was very positive.

    Different kinds of anxiety trigger or inhibit or affect different parts of the brain's function, so I think that's why the citalopram didn't the second time round.

    There are very many different anti depressants and individuals respond differently to each one. What helps one person will be useless for another.

    Give the sertraline a go and remember  they take about a month to fully kick in. If they help, but only marginally, ask your doctor for a higher dose.

    And if that doesn't help, ask your doctor to prescribe a completely different med. Also, therapy, especially CBT, is of great benefit.

    Try not to worry about this - give the sertraline a chance then come back to the forum and let us know how you're getting on.

    Sorry you're having a bad time at the moment. I totally identify wih the zombie lying in bed all day comment, by the way    love Tess

    • david39076
      david39076 tess33005

      Posted

      Hi tess,

      I've had CBT from a really good specialist from Hexham in the north east of England , I had 20 sessions and found it fantastic along side with the 20mg or Citalopram, I honestly thought I was cured.

      I would really love to try the lyrica but I've just read and heard so many bad things about It saying their lives are ruined after finishing them due to the brain building up tolerance to them so quickly.

      I think I'm going to have to make the plunge and have a go of the sertraline and see how I get on. Monday morning ... Il be taking the 1st tablet , I will keep you updated. Thanks for your lovely reply. Dave 🙂

  • anxietysite123
    anxietysite123 david39076

    Posted

    I've heard a lot of people switching from celexa to Zoloft and feeling much better. I'm currently on celexa but it does absolutely nothing to help me it seems except calm the panic attacks when I do have them. I'll be trying to do Zoloft in the next couple of months if I can't stay off meds.
    • david39076
      david39076 anxietysite123

      Posted

      See it's worked the opposite for me , when I was on the Citalopram it made my anxiety go through the roof to the point where my serotonin levels seemed through the roof with a euphoria like feeling, It was horrendous. I couldn't even taper down of the Citalopram because even putting 5mg of the stuff into me made me so poorly , I thought at one point that I might have to go into hospital.

      I'm just so scared to be back in that scenario after another 3-4 months then starting all over again 😬

  • maria30770
    maria30770 david39076

    Posted

    hi David, like you I had success with cit a few years ago. Tried them again recently and no joy 😦

    i know this is an old thread but im just wondering how you got on with Sert?

    Thank you -

    Maria

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