Coming off citalopram. :(

Hi all,

Went to the Psychiatrist whose helping sort out my Myclonic Jerks. Neither of us are completely convinced it's the Citalopram but it's great to be off the Citalopram I've still got my fingers crossed that once the half life / quarter life etc is all finished so will my jerks ...

He was concerned that I might be getting a bit high after coming off the Citalopram. He said the best people to know if I was 'high' was my family and workmates. My step/foster daughter said I was just being myself and the people at work laughed and said that was 'normal me' for which read 'talkative - up' person. So great to have my old self back

I must say after being so tired for sooo long I also was concerned about being so 'buzzy'. It's great to have their reassurance. It's been so long I'd forgotten that I was one of those 'can't stop' people - I used to have three part time jobs... So not 'high' just a busy person

Note: Coming off Citolopram NOT a CONTEST just because I could come off quickly with little side effects that doesn't mean anyone else wanting or needing to come off shouldn't take their time and watch out for signs of the depression / anxiety / stress which lead to them taking / needing it in the first place. If it turns out that you still need something to help you but don't want to use Citalopram anymore then look into other possible options. We're all different you may find something that has side effects you can live with. If you need meds then embrace it as part of your you. Life would be boring if we were all the same

As my Psychiatrist says. Let your friends, family / work mates etc be your guide as to 'where you are'.

Agree Philippa. Not everyone is at the stage to stop taking the tablets and I would hate to think that I encouraged anyone to do that before the time was right.

Your problems that caused the depression can't still be there or, maybe, as bad. You, and only you, will know when you can come off them.

I chopped and changed my antidepressants over the years, when they stopped helping me.

Be careful.

hi i havre been on cit 20 for a yr now and decided to titrate off as discussed above alt days with 10mgs for 2 weeks then 2 wks 10mgs then alt days then nil. i felt well whilst titrating down but have only been off them a week and few days ago felt really short tempered, wheepy and unhappy with my general life. today my 'numb headache ' came back ... i have restarted them i hate the fact that i take antidepressants always been a very strong person who has solid coping mechanisms but hey .....the life without them is not worth feeling like that 'just to say im not on them' .

have have gained a stone in 1.5 yr however i dont think this is due to the tablets as i eat healthy it maybe however i was so low in weight prior to the tablets im now up to my correct weight ( although a few pounds off would not hurt)

i keep a check weelky on my weight and try to adjust my diet accordingly.

sad that i am back on them do feel i havent gave myself long enough off them but hey life is for living ...i will try again in 6 months time

Just do what you have to do, Sonia. it's your body and no-ones business. Don't feel guilty - the time just isn't right.

After 30yrs on meds have decided to try life without Cit .Day two down from 40mg to 20mg and all is well.

I blame the Cit on;weight gain,lack of libido and having no feelings,so I hope I can try life without?

Take it slowly, Ian.

Thanks Ms Mac,Glad you are well.

I was prescribed Citalopram almost three years ago to help with depression, anxiety and an overall lack of caring in life. At first it seemed to help but not in ways I had expected. It changed me as a person for the better, I think, and helped me learn to come out of my shell. I hope that was real and not just the medication. In any case, I've been on 40mg for almost the entire time I was prescribed the medication.

I learned almost a year ago when I moved, from forgetting to take my dose after a few days, that I have pretty severe flu-like withdrawal symptoms. I had NO idea what was going on and my doctor never told me about it. I had to put the pieces together next time I forgot to take them. Hot flashes, eye rolling, nausea, headaches, and a feeling like a jolt that goes through my entire body for a split-second that extends all the way to my finger tips.

Since turning 26 I'm no longer on any insurance, and I've recently run out of medication. Its been maybe a week now, and the symptoms are starting to grow. It's not as bad as the first two times I went through this, as I now know what to expect... but it's still amazingly horrible. But I'm taking this opportunity to force myself off of them for good. I gained almost 10 pounds, my insomnia has turned my sleep schedule upside down, I have developed noticeable Myoclonic jerking (I have actually kicked my boyfriend while in bed trying to sleep several times...) my sex drive is really messed up, and I too have a foggy mind, staring off into nothing for long periods of time. I also used to pride myself on my memory--but my short term memory has been steadily decreasing since around the time I started using the drug.

I was never a medication person. I had some serious attendance and depression issues while in college, and my professors who said they'd been on anti-depressants suggested I try it. So I did.

Everything else in my life is some form of natural supplement or remedy. I grow my own herbs when I can and use certain spices to make "potions" (Cyan pepper and Turmeric are great for headaches and my Migraine-suffering friends swear by it.)

In any case, I'm done with it. So many things are wrong with my life right now that I feel I need to get a clean start.

Hi Ian, If your're really feeling unhappy with your side effects but still need something then find a doctor whose willing to walk you through switching to something else. I agree that lack of or low libido may not seem high on the drs list of things to worry about but they're not the one's feeling, or should I say NOT feeling it. They have no idea just how upsetting and disrupting to a couple it can be. I haven't done a survey but I'm guessing it's one of the leading reasons that can make people come of meds prior to being stable enough to really do so. I suggest either; coming off but getting your family and friends to monitor you carefully; or switching / trying a couple of different meds - with the help of a sympathetic, if you can find one, doctor.

Different strokes for different folks

BTW: Think we should all repeat after ourselves "I'm different, NOT WRONG" For so many years needing to take meds for depression / stress / anxiety has been whispered about but not spoken of.

I apologize in advance for the rave coming up but: I come from Christchurch, NZ, and a LOT of people need / needed meds to help with; three years of earthquake, houses being written off, Insurance companies trying their best not to pay out; our city being pulled down, and now houses being written off due to lower ground levels, courtesy of the earthquakes causing flooding; And to top it all off bureaucrats that just don't know how to do or fix anything!

Sorry about the rave but there actually is a positive thing to come out of all of this - As so many people have needed to start on meds to help them get through everything talking about being on antidepressants and which ones you're on has become a lot more acceptable. It's sooo good to bump into someone and find out that the person who looked and acted 'normal' is actually 'just like you'

Now I've always been the type that probably over shares but what the heck have you SEEN the stuff people over share on Facebook? Nothing is really a secret any longer. I think if being different and needing anti depressants became something we talked about more often then 'talking therapy' could in many cases be better than taking the anti depressants

Just a thought.

I just successfully came off Citalopram after using this drug for 3 years. Never again. The commenter who said they blame the Citalopram on weight gain, lack of libido and having no feelings is spot on. I call this drug the devil drug. Lack of energy is huge too. I lived it for these past 3 years and didn't realize how much it changed me until I am now rid of it. I had no strong feelings either way on this drug...no interest in sex, and went from 112 lbs at 5'2 to 129 lbs at my heaviest. I couldn't wait until the next time I could just lay down and have a nap. I started at 20 mg but was up to 40 mg for the last year and a half. I did wean myself off them starting with cutting the 40 mg pill in half for 10 days, and then cutting the halves in half for another 10 days. Then I went every other day on those little halves for about a week, and then threw the rest in the garbage forever! I found that taking 2 Benadryl in the morning, and another 1 later in the day was a huge help with the dizziness/car sick feeling. The Benadryl truly saved me....it made it very easy. I have been completely off the drug for almost 3 weeks now. My energy, emotions and libido came back almost immediately. It s not until now that I see how that drug made me so lethargic and monotone. I'm back and I love it! Now the weight loss...not so much. I've only been counting calories so far but have lost about 1.5 lbs in 3 weeks. I can tell its going to be a long road but reading that others have noticed better weight loss after 6 months to a year gives me hope. I initially took this drug for PMS symptoms as I was very short and agitated. I will live with it f it comes back, and will never take this awful drug again!

Best of luck for those weaning off it....take the Benadryl.....it WORKS

Not sure you'll get this as I've not posted anything before anywhere. I don't know what made me google 'Coming off Citalopram' as I'd resigned myself to being on it for life. Not that I was concerned because I thought the extra weight and lack of emotion and feeling was age related and I've had difficult jobs so I thought I'd just naturally switched off to protect my sanity. Fuzzy head - I thought that was age too. Memory - it's like looking in a mirror. I've taken Citalopram for the last 7 years at 20 or 30mgs and for periods over the last forty odd years, as well as two years taking valium when I was in my early teens. I knew it was difficult to stop taking these things but I thought I'd come off a few weeks ago. When I started crying in Tescos I knew something was 'up' so I thought I'd stay with it forever. I thought it was a saviour drug getting shut of the depression for me and that everything that was a side effect was actually me getting old. I couldn't cry when my mum died last year. I thought it was........ No wonder I was blubbing at the checkout. There's a lot in there to come out yet I suppose before I'm normal but knowing I'm not alone is a revelation. How thick can a bloke be? I didn't realise.

Hi smiffy

i know exactly how you are feeling, its good to know you are not alone, and you've come to the right forum as everyone here can say that they know how your feeling.

regarding emotions, i dont know that they are anymore, am completely flat and i did the same when my mum died 3 yrs ago, ppl thought i was heartless and as the youngest of 7 mum was our world and my family didn't understand why i wasn't upset.

i didn't have the fatigue that others have, but all the other side effects are just me, its like reading my personal diary when i read your post.

i put everything down to my being at that age, time of a life in a women, pmt etc, but after reading many of the posts on here i now realise that we all have a majority of the same symptoms so we cant all be wrong!!!!!!

am still on 5mg a day having reduced from 20mg, next monday is d day where i stop the 5, am trying not to think of d day as disaster day and am trying to be positive lol

i dont even know if i or my hubby will like the new unmedicated me, i cant even remember what that is like, oh well its time to find out.

good luck in our journey and i hope we all can come out the other side a stronger person

Juliex

Thanks Julie. I hope all goes well and I'll start to cut down too. I just stopped a few weeks ago without trying to cut down as I'd gone cold turkey with cigarettes years ago and just relied on willpower. This is something a bit more difficult I suspect and reading everyone's stories I realise that I'm dealing with a very different kettle of fish. I hadn't understood the side effects of taking them never mind those associated with giving up.

I'm retiring early in June to do some long walks and for the first time I think I might be able to do them with a clear head, which is so encouraging. Not waking up eight times a night with a 747 roaring in my ears would be heavenly. I'm not counting my chickens but your experiences are a fantastic help and inspiration to me and I only logged on for the first time this morning!

Best wishes.

Hi Smiffy and others

Just incredible that I never blamed the pills on my LOW moods. I'm sure they made me worse and I couldn't control my emotions at all. I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed...... Now, I'm finding I can control those tears.

I was so long on mediation that I thought that was the real me but now, having been off them for weeks, I now remember the fun person I am and am feeling positive about the future instead of wanting to die.

Unless you are bi-polar or have extreme depression, I don't think they should be prescribed for years so easily. My doctor 'didn't believe' in Valium - even for emergency use - but was happy to prescribe those to me for 13 yrs.

I always told people I suffered from depression but now I won't.