Coming off citalopram. :(

Welcome back BD and glad you had a good holiday and survived. I've never been to India but saw the poverty in Egypt and that was bad enough. Makes you feel very wealthy indeed.

Hello everyone and welcome to the newbies. Well I am now on day 9 of cutting down from 20 to 10 mg. I am not feeling any withdrawal symptoms YET. Fingers crossed I will get lucky. I guess there has to be a first time for everything and luck does not visit me very often. It is our 35th wedding anniversary next week so we are going to a nice hotel for a meal and overnight stay which should help me stay 'happy'

Keep up the good work everyone. Together we can beat this. xx

Hey again guys,

On day 12 now (citalopram free).....I thought today was going really well.....but I appear to have hit an almighty low this evening....been on my own and in tears for an hour now-which is something I haven't experienced in years on citalopram.....coming on here always helps.....I have definitely come off them far too quickly and I don't recommend doing it.....but i've come this far now it seems crazy to start back again.....i'm hoping this will ease up soon....

out of interest....when any of you are feeling particularly low.....do you find yourself looking at the past and convincing yourself you've made the wrong decisions? particularly in relationships? Like nostalgia with a nasty nasty sting.....that's what always gets me.....I can never get away from it

I moved somewhere new for a good job a couple of years ago.....I have to admit I've struggled to meet like-minded friends.....this website has been such an important outlet for me....that I'm sure i'd be back on the drug without it.....thanks people

I truly hope that the future is brighter for all of us

Ben, this WILL pass but you have to ride the waves, just now. I live alone so know how hard it is when you're feeling low and no-one there.

I think we all look at the past and we all have out regrets. I suffer from the 'poor old me syndrome' and hate having to deal with all the rubbish that life throws at you, alone.

Have a look and see if there are any like-minded groups in Meetup organisation. No-one will come knocking at our door - we have to get out there and meet new people. Very difficult and I should know but all we can do is try.

I hope you reach calmer waters soon. You are not alone with your thoughts, believe me.

Take care.

Hi beautifulday

glad you enjoyed your holiday and survived, see we all knew you could do it, i thought better of hiding in your suitcase as didn't want to be stuck in lost luggage lol

Ben, i tend to think negative thoughts when am low in mood, but i tell myself that i cant change the past, but i can learn from it and move forward, what i find helps me and yes i know am nearly 47 lol is to play mario on the nintendo wii i find it somehow therapeutic jumping over obstacles, going down pipes and killing baddies lol i also tend to put my ipod on and iron singing my head off, it takes my mind off the negative thoughts, i sometimes do this of a night time if i cant sleep as i find listening to music stops me thinking which is good.

so what do other do to help them cope?

Juliex

I just have to wait until the mood shifts as I can't concentrate to do anything, I'm afraid.

Am I the only one who is getting annoyed at mental health care?we are on this forum trying to shave bits off tablets we have been prescribed for years,yet we are offered no back up support to accompany our medication! I went to the drs the other day,after explaining my symptoms,yet again,im given a leaflet to ring myself and try to book talking therapy that lasts 2hrs and is once a week? This therapy is in a group and even though I don't have to speak I need to sit there?so,this year I have been outside for a total of 2hrs,i hate outside and yet im supposed to self refer and sit with a group of strangers for six wks?does nobody read our notes anymore at the drs?you would think after 30 yrs self harming ect they could offer better than that!

When in low mood I have stopped trying to combat it. I simply accept my state and let it pass. Yes, it can take weeks or months. Imagine a wave higher,wider and stronger than you will ever be. Don't,t fight it You may drown.instead let it take you.Ride it out and wait till it deposits you bank ashore,

ANO! Easier said than done. My dangerous time is the hypomanic highs. The lows I can manage now that I know what is wrong with me. Mastering the highs is a whole other challenge I am working on.muse your best days, your nearly 'good' days to plan. Write your strategy down and follow your plan. If it fails start again. Keep at it Ben because all you've got is YOU. You can you know!!!

No, you are not the only one, Ian and if you read back you will see that.

I am disgusted at the lack of help given. One-to-one and group counselling was of no use to me whatsoever as all I had to do was talk about what happened to me. That just brought all the bad memories to the surface and made me worse.

To keep giving pills is an easy way out but the NHS in UK is not prepared to put more funding into medical care.

I am getting more from fellow sufferers than from professional medics. I'm knew to this page but alreadynfeel the support. Thank you all

GG, in my previous posts, I always describe the really bad times as Tsunamis. Sometimes we are lucky to just have stormy seas but all rough seas eventually calm. OK, so they might get rough again but we have to keep riding those waves until we reach those calmer shores.

GG, it's because you have people who really know what you're going through and how you feel. Unfortunately most doc. haven't got a Scooby

Please try talking to a pharmacist if you are having nasty withdrawal symptoms. My GP kept trying to take me off but it never worked because I would get too sick. Finally I spoke to my pharmacist and he suggested that I go down by 2.5mg biweekly. Its taking me 3 months to get off 20 mg which I have been on for 10 years. Sometimes pharmacists can give better advice than physicians when it comes to drug interactions, side effects and withdrawal symptoms. P.S: even though the pill comes in 10 and 20 mg which can be split, you can always have it custom made to 17.7-15.5-12.5 mg. Good luck to every one. My physical withdrawal symptoms are non existant but I have been feeling tearful. I am still persistant to get off this mediation. Its causing a long of memory loss and mind fog for me.

Hi

after doing research on citalopram withdrawal, several of the depression sites are recommending that you see your gp to get a low dose of prozac as this has a longer half life than citalopram and the withdrawals are supposed to be much less than on citalopram

I cant comment on this as i have never been on prozac, but if your not coping with coming off citalopram, then this could be an option for some.

the half life of a tablet is how many hours/days half of the tablet is still in your body, citalopram is approx 35hrs and prozac is approx 16 days, so theory is that you get much less withdrawals on prozac due to longer half life.

Although there is the reasoning that should you use another pill to get off the first one, this is a question only YOU can answer and if your struggling it may be an option

Juliex

Read that, Julie and when withdrawing from Zispin you do that. I've been on Prozac and Sertraline.