Fluoxetine for PMDD/PMS

HI i was looking at this site when i came across yours and you sound just like me when your period is due in fact so much like like me it sounded like you were talking about me my doctor recently prescribed fluoetine to me but i havent taken any yet but told me to take them all the time one a day unlike yours i dont know why i have to take them all the time as most of the time i am a happy person i am a bit worried in case i get addicted and after reading others about being tired all the time and feeling worse before they get better i feel like i need to do something but dont know if this is this answer

Inga, I don't believe that these pills have an ingredient in that can make them become addictive. I read all the literature in the packet when I collect them from the pharmacist and I cannot recall it mentioning addictiveness.

The sooner you start them, the sooner you will start to feel better from the pre-menstrual pain.

Ang.

Hi

I have been on the pill since I was 15 due to severe period pains and I am 40 now. I have never had PMT or any problems due to periods because they have always been regulated by the pill. I decided to come off the pill 8 months ago and the pains have stopped but for the last two months I have had really bad PMT for about a week but for about one day of that week I feel really suicidal and would quiet easily drive the car into a barrier or blow my head off, the rest of the time I am the happy funny one who makes everyone laugh and sorts everyone elses problems whilst running a business and looking after me and my partner....so not the slightly bit loopy any other time of the month. The doctor prescribed me Fluoxetine this week for two months non stop and if they work she said I may be able to reduce this down to just the week before my period but I have read all the info and I am really unsure about these. I have read that they are really just Prozac wrapped up in a differnet packet and although Ang you say they are not addictive and I'm sure you're right why does it say not to come off them suddenly?

Have any of you actually started them yet? I haven't...really unsure about this.

HELP!

Hi 'Guest'

I have also read that these pills can be addictive, and yes, felt apprehensive about taking them. (Lots of reasons) But I must be on week 7 I think maybe 8, and I know at the moment anyway, that If I wanted to stop taking them, I could. I know they say dont just come off them, but John B on here has started to lessen his dose to a stop, (or is that Gaz?) It's one of them. And that makes me feel , OK, someone on here can just stop, and be OK. That makes it seem like they can't be addictive. I think anyway, that has to do with a state of mind, not necessarily addiction?

All I can tell you is this, that feeling of thinking of driving in to a brick wall - with me it was driving of a bridge on the motorway - but I think most of us on here feel that bad, and so you are not alone. It's funny, all during my 12 year marraige I had that vision so many times, that must mean there is something missing in our life. Or is it our hormones? I don't know. But dont you think it's worth a try just to see if it helps you? You obviously want to get better, so just try it. Coming off the pill after all those years must play havoc with your hormones, you're bound to have down days, and really bad 'suicidal' feelings, even if just for a day a month - it's too much - At least, after being in that 'day' a month you experience, for weeks continuously, I have stopped feeling that low. That place is a place I never want to go back to. My last resort was htese pills (yes they are prozac I think - but only know that cos of google) But if they stop that one horrible devastating day where you want your world to end - then surely it's worth giving it a try?

I have done some research - maybe for you - google EPA - it's some kind of essential fatty fish oil, that's meant to help calm hormonal reactions of volatility in females - I have been taking that as well. For a lot longer (but it didnt work on it's own ). Just research and really listen to people tat are experiencing the same thing. EPA is a natural supplement - maybe give that a go for a couple months - but your Dr knows best.

You want help - so take it - it doesnt make you weak - you're strong for even admitting you have a problem. With me, I knew I couldn't go on, and fluoxetine prescribed by my Dr, was my only chance of survival, and I grabbed it. And I am glad I am still here for my kids, no matter how sh** things get, nothing could be worse than hurting them like that.

Let us know how you do wont you. I hope I've helped xxx

I have recently been diagnosed with PMDD and have been prescribed Fluoxetine, yes it is Prozac, that is a company name like McVities!! Anyway, i have been told to take it constantly and to go back after 2 weeks. I have been told that it is a chemical imbalance, where i thought it was a hormonal. I was at my wits end every month and like you guys, it was like Jekyl and Hyde ! Like someone had flicked a switch. My poor BF and son were the ones that bore the brunt of these emotional outbursts and i was constantly apologising and then feeling complete self-loathing for being the B**ch i had turned into. My work was suffering and my colleagues knew when to hide and lock the office door !!! In a way, i feel relieved that i did finally seek help and it wasnt just \"womens problems\" and that i dont need to go through this every month, but i still have a battle on my hands as i also have endometriosis and will be asking the Gynaecologist if i can just have my \"Gearbox\" taken out and i should be fine lol !!!! Dont dispair, no-one is alone, not with the internet ! If the Dr's think that this is for the best, then dont question their judgement, i know that Prozac has bad press, but it isnt the tablets, its the mis-use of them and if it isnt for you, then tell the GP, but dont just take them because of the stigma of being on Prozac!

Hi i did take fluoxetine after all and i must say that it is the best that i have felt in years i have no more bad times of the month that i hated due to mood swings my husband says that i am a different person but after years of mood swings he still exspects them once a month but i feel great my only worry is how long i will have to be on them i havent had any problems or side affects so if i have to be on them until my periods finish then thats no problem i just wish i had taken them earlier as i have suffered for many years

Hi I was prescribed fluoxetine by a gp just over a year ago for severe PMT

I take it for 14 days of every month, starting 14 days before my period. I must say it has changed my life dramatically, I wish someone had prescribed it for me years ago. I cannot express how much better it has made me feel. I was on the verge of breaking up with my partner because of anger outbursts, and I used to be physically ill every month sometimes with colds and viruses or infections of some kind, Now life is great. Please give it a go, it worked for me.

Good luck

Please try the medication. The difference for me was instantaneous (literally that first day)! My marriage has been saved, my children no longer fear my unpredictability and impatience, and my poor colleagues at work no longer have to face my wrath and tears (often in the same breath!). I no longer climb under the duvet covers in the evening and cry myself to sleep. I take them Day 15-28 of my cycle and I have no withdrawal symptoms in the two pill free weeks in between. They have revolutionised my life completely. PUT SIMPLY :- I now just feel like 'myself'/ normal ALL month; no more jekyll & hyde..... Research shows that symptoms return on discontinuation. But so what if I need to take them till my periods stop? For me, it's so worth it because I'm worth it and I believe I deserve to feel this way

My doctor just put me on a low dose of fluoxetine - 10mg - to be taken 14 days leading up to my period. I am feeling quite dizzy, lightheaded with a headache already since taking the first pill about 4 hours ago. My question is how long do the side effects last when you start? Also is anyone else only on 10mg? I have read that 20mg seems to be the dose for pms. Thanks.

Hi, I have also been commenced on fluoxetine for pms. My symptoms are completely similar to all the above though I am also feeling very anxious alongside these and unable to prioritise simple daily tasks at times. It is now my second month of taking them and when I finished my first course last month I started to feel anxious especially every morning and this continued until now when I am on day 3 of my second month of tablets. When normally i would be back to my happy go lucky normal self post period

I am also just taking these for 10 days before menstruating but not sure if they are going to be for me. At very first I thought they had worked brilliantly but now I am feeling worse than normal and not even due for bad pms symptoms yet. i will give them until after this period and go back to the gp. It is affecting my work and my sickness at work is a major worry at the moment.

Anyone else not sure if it is for them or has anyone tried any other help. I was first offered fluoxetine 5 years ago for same reason and declined it then but need some help now.