Lost feeling in hands and feet in the night; Felt like limbs and body weren't mine

Posted , 4 users are following.

Last night I couldn't sleep - racing thoughts. Then suddenly I got this really weird feeling like parts of my body weren't mine and that I wasn't 100% present. Then my little fingers in both hands and my big toes in both feet went totally numb. I increased Citalopram from 20mg to 30mg 3-4 weeks ago. Could this be a side effect? It was a weird and frightening experience. I was close to calling for an ambulance. It's not like any anxiety or panic attack I've experienced before. Like my nerves were shutting down.

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4 Replies

  • Posted

    Sorry you're having issues. Yes they are start up side effects. How long were you taking 20mg before the increase? Lots if times people dont give enough time for their bodies to adjust and settle before increasing. This will definitely cause issues.

    Me personally, I take CITALOPRAM for anxiety. I started at 20mg and reduced to 10mg and I feel much better. Some experience side effects and immediately assume they need higher dosss to feel better. Totally false. You need to give your mind at least 12 weeks to adjust before changing. And some take much longer. Hope you get to feeling better.

    • Posted

      3 years on 20mg - summer of last year I started getting chronic anxiety spells again - about 8-10 instances in the last year lasting about 10 days each time. Been on 30mg now for 3-4 weeks. Feel awful. Do I feel awful because it's too much? Or do I need to stick it out until it starts working? So hard to know!

    • Posted

      you feel awful because you started the whole process again.when increasing the startups start all over again. best regards

  • Posted

    I don't think so much that its the medication that caused it, that sounds to me like depersonalization/derealization. It happens in times of high anxiety. I've had this quite a bit over the years when my anxiety gets really high. It's actually a natural mechanism to block of that part of your mind to protect it. It can be scary if you don't know what is happening, but it can't hurt you. The thing with that is to try to relax, and tell yourself exactly what is happening and let it pass. Just give the increased dose time to work and get leveled out that will help lower your anxiety and in turn will help with not having these episodes.

    Best Wishes

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