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Question about Lexapro and the twitching. Is my case normal possibly something else?

Posted , 4 users are following.

nathan10059
nathan10059

  Hello. I am a 44 year old male with major depressive disorder for over 10 years now. I have been on several different meds. The most recent were Remeron and Wellbutrin. For awhile the depression was somewhat under control, but recently got real bad again. I talked this over with my doctor and he said that he thinks the Remeron is no longer helping and told me about great results with others that combined the Wellbutrin with Lexapro. So I agreed and started taking 10mg of Lexapro for about 2 weeks.

  After a few days the depression seemed to get a lot better, and I wasnt sure if this was due to the Lexapro, or did I just naturally start feeling better. It seemed like 3 days wasnt really enough time for the Lexapro to have helped as much as I had improved. I took it for about 2 weeks and very shortly after I started having several side effects. I was having twitching, back of the neck stiffness and pain, overall muscle tension, slight confusion, and occasional hot flashes. I read that this might have possibly been seratonin syndrome so I called my doctor about it. I told him I wanted to stop the Lexapro because I wasnt able to sleep hardly at all with the twitching, and I was pretty sure it wasnt the Lexapro that made me feel better. I wanted to stop it and see if the depression was OK, and if the side effects would stop, or was something else going one. I also said I didnt want to risk the chance of seratonin syndrome because it was linked to some people that were on either Wellbutrin or Lexapro and then added one or the other as a combo. He agreed and stopped to stop taking it to see how I did. Well its been 6 days now and I still feel the way I did before, so I have stayed off of it. 

  The main and most difficult side effect to deal with is the twitching. About 95% of the time this would happen when I was laying down with my eyes closed. Very rarely I would get one while sitting and watching TV. I originally thought this was “Hypnic Jerks” and that it was normal. But it wasnt just happening as I fell asleep. It is basically anytime I get very relaxed with my eyes closed. Sometimes it would be an all body twitch that was very violent, all the way down to a small finger or hand twitches and everything between. Legs, feet, arms, etc.

  Most of all the other side effects are basically gone now except for the twitching. So what I am hoping to find out is is it normal for me to still be having this 6 days after quitting the Lexapro considering I was only on it for about 2 weeks? I know that side effects and withdrawals can take a long time to stop, but I had only been on it for 2 weeks. They do seem like they are more rare now, and I havent felt one of the whole body violent ones in a few days, but the others are still happening. Anyone have any input of this, or their experience with Lexapro (or similar drugs)? I know this is long, but I wanted to make sure I had all the details here. Thanks in advance.

0 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • bert38760
    bert38760 nathan10059

    Posted

    I am not sure, my big side effect is dry mouth, and I am so tired all the time. But I did feel better after about three days.
    • nathan10059
      nathan10059 bert38760

      Posted

       I totally forgot to add dry mouth as well. Something I wake up at night and my entire mouth is stuck together. So I need to drink some water.
  • gina01020
    gina01020 nathan10059

    Posted

    Hi Nathan,

    Your symptoms sound very much like mine.

    I was on 30mg of Mirtazapine and had been for 8 years. I was getting worse, re panic attacks etc so the doc said it was time for a change. He swapped me to Lexapro without a taper or washout period....the side effects were horrendous....they started straight away. Hot sweats, prickly all over, panic, brain zaps, couldn't think to even make breakfast, itching, twitching, stiff neck, and then there was the nausea and dry mouth...

    I have been on Lexapro for 20 months now and still have ongoing problems of itching, hard to remember anything, insomnia is really bad and when I lay down at night, I seem to get a tension headache and can't switch off.

    Because I couldn't determain whether it was withdrawals from the sudden cessation of Mirth or the side effects of Lexapro, I kept going but probably shouldn't have.

    The Lexapro has been good for my panic attacks but I'm not convinced it's the right med for me..

  • gina01020
    gina01020 nathan10059

    Posted

    Hi Nathan,

    Your symptoms sound very much like mine.

    I was on 30mg of Mirtazapine and had been for 8 years. I was getting worse, re panic attacks etc so the doc said it was time for a change. He swapped me to Lexapro without a taper or washout period....the side effects were horrendous....they started straight away. Hot sweats, prickly all over, panic, brain zaps, couldn't think to even make breakfast, itching, twitching, stiff neck, and then there was the nausea and dry mouth...

    I have been on Lexapro for 20 months now and still have ongoing problems of itching, hard to remember anything, insomnia is really bad and when I lay down at night, I seem to get a tension headache and can't switch off.

    Because I couldn't determain whether it was withdrawals from the sudden cessation of Mirth or the side effects of Lexapro, I kept going but probably shouldn't have.

    The Lexapro has been good for my panic attacks but I'm not convinced it's the right med for me..

    • nathan10059
      nathan10059 gina01020

      Posted

       My doctor also didnt have me taper very long off of the Remeron when he put me on the Lexapro. He said just to take a half of one for a week, then stop. Im not sure if thats maybe part of whats going on as well. I was on the Remeron for years. But its good the hear that others are having the same issues. I am hoping the twitching eventually stop completely. Otherwise it could be something else. Ill keep updating this with how things go. Thanks for the replies everyone!
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