Read this for hope and encouragement - You will get better

Absolutely, I'm here if you ever need to chat! ❤️

hi how are you doing now?

Jo x

Hi

I am not great today, I think because morning anxiety when i wake up is so bad, I find it hard to move on with my day, I have a few times when i feel a bit better especially evenings, just have to keep hoping for more better times, how are you doing x

hi,

from what ive read from other threads better evenings should gradually turn into better afternoons and then mornings. i have terrible morning anxiety too - worse if ive not had a good sleep. also any nap i have during the day i wake up feeling worse even if its just a snooze so i must stop the napping.

today has been probably the best day since starting the meds - ive not been out but ive been productive around the house and have had spells where im looking forward to something i.e a wedding i have in a few weeks - these glimpses are soon followed by negative thoughts but i feel its progress i suppose! il be 11 weeks on meds in the next few days - almost 5 weeks on the slightly higher dose. how long have you been on meds for this time round? sorry to hear its not been a great day today - it wasnt great for me yesterday, i couldnt hold back tears but by the evening like you say i was more positive x

Glad you have had a good day, I was on 20mg for nearly 8 weeks and been on 30mg for 4 weeks, and I know everyone is different to how long it takes to feel better, just hoping things start to get better soon, I have managed to pop to the shop once or twice but mainly staying indoors at the moment. The physical symptoms are really hard, and i get very emotional days when i cry a lot x

your only a little further ahead than me - its fluoxetine i am taking though.

i was the same yesterday - i find when i have to go out i get very upset doing the things i would normally enjoy doing because my mind is on a constant negative loop. i do have to go out tomorrow to buy a few things so im hoping im feeling positive. i dont suffer the physical symptoms of anxiety apart from pounding heart occasionally, but i did have all the start up side affects which took a while to ease. i am only now starting to sleep better. i hope this evening is better for you x

how are you feeling now x

hi denise - im still up and down. crying spells are less and i managed a few hours out yesterday. im trying the acceptance method and trying my best to get on with my days as normal but it is very hard! how are you doing?

Hi

sorry you are still up and down, i am still having a rough time, i seem to be getting so many symptoms at the moment, sometimes i get a little relief i the evenings but not always, so hard but trying to stay positive, hoping it will get easier x

hi,

are they side affects from the meds or do you suffer with physical symptoms before meds? if you look back to last month / month before are you any better at all, even just a small change? il be on week 12 soon - and id say only the past week i can say i feel different from previous months - in previous months i had very dark thoughts which seem to have lessened a significant amount. my sleep has gone back awful though but that could be down to weather as its very warm the past week. x

Hi

most of them are since being back in meds especially the feeling of anxiousness in my stomach, I managed to go to the supermarket today, it was so hard but i did it, but it is so hot so on top of how hot I get when I'm anxious I thought i was going to pass out but I didn't , the heat seems to be making me feel worse at the moment, I think I have times some evenings when I relax but not sure if this is because the day is nearly over, but the next morning I wake up feeling awful again , I am so glad you are noticing a change, hoping I will soon x

sorry your still suffering - i did suffer the physical symptoms starting the meds but they have subsided apart from problems on and off with sleep.

i know that feeling of forcing yourself out and all your really wanting to do is curl up in a ball under your duvet its absolutely horrible. i often get back into my car in floods of tears. have you been back in touch with the GP? x

yes i saw the doctor today as i have a problem with my shoulder which after 2 years and an operation which did not work they said i have bursitis which is bad inflammation and in may gave me an ultrasound driven steroid injection, and after a few weeks the pain was gone , but about 3 weeks ago the pain came back and i can hardly move my arm and in a lot of pain, so need to be referred again 😦. when I told her how i was feeling with the anxiety she just offered to up dose to 40mg or try something new but I said not yet as I dont think Ive given the 30mg a chance to work yet and just cant start all over again x

oh no - that sounds awful with your shoulder! hopefully your referral wont take too long with you being in so much pain. Yeah i agree maybe give it another few weeks on the 30mg to settle. im

on 30mg but its fluoxetine and im not sure if that is equivalent to citalopram dosage. ive been almost 6 weeks on the 30mg and i was 6 weeks on the 20mg prior. if im honest i think i will need to go up to 40mg eventually as i do have a few OCD like tendencies in the form of ruminating and i have read that a higher strength is needed to combat that but im willing to give the 30mg another few months x

Hi Jo

how are you feeling today, Congratulations by the way on your pregnancy but like you said your hormones are probably all over the place, hopefully you will feel much better soon x

hi!

not too bad - probably the most productive weekend in a about 3-4 months. things very much still on my mind constantly but im actually wanting to go out with my family. thank you, i dont want to increase the dose until baby is here but fingers crossed i wont have to (wishful thinking) how are you feeling? any improvement? x

I get a little bit of time when its better but still not great, but I will keep going and hope it gets better in time, I'm so glad to hear you are getting out with your family hopefully every day will get better for you x

yes keep going! im far from back to myself but i just keep thinking of the floods of tears i was in daily only a few weeks ago.

its just the 4-6 weeks that you should start to see improvement timescale thats so unrealistic that the GPs advise and virtually everything you read online isnt it x

Yes I totally agree, when you read it takes 4-6 weeks and still struggling after 3 months it really makes you think that they will never help x

yes exactly - im glad i came across this sote or i would have given up weeks ago! hope your doing okay today?

Hi Jo

just checking in to see how you are feeling now, I am doing a bit better but very slowly, I still have quite bad morning anxiety and that feeling of knotting and butterflies in my stomach, but am not crying so much and am managing to do more things, still get anxious when i am going out but trying to push through it, I have got an appointment for my shoulder problem next week so I am hoping to get that sorted as i am not sleeping hardly due to the pain, I hope you are feeling better x

hi denise,

i would say im the same - crying everyday has stopped and if i look back to a month ago id be hysterical at least twice a day some days! im more productive and i have glimmers throughout the day of looking forward to things even though o do have anxious thoughts constantly. my sleep is awful but i am 7.5 months pregnant so thats probably contributing to the insomnia. im thinking of giving it another 2 weeks and upping to 40mg as rumination and being stuck in my own head is my main problem which is associated with OCD. ive read that only a higher dose is likely to combat it. its just risking upping and then allowing time to stabilise, not sure what to do! im glad you have your app for your shoulder, ouch that must be extremely painful x

Yes I'm about the same as you, but yes your pregnancy is probably having an effect on you, I am seeing doctor Friday but really don't want to up dosage yet, like you say going through the affects of adjusting to new dosage is putting me off, I still feel quite tired a lot but am not sleeping properly so thats not helping but we just have to take it day by day but glad you are doing better than you was x

i have to say that upping from 20mg to 30mg was okay - i suppose my body had adjusted to 20mg in the first 6 weeks. it was only my sleep that was affected more from the increase, and still is but could be how far i am along in pregnancy now too. i just dont know if i should take the risk being only 11 weeks maximum until having baby - or just bite the bullet and up my dose as its plenty of time to settle on a new dose! think il see how next week pans put before deciding. glad you are feeling slightly better too x

Hi Jo

how are doing, you must be nearly at full term now, just wanted to see how you are xx

hi denise!

my mood had lifted a little but i seem to be going through a bit if a blip past few days.

really thinking of upping dose to 40mg but still unsure. how are you doing?

x

I am also having a setback at the moment I was feeling better for the last few weeks but at beginning of last week I started getting anxiety again which has got worse, especially the mornings but lasted all day yesterday , I had 2 steroid injections in my shoulder last Monday and since then things seem to have got worse, not sure if thats got anything to do with it , sorry to hear you are having a blip, when is tour baby due xx

yeah same, i was doing ok for around 3 weeks but it seems to have hit me again! 8 hope the injection helped and your not in too much pain? im 33 weeks tomorrow -so i do feel that pressure now that i need to be better before baby arrives x

I hope you are feeling better by then too, i'm sure we will both get through this , feels like a long journey though xx

how are you doing now denise? .

Not great having another bad day, trying to ignore symptoms but feeling really anxious and low today, how are you x