Should I go back on citalopram?
Posted , 10 users are following.
Ive joined this group as i feel like i really need some support right now from those who have been through it. My husband is great but doesnt understand what its like. I suffer from anxiety and depression and have had on and off (mostly on) for years. In April i came off citalopram after 4 years being on it. It made a huge difference for me (I felt normal!) but I stupidly thought that because I was feeling better that I was cured and could come off the meds. I did ok for about 3 months but things got stressful at work and now I’ve had a full blown relapse with terrible anxiety, feeling really flat, no appetite, tearful, irritable etc. I also have IBS and that’s has gotten steadily worse to the point that I have been worrying about every meal and now the health anxiety has resurfaced and convinced me that I must have bowel cancer. My GP and my husband both think I should go back on the citalopram but I am very resistant. On the one hand I want to go back to the was on them, but the other side of my brain says what about the side effects, what if they don’t work, what are the long term effects etc. Should I try and get better without them or just accept that I clearly need them and will just have to stay on them long term?
1 like, 14 replies
dee35726 tamsin07572
Posted
hi there
i did exactly the same. felt well after three years. came off gradually from JANUARY until MAY. By SEPTEMBER i felt like a lunatic again. i was sad to accept I need it . BUT I'm fine again now. 10mg. when bad moment i take an extra one, it is what it is. be glad theres a solution
lois95799 dee35726
Posted
taking and extra tablet is not very smart.best regards
dee35726 lois95799
Posted
my Gp said it was ok on my levels 10 mg
dee35726
Posted
but only like once over three months
lois95799 dee35726
Posted
your gp is delusional.sorry to tell you.iam also on ten .i once took an extra tablet and it send my anxiety to the tenth power .i never heard of any doctor advising to take extra pill if you have extra anxiety or depression that is crazy.these are some poweful drugs even at ten milligrams.good luck.
toria_07298 dee35726
Posted
your doctor should be struck off that is so stupid its unreal x
deblou45 dee35726
Posted
take an extra one surly that is not right ?
Guest tamsin07572
Posted
Hi tamsin
Sometimes when you go back on it the second time you don't always have the same experience with it as before. It's a hard one to call. If you do decide to go back on, I'd stick with one dose because changing your dose daily is not what citalopram was designed for. You are going to get all sorts of side effects doing that. Good luck!
dee35726 tamsin07572
Posted
tamsin
i went backk on it and was fine. no side effects. Balanced me out again. But I'm menopausal age group and also take hormone replacement patches - so we are all different
deblou45 tamsin07572
Posted
go back on it same happened to me i think if you live a great life on these then stay on them you take a tablet for heart trouble a injection for doabeties do it
lauren2095 tamsin07572
Posted
Hey Tamsin I'm sorta in the same boat as you I had a big big relapes with my desppresion and anxiety which led me to upping the dosage by my doctors it's been 4 weeks now an only seen little improvements I went back an they said it takes 4 to 6 weeks to see improvements but I'm tryning so hard to stay positive!! But it also scares me that if these ones don't work I have to try somthing else an I'm scared of the side effects of them an if they work... but we just have to do what's best for us!! So if u think it's the best thing for u do it!! I'm battling between give these more of a chance or changing them but going back in 3 weeks to have another review with the doctor!!
dotty28 tamsin07572
Posted
sorry you're feeling like that, it's so hard trying to make that decision when you're feeling so low. the same thing happened to me 4 years ago, i got off them in May felt great but crashed in October although i did have things going on at that time that didn't help, i didn't want to go back on them. but i did. I did have more side affects the second time but everyone is different. I'm now trying to go off them again I'm down to one every other day now but this time i intend to have 5htp ready in case i start to feel off to see if that will work. I know you want someone to tell you what to do, but unfortunately everyone is different, i don't know if you're too far down or that some kind of supplement will help. whatever decision you make will be the right one and once you make it, it'll be the start of you getting better. good luck xx
GraySeal tamsin07572
Posted
I did the same thing. After a decade of being on 30 I had a life crisis and they put me up to 40. I wish I hadn't gone that high - it affects my sleep. I slowly weaned off over months and felt well, but then the depression and anxiety crept back after being completely off it. I tried another SSRI but that had worse side effects. Now I'm back on it - 30 mg most days - but my doc is ok with me taking a "vacation" down to 20 or 10 some days to get a really long good night's sleep. I still might try going down to 20 everyday, now that my life is fairly stable. It's that old balance of benefits vs side effects.
I'm resolved to the fact that I will probably always need an antidepressant. Citalopram is the best I've tried, but maybe there will be another one in the future that has less side effects for me. I keep a journal on an Excel sheet of doses, amount of sleep and other factors - mainly for my ME/CFS symptoms.
Good luck in figuring out what works best for you. I highly recommend some sort of diary because it can help you look back and see what was working and what wasn't. (I was very anxious when I drank 6 cups of coffee, imagine that!) Keep in mind that the half-life is long and this drug takes a while to have effects. Also, I've never heard of any long-term effects. This drug has made my life so much better!
Best Wishes
lois95799 GraySeal
Posted
ditto.