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Struggling bad. Reassurance please

Posted , 5 users are following.

Potatoghost
Potatoghost

So I have been on citalopram for almost 5 weeks now on 20mg for really bad anxiety and some depression.

I'm looking for reassurance because the past few days have been living hell

with the anxiety. I can honestly say its never been this bad before. I know it gets worse before better but this is getting increasingly more difficult to even function properly.

I'm very close to giving up.

I've been on citalopram before and they worked great and it was never this hard.

I'm getting every single anxiety symptom you can think of.

has anyone else felt like this and eventually improved. I don't know how long i can hold out feeling like this for.

thank you x

0 likes, 14 replies

14 Replies

  • toria_07298
    toria_07298 Potatoghost

    Posted

    aw p bless you really hope they work for you again, hopefully its like withdrawal (but not as long drawn out) and gets worse before better x

  • portugalthecam
    portugalthecam Potatoghost

    Posted

    I have gone off the rails quite badly with Citalopram myself, a couple years back. I was on it, 40mg, for almost 10 years I'd say. I wanted to try going off of it just to see if I could perk up a bit, as I felt somewhat numb. I tapered off way too quickly and it all went to s**t. I felt about as bad as I did prior to going on medication at the beginning. It took me quite a long time to stabalize again and I thought for sure I wouldn't get back to where I was before with Citalopram. I was in a very similar situation as you from what it sounds like, to the point of suicidal ideation, without a doubt.

    Did you just stop taking any medication for a while altogether and are now trying Citalopram again or what?

    • Potatoghost
      Potatoghost portugalthecam

      Posted

      thank you for replying 😊

      I was on it for 5 years had some breakthrough anxiety and panicked and thought the weren't working so added mirtazipine thatvwent down hill pretty fast and got pretty suicidal so stopped thr mirt and went on 40mg of citalopram no side effects increasing or anything....

      got better but had a setback again at 12 weeks and swapped to sertraline like a complete dummy and hated them they were horrible x so back on citalopram now.

      ibknow it can get worse before better but wow! this is something else x

      did you feel like this 4 weeks in aswell?

      thank you for replying x 😊

    • Potatoghost
      Potatoghost portugalthecam

      Posted

      I was on it for about 5 years 20mg and felt it pooped out on me x so my gp put mirtazipine into the mix aswell x that was the worst experience of my life x so we came off mirtazipine and increased my citalopram up to 40mg x

      that seemed to work but had a blip at 12 weeks and the doc put me onto sertraline and hated it! so back on citalopram again..

      when I increased to 40mg I didnt have a single side effect but this time round feels so much harder!

      how are you feeling yourself at the minute?

      how did you feel at this stage x were you still finding it hard? x

    • portugalthecam
      portugalthecam Potatoghost

      Posted

      Oh, trust me, 4 weeks was barely long enough for me to get relief. You just have to do everything you can to hang in there. I remember my psyciatrist at the time putting me on a couple other things as well, similar to mirtazapine, but that only made it worse. I definitely wouldn't think that a setback after 12 weeks is terribly abnormal. This time around, I'd say you really just have to dig down to hang in there. I'd say it took me st least a few months to really start seeing any improvement. Once you're down in that anxiety hole, it's really difficult to make your way back out. No matter what. you just have to remember that it gets better, eventually. Of course, I can't speak to how Citalopram works for other people, but I can say it felt pretty miraculous that it worked a second time around for me. I'm doing better now, I also take a lower dose of Welbutrin, which seems kind of pointless, but I'm still taking it. I'm even on a lower dose of Citalopram this time around, 20mg rather than 40mg. Just hang in there, you will find some sort of relief. Our brains are very fragile, especially when it comes to this stuff, and it can take a while for it to balance itself out again.

    • Potatoghost
      Potatoghost portugalthecam

      Posted

      thank you so much for your reply 😊

      it's really reassuring and gives me hope that eventually I might actually come out of this!

      perfectly said about being down the anxiety hole. it's so difficult to get out of! I'm trying and trying but getting nowhere fast at the minute x

      so you managed to get better on 20mg this time rather than 40mg? I wonder why that is?did you just give 20mg longer to work than previously? that's great news that you are feeling better that definitely gives me hope x

  • lynn67615
    lynn67615 Potatoghost

    Posted

    Hi Potatoghost, i switched to sertraline 50mgs and hit week 7 yesterday. its like a rollercoaster. Today my anxiety was terrible. i have had some good periods the last 2 weeks. I got on a plane with my husband on holloween and spent a week in Albuquerque. The anxiety is the worst. Today i had to take my dog to the vet and I was so anxious. I felt hopeless, but we can't give up. Does the anxiety ease up in the evenings for you.

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