Success on Citalopram😁
Posted , 115 users are following.
I just wanted to feed back to you all how wonderful I am feeling week12 on citalopram 20 mg
This is my second time on this drug since 2013. With hindsight I should never really have come off it but stayed at a very low dose .
I spent hours..again ...researching the internet in the early stages. This time it took 6 weeks until I started to feel better. It had taken only 2 the first time
Yes I had all the side effects and felt much much worse whilst my brain waited to rewire itself in those initial weeks
It may not be the drug for everyone but it's worked wonders for me
So I just wanted to comfort and give empathy to those of you out there who are still on their journey
My path is now much straighter
Good luck all
43 likes, 689 replies
joe55795 gillian176
Posted
Greetings everyone. I wanted to send a quick note of encouragement to all of you during this holiday season. I realize this can be a difficult time for many of you, myself included. I encourage you to get out and be as active as possible. Also, donāt sit around and dwell on the things that are āholding you back.ā When I try to encourage others, it reminds me of the things I need to do in my own life.
Today is certainly a day I need reminding of this. Iāve been on 40mgs of Citalopram for about 4 weeks now. Things have started to level out, but there has been a lot of stress surrounding the selling of my current house and the buying of another one. This stress has led me to wonder if the meds are working, but I have to remember the medicine isnāt going to remove stressful situations from my life. I still need to deal with them. The medicine can help me from spiraling downward when things pile up.
Stay strong and keeping persevering. I will continue to keep all you in my thoughts and prayers.
gillian176 joe55795
Posted
well said Joe ... and your so right
The drug is there to help ,unfortunately as you say it does' nt solve all issues
Wouldn't that be great !!
but you can get stronger over time if you employ your self help skills
keep going stay strong as Joe says
Happy Christmas to to you all
joe55795 gillian176
Posted
I mentioned earlier that Iām trying to use this forum as a source of therapy for myself. Iāve been struggling the last week or so (since my last post). Mornings are the toughest. I have a really hard time getting up and going. I have to continually remind myself things get better once I get moving around. Things get better when I become active and engaged in something.
Remember, we are all going to struggle and there is no magic formula which will fix everything. I used to (and still do at times) think Iām going to wake up one day and Iām going to be me again. Iāll have my old life back, and everything will fall back into place. Itās hard to remember itās not going to happen quite like this. Gradual improvements along with coping strategies are essential.
Sorry if this sounds more like a personal journal, but it helps me to get āitā out there to others who understand the challenges we deal with.
Take care and Happy New Year!
gillian176 joe55795
Posted
well said well expressed
Chefe gillian176
Posted
good to know,my doc gave me 10 mg for 1 week ,than 20 mg ,j had anxiety panick attack on my recent trip abroad,my nose was bleeding so badly i thought im having stroke or something.in the end it was just bursted nasal artery.long story short,after telling this to my GP,he gave me the drug and said we continue for 6 months.after 3 weeks it made me feel amazing,i was super calm,happy, cheerful.i like that ,because my personality is always gogogo,short tempered,and easily p****d off,part of my job too,im executive chef.
but after 3 weeks i started to have concerns how celexa will affect my job and carriere!so i stopped.how was it for you??also keep in mind my anxiety seems to be really mild,aside from worrying about health here and there its seems more like generalized anxiety.maybe i should try to manage different way than celexa?
gillian176
Posted
once its in your system it works well but this takes time
the first time i went on it didnt take long
i felt great
i was not great off it!
am on it second time around
i wont ever stop it again
its a chemical i have been missing for many years
you may be right that self help meditatipn mindfulness exercise being kind yo yourselh abd reevaluating your life may well work
i do all that as well as i need the drug
luke53991 gillian176
Posted
Hi everyone has anyone on here experience persisting sexual effects after stopping citalopram? Kind regards luke
gillian176
Posted
yes
its a well known side effect
and again it may never come back
luke53991 gillian176
Posted
Hi gillian did you you notice these effects when you stopped taking it? I have been of it 5 weeks now and have no improvement..
luke53991
Posted
Just am very worried.. There must be people that do recover?
amber90012 luke53991
Posted
recovery from withdrawing from the drug is hard. you will feel all your original symptoms return and you will feel like you are back to square 1, that you must need the drug cos you are going back to your old ways. This is the withdrawal, the drug doesn't just vanish from your body, you need to stagger the dose very slowly. I went from 20mg to 10mg which made me feel terrible. After about 4 weeks I felt marginally more human and decreased to 5mg. I am now off it. I have realised for me, lifestyle changes, recognising my issues and facing them, re-training my thought process. Starting yoga and meditation. Reading books on the subject, listening to podcasts. I know I can get live a better life by making these changes. The medicine helped but I had to help myself too through the changes I made.
gillian176 amber90012
Posted
hello amber and luke
I took a year the first time withdrawing in very tiny 2.5 mg reductions over two week periods
i had no withdrawel effects
but after it had completly left my body i started feeling bad again
it took nearly two years to recognize i needed that chemical
that in fact i had been like that nearly all my life
that i just dont make enough myself
its a familial thing
i do yoga meditate mondfulness cbt course
everything to help
but i still need it in conjunction
i often think well cud i reduce as i feel well...
but thats why i am well!
i remain on 20 mg
luke...no those effects never returned
luke53991 gillian176
Posted
Hi gillian did you mean your sexual function never went back to normal when you stopped the citalopram? How long was the period you stopped taking it for? Kind regards
amber90012 gillian176
Posted
Hi Gillian,
I understand what you are saying and lifestyle changes make a huge difference. I have had CBT and this also has made a huge amount of difference. I had the worst anxiety of my life whilst on 20mg in October so I couldn't help but think it is my thought process, bad habits and lifestyle changes I need to focus on and less focus on the drug being the magic cure for me. I have suffered anxiety and panic attacks since I was very young. Cit helped me when my anxiety increased studying at uni, but the feelings I had in October were truly terrifying and led me to wonder why carry on if I can't feel better. I was advised to increase my dose but how much do I keep doing this? If I hit another stumbling block do I go up another 10mg? I reaslised I never actually tried to deal with the problem through changing my though process, expressing my true thoughts to family and friends, taking it easy, allowing time to heal and for myself. I began listening to podcasts, reading books, after a few weeks I had a clear grasp on anxiety in a neurological sense which helped me massively to understand why my body was working like it has. The constant 'fight or flight' mode had drained every inch of me and for the first time in forever I felt like I knew how to tackle it cos I understood how my body functions. After CBT sessions and lots of reading, yoga, meditation I knew I could get myself better. I am now off my citralopram and feeling good. I still have days where I feel flat and crap but I had that when I was on it. I am not super human, anxiety is a natural bodily response and all the awful body responses that come with anxiety is its way of telling you to shut down and stop fighting yourself. If you want any useful links etc then private message me.
gillian176 luke53991
Posted
correct
maybe 2 -2 1/2 years
luke53991 gillian176
Posted
I'm sorry to hear that gillian.. Its funny how doctors will not admit that these symptoms can persist for years or for good.. Its put me in a worse state of depression that iv ever been in.. Feel like Iv been permanently castrated