Success stories of Citalopram please.

Morphix, that's fabulous, I've started on 20mg.....I know it takes a few weeks to see benefits......I know it sounds weird but I am excited to not feel the anxiety and panic all the time......I've stumbled onto this site but it's such a good idea.........thank u for sharing ur experiences, truly inspiring

natasha58567: I had no idea I had depression, and in myself, I felt fine inwardly.. its strange that you can be depressed but not feel like one would expect.. low mood, and suicidal/sad etc, you may even feel fine and interested in things. Depression is a complex illness, but some of the symptoms I had my Dr and I picked up and linked to depression.. weight loss, lack of appetite, irregular sleep, high stress, constant anxiety, inability to concentrate on anything, lack of interest in work or exercise, constant lethargy and low energy such that even moving from bed or chair was major effort, muscle aches etc. I was really thinking I had cancer or some major illness at one point, and had all kinds of tests done which came back all clear.

Once I took Citalopram, all those symptoms just vanished and I felt energised, able to concentrate on work, exercise etc.. a whole shift in my mood came. So I think this shows, how you can be in the grip of depression, perhaps minor, and not even realise it. Once you're depressed, it affects everything, from physiology to how you feel about yourself etc, self-image, your confidence, your energy and motivation etc.

Often anxiety and depression go hand in hand too.. you can be anxious and that leads to depressive episodes, or you can have a depressive episode and that can bring on anxiety. So when you treat the anxiety or depression, the other problem often goes away too.

Hi morphix thank you for sharing your story. Im on day 6 im experiencing broken sleep and heightened anxiety which my dr said is normal for first couple of weeks . Ive tried so hard to overcome this myself without medication ive had counselling and cbt but it only helped for a short while. Im really hoping these side effects wear off soon as I need to eat I just have no appetite so when im forcing myself to eat its hard to swallow I need these tablets to work for me I cant give up now thats the easy option

natasha, my Dr told me this... ironically, the more severe the side effects, the more effective the med is likely to be.. she said it's actually a positive sign it's working! It's difficult first 2 weeks, then it gets easier and more manageable..just hang in there, and accept you will have bad days when your anxiety is high and you don't feel like going out or being very social.. treat it like a cold/flu and just pamper yourself, lots of nice relaxing hot baths, movies and order your shopping in ;-)

I've tried without too, I tried everything like you... hypnosis, 1 to 1 counselling, group therapy, CBT, all kinds of herbal remedies and I used to just drink a lot to mask the anxiety. As you get older, it becomes less of a problem though I've found, as your confidence grows. The main thing is keep pushing yourself.. what breaks me out of bad anxiety periods is exercise, just put your sunglasses on and go jogging or walking, cycling, whatever you can do.. it will do wonders for your confidence and helps shows the anxiety who's boss!

Keep your chin up and the light will come soon for you at the end of that dark tunnel like it did for me. I was a nervous wreck the first 2 weeks, shaking with fear whenever the intercom rang.

But after 2 months, I was transformed.. even visited a neighbour who got robbed and invited the police to my flat for a chat to discuss the incident, very unusual for me to do something like that.

It does get better, keep your will power strong and look after yourself. Remember we've all been through what you're experiencing and this site can be a great source of help and strength on difficult days, it certainly kept me going when I was almost ready to quit.

That reassures me a bit morphix ... I didnt want to be persevering through these tough days for the tablet to not work in the end. I have to carry on each day as normal wether I like it or not as I have a 3 year old to look after and my partner works long awkward hours . I do have the support of my family and a friend has been through the same as me and has been on citalopram for a while now with only good reports so im just hoping it kicks in the good effects soon. Im glad the nausea has gone but bit worried that I cant seem to eat a lot I will try soup later I just really dont feel like eating ... tomorrow is day 7 and surely it can only get better as im taking the steps to make myself better. Its my birthday on monday too so im hoping I feel a bit better then thatll be day 8 on 10mg

This may sound silly but when am I supposed to see a change in how I feel? Some days are good some are bad im only on day 6 and feel kind of numb today I dont know if this is working for me or not

Natasha its good you have the support of your partner and family, but I hear where you're coming from about the pressure to need to function and feel "normal" with being a mother. I live alone, and my anxiety is something of a "shameful secret" I don't discuss with my family, so I have no support at all, but in some ways it's easier as to go into avoidance mode and shut myself away.. I've been reclusive like that for years and years, but you reach a point in life (I turned 40) and you think..do you really wanna spend the rest of your life lonely living like this..in your own little world.. or explore the big world out there and everything it has to offer.. life is too short eh, we have to take the risks to get the rewards and just do our best. We're not perfect, and will make mistakes but that's part of being human and others, as I'm discovering, like those qualities in people sometimes, shyness etc.. its not all bad.

Coming back to your question about how long it will take to work.. they say normally 4-6 weeks (sometimes sooner) if you start on 10mg or 20mg and don't keep skipping days. You may feel some benefit after the first 3-4 weeks, but for the full theraputic effects it will take at least 4-6 weeks for most people, and the side effects should be hardly a problem them. As the medicine begins to work, the side effects stop at the same time. so then you know its starting to real work.

For me, it was a bit longer as I did slower incremental doses of 2.5mg and it took 2-3 months before I got to 10mg. Then it was suddenly like a "light-switch moment"...one day I just woke up, and all the side effects were gone, my mood was up and anxiety had diminished about 80%.. I could speak to people and not feel nervous and smiling etc was easier.

6 days is very early days for you Natasha, so you may a few more rough days and week or two ahead still. The worse part is if you feel a worsening of the depression.. I had one REALLY bad week at my 5mg level, where I felt suicidal thoughts (very unusual for me) and my anxiety was so bad my lip and eye was trembling. So I just stayed in for much of that week and chatting to my friends on the phone and using this site help loads, as I knew it would pass, and sure enough, within a week, I had stablised.

The first positive sign will probably be the numbness going away, your appetite returning, and your energy level will be boosted so you'll feel like going out, or doing housework etc. Then your mood will be lifted and you'll feel like a weight has been lifted off you then. It just takes a few weeks for the brain chemistry to adjust, and you have to be patient and just be kind to yourself during those bad days.. don't give up though or stop your meds if its really tough some days, as you'll undo your progress.

So yeah, in a summary.. expect it to take 3-4 weeks for some improvement, and 4-6 weeks for full benefit.. if the dose is not sufficient by then, you can increase it. If the side effects become intolerable at any point, either ask your Dr for diazepam for something to calm you down if it's anxiety/insomnia, or else, do what I did and cut your 10mg tablets up into quarters, and drop the dose down and increment up more slowly.. i.e. 2 weeks @ 2.5mg, 2 weeks @ 5mg, 2 weeks @ 7.5mg etc. Check that with your Dr first though, mine said it was fine and good idea..but it depends on your own situation I guess and how you respond.

Paul x

Hi paul thank you for your advice I guess I need to be a little more patient rather than wanting a quick fix my dr told me it would take time. Im scared of having to have a dose increase and going through it all again

Eating can be difficult in the early days and first few weeks of Citalopram. You will have little or no appetite, and chewing swallowing food may be a bit weird, plus you may not feel like shopping and preparing meals.. what I did was got loads of easy to eat and prepare things.. soups are good etc, and I had some meal replacement drinks (those Complan style) from Asda to keep my calorie intake up for when I didnt feel like eating at all some days. It's very important you get something down you, and also drink plenty of water as the med really dehydrates you a lot. I had a cracked throat/infection from not drinking and my lips all dryed up. Avoid caffeine too as it makes the anxiety much much worse. Go de-cafe for a while.

Im making sure im drinking plenty of water which I dont usually do its just the eating when I come to swallow the food it takes a lot of effort which isnt helping the fact that I want to take the tablet with food to eliminate nausea as thats hard when I dont feel like eating. I may get some complan drinks just incase I really cant eat at some point. This is a side effect that id like to go away pretty quickly

197David: I had major sleep problems before I started Citalopram, because my sleep cycle was all messed up due to drinking loads of caffeine to compensate for the extreme lethargy/lack of motivation I was experiencing which turned out to be due to depression.

When I started Citalopram I found it did help regulate my sleep cycle in the first few weeks. The general consensus seems to be that taking it an hour or two before bed, is usually best as this can make you more inclined to sleep. I did wake up for a sometimes though in the night for the toilet like 3-4am due to the drug and also needing to drink more water, but I had no trouble getting back to sleep.

Once the Citalopram kicked my depression, I was able to quit caffeine and no longer needed it as I had plenty of energy and the lethargy was gone. So that helped bring back a normal sleep cycle. Gradually I began to enjoy 1 or 2 cups of cafeinated tea/coffee once the Citalopram reached full theraputic effects, and I find this doesn't interfere with my sleep cycle or ability to get to sleep.

One thing to be ware of though is that too much caffeine (or sometimes even a little) can exasberate anxiety side effect of Citalopram in the early weeks. My Dr warned me of this and strongly suggested I switched to decaf for a bit, and sure enough, it helped manage the anxiety and sleep cycle.

Hi to you all my friends that have helped me get over this in the last 3 months , if it wasn't for you all I would not be here today.

Yes it does get better, still taking each day at a time but at least now can see forward

Happy New Year to You all

Wendy

New Zealand xx

i am so pleased you are moving onwards and upwards wendy yeah it does get better have a wonderful new year hugs sadsack xxxx

Hi Wendy,

I am so glad you are feeling a lot better now, is it 3 months since you started the citalopram?, I am 5 weeks into my 2nd time on it, 3 weeks on 10mg and 2 on 20mg, , well I didn't really come off of it as I was weaning off, went down to 5 and felt things weren't right so went back up again, but at the moment I am feeling the worst I have ever felt, I can't remember feeling like this first time around, it is so good to hear that there is light at the end of the tunnel, my wory is that it may not work this time but I know I have to give it a bit longer.

Have a good day.

Christine x

More success story to inspire/encourage others in the early stages...

Last night I travelled to a live Roxy Music tribute band gig in the city (something a few months ago the mere thought of would make me shudder)... not only did I enjoy it immensely, but enjoyed being social and in the company of people, chatting and having a good time..

I confess I did have 4 beers..only 330ml bottles mind ;-) The beers had no effect on my Citalopram, except making me sleep soundly when I got back around midnight. No hangover either, phew.

I wouldn't have even contemplated doing something this before I started Citalopram (even though I would have love to be able to, I would have felt too socially awkward).. now, I don't even think about it, I just do it.