Success stories: return to work

I've been lurking on these forums for a week or so now.

A bit of background (attempting to make this as short as possible).

I started suffering from panic attacks around ten years ago. I was prescribed citalopram and experienced almost immediate relief.

I stayed on the citalopram (20mg).

A few years ago, I started a job I love. It is an extremely high-stress, high responsibility job. I coped with the stress, and I coped with the responsibility. I was doing well.

In early January, I caught norovirus. After I'd stopped being sick, I continued to feel sick. The feeling of being just about to vomit didn't go away. I went to a private GP and was prescribed a PPI.

I took the PPI.

The next day, I felt horrendously sick and very sleepy. The morning after that, I woke up to a huge panic attack, my first in years. I hadn't been entirely free from panic in the ten or so years during which I'd been taking citalopram, but on the few occasions I'd had an attack, I'd been able to manage it well. This time, it was like a bombardment: just waves and waves of panic, all day long.

I put a request in to my GP surgery for an emergency increase (30mg) in my citalopram. I started taking the increased dose 8 days ago.

The panic continued. I took emergency leave from work.

I then got to actually see my GP. His theory is that the PPI stopped the citalopram from working, and it's now just a matter of waiting for the resultant disruption to settle.

What is really, really upsetting me is the idea that I won't be able to return to my job. Right now, the idea of turning the oven on can fill me with tension. I'm spending around half the day in panic mode, feeling as if I've been sucked into a black hole.

I could really do with some success stories about people's return to work.

I'd also be interested to know whether PPIs seem to have interfered with the therapeutic effect of citalopram for anyone else.

Also, @katecogs - if you're there, I could really do with a link to the book that you've mentioned a few times in the threads I've been lurking on. I am really struggling to accept the panic.

0 likes, 0 replies