Switching From Citalopram - Too Similar??

Oh, wow, I’m so sorry about what happened to your house.  Hope you’re okay  now.

Yeah, I’ve heard there’s less side effects which makes me happy.  I’m just worried I’ll be wasting my time as it might be too similar, but I think many people have switched from Citalopram when it stopped working to Escitalopram and it helped.

Plus, I’m worried that if Escitalopram is “stronger” my intrusive thoughts will get worse - I didn’t start having the OCD/intrusive thoughts till I went on the 30mg increase.  But, that might not be due to the increase either because I was on the increase for a couple months before all that started..

I’m hoping it’s still my present anxiety and fears that are causing these doubts.

Thanks. Were all good now we lost everything but at the end of the day I still have my partner and 3 kids so that's all I need!

Yes definately less side effects. But you wont know until you try. Your anxiety will be making you doubt it mine did. I had them sitting in the cupboard for over a month before I started them and then I was kicking myself for waiting that long!

Hopefully your OCD and intrusive thoughts will go away once everything settles. God anxiety is cruel isnt it?

Wishing you all the best with what you decide and hoping you get better!

Cassandra

Have you had ears feeling as through they are blocked, have to keep swallowing all the time

I am starting low dose 5mg day 4, but the urge to wee is terrible, did you have that at all, and the shivering, today in tesco rotten,

No, I haven't had that particular side effect, but I had heard of other people having that issue on escitalopram.

Hey Kelly, wanted to ask - how did you switch from the Citalopram to the Escitalopram?  Was it a straight swap?

My Psychiatrist wants me to cross taper them and I was supposed to start this last night, but got freaked out by the increased possibility of serotonin syndrome

I was so nervous about possible side effects that I started only on 5 mg of the escitalopram. So, I took the 40 mg of Citalopram one morning, and the next morning took the 5 mg of Escitalopram. I didn't cross taper at all. Surprisingly, I didn't get any withdrawal effects from dropping down such a big dosage amount.

Oh, wow ok interesting.  I’m glad it went smoothly for you since you did go down from the highest dose to one of the lowest.  Did your doctor originally want you to switch to 10mg?

Yeah, idk the more I think about it the more I wished I questioned the cross-tapering.  Idk, I’m just feeling not comfortable with it.  I think I would just straight switch right to the Escitalopram - it would save me a lot of time too.

Idk, I think I will have to call my Psychiatrist and I ask him.

Oh, oh no . That’s not good news.  I actually haven’t switched yet - was gonna wait till next weekend as I have some stuff going on with work.

Hmmm, now I’m not sure what to do.  I think it might just come down to everyone reacts differently to all these meds.

I know my Psychiatrist really wants me to try the Lexapro/Escitalopram.  So, I guess I’ll have to at least try it and see how it goes

If the Escitalopram doesn’t work out, I might suggest the Zoloft/Sertraline.  I’ve had that one in the back of my mind.

How long have you been on the Escitalopram?

I've been on escitalopram a total of 2 1/2 months now! I was nervous about side effects, so I started on 5 mg and slowly made my way to 10 mg. I've been on 10 mg for exactly 4 weeks now. I did have some days (several in a row, even) where I thought I was doing better, but then I'd regress again, and be back to square one.

?Realistically, I probably should give this dose another 2 weeks before switching or upping doses; I know it can sometimes take a good 4-6 weeks or longer to kick in. But I'm just so sick of this. I just want to be back to my old self again!!

?Have you considered bumping up to 40 mg on the Citalopram? I was on that for the 5 years, and it really worked great for me. No blips or anything. Of course, the downside is that when it quit working for me, I was already at the highest dose and had to switch meds.

Well, I spent more time on the internet today, searching for others who have made the switch:-). I did find some cases where people did have escitalopram work for them after citalopram quit working. That gives me hope:-).

?You'll have to keep us posted as to how it works out for you!

Hmmm, ok well it might be that you need to give it more time?  If you had several good days that might be a sign it is working...

But, I’m not a doctor, so you can never know.  I do hope it is working for you!  I know it can be so disheartening to have to keep switching :-(

I have considered upping to 40mg, but my Psychiatrist didn’t suggest that and I’m kinda glad because I feel like my body just needs something different, you know?  I feel like it’s just gotten to used to th Citalopram.

I would say my general panic has decreased, but I’m still very irrational about stuff and have weird OCD symptoms.

Oh, good!  That gives me hope too - thank you for your research.

Have you decided to give it a couple more weeks?  Is there a way you can contact your doctor and let them know how you feel without having to physically schedule an appointment?

Yes, when I finally get around to it/get the courage I will try and remember to! I’m planning on trying next weekend.  My psychiatrist has me slowly tapering the Citalopram and increasing the Escitalopram every week, so hopefully that will give me the least amount of side effects.

Yes, I plan to give it a few more weeks at least :-). I think in a few weeks I'll try 20 mg, if I'm not seeing any improvements.

?This week has been a roller coaster! Moments with high anxiety and then NO anxiety, all in one day. I hope that means it's starting to work.

?I've seen escitalopram referred to as a "slow burner" several times; apparently it's common for it to kick in a bit later than other SSRIs! 4-8 weeks seem to be the time frame when most people feel it start to work.

Hope you see more positive days and it works fully for you!  This has been a really bad year for me so far - I think it’s been like 6 months that I’ve not felt like myself :-(

I think SSRIs in general take 4-8 weeks to at least start to work - which can be really hard.  I know when I first went on Citalopram 5 years ago, I really felt better after a month and just kept getting better.

It was kinda amazing.  Hoping this will happen with the Escitalopram and it’s just enough of the “change” I need to get back to my normal self.  

Hope the same for you!! 

What mg are you on please

I’m currently on 30mg Citalopram.  My psychiatrist wants me to eventually switch to 20mg Lexapro.  Going to slowly taper the Citalopram while increasing the Escitalopram.

By Lexapro I mean Escitalopram.