will my anxiety get better?

Hiya I have been on 20mg now for 3weeks and the symptoms was bad again I stil have bad nights usually every third night I sleep good then bad and edgy again. But my gp said can take up to 6 weeks to settle in your body. If you try and go with it instead of fighting against it you will relax more. I know easier said than done. But im still off work after nearly 3 weeks but know I have to be fit before I return. Had a bad night myself last night but I go with it now. I used to cry about it but just dont expect to soon.all the best.

Hi maisie im on citalopram 10mg and just on my 13th week ... for the first 6 weeks I had increased anxiety ... id say the first 3 weeks were the worst then the other 3 weeks it was coming and going then all of a suuden it went . It brought anxiety id never had before and made me feel anxious in situations I was fine in before the cit so I was sure it wasnt working I rang my dr almost every day one week lol I stuck with them with her reassurance that it was normal and im glad I didn't give up. Apparently if your anxiety gets worse its a good sign the tablets will work. I had real bad health anxiety I thought I was dying or had a disease every time I felt a twinge or something I was at the drs 3 times a week and it was made worse by me googling symptoms it always tells u the worst . I had a filling at the dentist and went back 4 days in a row twice on one of the days as I was paranoid I was getting an abscess . I had counselling and cbt for it which did kinda help but I felt I needed the cit to kinda calm me down so I dont always think the worst and it certainly has. You will get better

Good luck

You are exactly right what you said. Im on my 4th week now and still get anxiety on and off. But it is calming down now. I thank everyone who helped me on this site. :-)

Many thanks for the responses, that is very reassuring to hear, i feel i always need lots of reassurance when i am anxious as i can't seem to give this to myself, am hoping the medication will help with this. Has anyone experienced lack of appetite too? When i went on the cit 4 weeks ago my appetite went but gradually it improved but it has gone again with my latest bout of increased anxiety, i don't think it is to do with increasing my dose as it went the day before the increase. The lack of appetite is making the anxiety worse as it reminds me 3 times a day that i am anxious - i have two small children so have to still do meals. I have lost about 9 lb now and am even starting to worry that its turning into an eating disorder, i so want my appetite back for normality which is why i think i am stressing about it. My mind seems to be constantly thinking about my anxiety, will the tablets help stop me thinking of it. I do sometimes feel like my mind has lost it. I think i am bad at the moment as i thought i was getting better but four weeks in i feel like i have gone back to the beginning.

I think most of it is down to the increase of dose as symptoms do start again as it did for me. . Eat little and often even if you don't want to.

I didnt eat a full meal for the first 3 weeks I had no desire to eat even I worried about not being able to eat n getting an eating disorder too ! Weird how your symptoms sound just like mine n I thought I was crazy n the only one lol. But I can assure you your appetite will come back it just takes time m just eat what you want when you want dont put pressure on yourself to eat a proper meal . I was eating a piece of toast in morning a handful of plain crisps in afternoon and crackers for dinner this went on for 3 weeks ... I also made sure I was drinking plenty of water . Just try not to stress just remember one day youll be better and think omg I havent been anxious today n thats when youll realise theyve kicked in properly . 4 weeks is very early on the best is yet to come

You do sound very similar to me Natasha, i too am guilty of googling every symptom, i got in this particular mess as i convinced myself that i had ms. What has got me with this one is my anxiety before would always be about a health issue which generally resolved itself fairly quickly however now the worry is over my mental health which is obviously going to take more time to heal so the anxiety is feeding off of that. I am exhausted from feeling like this now!

Well hope u get better soon. Im a bit anxious 2day and feel guilty about asking doc for another sickness note. But im on my 4th week now too and still trying to wean myself off old tablets as well.

Hi Maisie. I have Osteoarthritis, Ankylosing Spondtlitis, Gout, Fibromyalgia High BP & a Prostate problem. Reason for listing all these is that I take meds for all the conditions listed, conditions I have had for some 30yrs or more. I have been on Cit. for about 15 months as I was having very bad mood swings, & would get very stressed out & anxious over really silly things. Truth is, I have probably had the depression for quite a long time & just ignored it. For the first month I was put on 10mg then 20 for a month & now on 40. I didn't notice any real side effects myself, possibly due to feeling like s**t most of the time anyway, but 2 weeks ago I had to give a short speech at my father-in-laws funeral, something I would normally have been almost incapable of doing due to extreme anxiety. Well, I sailed through it without a hint of nervousness, I actually enjoyed the feeling of accomplishing something. It was the meds first real test of how it would affect my nervousness, & it worked a treat. It;s little victories like this that keep me going when things are bad. My mood swings are still there & can be quite sudden, but I just ride them out by going to bed or keeping away from people till "normality" resumes. We react in a different way to medication. I think it's worth you continuing, but see your GP if you are concerned. I wish you well. PM any time if you like to talk.

Hi maisie, I too started on citalopram 10mg a day for panic attacks but unfortunately didn't get past day 5, mainly due to the fact of me developing anxiety and severe depression also i went through exactly what you went through, they made my panic attacks 100 times worse, i was getting no sleep, couldn't eat, tremors, hot and cold sweats......basically everything it lists as a side effect i got not to mention the fact i almost went plum crazy aswel, an not metaphorical but literally i almost lost my mind, it was the scariest moment in my life......my doctor finally changed me to venlafaxine 37.5mg twice a day and all the side effects disappeared within 3 days, i also was put on propranolol 40mg x3 a day, these are beta blockers and stop the physical release of adrenaline and so stops all the other symptoms also......just not the mental ones, i still have the reoccurring thoughts that bring on a panic attack and still have a panic attack in some weird way.

but genuinely i am so happy citalopram is working for you and you were able to make it past the first few weeks, i wish I could have. Just wanted to say well done you and i hope they continue to work for you and your anxiety continues to improve. Its so good to here success stories on here once in a while.

Thanks for sharing your experience and beat wishes for the future.

Love Danielle x

stop taking them immediately, is the best advice i can give. I'ma 3 year veteran citilapram user been off them for 2 years now. I wish I'd never started on them... try changing your diet....Food is the best medicine