Switching from Paxil to Zoloft to Citalopram

Hey it's me again. I'll be short but will update in a new post, just because I'm very tired tonight cuz of so many panic attacks and just want to be reassured on my new switch to Citalopram.

So big story short, I've got GAD plus severe panic attacks, and I've taken Paxil (30mg - 50mg) over 8 years lapse time. January 8 this year, I switched from Paxil to Zoloft (Sertraline, 150mg) and today (March 6th), I went to the doctor telling him I was worse off panic-wise with the Zoloft, having them everyday for the last week. So my doctor decided to try Celexa (Citalopram) at 20mg's, but of course I have to wean off the Zoloft for a 3 days before even starting to take Citalopram. The doc told me I may have much less panic attacks on this new (well, new to me) medication. So I'm, alright, that,s cool, of course I'll be a couple of weeks with 1- withdrawal effects from one and 2- the time the other one kicks in.

First thing I do when I get home about an hour ago, which I know I shouldn't do, is check wikipedia for Citalopram side-effects. Now, I've never worried that much, cuz the symptoms include things that I really don't wanna live through, like arrhythmia, blood pressure changes, (any cardiovascular side-effect would make me panic). All I want to know basically is: have any of you went by without these side-effects, and if they did occur, do they last only a couple of weeks the time the medication kicks in or is it something that will last the whole treatment. Cuz I've got to bare in mind that my treatment is minimum 2 years and maybe lifelong considering I've been on SSRI's for 9 years now. Just for the info if this may help, I'm 26 years old, male.

Thanks alot.

Hi
im currently on day 12 of citalopram and feeling ok i did have side affects but they are easing now the ones ive got now are dizziness and sweating.
i would give these tablets a good try as they are meant to be so good and the side affects do go after a short period of time.
each person is different and some people get bad side affect and others get none.
Give them a try and please come back and let us no how you get on

Hi,

I had side effects for about two weeks after starting 20mg Citalopram. None of these were cardiovascular though. I was sick, shakey, had vision problems and couldn't eat. Four months on I have no side effects at all. It seems to vary so much from person to person that it's hard to generalise but from reading posts on here it seems that not everyone gets side effects and any side effects people do get tend to go after two weeks or so. I suspect that worrying about them will make side effects worse but obvioulsy this isn't hugely helpful under the circumstances.

I've found the medication really really worthwhile - it's pretty much changed my life. When experiencing side effects I found it helpful to remember that they only last a couple of weeks and things will be much beter once the medication kicks in.

Stick with it, and good luck.

hi, i too am on citalopram 30mgs,been on them 6 months and feel great,my side effects included jaw-clenching,weird dreams,and tiredness (probably due to the dreams?) anyway my side effects were not too bad, easily able to be coped with,if you do get side effects then just think of it being another day less till you feel great....as opposed to another day more of the side effects, lol worked for me.take care x

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Originally Posted by roziexwx

hi, i too am on citalopram 30mgs,been on them 6 months and feel great,my side effects included jaw-clenching,weird dreams,and tiredness (probably due to the dreams?) anyway my side effects were not too bad, easily able to be coped with,if you do get side effects then just think of it being another day less till you feel great....as opposed to another day more of the side effects, lol worked for me.take care x

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Did they go away after a certain time?

By the way, to all of you, thanks alot for reassuring me. I'll keep posting on what happens, but right now I haven't started yet cuz I have to lower my Zoloft before, so in a couple of days I'll start.

@willp: when you say "shaky" as one of the side-effects, was it like 24/7 shaking where it's unbearable or just a little shake?

@willispot: Is the dizziness constant, and/or huge?

BTW again, thanks to you all ! I must admit this is stressing me.

Hi
i had dizziness it was like swaying not room spinning had it for 5 days and its now gone im pleased to say im feeling rather good today :)
hope you feel better soon xx

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Originally Posted by willitstop

Hi
i had dizziness it was like swaying not room spinning had it for 5 days and its now gone im pleased to say im feeling rather good today :)
hope you feel better soon xx

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Okay thanks. Nice to see you're feeling better :)
I mostly hate the vertigos (which I rarely feel and have probably nothing to do with the meds and haven't started the Citalopram yet, still weaning off the Zoloft, will start in 2 days or 6 days, have to call my pharmacist tomorrow cuz I didn't quite grasp what he told me last time as I was pretty panicky at the drug store and tend to have trouble concentrating when panicking, hehe), but the "swaying" as you call them, I guess I could handle that, if it even happens at all to me, plus the fact they only lasted 5 days for you. All in all, I just want to get through without having to suffer too much and too long before the desired effect comes on.

Im sure you will be fine :)
you can always pm me even if you just fancy a chat it helps to talk to people when your are struggling.
xx

I was really worried about taking them too but I am just starting 3rd week on them and did not suffer anything too desperate. Bit shaky and nauseous and pretty tired for a couple of days. These effects have gone now and I can feel that the tablets are starting to help with my anxiety too.
Good luck with them.

yes nr3 my side effects did go away,after about 4 weeks,although i must admit the jaw clenching took a bit longer,but all gone now,i am back at work life is good again.and doing well, life is good again.

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Originally Posted by willitstop

Im sure you will be fine :)
you can always pm me even if you just fancy a chat it helps to talk to people when your are struggling.
xx

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Thanks alot again. Finally I'm starting tomorrow, just called my pharmacist. So I'll see how that goes. Thanks for the pm/chat offer.

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Originally Posted by shakygirl

[...] Good luck with them.

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Thanks. And thanks for all the info.

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Originally Posted by roziexwx

[...] i am back at work life is good again.and doing well, life is good again.

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Awesome. That's what's breaking me apart, the fact I can't work anymore, can't wait to be there. Just to know, was Citalopram the first anxiolitic your tried? Thanks for everything, I mean I know this may not seem like alot but it helps me cuz I'm taking these mostly for acute anxiety and severe panic attacks which are much too frequent, and thinking I could have been worse off in a permanent state stressed me out even more and now I see all of you guys (and gals) had it just for a couple of days or weeks really reassures me. Thanks to you all again!

no actually i was first prescribed seroxat,i did feel a great whoosh of betterness,after about 10 days,but the side effects were awful,i constantly felt sick and lost so much weight i felt awful,obviously i just could not tolerate seroxat,many people have no problems with them and if i didn't have the side effects so bad then i would have stayed on them.getting back to work was great,i take everything in my stride now,and actually look foreward to going,(how sad is that)lol,no seriously i can cope so much better now i am on medication to ease the anxiety and depression i suffered for so long.

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Originally Posted by roziexwx

no actually i was first prescribed seroxat,i did feel a great whoosh of betterness,after about 10 days,but the side effects were awful,i constantly felt sick and lost so much weight i felt awful,obviously i just could not tolerate seroxat,many people have no problems with them and if i didn't have the side effects so bad then i would have stayed on them.getting back to work was great,i take everything in my stride now,and actually look foreward to going,(how sad is that)lol,no seriously i can cope so much better now i am on medication to ease the anxiety and depression i suffered for so long.

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Awesome, especially your last line. Right now I've taken my first dose 27 minutes ago... and I must admit I'm panicky about it. They say 1%... which is ALOT I find, have an allergic reaction to the medication... so in how much time will I know if I'm allergic to it ? Anyway, I'm stressing myself way too much about this, I should take it easy, but it does that everytime I try a new medication. Hope all goes well and I don't faint or die.

hi nr3,how are you doing on the citalopram,how long is it now,must be a few weeks eh.so have you had many side effects? stick with it,(lol thats if you are still with them), take care rozie xxx

Update:
Alright, Day 8 on Celexa (Citalopram) 20mg, day 12 started Celexa cuz the first 4 days were on 20mg of Celexa while weaning off 150mg of Zoloft. Now I'm doin' an update cuz I just wanna know if my symptoms are normal, cuz they kinda scare me, especially because they've been lasting for a week or so.

My main concern, other than being shaky for the last two days, are brain and body zaps, but mainly felt throughout the body. I know you guys probably know what brain/body zaps are cuz they're mentionned in side-effects, on online forums, etc, but I'm not sure if it's really what I have, so I'll describe at my best what I feel like sensations and if anybody could tell me if that's pretty much it, I'd really appreciate your feedback.

First of all, yes, I've felt them before, especially when weaning off other anxiolitics such as Paxil (Clonazepam), or when missing out on a dose. But if my memory is good, I think I've felt them even BEFORE taking any medication back when I was like 16 when I had fever... my concern is maybe I associate them as to being caused by medication and/or lack of the previous medication because that's all I find like information, and because they're so hard to describe to doctors.

What I feel is: often, sometimes always, in such episodes such as this week, when I walk or turn my head I feel them. Sometimes every footstep provokes one, and jogging makes it even worse at a point where it's almost dizzying. It's like a heart-pulse-like feeling felt throughout my whole body, and often my ears will like block out for that split second, block out as in... a bit of a choked sound and feeling as when you block your nose and close your mouth and try to blow. It's very disturbing, and I'm quite worried about them. I thought I was gonna write a book but seems this paragraph paints a pretty good picture of what it is.

EDIT: Just a minor edit, sometimes I have no body zaps at all some days and as soon as I start to walk or waslk fast they start.

hi, have you had your blood pressure taken lately,sounds a bit like what i had,now i am on blood pressure tablets and it is a lot better,although i had an m.i 3 years ago,so i need to be monitored regularly anyway.just a thought tho.xx rozie

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Originally Posted by roziexwx

hi, have you had your blood pressure taken lately,sounds a bit like what i had,now i am on blood pressure tablets and it is a lot better,although i had an m.i 3 years ago,so i need to be monitored regularly anyway.just a thought tho.xx rozie

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Hm, quite scares me, no I haven't had it checked lately. The "body zaps" could be a symptom?