A timetable for recovery on Fluoxetine / prozac

[Bigwig]

Hello

I'm currently on my 4th stint of fluoxetine in just over 10 years. The first 3 times i started to feel better after about 2 weeks and didn't have any side effects but this time it was much different. I could feel my depression coming on (i've got used to spotting the signs now) so jumped on the prozac sharpish (20mg). For the first 3 weeks i didn't feel any different but weeks 4 and 5 were bad. Suffered with really bad insomnia and appetite loss - lost nearly a stone in a fortnight. Week 6 i started sleeping a bit better but it took until week 8 before i started feeling any better and my mood lifted. Negative thoughts don't linger in my head as long as they had been doing recently and I was back out socialising and exercising which are obviously important for your general frame of mind.

I nearly sacked off the pills after 4 weeks (because i'd been used to feeling better after 2 weeks in the past) but the advice on this particular forum helped me stick it out which i'm glad I did.

So I suppose what i'm saying is don't expect a quick fix, even if that's been the case in the past, but persevere and hopefully you'll come good.

Good luck everyone.

[Swift winds]

Hello, i just posted not to long ago about how well i was doing on week 9. Im now on week 10.5 and i think I'm going through another blip. Sleeping terribly, anxiety in the morning with the feeling of dread, along with some nausea. Is this normal to have this so late in the game? I was doing so well for 2 weeks and then bam! one morning i wake feeling like hell.

When these blips occur I cant help but feel like im never going to get better. Just need some advise.

Thank you!

[Mat1]

I am at day 42 of Fluoxetine and was ready to give up! Your posts have helped me to decide to stick it out a few more weeks. I was on 10mg for 1 week, 20mg beginning week 2 and was supposed to increase my dose to 40mg week 5. I got scared of the increase and decided to increase to 30 mg week 4 instead. Now I don't know if I should increase to 40 mg or stick it out. I am experiencing daily anxiety, panic and agoraphobia. My Dr suggested that I stop Fluoxetine and switch to Lexapro. Any thoughts? (This is my second time on Fluox. I previously took 20mg daily for 18 years, I developed GAD 5 months ago and have tried Zoloft (didn't work) and now back to Fluox)

[leenalou]

Hi everyone
I refer back to this post and 're-read it a lot I'm a long-term sufferer of panic/anxiety been taking fluoxetine 20mg for a long time, but stupidly when I feel great I forget to take my meds , which this time round has resulted in having to start again from scratch so today is day 21 and side effects are still around, anxiety on waking, disturbed sleep/not sleeping, nausea, lightheadedness I know for me when they do kick in they work brilliantly and that's what I have to keep reminding myself of as I go through these side effects but it is so hard I just want a decent nights sleep so any tips that can be offered please do.
Thanks for reading
Selina x

[Bigwig]

Hi Selina

You're pretty similar to me in that i've been on and off fluoxetine for 10 years. In the past when i've started up again i've felt the benefit after 2/3 weeks without any side effects. However, this last time was a different story and i had very poor sleep between weeks 3-6, usually waking around 3am and finding it impossible to nod off again. So i'd get up and watch telly downstairs lay on the sofa cos it was pointless just lying in bed tossing and turning. Eventually after 8 weeks I think the drugs kicked in and i'm back to getting 8 hours a night pretty much uninterrupted. Lack of sleep was definitely the worst side effect for me. I doubt i'll come off them again because this last start up process was a grim one.

Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.

Bigwig

[leenalou]

Hi bigwig
Glad to hear things have settled for you hopefully mine will do the same soon. I'm day 24 now had a decent couple of days in regards to anxiety and side effects but I know it's there just below the surface the 2-3am wake up sucks although on average I am sleeping around 6 hrs uninterrupted at the moment as I can't seem to stay awake past 8pm lol.
Oh well on with the show it will teach me to be more careful in future.
Selina x

[Sazzlej]

Hiya, did I notice that you work in a school? I'm off for my second week from a special needs school and am struggling to know when to go back. I have the horrible first thing in the morning anxiety with heart racing, feelingine I need to be sick and am normally over that by about lunchtime..... I just wondered how much time you needed to take off? Xxxx

[leenalou]

Hiya
Yes I worked in school but only at lunchtime so not really sure when you should go back I would say it boils down to how you are feeling x

[parisbvamp]

So I'm at 5 weeks on 20mg today. I have seen some improvement, however, the last week has been brutal, higher depression and panic, which I think is actually from gabapentin withdrawal as I've been off that since last friday (a week). Trying to remain hopeful as I did have a really good week for the week of thanksgiving.

[OakTrees]

I'm currently 12 weeks in on 20mg. I've had some really good weeks where the medication has shown a lot of potential but still having bad weeks in between and not able to function all that well overall. Going to stick with this med because of the good weeks I've had and because I do think my overall 'mental health' is improving despite my mood not being great.

Hope everyone's doing alright. Don't neglect the Mindfulness, exercise, CBT, socialising and general healthy living.