Citralopram – WOW this stuff is crazy [Archive]

hanna090

18-04-12, 23:04

Ok sorry for the dramatic heading,, but this medication is the craziest thing :ohmy:

I went to the doctors this morning and have been prescribed 10mg…

And I have had the WORST side effects- I have never in my entire life felt like this! Not even on my worse anxiety days!

I have been trembling, feel nauseous, spaced out, sleepy and can’t concentrate! I’m even finding it hard to focus my eyes and mind on typing this message…

Thing is, I get that starting out is going to be hard, but I have so many assignments for uni to hand in and I really couldn’t concentrate today!

So my question is, do you think it’s wise to start after Citralopram after my coursework and exams (in 3 weeks ah!) or continue, or stop all together??

Steve37

18-04-12, 23:06

hanna090

18-04-12, 23:10

Thanks Steve! My doctor did NOT tell me about all these intense side effects which are just unbearable!

nomorepanic

18-04-12, 23:13

I only took them for a few days and gave up - the side-effects were too unbearable

kittikat

18-04-12, 23:18

I only took them for a few days and gave up - the side-effects were too unbearable

Me too....couldn't handle these tablets at all....but some have found them to be a wonder drug. Have another chat with your GP to put your mind at rest or advise the best way forward.

Good luck with the studying :)

Kitti x

Ingenious

18-04-12, 23:37

Doctors never tell you about the possible side effects. I suppose because not everyone gets them and because they don't want to frighten you. I think you should ring your surgery tomorrow and ask to speak to your GP about this, advise them you are getting really bad side effects and tell them about your exams. They may agree it's best to wait for three weeks then try again. Although the side effects DO pass, you can feel rough for a few weeks, and this is not at an ideal time!! Although personally I would wait until after your exams I don't want to suggest that is what you should do, since I know nothing about your medical history (hence I'd rather the GP told you, yes, no or wait) :)

suzeelew

19-04-12, 00:15

i am on day 17 of citalopram and going thru utter hell on them but as im so far in im going to try and stick it out and thnx to the support of ppl on here and my partner...but this is not a tablet to take lightly...my anxiety and depression is at an all time high i can barely function..the only relief is sleep which thank god i do a lot of at the moment...if any members can reassure me that the 4 week mark really is a mile stone i would be grateful as im at the end of my tether!!!! x
members have already reassured me but the more reassurance at the moment the better!!! x

EvilPenguin8

19-04-12, 00:52

It does take a fair while for side effects to settle. I'm on a similar medication and it took several weeks for increased anxiety (they don't tell you about that one!) and other physical effects to die down to 'bearable' levels.

Good luck with it anyway.

suzeelew

19-04-12, 01:59

thnk u..im going to hang in there as im nearly 3 weeks in...nearly 3 weeks of utter hell but will be worth it in the long run and id advise anyone starting it to just get started and use this fab site for support...start sooner rather than later and then u r on ur way to recovery!! x

Em84

19-04-12, 07:19

Hiya

At the end of the day hun its totally up to you...Us other members should never tell or recommend people to come off medication as it works different for everybody.

I was on Citalopram only for a few days....The first day i took it i thought my heart stopped at one point...felt very dizzy, buzzing like i had taken a E pill...then i had my first full blown panic attack...I tried halving the pills for 2 days after i was on 10mg and it made no difference...i had bad side effects so threw them in the bin....That was my choice, i couldnt cope.

Give it some time...

xxx

jacks1769

19-04-12, 12:09

Hi
Stick with it - I had the same, it does passs - i started on 5mg and upped to 10mg - that worked too. Trust me they have helped big time.

MrRedShirt

19-04-12, 12:17

I had a similar experience.. I was started with a 20mg dose and not told about any of the start-up effects.. my GP just mentioned I might feel a 'bit of nausea'.
I felt spaced out, tired, yet wired.. my head was swimming around, I was sweating.. horrible.

I stopped after that first dose, but if only my GP had prepared me (and possibly started me on a lower dose), I may have continued.

If you can stick it out, go for it. Many people on here have found a lot of benefit from citalopram.

Emphyrio

19-04-12, 12:30

The side effects I had with citalopram only really started AFTER the medication kicked in. I took it for a month (10mg) from mid December to mid January. It did a lot of good for my mood but after a month I started feeling so tense and agitated (that caused my intrusive thoughts to return) that I had to come off them. I haven't been back on any kind of medication but I still feel tense/agitated and get my intrusive thoughts most days.

In my case I think the tenseness/intrusive thoughts was being masked by the anxiety and depression though I'm certain that the medication was exacerbating the tenseness somewhat. When I next see the GP to discuss the intrusive thoughts I'll ask for a more tranquilising medication :/ Hope I can get something that works this time!

FakePlasticTrees

19-04-12, 18:00

This is not a good post for those of us who have been recently prescribed this med and have been staring at the box trying to pluck up the courage to start. Like me.

MrRedShirt

19-04-12, 18:17

This is not a good post for those of us who have been recently prescribed this med and have been staring at the box trying to pluck up the courage to start. Like me.

Please don't let it put you off!
I think the point of the post was just to point out that side effects are fairly likely BUT as long as you know they're coming you can deal with them.

Kay85

19-04-12, 21:32

I got started on citalopram and on day 3 I woke up at 5am drenched in sweat and shaking, ran to the toilet to throw up and had to lay on the cold tiled floor for a while. Looked in the mirror and my eyes were like saucers, sounds were too loud, I was too hot and was hyper anxious constantly for the next 24hrs straight (did not sleep at all). Went back to my doctor who was rubbish and basically denied I could be feeling the way I was saying. At the time I had been suicidal, and starting mess was my last shot at some kind of hope...so I unbelievably stuck with it and they saved my life after I got through the horrific start up. Nowadays I'm on sertraline cos citalopram killed my appetite and I ended up with an eating disorder to boot so my doc switched me. I have never felt as bad again in my life as I did on that third day of citalopram again though.

Breezay

20-04-12, 17:06

Most people don't suffer side effects like this.. I didn't have any problems starting it, but coming off wasn't great! Lol.

If you're finding the side effects unbearable then please go back to your GP and ask their advice. They might recommend a different medication :)

FakePlasticTrees

20-04-12, 17:16

Please don't let it put you off!
I think the point of the post was just to point out that side effects are fairly likely BUT as long as you know they're coming you can deal with them.

Most people don't suffer side effects like this.. I didn't have any problems starting it, but coming off wasn't great! Lol.

If you're finding the side effects unbearable then please go back to your GP and ask their advice. They might recommend a different medication :smile:

Thanks for your comments, well I started this morning, I cheated, and took 10mg instead of the prescribed 20mg, but haven't felt any side effects as of yet (I know its very early days) and all being well will switch to 20mg in a week.

suzeelew

20-04-12, 17:21

how are u getting on now? hope they have kicked in...ive been on citalopram for 18 days and determined to stick them out..awful side effects initially but think they are calming now and looking to a brighter future!! ill stay on them for life if they work and started cbt today too so lets hope i am long road to recovery xx

FakePlasticTrees

20-04-12, 17:29

Jamesflames

20-04-12, 21:33

When I started citalopram the worst I got was a few mild headaches and a month or two of unusual tiredness. It was not a big deal at all. And they helped level my anxiety out pretty well. Don't be worried about taking them.

Doctors must get so irritated by us anxious types worrying about our medication!

FakePlasticTrees

20-04-12, 22:34

Encouraging, thanks for sharing your thoughts on starting starting a course of Citalopram :)

snowgoose

20-04-12, 22:55

good to hear for me also James
I am still looking at box of Cit as well .so scared to take them.

eternally optimistic

20-04-12, 23:09

Hi

It took me a couple of weeks to get over the "really" bad side effects.

sazlebazle

24-04-12, 19:34

Hi i was on them for under a week and the didnt agree with me at all i couldnt eat anything i had no energy couldnt even walk upstairs to the toilet :( at night my heart would race i was scared to go to the toilet as i couldnt feel my legs .... i stopped taking them and have felt fine ever since had the odd anxious feeling but nothing i couldnt deal with from now on im going to try and beat this with out medication :)
Other people i have spoke to on here have called it a wonder drug and have had a great time on it its really down to the person if side effects are bearable keep with it youll get lots of help on here the people are fantastic

good luck xx

LAURA48

24-04-12, 20:12

Hi - due to start Cit 10mg this week - tbh - cannot feel any worse than what I have been feeling since November. I remember the Prozac 20mg start up effects were horrendous! (15 years ago) and they were brilliant until they stopped working last year. We are all different - but will stick these out no matter what!

---------- Post added at 20:12 ---------- Previous post was at 20:11 ----------

My friend is on them and no side effects at all?

hanna090

26-04-12, 16:11

First would like to apologise for scaring all the people even more who wish to start!
Personally for me this medicine didn’t agree with me! I took ONE and felt unbearable side effects for four days…
It might be because I’m a size 6 female or it could be due to some other medical issue that this med didn’t agree with my body, but I’m not planning to continue taking it.
Thanks for all your help, but I am really annoyed at my doctor for not telling me how severe the side effects may get, all she said was 'nausea' !

I will now fight this anxiety without medication, and I wish you all the best too with or without medication
x

struggling100

27-04-12, 11:23

Fakeplastictrees - you're being unnecessarily passive-aggressive. Side-effects are different for different people. Just because one person has an adverse reaction, it does not follow that everyone will.

The OP is well within their rights to make such a post - it will hopefully help them to hear from others that sometimes that side-effects that develop at the start of a course subside and settle, becoming manageable with time.

theharvestmouse

27-04-12, 20:51

I only had about 2 days of any side effects and that was it, it really was not that bad. Whether Cit has done anything for me, I don't know, even though its been nearly 6 months I still am not sure if it does anything. I was suicidal before taking it, and I still have suicidal thoughts, I still get good and bad days as you do when you are not taking any meds.

Gunny22

27-04-12, 23:17

Hi I started 10mg citalopram on Monday. At the moment no really bad side effects, sleeping better and feel better. Accepting help at last I think has made a difference too. I was becoming exhausted fighting my anxiety etc. Early days yet though I know.
Bon courage! :)

oneofus

28-04-12, 21:43

Been on citalopram twice, the first day was wonderful but the effect was placebic; just the feeling someone took your problem seriously enough to help was amazing in its effect. After that the main side effects were more annoying than debilitating. Cit is well known to cause delay in the boudouir department, but there ware "ways" to cope. The more serious was a tendency to finish DIY which was waiting to be done, but fortunately with a bit of soft idleness it diminished :whistles:.

My kids referred to cit as dad's happy pills and I'll let them speak for it effects.

One of us

Truedirection

29-04-12, 14:01

I've taken this on and off for the last 10 years or so, as well as diaz's when I need to. I didn't have any bad effects apart from when I had to restart taking them and went straight into 40mg a day dose after my last bad episode. Which was about a year and a half ago now. Down to 20mg a day now. I'm on these for life now so if you can find other meds that work for you then that's great. There are many types you can try.

---------- Post added at 14:01 ---------- Previous post was at 13:58 ----------

Been on citalopram twice, the first day was wonderful but the effect was placebic; just the feeling someone took your problem seriously enough to help was amazing in its effect. After that the main side effects were more annoying than debilitating. Cit is well known to cause delay in the boudouir department, but there ware "ways" to cope. The more serious was a tendency to finish DIY which was waiting to be done, but fortunately with a bit of soft idleness it diminished :whistles:.

My kids referred to cit as dad's happy pills and I'll let them speak for it effects.

One of us

Glad it's not just me then! seriously thinking of trying another type just because of this!

emu12

29-04-12, 17:19

I started them while I had uni assignments to hand in and found i couldnt concentrate and hated the heightened anxiety so I stopped after 3 days, tried alot harder with my CBT and am now at the end of my degree, I decided if I needed to take them I would try in the holidays when I didnt have any work commitments which they may interfer with.

Good luck with your assignments!