Back on Fluoxetine for depression - now desperately anxious [Archive]

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Pudie

18-06-12, 14:09

Hello. Just wanted to post my thanks to this forum. After 7 years on fluoxetine for depression I took a 5 month break. Dreadful depression resulted - affecting me & my family badly, so I decided to go back on. Last time I started fluoxetine I was having panic attacks anyway. This time 2 weeks in (just tried 1 every other day for 1st 10 days, now on 20mg per day) & I am feeling very anxious all the time. So pleased to read on this forum that this is a normal reaction & should pass. Has also made me remember how disabling anxiety is.

I fear I will be on fluoxetine for life now, but it does make me very ambivalent & not so productive at work (which is a problem as my husband & I have our own business). During the break from fluoxetine I had much more drive and achieved a great deal more, but I also ended up in pieces or very stressed & ratty quite frequently.

Many years ago I held down a pressured management job in IT with 2 small children, but since a breakdown following financial disaster & loss of our home I have struggled to recover my old self. I wonder if I am permanently broken now. I also struggle to put my needs high on the list of priorities & feel guilty if I do. I also feel guilty if I don't & then end up ill.

This anxiety is overwhelming though. I always have great anxiety about money, but this sick, fearful, anxious feeling is with me all the time at present & is burning a hole in my chest!:unsure:

ExPerson

19-06-12, 17:40

Pudie, I feel your pain with this. I'm a first-time, never-been-depressed-before Fluoxetine user. I went through 4-5 days of horrible anxiety during my 2nd week. It's all but gone now. If you can take any reassurance from most other people's experiences it's that the anxiety feeling usually passes. I'm on day 21 and I can honestly say that I have no real side effects now. Still feel pretty depressed mind you! Hopefully that'll pass too!

sunshine1

19-06-12, 18:22

I am back on fluoxetine for the second time too and had really bad anxiety weeks 2-3, which has settled now (day37) my mood has also improved no end in the last week and i am looking forward to some things again.
It is important to look after your self and have some time for you too. I work and have 3 small children and a workaholic husband and it is not easy but Part of y anxiety is that I have responsibility for everything that happens at home and in my house. I find it really difficult to relax and this means that my stress is forever increasing to the point where I have become ill - again. I make my me time taking the dog for a walk - if my husband comes home - and find this great, especially if I can persude a pal to come with me! I also realise that I need plenty of rest.

Let us know how you are getting onx :)

Pudie

28-06-12, 10:21

Thank you for your replies. It's 24 days now & I am still suffering badly from anxiety. I am not sure what to do about it because I am finding it quite disabling. I am going to try working through a mindfulness book that I have and I am considering buying "Self Help for your Nerves" by Claire Weekes. I wake every morning gripped by fear and soon develop a headache and muddled thinking. Any recommendations much appreciated. I will try to take the dog out today!

Rockbottom

29-06-12, 11:42

You're not alone pudie, I'm on day 11 and this is crippling me, I'm on fluoxetine 20mg for depression and I can honestly say that I never expected to be hit anywhere near as hard as this.
I am seriously thinking of stopping these meds now and going for therapy instead as I truly can't handle this wrecking my body and mind.

crazy_cat

01-07-12, 21:35

Hey, your Gp can give you something for the interim anxiety, I have been on diazepam for the last 10 days following a breakdown at work and changed my mess and they've kept me on it and will do for another week or so to calm my anxiety. Might be worth going back and seeing what they could do for you, don't just stop just yet. My first time on Prozac at uni was great so I'm holding out hope

As for therapy, it seems alarmingly difficult to get on the nhs :-( I have found a volunteer ran place that you pay for each session in the form of a donation rather than the fifty quid an hour some ppl charge

Xx

queenfluff

04-07-12, 19:32

Thanks for this thread! I just started on this for anxiety. I only took the one dose this morning but now I am nervous it is going to get worse after reading this. I feel "keyed up" and nervous after just taking one pill! I don't like this! I would rather deal with my anxiety. My doctor did NOT mention that I might feel more anxious first - she said to just watch for feeling suicidical. I just feel "out of myself" too. Ugh.

I am supposed to start a new job in two weeks and i don't want to feel like this going in.
What should I do?

Pudie

04-07-12, 19:47

queenfluff

04-07-12, 19:57

Just about to post an update - I am feeling much better - persevere - it's worth it. You may not feel more anxious everyone is different, but if you do then have patience. Very best wishes for your new job. It may help having the new job because it will demand all your attention.

I already feel more anxious - and I just took one pill! That is making me nervous! My hands feel shaky. I am normally a very steady typist. I did have some coffee this morning but I hardly had any - so I am pretty sure it is the F. I don't like feeling like this. I feel like I took "speed" or something! (guessing on that one - haven't taken that before) I am questioning whether or not I want to do this and just deal with the anxiety in other ways for now. I might not take the second dose tomorrow and call my doctor first thing.

Thanks for the quick response!

---------- Post added at 12:57 ---------- Previous post was at 12:52 ----------

I should mention that I have diabetes - funny I asked my doctor yesterday if this would effect that and she said no - but it is on the leaflet that I got that it may affect blood sugar levels. I tested about two hours after I ate and took the pill and the number was OK for me. But I going to have to check all throughout the day now.

Geez, all I wanted was to get rid of the tighteness in my chest not feel like a nervous wreck. :(

LAURA48

04-07-12, 20:17

Hi

Just reading your posts on Fluoxetine - can I just say I was on this fantastic med for 15 great years and the starts up effects were very bad anxiety. Please stick with it it will pass - it is a fantastic a/d. It pooped out in Oct 2011 after some trauma and tbh cannot find one as good - have felt so ill since and dark depression. The other SSRIs are not a patch on it. My psychiatrist - yes I am that bad - is trying me on Effexor XL on Saturday just preying it works aswell as Prozac - just want my old life back.

I will be honest did not start to feel really well until around 8 weeks but was bad before, but side effects lasted a couple of weeks for me anyway. Everything takes ages to work for me!

Good luck and stick with it

Laura

Pudie

04-07-12, 20:19

I'm so sorry that my post has made you feel anxious - a lesson learnt for me be careful what you post! I have recently done a mindfulness course based on the book: "the mindful way through depression" & I think a similar approach is sometimes used for anxiety. Whatever medication we are on I think we all benefit from trying to learn strategies to cope with these feelings and help build confidence. At least the advice on this forum was right & the side effects did pass. Some people suggested I asked for another medication short term to help with the side effects of the fluoxetine, but (like you) I tend to be quite sensitive to drugs, so I steered away from that. Very best wishes to you.

queenfluff

04-07-12, 20:26

Thanks Laura!

My anxiety is not that bad - I do not really have Paniac attacks and my depression is not that bad either.

This why I am feeling this is not a good idea for me at the time and I thinking about not continuing. It makes me feel MORE nervous and shakey! My fingers on my right hand feel numbish and I go from feeling "keyed up" to feeling kind of drowsy.

Before I just felt anxious with mostly inner "discomforts" like tightness in chest.

I hope my taking one pill didn't screw me up even further.

How long does it take for one 10 mg to leave your system?

LAURA48

04-07-12, 20:30

Hi - Prozac has a very long half life - stays in the body longer than any other SSRI - but one 10mg would not do any harm - would say around 3/4 days - but just guessing. When you feel depressed and anxious and it is affecting one's life - then you know you need medication.

Hope you'll feel better soon

Laura

queenfluff

04-07-12, 20:35

Pudie

04-07-12, 20:53

queenfluff

04-07-12, 21:24

I'm sure you won't feel this bad for that long. Please don't worry too much - it is a low dose (I'm not sure you can get capsules less than 20mg in the UK). Some of this reaction may be due to anxiety about taking it. Keep cool, you'll be fine.

Thank you Pudie! I really appreciate the tips! I feel a bit better now. Checked my blood sugar and it is fine - (feeling shakey etc could mean low blood sugar so that is sort of freaky too - but I always eat something to fix that - that normally doesn't happen to me though). I got very hungry so I am munching on some popcorn now. That will be good if this makes me more hungry because when I am anxious I don't eat and I am too skinny! :) I need to gain some weight!

I am actually in the US. My dr. prescribed me 10mg to take for first week and than I am to go to 20mg. I am pretty I would never need more than that because like I said mine really isn't too bad. For me, I am just tired of feeling tired and exhausted from being anxious. I used to be a very high energy person so that is difficult for me. Two years ago I was dx'd with genetic Type 2 diabetes and that also makes me tired. I was feeling better once my BGs were under control but the last month the anxiety has been worse. A friend of mine committed suicidie about a month ago. But I have alot of other things happened to me (my own health problems, realtionship problems, loss of job, all my money) in the last six years - so perhaps it just build all up. Such bad timing! (right before I finally find a job). Lots of changes and bad times for me. I am usually good at handling changes but too much is too much you know? :)

You are right that I probably have anxiety about taking this too. I didn't expect anything to happen right away - I thought it would be like taking a vitamin - I didn't expect it to hit me so fast. I have a very sensitive nervous system too. After ending up in the ER when I took some sulfur drugs makes me nervous about any new anything. I have never been a "pill" person.

I will be monitoring how I feel for the rest of the day - esp. to see if I sleep or not tonight!!! I wonder if the coffee made it worse too - no caffefine tomorrow!! :)

Pudie

04-07-12, 21:50

Take care - you will get through these bad times. Life can seem so unfair & painful. Thank goodness you have a new job on the horizon. Life should start changing for the better. x

queenfluff

04-07-12, 22:03

Take care - you will get through these bad times. Life can seem so unfair & painful. Thank goodness you have a new job on the horizon. Life should start changing for the better. x

Thank you Pudie! You have been very helpful and kind! :) I know it will get better. I am trying to stay positiive and not freak out so much. At leasts I know the warning signs if I AM allergic to this! :) I hate that long list of "side effects" on the pamphlet they give you - 4 pages! I wonder if some of those "fatal" ones have ever happened to anyone! They are probably just trying to protect their insurance policy.

I hope the "speedy" side effects are gone before I start my new job!