Do you drink of your Citalopram ?

[JosephHitch]

I'm on Citalopram 30mg and have been for almost a year now .I have been drinking alcohol throughout my treatment. Sometimes ' binge drinking ' ,some times not drinking for a few weeks .My alcohol use is very sporadic in that sense. I'm just a young guy its not problem drinking its just drinking with my mates when I like. It never even occurred to me avoid drinking during my treatment. It suddenly occurred to me this might not be wise. Looking online I found alot of contradicting information: some saying its absolutely fine to drink on them ,some saying the exact opposite. I'm not to interested on whether the combination increases side effects or sedation etc . I'm really only concerned if it stops the medication working as well. I read it does and although these pills have worked wonders for me I can't help but think reading something like this undermines my progress. I take them for anxiety so something like this can be a real set back.

[Sparkle1984]

Yes, alcohol can reduce the effectiveness of the tablets. When some people say it's fine to drink on them, they mean only in moderation. Binge drinking certainly won't help. I've personally chosen to avoid alcohol completely while I'm on the tablets (I never used to drink much anyway, only on special occasions really).

[JosephHitch]

Did your doctor tell you that ? " The combination of citalopram and alcohol is not advisable. However clinical studies have revealed no adverse pharmacodynamic or pharmacokinetic interactions between citalopram and alcohol" That's a quote from drugs.com. Sounds promising lol I just really like red wine :-)

[dogsandtea]

All doctors I have been to have told me it is fine. I started Citalopram just before university so did drink a lot! The dr's at the time said if it was unsafe they wouldn't give these drugs to a fresher at uni! They just stop the medication working properly, as alcohol is a depressant. When feeling bad it is best to avoid it I think.

Hangovers (even when I was feeling totally fine and non anxious on Citalopram) always made anxiety come back on those hungover days.

[little scientist]

I have always drunk on it, but only in moderation (my bing drinking days are waaaaaaaaaaay gone lol). So the odd glass of wine here and there I think is ok :)

[JosephHitch]

depressant simply means it slows your body down does it not ? It does not mean it makes you derpressed. I'v found my medication has worked wonders even with drinking .Just the way my mind works it now feels as if my progress has been devalued as Iv been drinking on them stoping them working properly ,like I was operating under a placebo.

[little scientist]

It can definitely be known make the symptoms of depression worse, so a depressant in that sense :)

[JosephHitch]

I guess no ones saying it stops it working completely. It's me over thinking it. I'm going to resit the booze from now on

[dogsandtea]

It doesn't stop the drug working completely. Though it is proven to get you drunk quicker/make hangovers worse. Which in turn leads to anxiety/depression from the feelings even normal people get with a hangover.

[JosephHitch]

Yeah to be honest it's a great excuse to quit drinking anyways. I'v always wanted to . P.S loving the Salem pic x

[dogsandtea]

ha thanks!

I don't think i'd ever quit drinking. I usually drink most weekends, though lately i've been in a bad way panic/anxiety wise so I haven't really drank for about 5 weeks now. YAWN. I kind of do just want to go out and get really drunk... but I fear for the feelings the next day!

[JosephHitch]

Surly if it stops your meds working properly it's not worth is it ? Had I known I don't think I would x

[dogsandtea]

well it doesn't stop them working permanently. For me it only stops them working properly the next day (i assume till the booze is out your system!).

Also it's worth noting it has no reaction to alcohol, so doesn't stop working, its just the effects of alcohol that can make anxiety/depression symptoms worse.

[JosephHitch]

Yeah I suppose if it's worth the next day ****ing get on it proper lol !

[andreas]

I was on Citalopram for 18 months. In the first few months, I found that drinking a lot of alcohol (e.g. more than 2 beers) made my mood exceptionally volatile so I cut down quite a lot. After time, I was able to drink more again once my body was used to the medication. If you are going to drink, take it slowly until you see how it affects you.

[little scientist]

I'd agree with andreas fully there, this time round drinking has made my mood the following day very unpredictable but as time has gone and I have got more used to the medication, I can still enjoy a glass of wine without worrying about my mood. But I have to say this time round with my anxiety, I have dramatically reduced the amount I drank, because of how low i felt the following day!

[Keith_S]

Absolutely no effect here. I'm on 40mg Cit (plus 160mg Propranolol) and regularly drink up to 50 units per week (probably too much, although until 1987 the recommended limit was actually 56 units per week!).

I suspect any perceived effects are most likely psychological.

[Sparkle1984]

Absolutely no effect here. I'm on 40mg Cit (plus 160mg Propranolol) and regularly drink up to 50 units per week (probably too much, although until 1987 the recommended limit was actually 56 units per week!).

I suspect any perceived effects are most likely psychological.

I don't think it's psychological. I don't think they'd put that it's best to avoid alcohol on the patient information leaflet if there wasn't a scientific reason for it.

Maybe if you did manage to cut down your alcohol intake, you wouldn't need such a high dosage of citalopram, as the medication would be more effective. I'm just saying this because in my CBT Stress Control course they said that alcohol can make anxiety and depression worse. I'm only saying it to help you, not to have a go at you. :)

[Keith_S]

I don't think it's psychological. I don't think they'd put that it's best to avoid alcohol on the patient information leaflet if there wasn't a scientific reason for it.

Maybe if you did manage to cut down your alcohol intake, you wouldn't need such a high dosage of citalopram, as the medication would be more effective. I'm just saying this because in my CBT Stress Control course they said that alcohol can make anxiety and depression worse. I'm only saying it to help you, not to have a go at you. :)

That's fine. You are probably correct that SSRIs are possibly less effective when taken with alcohol. Also that excess alcohol can cause an increase of anxiety during the recovery period.

However, I personally believe that the short term anxiety relief from the consumption of alcohol is more effective than any medication can provide. In my own experience, the optimum solution is a combination of both.

Official medical 'advice' is always balanced towards the over-cautious. The most common example is the popular misconception that you cannot drink alcohol whilst taking antibiotics. The reality is there is only one antibiotic (Metranidozole) that cannot be taken with alcohol (due to a very unpleasant disulfiram effect), although if you believed the official warnings you would be wrongly scared of drinking with any ABs.:)

[Laura1989]

I drink in moderation on my citalopram. Been on them for a few months now. At first I cut alcohol out completely, but just recently I have started having a few drinks every now and then.
I wouldn't go a binge drink on them, but I have never noticed any adverse effects on my mood after drinking to be honest, so I am gong to continue to have a few drinks here and there.

[Richard1960]

I am on Citalopram and find it much less effective if taken with alcohol although my problem with alcohol is once i start polishing off 8 cans is not uncommon so maybe thats why,now i have knocked alcohol on the head hopefully for good i find the Citalopram very effective.

I also attend my local drugs and alcohol advisory service who although maybe being over cautious advise Citalopram will be much less effective taken with alcohol especially with 8 cans.:winks::ohmy:

Alcohol and my personality do not seem to mix well at all.

Richard.

[JosephHitch]

"Citalopram is a type of medication called SSRI which stands for Selective Serotonin Re-uptake inhibitor. It works by increasing the levels of a chemical called serotonin in the brain. Alcohol would not effect this process" is a word for word quote from my Doctor. The person who said it does not stop the tablets working it's just alcohol increases anxiety is right, although the other is right that it's just physiological in a sense too I think as it's a matter of how you handle the anxiety the hangover feelings cause. If you can manage it it's clearly not a problem