How many physical citalopram withdrawal symptoms can there be???

[Bel8]

Hi everyone,

I sent a post earlier about going off citalopram. I have been experiencing dizziness, nausea and headaches ... after my first reduction it was bad but it has evened off to something that is merely annoying. I am very lucky that I have not (touch wood) experienced any emotional or mental withdrawal symptoms which I hope is a sign that I am in fact ready for this.

Today is the first day (I take meds in the morning) without any citalopram and am probably in for a rough few days anyway, but now I have started itching especially my ears, scalp arms, back and torso ... and occasionaly my legs ... I did not experience this side effect whist on citalopram ... it is possible that it is yet ANOTHER physical withdrawal symptom? Or should I see my GP? It is driving me nuts.

I am also open to any suggestions on how to manage the withdrawal symptoms mentioned as I work full day and cannot afford to feel (and therefore look) sick.

I dropped from 20mg to 10mg last week and only had severe withdrawal for 3-4 days. Any thoughts on skipping 10mg alternate days and just getting through this to zero? I need to put this behind me now.

Thank you

Bel8

[clarisse]

Hi Bel :)The itching can be a symptom of withdrawal.
To minimize discontinuation syndrome,its best to cut down very slowly.Considering you only cut down a week ago ,I would advise you to stay on your current dose a week or so longer to avoid anymore side effects.Then instead of stopping altogether try reducing by 5mg by cutting your pill in half. After about 2-3 weeks if you feel able,stop altogether.
There's not much you can do about the physical symptoms,but drink plenty of water and maybe try some non drowsy Antihistamines for the itching and /or some Hydro-Cortisone cream on areas that are most troublesome. It can take several weeks to start to feel normal once you have completely withdrawn from the medication.Eat healthily and get plenty of sleep as your body adjusts.Its not a race and often people who rush this process often wish they had taken things more slowly.
Good luck and do post again with your progress.

[MarkUk]

Hi everyone,

I sent a post earlier about going off citalopram. I have been experiencing dizziness, nausea and headaches ... after my first reduction it was bad but it has evened off to something that is merely annoying. I am very lucky that I have not (touch wood) experienced any emotional or mental withdrawal symptoms which I hope is a sign that I am in fact ready for this.

Today is the first day (I take meds in the morning) without any citalopram and am probably in for a rough few days anyway, but now I have started itching especially my ears, scalp arms, back and torso ... and occasionaly my legs ... I did not experience this side effect whist on citalopram ... it is possible that it is yet ANOTHER physical withdrawal symptom? Or should I see my GP? It is driving me nuts.

I am also open to any suggestions on how to manage the withdrawal symptoms mentioned as I work full day and cannot afford to feel (and therefore look) sick.

I dropped from 20mg to 10mg last week and only had severe withdrawal for 3-4 days. Any thoughts on skipping 10mg alternate days and just getting through this to zero? I need to put this behind me now.

Thank you

Bel8

Thank you for posting.

So glad, but also sad, to hear that someone has been having the same withdraw effects as I have been getting, first the head zaps which were quite intense then about a month on itching,bad itching & being unable to sleep. First two weeks I had bad zaps & was aggressive then over the month the aggressive feelings have gone along with the zaps but perhaps worse is the itching, mainly when I go to bed, then sleeplessness, these have both got a lot better over the last week so hopefully i'm getting to the end.
I did a very slow withdraw from 30mg cutting out 5mg every two weeks so it was not a sudden stop, I am so suprised how bad it's been but feel a whole lot better now.

This is a very powerful drug indeed.

---------- Post added at 13:39 ---------- Previous post was at 13:34 ----------

Should say I was totally off this drug when the withdraw symptoms began so it has taken a month to get to where I am today, feeling pretty normal, whatever normal is :)

[Sparkle1984]

Sorry to hear about your withdrawal symptoms. Personally I'd reduce by no more than 5mg a fortnight, or slower if necessary. :)

[Bel8]

Hi everyone,

So as you know, thus far I have not experienced any emotional/mental withdrawal as yet. That all changed over the weekend. On Saturday, it hit with vengence.

I knew logically (and this I told myself repeatedly) that it was merely my brain recalibrating, but it did not help much. I cried on and off most of the weekend and felt so alone.

It does not help that I am in fact without any family support and my best friend is currently abroad and I am unable to reach her. I don't have that someone to call and say "Please come over, I need someone to give me hug and tell me it is going to be okay." It is also largely unhelpful that my 3 of my 6 closest friends (the only people I really trust) are living in 3 different countries to me and the other 3 that are still here will be leaving the country over the next 11 months. Then they will be in 6 different countries on 5 different continents. None of them are good at staying in touch.

It has never bothered me that I am alone. It was something I prided myself on, that I could survive without anyone, but lately is scares me ... also I am close to my 34th birthday.

I suppose you ask why I just don't make new friends. I have MAJOR trust issues and it take ages for me to even call someone a friend. There are reasons for this and I am seeing a psychologist on a weekly basis.

Will councilling be harder now that I am off citalopram? Feelings seem so much more intense now that I am coming off citalprom. I know I can manage it but adjusting to this new level of emotion may be harder than I thought it would be.

Any helpful advice on how to manage with the intense sadness/lonliness that is part of the withdrawal process? As previously stated, I work a full day and need to be at 110% for that.

Thanks

Bel8

[Laura1989]

I suffered very badly with head and body zaps for about 2 weeks, and they are still there, just not as intense!
However I have started with the itchiness now, and cannot find anything to soothe it! It is slightly comforting though to know that it is normal (kind of!) and is common with coming off citalopram.

On another thread I started, I said how i have been very emotional and also have had that feeling of being lonely, although I am very lucky to have good friends around me. Despite this I still feel very lonely and I wonder if it is our bodies responding to not as much serotonin in our body and therefore creating that feeling as though we have lost something

The only thing I can suggest to cope with this is to keep telling yourself your ok and it is just a withdrawal symptom. You are not going to be like this forever, it will pass! Throw yourself into your work and any hobbies you have and distract yourself. It may work...it worked for me most of the time.

I hope things start to improve soon
Laura xx

[kellybb]

Hi,rule of thumb is 10% drops of your current dose every 5-6 weeks.Slow and steady wins the race with these head meds.Buy a pair of jewellery scales and chip away at your tab.Best wishes.

[Bel8]

Thank goodness for NMP! My psychiatrist said I would not suffer any withdrawal if I dropped to 10 mg for on week and then had 10 mg every alternate day for the week thereafter.

Posting and reading posts here has been informative and helpful in not being really stressed out. I would have thought I was practically on my deathbed if I had not know it was withdrawal ... either that or losing my mind.

Bel8