Side effects after citalopram

[Bungle]

I was suffering with itching towards the last few months of 20mg of citalopram. My doctor in his wisdom suggest i instantly stop can anyone tell me the sort of side effects n e one else has experienced are after you suddenly come off and how long it lasted thanks..

[nomorepanic]

oh wow - instantly stopping is not generally a good idea. You should be weaned off slowly.

Was that really his advice - doesn't sound good to me.

Nicola

[Bungle]

Well this is a rather brash old gp!!! but its been a week and sometimes i feel crap!!!!

[Meg]

Sadie wil be able to tell you her experiences - she stopped suddenly a few months ago.

It may take up to 6 weeks to clear .



Meg

'There can only be true courage when first there is genuine fear'

Dr.David Livingstone

[HB]

ive been being weaned off citalopram for over 6 months now- this is how long it should take, do you know why he took you offf it so suddenly?

H

[sam]

Hiya out there,
now it makes some sense why I have being having side effects since coming off citalopram at christmas. I did wean the tablets down from 10mg to 5mg to 0mg but the side effects still come, Its been about 3 weeks since I stopped.

The worst side effect has been the depression, one day it was so bad that i had suicidal thoughts constantly. I dont think like that normally, never, so I knew it was the tablets but it was still disturbing. The same thing happened to me when I was put on the lowest dose of prozac, I was watching tv and thinking about committing suicide as a casual thing like making a cuppa!!! I stopped them straightaway.

Ive also been feeling more panicky than usual and have a constant sense of dread in my belly. It isnt nice and I wont be taking any antidepressants again.
take care
sam x

[camilla]

i was on 20mg of citalopram. came off straight anyway had no probems i think it ok because it is quite a low dose of citalopram. citalopram is cipramil right or am i getting confused lol
camilla

[Gibbles]

Im looking to come off Citalopram asap, but I'm unsure of going Cold Turkey.............

http://www.renaultsportsclub.com/phpBB2/images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif

They say laughter is the best medicine, which is true, unless you have diabetes, then it's insulin ;o)

[Elaine1]

I came off citalopram several months ago by cutting down over a period of a month. The only side effect I noticed was a twitching eye - all OK now and really glad, I made the decision to come off.

Best of luck

Elaine

[whatisitnow]

Itching can be a sign of poor functioning liver , especially if its not localised, so it was prob best to stop straight away. Being pregnant made me itch all over & liver function test said not brilliant, but soon as baby was born it went.

Pete to win Big Brother! He is Daddy Fantastic with pants made of elastic!

[joney]

Hi, Im currently coming off Citropram now, I was on 20mg for about 6 months then went onto 10mg for 4 weeks then stopped. I do feel very peculiar, I remembered when I took them before that you feel very tingly all over especially the face and head area, almost like an electric shock, not very pleasent, I do feel quite on edge as well, like time of the month constantly. Im just putting all these symptoms down to coming off of them. I read that being on antidepressants long term can cause pycosis, probably spelt wrong! which really really frightened me, has anyone else read that????

[Gibbles]

I went cold turkey off 20mg a day Citalopram 16 days ago. Ive been counterbalancing the negative feelings and low mood by some hard exercise. For example last night I did an hours Boxing circuit training and then went for a 5km run. The natural endorphins sure are working.


Whenever I feel low I just head off to the gym, so I can focus my mind on something productive............

I took myself off them due to the 2 stone weight gain since October '05, which in itself was depressing


Ive noticed some stomach cramps since stopping, but the sheer amount and severity of the side effects are too much. Im drowsy, forgetful, unco-ordinated, lethargic, heavier, all since taking the medication

I even crashed my car as a result.


I will work hard and get through this, I just hope the drug clears my system soon [B)]

[Two heads]

Well done gibbles!I hope i will be as brave as you when my time comes to come off them hun.Keep it up im sure you will be okxxx

[mercamia]

hey all
I've been on citalopram for about a year now, and am trying to come off them, half halved the dosage to 10mg a day. have been feeling really unbelievably irratible tho....to be honest ive become a bitch to anyone nearby!!! Is this a side effect of coming off them? what else do i have to look forward to?
jess
ps, am so glad i found this site, ive suffered panic and anxiety for nearly 10 years now, and have felt quite alone in it until now. cheers

[PanickyPolly]

<b id="quote">quote:</b id="quote"><table border="0" id="quote"><tr id="quote"><td class="quote" id="quote">hey all
I've been on citalopram for about a year now, and am trying to come off them, half halved the dosage to 10mg a day. have been feeling really unbelievably irratible tho....to be honest ive become a bitch to anyone nearby!!! Is this a side effect of coming off them? what else do i have to look forward to?
jess
ps, am so glad i found this site, ive suffered panic and anxiety for nearly 10 years now, and have felt quite alone in it until now. cheers

<div align="right">Originally posted by mercamia - 24 June 2006 : 11:08:29</div id="right">
</td id="quote"></tr id="quote"></table id="quote">

I can't wait to come off this horrible drug it makes me feel so ill. Am going to go to the docs on Monday and ask him about it. Also feel very irrititble. It's one of the main side effects of thr drug.

[Gibbles]

Irritability is the bane of my life on these drugs, really short fuse at times [:P]

Trouble is, I've got a really expressive face, so if I think something bad, you can see it too [8)]


Grrr lol

[DizzyMe]

Ive been tring to come off the citalopram for about 3months now was on 20mg a day went down to missing the odd one here and there, then every other day etc, thought i was doing it properly and hae recently jus been taking one when i felt the dizzyness side effect. Today tho WHOA [V] nt a happy bunny, my head felt like it just wanted to pop. i felt sooo dizzy it was mad, phoned my poor mum up in tears cos i couldnt cope. I just wanna come off them. I am 11 weeks pregnant and dont need them but feel that i have to keep taking them. I am thinking of just riding it out to see how long the dizzy spells last but it takes me over. They started lastnigh and today I am just spaced out. Any1 wth any advice, help anything!!??? Please:D
Thank You

[Two heads]

Hi dizzyme
I known you want to come off them hun but have you thought about just lowering the dose every few weeks?Drop down to 15mg for a few weeks then 10mg,then cut the 10mg in half.Im on citalopram and thats the way i plan to come off them if i ever get off them that is!That may stop some of the unbearable side affects hun.It may work better for you!
Good luckxxx

[Chris B]

I have been on 20mg for the last 5 years now and sooooo need to come off them, i have lowered my dose to 15mg wich i will stay on for 8 weeks, then i plan on taking 10 one day and 15 the next for another 8 weeks then 10mg for 8 weeks then 5mg one day then 10mg till i come off them. I did try to stop taking them last year but i got bad sickness throwing up every 10 mins for 2 weeks wasnt nice and the depression was so bad, but i am keeping positive and stopping very slowly, I wont let the illness get me down and i wont let it beat me!!! everyone keep your head up keep positive and most of all relax!

[Desprate Dan]

Hi everyone i am new to this forum and i have found it extremly helpful to know that there is others out there in the same boat as me.
To be honest i have been ill with depresion and anxiety for many years but i just coped i suppose as a young man i felt it was a weakness in me and i suppose i tried my best to hind it away from people as i felt embarrased, but a few months a go after a few traumatic incedents in my life, i felt physically ill to the point i just coundn't function and was haveing terrible panic attacks i really thought that i was dieing and convinced my self the time was near but i didnt really know much about depression or anxiety and didn't relate my symptons to it, only after a visit to my gp that he said i was showing all the signs of anxiety and deppession and started me on 10mg citalopram after a few weeks i felt no better in fact the anxiety seemed to get worse i then went back to the gp and he prescribed 20mg its been over 2 months now and i am now starting to feel good and happy to be alive.....
But what is really frieghtening me is although i dont want to take medication i am really scared that if my gp stops my medication i will plunge back in to that dark place i came from, and as it took over 2 months to get out of it, i dont think i could face haveing to go through the whole procedure again...

Has anyone else felt like this?? :unsure: :unsure:

Cheers

[Bob47]

I have posted this elsewhere but its probably more appropriate here...

I tapered my dose down over about 6 weeks to come off - GP approved - I was feeling fine! For about a week to 10 days, no change then last week I got some very strange things happening, slight anxiety, spacey head, eye 'floaters' and some real serotonin-y and dark brain activity, its eased a bit as the weeks gone on but it really took me by surprise, it may be withdrawal but obviously there's the fear of going back to square one. I rang my GP who said I could go back on a low dose again for a few weeks or ride it out...great

Any ideas?? Does this sound familiar? I am in uncharted territory...
Please feel free to PM me so I get a notification

[graham clubman]

hello Bob,
I can say you describe what I have been through over the past two years.
Through both choice, (wanting to ween myself off) and forced, no money for the prescription, I have had some rather nasty withdrawal symptoms.
They included sleeplessness, sweats both in my sleep and at work, nausea, and the worst, what I call 'loose brain feeling'. My head spins and my brain feels like it moves on its own accord. Not nice.
These symptoms pass soon after I resume the tablets.
When weening off them I started with one every other day. Then after two weeks, one every third day for another two weeks. Eventually I was on one tablet every ten days. All good so far.
However I could not get away from the 'loose brain' feelings if I went beyond ten days.:wacko:
Regrettably after another trauma I am back on 20mg daily. I feel fine but really cant get to grips with ongoing aches and pains. Muscles and bones ache, especially when getting out of bed.Also, the sweats returned but are decreasing.
I am looking at trying again to reduce the dosage. But this time I am adding exercise, weight loss and diet change.
We will see what happens.
best wishes, Graham

[Original]

Hi,

Just a quick question, my husband has now been on 20mg of Citalopram for 6 weeks and i can honestly say he is no better with his anxiety. Should he have his dose increased or another medication do you think? He is describing his life as a living hell i'm not sure what to do to help him.

[suzy-sue]

He needs to speak to his Dr by the sound of it .Higher doses are usually needed for acute anxiety ,im on 40mg ..I increased by 10mg at a time .The side effects arent bad doing it that way .It does get better ,it sometimes takes a while to get the right dose thats all .Hope he feels better soon ..Luv Sue x:hugs:

[munkeyinblack]

I am on my fourth day of taking these for the first time and even though my gp said i wouldn't experience any side effects i feel alot more paniced and stressed than before and feel sick all the time. Does anyone know how long they should take to kick in and will these effects stop when they do ?
x

[suzy-sue]

Sorry you arent feeling too good :hugs: Your side effects are normal and will last 2-3 weeks then you will gradually start to feel better ,Your dose will stabilise between 4-6 weeks .If you do not feel they are doing much you will then have your dose increased ,this again will take 4-6 weeks to kick in ,but you wont feel as bad as now ...It is worth sticking it out ,treat it like you have got a virus or something .Hope you feel better soon .All the best Sue x