Going from Paroxetine to Citalopram.

[sophiethecat2003]

Hi all,

Been on Paroxetine for 5 weeks and feel dreadful.

I am thinking I may swop back to Citalopram.

If I alternate the two for a week and then take the Citalopram full time would that work ok?

Really worried about coming off the Paroxetine.

Best wishes
Sophie ☺ x

[Oosh]

I'm not sure I'd alternate. What does your doc recommend ?

You're not getting a lot of replies here. Maybe try popping your post on the citalopram and/or paroxetine boards in the medication section. You'll probably get more replies there.

Use the search facility even and see if you can get straight to the answer. I'm sure similar things will have been discussed before.

[MyNameIsTerry]

I think that would be a very bad idea. They are both SSRI's with overlapping methods of action so there are guidelines for how to deal with them to minimise any withdrawal.

See this chart:

http://www.gpnotebook.co.uk/simplepage.cfm?ID=1630863432

Speak to your GP about this as they will need to monitor your switching. They may choose to cross-taper or just stop & start. I think the latter is the most likely.

Be really careful here, there are risks in cross-tapering with Serotonin Syndrome with some of these meds and what you are proposing is very unusual so whether it could bring this risk into play I think would be a question for a pharmacist or specialist.