View Full Version : Morning anxiety - does it ever go?
Hello my lovely friends. Every morning now for the past 8 months I have woken up with anxiety. I have been on Citalopram since 2nd April - 12 weeks @ 10mg and 2 weeks @ 20mg but the morning anxiety has not gone, although it isn't as bad as it used to be.
What I'd like to know is will it eventually go so that I can wake up again without the pounding heart, nausea and nervy feeling I have had every day for months now? I just want to wake up without constantly scanning my body for signs and symptoms of anxiety. Does it ever go away completely?
Hope you are all well x
Hi mojo sorry to hear your still suffering I still get this not every morning but most mornings only lasts around. D half hour before I forget about it then comes back I just try and get on with Wat I'm doing and not pay attention to it that seems to do the trick for me xx
pollynewsome
18-07-16, 14:02
I wake up and first thing I think is do I feel the need to take a deep breath.. usually I don't but because I have thought about I do. I just get on with day but feel low cos I also want to wake up and it not be on my mind.. 14 weeks 20mg and 6 days 25mg.. x
I am 7 weeks on 20mg and the morning anxiety has improved - some days I still get it and try to ignore it - other days it's not there - when I first started cit the anxiety/panic was bad and would last right through the day but as the weeks went by the time that I would not feel so panicky got shorter and shorter to the point that Its quite intermittent with me now - if I do get it it only seems to last an hour or two at most.
My biggest problem is that now I'm worrying about whether it's a temporary improvement and that everything might flair up again - we can't win can we!
That's comforting to know Misty. I've often wondered too if the thought of anxiety will now haunt me for the rest of my days and if I will ever live an "anxiety thought-free" life again.
Before I got this awful thing I never gave anxiety a thought. Sure I'd feel anxious in some situations like a hospital appointment or job interview, but as soon as it was over the anxiety disappeared and it never crossed my mind again. I would wake up in the morning and everything would just be normal, I never had one anxious thought. But now from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed it is on my mind, even when I'm not getting any anxious thoughts - it is always there lurking in the background like a rotten smell. I hate it with a passion, it has ruined my life in the space of 8 months. How can that even be?
Woke up at 4.30am again, it seems to be the time I wake up now regardless of what time I go to bed. It is so hot too and I don't think that helps. Laid there tossing and turning with my mind racing until 6.30am then got up and had a cup of tea. I feel shattered!
Bike Rider
21-07-16, 10:36
Hi Mojo61. Been there and got the t-shirt. YES, it will go. I used to wake up at 2 in the morning having panic attacks, I even once suffered one of my panic attacks whilst dreaming. But like you 4.30 awake and the physical anxiety feeling start, these used to go on till lunch time, but, first my G.P. gave me a Beta-Blocker and said to take it when I wake up, this takes about 2 hours to kick in but stops the physical feelings (stomach churning, cold pins and needles, fright sensation) I can take up to 3 a day as and when needed, this as well as Citalopram ( Beta Blockers slow the heart rate down, fast heart beat causes adrenaline and this is the stomach churning cause). Once these feelings went I was able to start on the thoughts, agree with them, do not fight them as they will win. Thoughts are just opinions and mean very little, try to treat them like this and have alternative, positive ones ready to replace them. Its not easy but keep at it, you will have good, bad, terrible and nice days, but keep at it and you can train your brain down a different track.
I also noticed that staying in bed after waking up seemed to worsen the anxiety, if I got up, and the feeling is to stay in bed, and made a coffee or whatever then read a book or played Bridge on the computer the feeling went away quicker. Mind occupation is the problem we cannot make the brain think of nothing, so it goes for the uppermost thoughts, the worse ones, so if you can put in nice ones instead this will help.
Woke up at 4.30am again, it seems to be the time I wake up now regardless of what time I go to bed. It is so hot too and I don't think that helps. Laid there tossing and turning with my mind racing until 6.30am then got up and had a cup of tea. I feel shattered!
Mojo..how long was it before the morning anxiety and early waking stopped please?
Hi MN, I would say about 10 months altogether.
I've been on Citalopram for 6 weeks now, and only a few days at the max dosage of 40Mg. I still wake up with morning anxiety, but not as bad as before the medication. I take 1MG of clonazepam when I wake up. My doctor said I need that until the medicine kicks in. I have severe anxiety and suffer from panic attacks. The clonazepam is helping me get over this initial increased anxiety from upping the dosage. It's weird because I feel almost normal by evening, and then it starts all over in the morning.
I also go to therapy once a week and really trying to incorporate exercise into my daily routine. It's a struggle to want to exercise, but I'm trying.
Yep, the whole feeling normal in the evening thing is very common. It's so upsetting because you feel that surely you've cracked it now and everything will be back to normal the next day, but come the morning and it's back to square one. That goes, but it takes a long time. It has taken me over a year on 20mg to finally get back on an even keel so don't be too downhearted if it's taking longer than you expected - you just have to persevere and, as Dr Claire Weeks said, allow more time to pass.
Yep, the whole feeling normal in the evening thing is very common. It's so upsetting because you feel that surely you've cracked it now and everything will be back to normal the next day, but come the morning and it's back to square one. That goes, but it takes a long time. It has taken me over a year on 20mg to finally get back on an even keel so don't be too downhearted if it's taking longer than you expected - you just have to persevere and, as Dr Claire Weeks said, allow more time to pass.
It seems to be an eternity. Right now (4.30pm) i feel fine...and have done since midday..but i woke up very very anxious...it was awful.
I officially hate mornings.
Yes, it does, definitely. 10mg/20mg for about 12 weeks, going up to 30mg soon. Still got some low level anxiety but (other than a one-off existential angst hangover!) a definite improvement and elimination of the physical symptoms of panic.
snowghost57
17-05-17, 04:07
I deal with it without medication, I get up and start my morning routine right away. That way I don't sit around and dwell on negative and intrusive thoughts.
hey everyone im new here and wanted to say hi, i'm in the same boat as many others here, i have been taking citalopram 20mg for a few weeks now (but have been on and off antidepressants in general for around 10 years). the morning anxiety is extremely difficult, so like others am really hoping for relief soon. it's frustrating that often by evening time i feel absolutely fine again, but then come morning again the severe anxiety is back. anyway let's hope we get well soon!
yes, I too can relate. I am taking 40 MG of citalopram for severe anxiety. Mornings are terrible for me (mostly during the week). Weekends are as extreme. I wake up feeling shaking, jelly legs, and my heart is beating fast. Can I ask what are the symptoms you feel in the morning?
hi if you were asking me, my feelings are i wake up and what i believe is happening after having a read around about it, is my body is flooded with cortisol/adrenaline, which means i feel very 'bad' (i'm not sure how to explain it exactly, but i would say, 'feel horrible and full of anxiety').
i have very distressing thoughts lying in bed in the morning, unfortunately with some suicidal thinking and just very negative and irrational. i don't have any appetite all day along with an upset stomach, but by late afternoon/evening my appetite comes back and my stomach settles, so i eat then.
i'm not exactly sure what to do, i guess i will just keep taking the 20mg of citalopram each day (i take it after getting out of bed), and hope the morning anxiety does not last too much longer, or at least eases. if it doesn't ease soon perhaps i will have to consider taking a further med alongside it (eg. something for anxiety).
Here's hoping we find relief soon, Ethansmom
Yes, I have those exact thoughts too Sun 43. That's why I take something specifically along side it for anxiety (Klonopin).
hey what dose of klonopin do you take? i have some here somewhere i think (clonazepam)... you take that first thing in the morning only?
panic_down_under
18-05-17, 02:02
hey everyone im new here and wanted to say hi,
Welcome to No More Panic, :welcome:
i have been taking citalopram 20mg for a few weeks now (but have been on and off antidepressants in general for around 10 years).
As your disorder seems to be chronic you may want to consider remaining on antidepressants permanently as there is growing evidence these meds become progressively less effective every time they are stopped and restarted, often requiring higher doses to achieve the previous level of control. They may also produce more severe, and/or different, initial side-effects. Two studies, Amsterdam JD (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27805299), 2016 and Amsterdam, 2009 (http://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/226611) found the likelihood of antidepressants working after each restart drops by between 19-25% (see also: Amsterdam JD (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18694599), 2009; Leykin Y (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17469884), 2007). This applies whether returning to a previously taken antidepressant or a different one.
the morning anxiety is extremely difficult, so like others am really hoping for relief soon. it's frustrating that often by evening time i feel absolutely fine again, but then come morning again the severe anxiety is back.
The medical term for this is diurnal variation (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181887/). Most are more anxious, and/or depressed in the mornings gradually improving as the day goes on. A few, e.g. me, have the opposite, we awake feeling okay but the anxiety/depression gradually builds during the day.
The good news is it indicates your disorder is not at the severe end of the scale as the severely affected feel like crap 24/7, or if you were feeling like this before taking the med then that it is beginning to work.
Unfortunately, being the tricky meds they are (in the 'Tricky Dicky' Nixon sense), antidepressants tend to boost mood at the better times of the day before they begin having a positive affect on the worst.
hey thanks for the great information :)
i was really lucky this morning in that for the first time since a month or so ago starting on citalopram, this morning i didnt wake up with severe morning anxiety. i did have it a bit, but not like i have had the last week or two. also my stomach is better today - i have had an upset stomach for many weeks.
i will certainly stay on citalopram; i tended to stop meds in the past if i felt the med i was taking wasnt working for me (this is after giving it many months though, and adjusting the dose), or if the side effects were too troublesome (eg. if a med made me sleep half the day, i couldnt be doing with that). if a med causes me very bad restless legs syndrome thats another reason i wont take it, or if my sleep is too disrupted (in my case vivid dreams/over-dreaming which makes you feel exhausted the next day).
hope everyone is doing ok, i know it is a very difficult road but you can and will feel better as long as you keep going and put up with the initial adjustment phase which can last weeks or months. one month ago i was very depressed, anxious and suicidal, but im feeling better now today. we can all recover and move forward but need time, so we have to not let those negative thoughts get to us and keep reminding ourselves it is temporary, and everyone can and will get well again
Hi,
I'm just checking in with everyone, and wondering if you are still having morning anxiety with the Citalopram. I still have it (on an off). It seems to be a lot worse during times of stress, work related issues, or just feeling down and overwhelmed. I have been taking Citalopram for 4 months now- each time having to increase the dosage, and now i'm finally at 40MG. I've been at this dosage for 9 weeks now. I still have low level anxiety and wake up feeling like my body is flooded with adrenaline-- buzzing, shaking, etc. It usually settles after I get up and do some deep breathing. I also take clonazepam daily.
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