View Full Version : Citalopram, how long do I have to wait?!
Worrywort80
01-04-19, 12:05
Hi, I’ve been on Citalopram 10mg per day for 10 days now. I’ve not noticed any obvious reduction in symptoms of anxiety or panic from my HA. I have noticed some side effects (nausea, although hard to judge if this is drug or HA), and delay in reaching orgasm. However my anxiety seems unaffected. I still see random flashes of light in my central vision daily, and every time I see something I can’t explain (or can explain but only after a few seconds!) I get a massive panic reaction, causing heat throughout my upper body, sweat on my palms and forehead, and a sense of doom.
My questions are, should this get any better with Citalopram? Will I respond differently if and when it takes some effect? If so how long do I have to wait?
Thanks everyone, these light flashes are ruining my happiness in life :(
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Ten days is nothing, unfortunately; it can easily take about a month for it to kick in.
Worrywort80
01-04-19, 13:24
Ten days is nothing, unfortunately; it can easily take about a month for it to kick in.
Thanks Blueiris. Will it be obvious as to the effect? I’m just thinking at which point I say to the GP to up the dose or switch to another drug?
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Not obvious, exactly, you'll just realise at some point that the anxiety isn't preventing you doing the things you want to any more.
I also just started citalopram about a week ago but I have only been taking 5mg. I've noticed a big reduction in anxiety but I've been feeling like really zoned out and zombie like. Anyone know if this will pass?
The stoned feeling definitely passes, it just takes a little while. I think it had gone for me by the week mark, but everybody processes these things differently.
Is 5mg possibly to small of a dose?
Could be, but you can always raise it? I've not heard of anybody being started on less than 10mg.
Well the dose is 10mg but I have been taking half to possibly avoid side effects. If I'm already feeling like this now I cant imagine what it would do taking 10mg..
I started on 10mg and I didn't have a massive problem with it, but I know I've been lucky. The thing is, you'll have to go through the side effects again when you step up anyway.
Yeah that's true so maybe I should step up to 10mg tonight?
I'd check in with your GP first, but there's no reason not to.
Thank you for the help iris!
Worrywort80
01-04-19, 15:11
I think they normally do 10, 20, 40mg amounts. My brother is on 20mg per day for the last 9 years without any issues, but they said to me to start on the lowest dose which was 10mg. I’d rather that was enough for me to be honest, hence waiting each day to feel a little better and less panicked by what I see
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Even if you don't, there are any number of other meds and all of them work for some people.
Yeah I'm definitely going to up it to 10mg tonight. I'm feeling really sad and wanting to cry for no reason today..
I'm sorry, I hope it passes for you soon.
Worrywort80
23-04-19, 08:16
So a quick update, and a question for people. I’m about 5 weeks in now, and the last couple of weeks I’ve felt a lot better. Particularly last week when away on holiday with my family, I felt ‘normal’ again which was such a relief. I thought I was over it and Citalopram was the miracle drug I needed. Anyway yesterday I had a wobble (worrying about my peripheral vision again, but for no real reason), and it took hold of me for the rest of the day. I slept really poorly last night. It’s most likely because I knew I was going back to work today, and those ‘Sunday night blues’ after a break sent me down, but I’m so gutted that it affected me so easily after I thought I had it beaten. Now I’m worried that the Citalopram has stopped working. Does this happen still with SSRI’s? Should I increase my dose to 20mg?
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Everybody has wobbles occasionally - the meds won't make everything perfect, and if you do have a blip it won't disappear in an instant. Don't worry, be kind to yourself and wait it out - it's a long road, there's going to be a bump or two along the way.
Worrywort80
24-04-19, 08:44
Thanks for that. Why do you think about upping my dose? Does it take another 4-6 weeks to kick in again?
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That's actually a really good question. I can't claim I noticed a massive improvement when I raised my dose, just a general, gradual smoothing out of things - it was much more gradual for me.
As usual, though, I have to point out that everybody's experiences are different.
Worrywort80
24-04-19, 09:48
Did you find you got any side affects when you upped your dose at all?
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Yes, I had broadly the same as when I started - a couple of days of feeling a bit groggy and stoned, plus a week or so of nausea.
On the second day after raising my dose I took a single afternoon off work; I could probably have coped but I'm lucky and I have a very understanding manager.
One thing I have noticed is that I'm continuing to get the super-colourful, super-vivid SSRI dreams, but they very rarely bother me.
sollythegolly
24-04-19, 18:24
Therapeutic dose of Citalopram is generally set at 20mg daily. Some people can tolerate this as a start up dose, but others have to be weaned onto that amount over a number of weeks.
As as we are all different, we each respond to the effects of this medication differently. Some suffer the entire list of possible side effects, others no side effects whatsoever.
Not intending to put you off here, but my experience of Citalopram involved a start up and maintenance dose of 20mg daily. I then suffered the full range of side effects, with no apparent beneficial effects until about Week 12. However, it worked for me as it has for many others. I just had to take my lumps as they came. Just as I was thinking about going back to the GP to tell him that Citalopram wasn’t working out for me, it suddenly did.
Clearly, if it isn’t working for you, or you feel that any side effects, or a seeming lack of progress is intolerable, then you should return to your GP and have a good discussion about the way forward.
I do, in all sincerity, wish you a full and speedy recovery.
Stay strong.
Great advice from sollythegolly
People can be on up to 40mg/day (however, for oral drops this is different, 8mg is equivalent to 10mg tablet. Max 32mg/day using oral drops)
The other thing I'd say (and this is just my opinion) is people with anxiety probably should not read the PIL (patient information leaflet). I think this can make them see a particular side effect, which worries them, and then causes them anxiety and not to take the medication - or to take the medication and then end up "experiencing" the side effect; all due to the "Nocebo effect" (which I've talked about on here before)
Generally speaking any "new" side effects experienced when increasing dose should be transient and its a matter of "battling it out"
Good luck and speak to your pharmacist or GP at any time you feel necessary whilst on treatment
good luck
suemarieee
25-04-19, 07:23
Hey
I'm in a similar situation to you. I've been on citalopram for 7 weeks now (2 weeks on 10mg and 5 weeks on 20mg) and not noticing any positive effects yet. I'm really starting to worry it's not going to work :(
Worrywort80
25-04-19, 08:17
Very helpful comments thank you. I will certainly stick with it for now. I stepped up to 20mg this morning (my GO gave me enough supply to do that myself if I wanted) and I have an appointment Monday with the GP to talk about how it’s going. I think I got nausea when I first started with Citalopram, but I find it hard to distinguish between a side effect and the nausea I get from my anxiety!
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