is it usual to have "blips" whilst on citalopram?

[joannap]

hi all. i have now been on citalopram for 8 weeks - still early days i know but by week 5 i was feeling pretty much recovered. i then had a few stressful weeks with financial and work worries etc and feel i have slipped back somewhat. i am now thinking things like - oh my god i am going back to square 1 again (and i never want to feel like that again!!!). how do others feel citalopram works for them? do they still have periods of anxiety/depression etc? thanks x

[honeybee3939]

Hi Joanna

While i was on Citalopram they did take the edge of the anxiety but it was therapy combined with medication that helped me most.

What strength of Citalopram are you taking? Often alot of people start on a lower dose 10mg-20mg then usually up the dose after a few weeks, maybe a good idea to have a word with your Gp.
:hugs:
Andrea
xxxxx

[nomorepanic]

Try to remember that medication won't cure you alone. You need to be making lifestyle changes at the same time to overcome panic/anxiety.

Can you get some therapy as well at the same time?

[joannap]

hi guys

i am on 20mg - my doctor wants me to stay at this dose and has said there would have to be very good reasons to increase it. i am having my first session of cbt on wednesday. can't believe i feel so awful again after having started to feel so good.

[familymatters]

Hi Joanna,
I am new to this forum and am here because I too seem to be having a bit of a blip. Been taking 20mg for 6 weeks now, weeks 4 and 5 I felt quite good, happy, relaxed and almost my old self, but this week has been awful, I've been really anxious, and depressed, not sleeping and no appetite, back to square one it feels like. I have just started my period and so think that this may have something to do with it but even so the contrast does seem to be enormous. It feels even harder to have bad times when youve sampled feeling better. I wonder if my dose needs to be increased or worry that maybe these just arent gonna work for me. Altho Ive been on them before and they were really good. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thankyou.

[joannap]

hi familymatters

god - me and you could be the same person! that;s what i was like. weeks 5 and 6 - i started to feel really good and then for the last week i have had trouble sleeping (have been getting up in the middle of the night for a few hours) and been all anxious and depressed again - its horrible feeling like you are sliding back insn't it?!

i too have just started my period and was on the phone crying to my mum today - she thinks some of it is down to that but i am not sure.

have you started to rush around again like i did? i started to feel so well i threw myself back into normal life - work/shopping etc and i must admit i had started to feel a bit stressed again - i wonder if we have pushed ourselves too soon?

i was on citalopram before - they worked so well i was only on them a few months. however - i had my tonsils out during that time and so had about a months rest of doing nothing so was much more relaxed! i do look back and realise that whenever i have been on medication - i have still always had things to worry about and focus on whereas this time i haven;t so i haven't got anything to push my anxiety into. agood thing maybe - but it means i really have to deal with it.

i was thinking about upping my dose but i suppose the worry is there that i don;t learn to deal with the anxiety but am using pills to masks it - i don;t want to take 30mg a day and then find that even that doesn;t work!

i have started again so to speak - early nights/lots of down time and exercise and good diet and hope i feel better soon. let me know how you go on. :hugs:

[joannap]

ps - i am sure a lot of people would say we are still early days on the meds. also - my mum pointed out that i probably felt a vast improvement because i had felt so bad but the real recovery may take a lot longer.

[CliveL]

I am on 60mg of citalopram and still have good and bad days

[samc100]

I had blips when on Citalopram. And remember if you are under stress ( and Christmas seems to have barrels full of stress) that it is going to sneak up on you even if you aren't suffering with anxiety. I used to try to build in more 'me' time when it was getting a little hairy.

You are not back to square one - because each blip you learn more on how to handle it so don't worry ( I know - easier said than done).

Hope you feel calmer soon.xxx

[familymatters]

Hi
In need of some advice and reassurance please.
Been on 20 mg now for almost 3 months went thru the usual awful side effects for about the first 3 weeks. Then started to feel my mood lift but since then I have been up n down like a yo yo. I've had periods of like a week to 10 days of feeling almost normal and feeling like I,m better and can get back to my life. But then out of the blue my mood just crashes n I feel as bad as I ever did. Of course tho it feels even more devastating because the feelings contrast with the good feelings I've just been having. Does that make sense? This has happened about 4 times now n I feel at the end of my tether. I've made an appt to see the gp tomorrow cos I'm wondering whether I need to up the meds but I'm sooo scared of going thru all those awful side effects again. I just dont know what to do for the best.

[samc100]

If you do up the meds remember the side effects are usually not so bad cos' iyou already have the chemicals in your system.

I know I had blip and I can't always explain why. But the drugs won't completely stop panic and worry - they just level you out so it is easier to cope. Are you getting any other help e.g. counselling.

[Allye]

It is definitely a mixture I think. I have only been on this for a couple of weeks, at 10 mg (rising to 20 mg this weekend). I started taking it whilst on holiday and had minimal side effects (just one PA in fact in the middle of Marks & Spencers sale and a few extra palpitations). However since coming back to work this week I have felt lowsy, anxious, hysterical etc etc. I do not think that the meds have probably had time to work fully – and I am not up to full dose – I chose to start on 10 mg as I did not want any potential side effects to ruin our hols - but at least I can now see where my anxiety and depression may come from and have made a conscious decision to do something about it!!.

[familymatters]

Thanks sam
yes I am having psychotherapy, also trying a SAD light and am working thru a CBT on line course.(when I feel up to it) So I feel like Im doing everything I can but still not getting better quickly enough. I will discuss how I feel with the GP and see what she thinks but I'm scared that I will never get better.

[samc100]

Hi FamilyMatters - I fully recognise that not getting better quick enough. I know exactly how you feel. I found that once I accepted that I was not going to get better quickly ( I really thought I'd wake up and be fine - doh!) then that was the turning point for me. And even then it was very slow but bit by bit I improved. I didn't notice but my family and friends did and would tell when I hit the down side and would sob at my inability to do life that in fact I had made progress.

And now I look back to last year and find I am not the girl sat at the dining table rocking in silence scared to pieces. I am much more me again having a life. It's not ideal. Still got stuff to work through for the long term.

I bet you are making more progress than you realise. Try to accept it's a long journey. But will be worth it.

And do have the chat with your GP. But you will get better. You'll have down days too but you will learn how to deal with those gradually and life will seen much brighter for you xxx

[familymatters]

Thanks Sam, I do have a problem being impatient always have had, maybe this illness will teach me somethings. Went to see GP yesterday and she has upped dosage to 30mg so here goes, took increased dose last night and feel a little woozy and on edge but not too bad so keep your fingers crossed for me.
Thankyou for your support its appreciated

[gerri]

Hi
I'm feeling exactly the same as you. Been on 20mg for 6 weeks, but feeling very low again. It's good to know someone kmows how i feel. Hope things improve for you soon.
Take care
Gerri

[oldhandatthis]

Came across this thread and wondered how you guys are doing now? I am in week 9, on 20mg for 4 weeks then upped to 30mg, had a good improvement for a while but the last few days have felt I am slipping backwards, so I suppose it is what you call a blip.
Very anxious today, have tried relaxation tapes etc but no help.

[Asha1979]

Hi just thought I would share with you that I have been on citalopram for 5 months so far and it has not been without the occasional blip. You just need to keep telling yourself during the blip that it is only temporary and that things will indeed improve very shortly. Thats what I do and then soon enough I notice that I'm fine again, don't worry, it will work out in the end!xxx

[Old School]

Hi.

I am new to this forum, but have been lurking for a while!

I have been on Cipramil drops (40mg - 1ml daily) for 7 weeks now, and am not certain whether they are helping me or not! I certainly don't feel "perked" up or "happy" by any means. I suppose I thought I'd feel less anxious than what I do, less stressed, and not be so consumed with my many bouts of OCD and anxiety attacks. These seem as prominent as ever, unfortunately, but on the plus side, I think I do strangely feel a little less depressed - although I'm reluctant to admit that, because frankly, I'm not sure if I do because of the meds, or whether it's just my subconsciousness telling me that I should feel less depressed BECAUSE of the meds!! I guess I kind of feel a bit numb - sort of a feeling of nothingness, really. I don't feel like crying or pouring my heart out to loved ones any longer, which I think must be a good sign. I don't feel on the verge of a nervous breakdown any more, which must also be good! However, I guess I expected to feel...well...a bit more cheerful than what I do. I'd love to be able to smile and wake up one morning and think "Hey, the world's not so bad after all". Yet I just can't, because I don't feel that.

My appetite is back, and I do sleep at night for a while, though I always wake up at about 2am needing the loo, then again at about 4am - but seem to have no problems drifting back off to sleep again, so can't grumble too much.

I saw my GP today, and described my feelings to her. I did wonder (and, indeed, asked her) whether she felt I'd tried my best, but the drug perhaps just wasn't working for me. She was of the impression that even though I wasn't skipping through fields of daffodils and singing "The Hills Are Alive With The Sound of Music", at least I seemed more stable and able discuss my feelings and thoughts than when I had originally seen her - whereby I self admit I was a complete mess.

The upshot was that my GP was reluctant to increase my dose, because she didn't want to disrupt the fact that the side effects had at last stabilised, and she felt increasing the dose may incur additional side effects. She suggested a further month on Cipramil to see how I go, and a further appointment with her then. I am happy enough to do this, but wondered whether I'm just delaying the inevitable, and whether this is the right medication for me?

I suppose the question I am asking myself is....how do I know whether this is actually working for me or not, or whether I am subconsciously telling myself I feel a bit better because I know I'm on the drugs? This is what I'm finding really hard to gauge at the moment, and I wondered whether anyone else shares my weird worries?!!!!

By the way, it's very interesting and warming reading everyone else's experiences. Makes me feel a little less "out on a limb".

Good luck all.

Old School.