day 6, is it normal to feel fine then suddenly sharp downs

[evita]

Hi all,

now on day 6 and its been such a rollercoaster. Past few days have been sort of ok during the day, a bit lethargic etc but no panic attacks. Problem is in the evening I get really bad anxiety attacks, feeling really desperate, scared and hopeless. These attacks come thundering down in a sec and take about 2 hours to subside, and I just cry uncontrollably. During this moments I swear that i will not take this med anymore, cause i dont feel like myself,, feel trapped and it makes me feel like Im losing it. has anybody else had really bad ups and downs during the first weeks? And by downs I mean really desperate hopelesness and just being really scared. Compared to spending time eg earlier today feeling ok and fine. Cause took a oxazepam am now calming down a bit but still feel anxious.
Thank you once more for any replies, I really want to continue this med but of course scared if it is making things worse. or do I just think that it makes it worse..:wacko:

[alias_kev]

I would say this is quite possible. If your think about it on day 6 you are about half way into the quoted startup phase. They normally talk about it taking 14 days for the medication to do its best work and for the side effects to damp down. Some of this is simple biochemistry, some the balance of absorption and loss of the medication, and some the body getting used to the changes.

So at day 6 you'd gain a positive hit of the drug during the day (assuming you take it mornings) and then fall off the best levels as the day ends. If I recall correctly natural serotonin levels follow a similar rhythm (or fall when it get dark) so in effect you take a double hit from both your body and the drug.

This also means that you could feel a kind of withdrawal each day as both the medication and your serotonin falls. That's probably why it takes a while to get a proper benefit from all these types of medications.

It is possible to suffer anxiety (!) as a side effect of this sort of med (which is ironic I suppose) so if these crises were to continue after the 14 days you ought to talk to your doctor. Similarly if they are over whelming you. Some people get so bad that they need to stop but usually even that ought to be done slowly.

Keep talking to us.