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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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.
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.
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
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 :(
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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