Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

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23-09-21, 23:12
Aundremyles

Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

I'm on 40mg of Prozac on week 3 for extreme anxiety, depression, and stress because I let it go unmanaged for so long. Like crying every day, fear of dying, multiple panic attacks, etc.

I'm just wondering when I should feel a difference, lately it's felt like it's made my anxiety worse, but I have hope.
24-09-21, 00:11
panic_down_under

Re: Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aundremyles

I'm on 40mg of Prozac on week 3 for extreme anxiety, depression, and stress because I let it go unmanaged for so long. Like crying every day, fear of dying, multiple panic attacks, etc.

You were started on 40mg/day, or have been on 20mg for a while and the dose has been increased because the anxiety and depression worsened?

Quote:

I'm just wondering when I should feel a difference, lately it's felt like it's made my anxiety worse, but I have hope.

It typically takes 4-12 weeks for an AD to kick-in with fluoxetine likely to become effective at the longer end of the range because of its very long half-life (it takes about 30 days for plasma levels to stabilise). Most ADs will initially make anxiety (also depression) worse because of the greater serotonin activity. Bio-feedback mechanisms usually reduce serotonin synthesis and expression after a few weeks and the heightened anxiety then diminishes, but may return for a while after dose increases.
24-09-21, 00:35
Aundremyles

Re: Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

Started on 20. Had increased and unmanaged anxiety. Went to 40. Got extremely bad anxiety. I'm supposed to go to 60 tomorrow.
24-09-21, 09:50
nomorepanic

Re: Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

Hi

This is just a courtesy reply to let you know that your post was moved from its original place to a sub-forum that is more relevant to your issue.

This is nothing personal - it just enables us to keep posts about the same problems in the relevant forums so other members with any experience with the issues can find them more easily.

Please also read this post:

http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=213239
24-09-21, 10:09
panic_down_under

Re: Prozac - What dosage and week finally made a difference?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aundremyles

Started on 20. Had increased and unmanaged anxiety.

As per my earlier post, ADs (especially SSRIs and SNRIs) often worsen anxiety at the beginning which is why most treatment guidelines recommend starting them at half the usual minimum therapeutic dose for anxiety/panic patients, so at 10mg for fluoxetine.

Quote:

Went to 40. Got extremely bad anxiety. I'm supposed to go to 60 tomorrow.

Increasing the dose that early will have caused the heightened anxiety and increasing it again so soon will likely only make it worse. Also, 60mg is the recommended maximum dose. It is very unusual for new patients to be prescribed maximum doses so soon. Do you have a past history of requiring high AD doses to get good results? Who has prescribed this, your GP, or a psychiatrist?