Emetophobia and have been prescribed Citalopram

[haylea]

Im a suffering Emet for 20 years and for the past 6 months it has overtook my life.
I cant go a day without thinking about germs and bugs and its become like a habit to me now.
i find the thoughts just pop into my head.
It now got to a point where i suffering with chest pains and heart palpitations so i went to the doctors to see if there was anything wrong.
my heart is ok and its all due to my anxiety that im getting these pains.
i just broke down in front of the doctor and he's now prescribed me Citalopram.
Ive tried CBT but i couldnt connect with the woman who i was talking to so i finished it.
im think about hypnotherapy but dont know if it would work or not.
i just want the daily thoughts to go and i cant start living every day without fear again.
just a question about these tablets,
how many people (especially Emets) have been on them and they have helped?
ive read through the side effects and they can make you feel sick and sometimes make the anxiety worse which is putting me off taking them.
should i just hold it out and find other ways to help me through this anxiety?
how about St Johns wort?
Camomile tea is helping me at night so im thinking do i stay along the herbal route?
any comments or opinions are more than welcome

[KeeKee]

Please don't take Citalopram and St Johns Wort at the same time as this can increase your chances of developing Serotonin Syndrome.
A friend of mine has been prescribed this (Citalopram) for OCD and says she feels a lot better, may be worth a try ;-)
I have been prescribed in for depression and am currently on day 8. Fingers crossed it is better than Fluoxetine, which I had been taking for almost 5 years.

---------- Post added at 13:31 ---------- Previous post was at 13:30 ----------

Also, up until now I haven't had a single side effect. No nausea, no bad dreams, no sweating absolutely nothing!

[Sparkle1984]

I did have emetophobia when I was about 12 or 13, but for me it was mainly a fear of being sick in public, which had been triggered by me being sick in the science lab at high school at the start of a lesson. Often I would be sitting in lessons at school and sometimes I'd feel so scared that I'd be sick that I'd start feeling nauseous! For me, the phobia wore off after a few months. These days, my anxiety has moved onto other themes.

But to be suffering this for 20 years is a very long time, and I can see from what you've written that it's now affecting your day to day life, so it's clear that you need some form of help, whether it's meds or therapy or some other means of support.

With regards to your CBT, if you feel that you didn't connect with the therapist then that could be the reason why you didn't get much benefit from it. Perhaps you can ask your doctor if you could have another chance, but this time ask to see a different therapist?

I've taken citalopram before (and am due to start again tonight, due to a relapse) and it didn't make me feel sick, although I did lose my appetite for the first few days. Within about a week I was over the worst of the side effects and began to feel a lot better. I felt good for the following 6 months - I think the reason why I've relapsed is because I came off them too soon (I was only on them for 6 months).

What dose have you been given? If you do want to take it, you could halve the tablets for the first few days while you get used to them.

As for St John's Wort, I've heard this is mainly for mild depression, so I'm not so sure if it would work so well for anxiety/phobias. I've never tried it myself though. However I do know that it is available over the counter, but it mustn't be taken at the same time as prescription meds (as KeeKee above mentioned).

It is good that chamomile tea is helping you at night. Maybe you should try it in the daytime as well and see if it helps?