Re: Hello again! Advice and support needed
Originally Posted by
KayMK
So I was taking 40mg fluoxetine and suffered sons extreme side effects at the beginning. I had no intention of stopping taking it.
But as per my normal pattern, I felt so well that I just kept forgetting to take it and thought well OK that's a way to wean off or reduce the dose. I'm so annoyed with myself.
Some weeks I maybe only took it on 2 days.
While fluoxetine can be a little more forgiving of missed doses than other SSRIs these meds don't work if they are not taken. Even worse missing doses frequently will increase the risk of them not working at all at any dose. These are meds than must be taken daily, every day, with only very occasional fails. Sorry, but there is no way around this. There is a slow-release once a week version available if that helps, but it still needs to be taken every week, week after week.
Is it likely that the fluoxetine will need to settle again considering I hadn't fully stopped taking it?
I'm really struggling to know I will get better.
Antidepressants don't directly ease anxiety (or depression) in the way say aspirin eases a headache. They work by stimulating the growth of new brain cells (neurogenesis) and it is these new cells and the connections they forge which provide the therapeutic response. Your infrequent dosing seems to have stopped this process and it may take some weeks to restore it. It takes about 7 weeks for new cells to grow and mature, though they may begin producing some positive responses a week or two earlier. How .long have you been back on the 40mg dose?
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The opinions expressed above are based on my observations and, where applicable, interpretation of cited data and are general in nature. Consult your physician before acting on anything stated.