would you get as bad side effects from starting at 5mg, as you do at 20mg????

[Bageywagey]

petrified of these tablets after taking one 20mg a few years ago - never felt so bad and couldn't stop shaking, couldn't sleep, felt so weird and like I was in a nightmare. Wondered if I just took 5mg for a bit if these feelings would be as bad as they were on 20mg - really want to feel normal.

I must say though that on the day where I took one and thought I was going mad, GP gave me diazepam to bring me down - really worked, so what if I took a half or quarter of a 2mg diazepam to get me through effects??? Please help xxx

[smiley]

hi bagey wagey i take citalopram 40 mg now but when i 1st started i took 10 mg to get the side effects out the way i also took 5 mg diazepam as advised by my gp then after a week i upped the meds to 20 mg with absolutely no side effects at all and after about 3 weeks i stopped the diazepam altogether, i will also add that the citalopram have helped me immensely and totally changed my life so i would say speak to the gp explain that 20 mg had this affect and would he advise you starting on 10 and upping them gradually

hope this post is helpful for you and feel free to pm me if you need any help

take care

[PoppyC]

Hi
I started off on low doses of Citalopram and very gradually increased over the weeks with supervision off my gp.
My gp said at the time that it is better to start off Citalopram on a very low dose - 5mg or 10mg then go straight onto 20mg as the side effects would be less. The body has to get used to the medication gradually.
Citalopram has really helped me and I would not be without them now, compared to how I was over 7 months ago, and I was so scared to take them.
I now take 40mg but moving to 60 shortly.
I had side effects on/off for up to 2 months but you get side effects with any medication and it was worth all the side effects to be where I am now.
I am not 100% recovered and still do plenty of self help as anti depressants are not miracle cures but I am so much better than what I was.
I hope it all goes well for you!

[STEPHYUNO]

Hi there, I have been in totally the same position in the past with fluoxetine, seroxat and now citalopram, doctors can only prescribe and advise on what you tell them, the truth is that you know far more about how you feel than them, me or anyone else. I was advised to take 20 mg per day, but I only take 10mg as I have worked out that that works best for me on balance and balance is the key word I beleive and you can take control by finding your own balance.
of course everyone experiences low moods and so forth in differing ways, so find what works for you, for example I take my 10mg between 2 oclock and 4 oclock in the day as not only my body has told me that, but it fits better with my life and routines. In conjunction with a bit of excercise and reasonable diet, sure I still have my low points and unhelpful thoughts, but this structure helps me and you will find a combination of things that work best for you, trust yourself as well as others, all the best Stephen.

[KK77]

A lot of Drs start patients on the usual therapeutic dose, and in the case of citalopram it's 20mg. But I agree with others here that starting on a lower dose of maybe 10mg is best, esp if you've had a bad reaction to meds in the past. I had a really bad reaction to fluoxetine once and my GP said that usually in this case she'd double the dose because it wasn't the drug causing this but my "illness"! I asked her if she'd taken antidepressants before and she was shocked at my question. I was really angry (and in a state) and told her to reduce my dose and she did without hesitation. We know our bodies and how we feel and the Dr isn't always right, so I would say go with your instincts and reduce to a level your body feels comfortable with and slowly increase to the therapeutic level over a few weeks...

[gypsywomen]

2mg diazepam wont harm you they will relax you

[Bageywagey]

thank you all so much - wish that all that time ago I'd been given the lower dose coz I may never have been through what I've been through now, but hindsight is a wonderful thing - need to get over the fear of taking them and give it a bit more thought but really appreciate your replies xxx

[burberrygirl72]

my doc to gave me 10mg i took 5 mg for a month and now started the 10mg no side affects at all just bit panicky but i was getting tht befor so im not to worried x