Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with SSRI

Managing the damage. But how?

Anonymous — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:05:38 -0800

Anti-anxiety medication: blessing or cop-out? About a year ago, I had my first panic attack. It didn't happen in response to any specific situation or trigger; I believe it was more the aggregate response to a lifetime of small but persistent stressors which I could no longer deny or put aside. After a few more episodes, I started seeing a psychiatrist, who eventually put me on 10mg/day of Celexa on the grounds that I was over-thinking myself into a spiral about it and needed to see what it felt like to live without the obsessive, tail-eating thoughts that anxiety disorders produce.

Now, I also have a close friend who has suffered from anxiety his whole life. He has experienced many hundreds more attacks than I have (in addition to managing other factors such as OCD and social anxiety). He, however, has chosen to forego medication altogether, choosing instead to conduct his own personal form of CBT with no medical or psychiatric input.

While I believe he's made very good strides through his own method, and I can admire him for his dedication to staring this thing down through sheer force of will, I also see him succumbing to it again rather more than he wants to admit. I trust his years of experience in this matter, but it seems to me that he ultimately forces himself to suffer unnecessarily.

I feel the Celexa has allowed me to "get out of my own way" and lighten my psychological burden in a way I'm not sure I've ever actually experienced before. Also, panic episodes are so debilitating that I think I've occasionally become sick (flu-like) from the sheer physiological drainage they cause when I let them run roughshod over me. He, meanwhile, believes that drugs simply turn people into "robots" and that they only enable people to hide from themselves and their issues indefinitely. He sees medication as a cop-out and an act of emotional cowardice. He also thinks there is no way to actually confront or reconcile panic disorder while on medication, believing that direct exposure to panic episodes is the only thing that allows you to get comfortable with and work through them.

I recognize the necessity of CBT and working with a therapist to address the individual underlying issues and stressors that cause anxiety triggers to begin with. And I can admire the purity of my friend's method, even if I think he'd get a lot farther by doing it in a more guided capacity outside the vacuum of his own mind. But I can't see any downside (cultural judgments aside) to keeping the attacks at bay through medication until I can afford actual CBT.

So, what's the reality of the situation? Is the use of medication for anxiety disorder just a cheat? Is the best thing just to suck up and let the panic batter you around until you can retrain your own brain? Obviously I'm also dealing with the feeling of being judged by my friend, but I'd like to know what the latest word is from the medical community on the subject. Articles and citations are endless on the Web, but I'd sorta like a boildown from someone with a better handle on reliable information.

Tell me about your experience on Citalopram (Celexa / Cipramil).

SebastianKnight — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:58:53 -0800

I'm about to start a course of Citalopram (Celexa / Cipramil). What should I know in advance? Despite some serious misgivings I've decided to try antidepressant medication for some ongoing depression/anxiety issues. I've been prescribed 20mg of Citalopram to be taken every morning and will be seeing my GP (in the UK) for supervision at regular intervals. I'm hoping that after a few weeks my sleep pattern will be back under control and my judgement less impaired by low mood, anxiety, and exhaustion. If that works out then I'll be in a better position to tackle any underlying issues and generally stop making so many dumb decisions. Here's hoping, anyway.

If you have any experience on Citalopram (Celexa) or similar SSRIs, is there anything you wish you'd known before starting? I'm aware of the potential side-effects and withdrawal symptoms and at this point I'm prepared to take my chances. I'm most interested in your thoughts on the first 8 weeks or so of being medicated. If you'd like to add a comment anonymously, send me a mefimail and I'll paste it in below.

I'll take the first dose this Saturday after asking a GP friend for a second opinion. Can you think of anything I should ask that hasn't been covered above?

(I'm not seeing a therapist, but I am going to start working through Feeling Good as soon as I can. Previously I've used online CBT but found it overwhelming. If you want to talk about therapy, could we do that by mefimail instead? My diet and exercise regime are okay and pretty crappy, respectively. My family/social support network is good.)

Do I start working the graveyard shift?

hiteleven — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:28:36 -0800

How do I get better sleep on Cipralex/Lexapro? I've been taking a 10mg daily dose of Cipralex (Lexapro) for around 5 weeks now. It has yet to "kick in", and the side effects are pretty minimal, all told. But since I've been on the drug I've been getting terrible sleep, and it seems to be getting worse.

I'm having a number of issues sleep-wise. For one, no matter how much sleep I get, I never feel rested. I've tried sleep intervals ranging from 7-9+ hours and no matter how much I get, getting up and out of bed is tortuous. A cup or two of coffee usually boosts me for a short time, but by late morning I'm back to being tired again.

Afternoons are pretty awful. I feel exhausted, but if I nap, I often wake up feeling even worse. I sort of feel hung over, minus the nausea. And I used to be excellent at napping, in that I could take a short nap and feel rested for the rest of the day. Now, however, once I get to sleep I feel like staying there, and getting back upright feels horrible.

Lately, moreover, to compliment my exhaustion, I've been getting awful insomnia. Once my afternoon exhaustion goes away, I feel overly awake for the rest of the night, and can't seem to fall asleep until after 2am. Night seems to be the only time that I actually do feel awake. And note that even if I can get myself a full night's sleep (by sleeping in until 10-11am, say), I still wake up feeling exhausted. Cutting out the napping doesn't really seem to help, either, though I could try harder at that.

One more issue is that my dreams have become quite vivid and strange, which could be a major contributing factor.

Long story short, I was wondering if anyone on this drug has suffered similar symptoms, and if they had any success treating them and getting better sleep. I'm up for any sort of remedy that will help me either sleep at night or stay awake during the day. Thanks in advance.

Note that, on my doctor's advice, I've been taking my dose around mid-morning in order to cut back on the vivid dreaming. I am willing to change that, of course.

Falling in love, with caveats.

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:31:29 -0800

Falling in love pretty quickly. First time for a lot of things. Some issues are coming up. I'm mid 30s, male. About 5 weeks ago, I met a really lovely girl online. We've both done a lot of online dating and both are pretty sick of it. Things progressed quickly and many things are really wonderful.

Namely:
Awesome sense of humor overlap
Pretty low stress and high fun percentages
We're able to communicate openly serious stuff
We both find each other really attractive
Conversation is easy
We're both insanely affectionate people and whenever we're together, which is often, we're always touching

Basically in almost every sense I'm smitten with her.

But of course, there is the sex.

She's on anti-depressants which she says limits her libido. I'm kind of a horn-dog. But the thing is, there isn't a total lack of sex by any means. The first few times were really not so amazing, but it's been getting better little by little, to the point where it's bordering on pretty good. She's not prudish or hesitant about things once they get rolling.

But she rarely initiates things. I told her that I really don't want her to push herself into doing things that she doesn't want to do, and that I want to give her time to figure out herself in relation to the medications. But there is a hesitancy about what happens between us that frightens me a bit. On the bright side of things, sex between us is getting better and I think she's enjoying it more. On the dark side of things, it's still not something that I think she's super interested in, and I worry that after this honeymoon period is over, she might be even less interested, and at that point I might have even more intense feelings for her that would make it even more hard to make a decision about this.

The other hard factor to take into account is that neither of us have been in long term relationships very much. I'm not sure if my crazy desire would stand up in a long term relationship, and maybe I'd be happy with less. And I'm not sure that she wouldn't maybe get interested in sex more in a loving situation where she felt comfortable with someone. From knowing her a little bit, I think that may be quite possible but I'm not sure.

Basically I'm falling in love with this person, and I'm excited by her. Things are better between us than in any relationship I've ever been in, and I think she feels the same. But I'm terrified of being in a sexless, more or less friendship kind of marriage. I definitely want to give this more time, maybe a lot more, to figure out how things settle. We've talked this over quite a bit and I think she's very interested in having us both feel comfortable sexually and otherwise. As I understand it, before the meds, her libido was quite a bit stronger, but it's never been crazy strong.

My basic question is: My instinct is that this could be a really great thing, and I want to give it my all and hope that through communication and time, we'll figure out what works between us (because things are on the border of being ok already and we haven't really known each other that long). But I also wonder if I'm not setting us up for heart break down the line by letting my feelings progress while I feel there is this barrier between us.

I know this is overthinking, seriously. I know that. But it's on my mind a lot and I'm not sure how to think about it. I'd be happy to hear everyone say "things are ok, you haven't known her for very long, if they are improving keep communicating and hope for the best".

To fend off some clarifying questions:
Welbutrin is not an option. Other med changes might be. She might be interested in stopping the meds at some point, but she says they have helped her a lot to deal with some low-level depression and I don't really want to mess with that.

Prozac withdrawal? Does that even exist? Help.

alona — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 22:34:58 -0800

How do I stop myself going crazy? Abruptly stopped taking SSRIs almost two weeks ago. I'm stupid and irresponsible, and on vacation, so I'm having a tough time keeping a normal schedule. Every once in a while I'd remember that I hadn't taken my pills in a while, and then I'd kind of ignore that thought and move on.

So okay, today I took the medication (brief history: 40g of fluoxetine, past 10 months or so, to treat double depression). But I don't expect it to work instantly, clearly.

I'm going crazy. I'm annoyed and upset and indifferent (yes, all three at once). And mostly just impatient and bored and I don't know what to do with myself. Please help me get through the next few days until my brain gets back on track...

How to get through a difficult Celexa withdrawal?

aether516 — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 15:32:26 -0800

Does anyone have advice for getting through difficult long-term Celexa (SSRI) withdrawal? I'm having a very difficult time going off of Celexa, and I was hoping that you all might have some advice.

Background:

I starting taking Celexa in July for some major depression and anxiety-related issues. I've never been on an SSRI before, and I was very nervous about starting this pill, but the depression was rather severe and I decided it was worth a try. I had a really hard time starting the pill (nausea, exhaustion, stomach upset, etc.), but I eventually got myself up to the dose my doctor prescribed - 20/mg a day.

Things changed, life got better (for a variety of reasons), and I decided that I was ready to go off the pill. Over the past three weeks, I've been very gradually declining the dosage, 2-3 milligrams a week. I'm down to 5 mg now, and I'm hoping to be off for good soon.

The problem is, I'm having a terrible reaction to going off this pill each step of the way. My symptoms include: horrible headaches and body aches, intense vivid dreams and nightmares, exhaustion, stomach upset, an increased level of allergies and asthma (already bad to begin with) giving me hives on my skin every few days, trouble sleeping, fainting, feeling feverish, nasal congestion, a cough, and weakness.

Those of you who have done this before - does it get better? How long should I expect to feel this way? How long does it take after you go off an SSRI to feel normal again? What can I do to help myself feel better now? (I'm already taking Omega-3 pills - anything else?)

Fix my brain, oh ye gods of the green.

ryaninoakland — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 07:21:40 -0800

I take 100mg daily of Zoloft (Sertraline). It seems to manage my anxiety/panic disorder fairly well but I'm still depressed as shit. For those unlucky folks who happen to suffer the double edged sword of anxiety and depression in tandem: what drugs or methods have helped you the most? I know there is no easy out, yet I'm still looking. I've been on various SSRIs for 10+ years with mixed results but have never found the one that really "works for me". I'm looking to the existential angst ridden populous of this site for insights into what has helped out ya'll get the ball rolling on living your best lives. I have done a lot of research into this topic and have seen many doctors, psychiatrists and therapists so spare me the wikipedia links. I only want to know, what has worked for YOU?

p.s. I know there are tons of previous posts on medication management, but couldn't really find anything relating to my specific predicament.

thnx, xoxo, bbq, luv,

Ryan.

Depression and Sexual Health

Anonymous — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 04:23:53 -0800

Question about men's sexual health and medications for depression I am a 28 year old male with a professional job. I am very physically fit. I run 15 miles a week, plus sports, plus regular weight lifting. I have sex with my girlfriend one, two or three times a day on average. I also suffer from depression. The depression is not so bad that I want to stay in bed all day or harm myself, but it completely fucks with my head, my emotions, my motivation, my outlook on life, and generally how I value my life.

So I have gone to the general medicine doc and gotten meds for it. I was first given Zoloft. I felt absolutely great! I felt bolts of euphoric optimism running through my blood. But I lost 90% of my sex drive and had difficulty having an orgasm. I only made it 3 months on Zoloft.

So next I tried Wellbutrin. It probably worked 55% on the mental health side with no negative side effects. This was a functional solution for about 9 months or so. The stuff quit working. I go back to the doc. He gives me Cymbalta. This basically has all the same features for me as Zoloft. It works great on the mental stuff but destroys my sex life.

At this point in my life I value my sexual health more than my mental health. Or so I feel that way when I am on the pills. Then it gets so bad and I have to take them again.

Ok, so I guess my questions are:

Are there any other meds that any of you can recommend that my be helpful? I ask specifically because I always feel like I am making the suggestions or driving the discussion with the doc. Yes I have switched docs already.

If I get these side effects from one SSRI does this mean that I am likely to get these effects from all of them? (I.e is something like Prozac potentially helpful)

Is there any permanent risk to my sexual health from having to take these drugs periodically?

In looking back at my questions, I guess I can see that these are more of questions that should be directed towards a medical professional, but I guess I am just looking for any suggestions to help prepare for the conversation at the doc's office again. I would just like to find a way to be content and sexually healthy.

Thanks for any insights you can offer.

meta1999@hotmail.com

SSRIs and weight

btkuhn — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:29:58 -0800

Why do some people lose weight on SSRIs, while other people gain weight, with no changes in food intake or activity level? I've used various antidepressants in the past and find that I lose weight while on Zoloft, without changing my food intake or activity level. I know that others gain weight on SSRIs. Friends that are on various antidepressants sometimes say that the drugs increase/decrease their appetite and that's why they lose/gain weight, but many say that their food intake does not change and they still gain/lose. In my case I'm sure that neither my intake or activity change because I keep track (somewhat obsessively - one reason I'm on the drugs in the first place.

So my question is, what's the mechanism behind weight/loss gain from antidepressants (why does it happen)? Do SSRIs directly effect one's metabolism, or do they cause you to retain more water, or something entirely different? And why would the effect be different (gaining vs losing) for different people, seemingly on a random basis?

I did a search on pubmed and was surprised that all I really found was one article addressing the topic:

http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v25/n10/full/0801729a.html

It talks about corticotropin-releasing hormone but is hardly conclusive. Is this just one of those mysteries?

A Zolofteron pill would be nice

howiamdifferent — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 09:48:05 -0800

Is it okay to start taking Zoloft while still on (and tapering off) Remeron? I am currently taking 37.5mg of Remeron every night, and have been using it since 2005 mainly for insomnia and anxiety. My reason for wanting to substitute it with Zoloft is the weight gain and the mad appetite for carbs and sweets. I am scared of going into Zoloft directly because of its known insomnia side-effect, and hoping that Remeron will ease things for me at the beginning until it vanishes or becomes tolerable.

My doctor says it's okay to do this, but I want to hear from someone who has gone through a similar situation.

Also, is it true that Zoloft doesn't generally cause wight gain as much as Remeron? I would love to hear from Zoloft users about their weight gain/loss and appetite experience.

I know I am pushing it, but is there a magical anti-anxiety pill that doesn't have insomnia and weight gain as part of its SEs?

speed is not always a virtue

randomstriker — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 23:19:28 -0800

Premature ejaculation due to Post SSRI Sexual Dysfunction - how can I fix this? I was on 10mg Cipralex (i.e. escitalopram, a.k.a. Lexapro, Lexaprin, Sipralexa, Entact and Seroplex) for almost a year. Recently went through a tapering regime and finally cut it out altogether as of 10 days ago.

Most withdrawal effects have subsided, but I am left with very annoying premature ejaculation. Is there a solution to this or do I just have to ride it out? Of course I'll see my doctor about this but he generally scoffs at anything less than cancer or a broken bone and I need to go in armed with some information to push him into action.

SSRI to delay orgasm?

willy_dilly — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 19:58:14 -0800

SSRI to delay orgasm? I've heard about taking small dosage of antidepressants to delay orgasm. I have a small problem of premature ejaculation and would like to give it a try. Since I'm single and have sex maybe two three times a month it might be a good temporary solution as I can get my hands on some from a friend. My question would be what is a good dosage and if anyone with experiences can provide me with some details.

What have all these prescription drugs done to me?

Drohan — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 16:26:04 -0800

What has a decade anti-anxiety medication done to me? You name it, I've probably been on it at one time or another--Serzone, Topamax, Prozac, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, BuSpar, Gabitril, Provigil, Klonopin, Ativan, Lexapro, Seroquel...the list goes on.

I've gone from my early 20s to my early 30s constantly on some combination of medication to combat Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Some of the drugs I've been on have been to combat the major side effects (weight gain & sexual dysfunction) of the main drugs. I've also been in therapy the whole time.

At this point, I'm still experiencing anxiety, which I hope to deal with with yet another cocktail of drugs/therapy. I'm on 20mg of Cymbalta and 2mg of klonopin a day. I'm trying to go off the Cymbalta because it doesn't seem to be working. I just went off Seroquel because it was making it impossible to wake up and I had a feeling it was causing a huge explosion in weight gain.

My question: Will I ever be "normal" again? Now that I've gone off the Seroquel, will I have an easier time losing weight? Will I ever get my sex drive back? Before all these drugs, I had a really healthy sex drive. Even in the few months between being on SSRIs etc. over the past decade, my sex drive hasn't magically come back. Am I doomed to be overweight and sex-drive-less from an early adulthood of pharmacological roulette?

Why Does Wellbutrin Cause Weight Loss?

WCityMike — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 14:10:53 -0800

Why does Wellbutrin cause weight loss? Even my doctor doesn't seem to know for sure. Are there unproven medical hypotheses or studies amongst doctors or pharmacists or anyone else that lean towards an as-yet-unofficial answer? (Feel free to get technical. If I don't understand, I'll Google.)

Guidenice on being tired/depressed and steps to take.

Anonymous — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 11:07:37 -0800

MedFilter: Looking for guidance on general chronic lethargic feeling (both physically and emotionally). (wordy) I hate medfilter, long posts, and people who don't do their research first, and as such, I apologize for breaking two of these rules, but I have read every post related to depression. I have insurance. This is a long time lingering problem (6+ years) that I would seriously like to fix, and I have tried the normal channels and failed.

This is more of a 'who do I talk to, and what do I say' type of question, as I have seen both a psychiatrist and a doctor multiple times over the years to no avail.

I am chronically tired physically. I wake up exhausted, I feel tired to the point of exhausted at work, and in social situations. I don't have an overly stressful work situation, nor do I feel like I am over-anxious about social outings (specifically, though I am frequently over anxious about things, to the point of casual OCD, like checking creditcard bills online multiple times a day, knowing they wont be updated, etc). I have also for quite some time felt extremely depressed (to the point of regular suicidal thoughts), which I have attempted to address through both talk therapy, as well as medication (various SSRI's) which I am currently on (only medication).

I feel almost abandoned by 5-6 therapists who have more or less said you are fine mostly through my own omission, or not reading into things enough, or pushing hard enough even when asked to. But at the same point, I am there because I don't know what to address, or what the issue is.

The physical exhaustion/lack of energy seems to have its easiest explanation in a depressed mood, but could it be something else? I am overweight, and had a typical college kid whos moved out and lives on takeout and pizza/beer diet, but have slowly been organizing my life. I took the list of "things that make you less depressed" to heart as much as possible, and have worked up to running 5k's (from not being able to run at all!), bike ~50 miles, and lost 30+lbs. I watch what I eat, and have slowly and sanely been losing weight. I sleep normal hours (7-8 hrs a night, standard bedtime/wake up time). I have tried a variety of diets (ie, less carbs, less refined sugars, no caffeine, none of which were 100%, but used as guidelines for a few weeks to see if they had any effect. Recently I've cut out all meats (vegetarian) and been doing that for 2-3 months with no ill effects. I have lived healthily for the last 2+ years (balanced diets, lots of water, getting out quite a bit).

I feel as though I shouldn't feel exhausted ALL the time, and be more motivated with this energy to do things (complete a few final classes, clean my apartment, be social), but all I feel like doing is sleeping most of the time, or feel like a zombie when im out and about, not really thinking more just observing.

So whats a depressed, but intelligent twenty something supposed to do? My doc is quick to put things off as normal (HMO syndrome?), and therapists seem useless.

How likely is it that Zoloft has lost its efficacy, for me?

Anonymous — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 17:04:26 -0800

How likely is it that the Zoloft I've been taking at a 50mg dose, for about 3 years, is wearing off/losing efficacy? And are discontinuation symptoms / withdrawal symptoms possible, without actually stopping it? I haven't asked a psychiatrist about this yet, but of course I will if I need to. Both my primary care doc and endocrinologist I see for treatment of my Hashimoto's (hypo) thyroid disease are skeptical that this is the case. Myself, I have heard of Prozac losing its effectiveness after a while...

Anyway, basically, with no other real change in my life that I can see, pretty much out of the blue it seems, I have begun having panic/anxiety attacks. They were much worse a couple weeks ago when I had no idea what the heck it was, but now that I've read up on it, I can manage. But it's still really annoying and depressing.... my appetite is much reduced, and it's not like I just get the anxiety triggered now from trying to go somewhere... I instead just have this generalized anxiety that is floating around at a low level all the time. What's really odd is the reason I starting taking the Zoloft was not even for depression; it was prescribed for pain management by a doc I saw who specialized in that, for tingling and numbness in the hands from the ulnar nerve (funny bone). And it has worked great for that.

I've also heard/read that Zoloft is not necessarily great for panic attacks/anxiety, although some people do prescribe it for that. I also know it's possible that none of this has anything to do with my regularly scheduled medication. But it sure seems like it....

also - my primary care doc has begun by bumping the zoloft up to 75mg... that seemed to help for about 3 or 4 days, but who knows, perhaps it was the placebo effect.

All of this is particularly depressing to me because I have been in excellent shape the last couple months, health wise, and the thyroid stuff has been well-managed now for years.

wth!

Thanks mefites.

ssri's and permanent side-effects

Anonymous — Tue, 01 May 2007 22:07:11 -0800

Long, complex, embarrassing question about SSRI's and permanent sexual side-effects. This will be long and detailed, so here's the summary: 35 year old male, spent about 2 years on and off different combinations of Zoloft and Wellbutrin, experienced sexual side effects, have been off all meds for 2 1/2 years, side effects still remain.

And now the details:
After many years of depression, at 31 I saw a doctor and reluctantly went on Zoloft. It worked wonders and made me feel great almost instantly. Only problem was the sexual side effects. It was almost impossible to ejaculate, and when I finally did the orgasm was hardly what it used to be. I barely felt anything, more of a relief that it was over. The doctor added Wellbutrin but that didn't seem to help much. About 6 months in, I started dating a girl so I went off the Zoloft but kept taking the Wellbutrin. I was able to ejaculate but the feeling was still about 20% of what it used to be. Eventually I went off of everything, relationship ended, side effects seemed to go away, but mood of course went south. After about 6 months I started up Zoloft again. Side effects returned. Doctor had me ween off the Zoloft after a few months and added a stronger dosage of Wellbutrin. The Wellbutrin just didn't work for the mood, so he upped the dosage, then upped it again. Eventually I realized this wasn't the way to go so I weened off all meds. This was 2 and 1/2 years ago.

Its now been over 2 years and the side effects remain. It is devastating. To sum my symptoms up, I have the physical ability to have sex but I feel nothing. Somethings wrong with my brain due to SSRI's, but I don't know what it is. Erections have never been stronger, but it takes forever to ejaculate since I feel nothing. I feel almost numb. When I finally do ejaculate, the orgasm is nothing. Just a rush of blood to the head, but the part of my brain that controls the pleasure now feels dead.

I've searched around the internet and have found that I'm not the only one. They've called it PSSD. There's a page on Wikipedia, and also a Yahoo group devoted to this that has 1200 members. The group is helpful in that I know I'm not alone, but there aren't any solutions. Just a bunch of people that are pissed off at their doctors and the drug industry. No one has any helpful answers.

I saw a urologist just to rule out anything physical, but he didn't take me seriously and once he heard the word depression, he seemed to assume that it was all in my head. He did some basic tests but I felt like he was blowing me off.

I saw a therapist (which I think I should have done before I started any of the antidepressants) for about a year. It was helpful but ultimately I realized there wasn't anything she could do for me for this particular issue, which is now the main cause of my problems.

This whole issue has made my depression ten times worse than it ever was. Before it was manageable. Now it is not. I have withdrawn from family and friends and now have a lot of anger built up over the whole thing. You can imagine how hard this is to talk about, and the few people I've told have a hard time believing it. It has helped to ruin a couple of relationships, and I now have no desire to go out and try to meet girls. I pretty much just go to work and thats it.

The irony is that now I feel like I should just go back on Zoloft, because that worked wonders for my mood and the damage is done now anyway.

It's hard to ask one specific question. Has anyone ever heard of this before? Know anyone who has experienced it and recovered? Could a physical symptom cause this? Should I try another urologist? Should I seriously consider going back on medication? Just try to accept it?

Feel free to give me your thoughts on any of those questions, but I'm really just looking for general advice on what to do next.

Thanks

Can't stay on my antidepressant.

Anonymous — Thu, 14 Dec 2006 21:47:39 -0800

Can't stay on my antidepressant. I've had a long history of therapy and have been taking medications for years. My symptoms are basically depression with some more aggressive symptoms (anger, outbursts) as well as intense anxiety. I have tried a number of different drugs (Effexor, Wellbutrin, Lexapro, Celexa, Prozac, Paxil, etc.). The only drug that makes me feel like "myself" is Celexa.

When I am on Celexa, I feel calm. I have no temper to speak of. This is important because feeling angry, even if I'm able to keep it inside, I feel really horrible. With Celexa, I'm just "me" and I'm able to laugh things off and not let them get to me. I feel like I'm a nicer person to be around when I'm on the medication. I like myself, and this helps my self esteem.

Problem is, I cannot tolerate the sexual side effects I experience with this medication. Basically, I feel completely numb down there and orgasm is an impossibility. What this means is that I don't stay on the drug. My doctor has tried to wean me off Celexa and try other meds, like Wellbutrin, but every time I start to feel the scary bad feelings and I run back to Celexa. Then I have the side effect and feel the need to go off it.

I guess my question is this. What diagnosis do my symptoms indicate (ie. the depression along with my activated, angry symptoms) and what medications would be more likely to help? Also, what neurotransmitters is Celexa working on? Might there be an antianxiety or mood stabilizing med that would give me the calm, relaxed feeling I have on Celexa? Lastly, has anyone dealt successfully with a situation like the one I'm describing?

2 weeks of hell

ryanissuper — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 10:20:48 -0800

My doctor is making me quit Percocet(been on for 3 months) and Celexa(been on for a year) at the same time. I will be weening off the celexa but going cold turkey on the percocet. Shouldnt this be against the geneva convention? What kind of hell am I in for?

Anti-depressants: alternatives to bupropion (Wellbutrin)?

Anonymous — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 10:43:03 -0800

I'm starting out on anti-depressants. My doctor has prescribed me venlafaxine (Effexor XR), an SNRI. I strongly suspect a dopamine reuptake inhibitor would be better suited for my condition and personality, but sadly, bupropion (Wellbutrin) isn't available as an anti-depressant in my country: only under the name Zyban (as a smoking cessation aid), which is not covered by insurance and hence very expensive. Are there any alternatives I should look into? I'm a few days into taking venlafaxine, and I think it might help me, but obviously it will take some time for the effects to be determined. However, I'm a little worried about the possible side effects (especially those related to libido and weight) and the eventual withdrawal, which reportedly can be quite bad with venlafaxine.

Any insight would be much appreciated - thanks in advance.

Duration of paxil side effects?

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 10:04:47 -0800

So I've been on Paxil for anxiety for a few months and I'm starting to notice... Well, the Paxil has helped the anxiety quite a bit but I'm running into a few nasty side affects that are still persisting

#1- The weight gain. I've put on about 25 pounds in 2 months. The freaky thing is that I eat right and exercise like a mother. If anything, I would expect to be losing wait or maintaining it. I've never had a problem with my weight spiraling out of control like this before. Again, I eat right and exercise like crazy. I'm addicted to activity-run/bike/hike/sports you name it.

#2-I dont seem interested in things anymore. At work I just sit unless I'm specifically asked to do something. At home, things just seem to pile up. I dont feel as passionate or concerned about things. The exception is the urgent fire that needs to be put out; its like I need some emergency to jumpstart myself.

What I'd like to know is if things will 'level' out in terms of the weight gain and the not caring, or if i can expect things to get worse. The weight gain, considering my activity level, is starting to depress me. While the anxiety was bad, these side effects are not a fair trade off.

From Lexapro to Effexor -> Well?

punkrockrat — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 15:39:16 -0800

Does anyone on Mefi have anything positive or good to say about the SSRI Effexor?!? Searching through the archives, all I can find are comments about strange dreams and terrible withdrawals. Does anyone have any positive experiences with it?

SSRI Tolerance?

punkrockrat — Tue, 23 May 2006 18:59:14 -0800

Can a user develop a tolerance for an SSRI after time? Specific drug is Lexaparo, time of about 9 months, but examples of any SSRI will do.

Can getting off my SSRI cause weight gain?

Anonymous — Tue, 02 May 2006 06:23:10 -0800

Can going off an SSRI (in this case, EffexorXR) cause me to have an enormous increase in appetite? Under a doctor's supervision, I'm going off Effexor in preparation for getting pregnant. I had been taking a dose of 150mg for about a year, and last week she cut my dose to 75mg, which I'll take for three weeks. After that, I'll take 37.5mg for three weeks, and then be done. Also, I started taking .5mg of Klonopin twice a day about a month ago, and now am up to .5mg three times a day. The Klonopin is for anxiety.

In anticipation for trying to get pregnant, I've lost about twenty five pounds. (I'm still overweight, but working on it.) I have been counting calories, eating small meals, and I do 50 minutes of cardio exercise four times a week. I'm thinking of making it five times a week. Once I started taking the Klonopin I felt like my weight loss stalled. Before that, I'd been steadily losing one to two pounds a week. When I asked my doctor about it she said that the lowering of anxiety could cause a bit of a slowdown in my metabolism, or it could just be a plateau that's non-related to my medication. I should also note that I feel like I've gained back about four pounds in the last month, when I've actually increased my exercise level and my food intake is the same. (A month ago I was closer to thirty pounds lost.)

Since I lowered my dose of Effexor, though, I have had the craziest increase in appetite. I started my new dose on Thursday and on Friday and Saturday I had what I considered two dinners -- two evening meals of about four hundred calories or so. The meals were about five hours apart both nights. I've also been craving sweets. I haven't been having many side effects of the lowered SSRI dose except for dizziness, and I feel like the sweets help with that, but I realize that shoving saltwater taffy down my maw for the next five weeks isn't exactly the best plan of action.

Please realize that I know part of my problem is my anxiety. However, I would like to know if anyone else has had such an increase in appetite or weight after going off of an SSRI, and if it was something permanent. I've worked really hard to lose this weight and it's upsetting to me that I might be backsliding.

I have tried to put as much detail as I can in the post, but if any further details would help, you can email me at ssri.anon.2006@gmail.com.

What Did Depression Feel Like?

Anonymous — Sat, 06 Aug 2005 21:32:41 -0800

When I Reduce The Amount of SSRI I Take, Is This How I Felt When I Was Depressed? I have been diagnosed as mildly depressed, and I like to experiment. Although I'm more and more convinced it's futile, every once and a while I reduce the amount of SSRI I take (generic Celexa). It takes a few days, but eventually, "negative things" loom a bit larger. And larger. Is this how I was/felt before I started taking an SSRI (or worse?)? I don't remember what is was like avant-SSRI....