Citalopram and CBT, when will I feel better?

[Figamol]

Hi all,

I was diagnosed with a major depression in December, something Ive never been through. I was put on 20mg of Citalopram in the mornings (nighttime was not fun).

I have been doing CBT therapy for a few months, I appreciate the psychotherapist a lot and have made good progress with the anxiety side of things.

However im still really suffering with teariness and sadness although not actually crying. I cant reach inside me to find out why I feel like this and the therapist said its just all going to take time. I have also sufferd with insomnia and only getting 2-3hrs sleep a night for a good 6 months now but neither I nor the psychiatrist are keen to start sleeping pills.

Im on day 3 of a sugar detox and will start exercising slowly now Im feeling a bit less fragile.

We've upped my dose to 40mg today, Im hoping this may help? Does anyone have any suggestions as to what else I can do, or stories of their own if Citalopram really worked?

Thank you.

[MeadowHay]

Hi, do you think the citalopram has made any difference at all? I guess it is hard as you started CBT around the same time so you might not know which is making you feel better? I was on citalopram 20mg for about a year and a half and after about 6 weeks on it I could feel a clear improvement in myself (I was severely depressed before I started it, not very functional at all), and so could people around me. For some reason after about a year and a half I started to decline again and upping the dosage didn't help so then I switched to a different AD. It is always worth increasing dosage before swapping I think, but be prepared that you may need to switch to something else if that doesn't work.

Progress can be slow I'm afraid, you just have to keep at it. Do you know about self-care? I'm guessing yes as you mentioned exercise which is a really good idea. The Mind website has some pages on self-care info for depression I think. Also do you know about sleep hygiene?

[totallywingingit]

I have been on citalopram for the last 4 months (20mg at nighttime) the turning point for me was starting to exercise. I'm not sure if my tablets are still doing what the should as I feel I've gone backwards since initially feeling good. However when I started running after a month of taking them (couch 2 5k app) I felt great and like I was on the up.
As MeadowHay said just keep at it and if you don't feel any difference after the medication have increased maybe find out the possibility of trying something new.
Hope you find something that works for you.