To feel irritable all the time?

[cavycavy]

I’ve spent the last 9 months weaning off citalopram and now 3 weeks without taking any at all.

It’s been a difficult withdrawal with all the physical side effects of coming off but I’m so relieved to be off the medication I’ve not needed for at least 1 year.

I realise it’s normal to feel hypersensitive for a while now, because citalopram has dulled/buffered all my emotions for the last 4 years. Irritability was never something I suffered from pre-medication (in the depths of my PND) so I will not accept it as a reason to go back on it (as has been suggested to me). I think I just need to ‘get through’ this stage of withdrawal.

Is that reasonable?

@cavycavy I've just come off of a high dose of Prozac after 6 years of being on it. Like you, all the physical symptoms are gone but I've been so moody, irritable and kind of depressed lately. It's been a month off them now and I'm honestly so short tempered! No idea how to help :(

I’ve had a few people suggest it’s a sign I need to go back on them. Firstly this really irritates me (like literally everything atm) but secondly, this wasn’t a feature of my illness and reason for needing the tablets in the first place. So how can it be a sign I need to go back on?

I think we need to ride it out until this withdrawal side effect is done.

Do you think so too?
Hope your irritability comes to an end soon. I’m a bloody nightmare to live with. I’m fed up with myself!!

Cavycavy - same here. Really irritable for a few weeks then it settled down. I'm stillmore irritable than when I was on citalopram but that's because we are sleepy, smily zombies on Citalopram, so our loved ones need to get used to living with real women with real opinions, and we need to get used ot having feelings again, good and bad.
The sign for needing to get back on them is if we are irrationally angry, overly irritable for no reason on a regular basis or cruel to others. that would be a warning that imbalance is back. But having snappy, sweary days occasionally, or expressing annoyance/anger when there's a valid reason - that's just healthy human nature.

Onestepmorefun.... ok cool. That’s how I’ve been feeling. Irrationally ‘irked’ most of the time but not full blown rage.

And yes to the ‘real me’ being back, with my opinions and, seriously, it’s like I’ve come to my senses over the last few weeks! I was on 40mg so a proper foggy brained zombie 🧟‍♀️

@cavycavy yeah my friends have been saying it's a sign to go back on too- but I wasn't like this before the medicine, it's just our bodies adjusting. Bloody annoying though I yell I my poor boyfriend about anything😂😂😂

For me it’s more my little girl. She is very ‘spirited’, not naughty as such, but very .... erm .... energetic and it is testing my patience. I’m not flipping my lid as much as I was, but I hate that feeling of bubbling over as losing my temper.

Tbh all the discussion about 'zombies' is a pretty shitty way of describing it.

How old is your little girl?

As = and

What do you mean Hellena? I really was a zombie on citalopram. When I look back, it's frightening how many years of my life I lost, doped up to my eyeballs on it.