AIBU to just stop taking the citalopram?

[Sparklestrawberry]

Posted in here for more traffic
ive been taking citalopram now for 10 weeks
4 weeks at 10mg and 6 weeks at 20mg
My anxiety is now worse than when I first started them, it’s constant all day and night and am struggling to function.
signed off work for 2 more weeks which will be 3 months in total
Wish I’d never started them as my original anxiety was just fleeting
Aibu to just stop and hope that I’ve calmed down by the time I go to work?

Talk to your GP first. Don't quit on your own.

Very unwise to stop cold turkey, you’ll need to taper down unless you want unpleasant side effects. Ring your GP. Also you could try another one, Sertraline doesn’t work for everyone.

don't go cold turkey. citalopram didn't agree with me either - so I switched to Sertraline. speak to your GP - also it should go hand in hand with CBT.

Sorry, citalopram

Please don’t cold turkey with things like this. Try taking it from 20mg to 10mg and see how you feel. Citalopram took months to work effectively for me.

Dr Google says citalopram takes 12 weeks to have an effect on anxiety. Please talk to your GP, your dose may actually need to go up.

Also look into vagus nerve reset exercises. Learn several and use them as many times in a day as you need to.

Speak to your GP.

Ask for an urgent appointment as soon as you can.

Have you been prescribed something for the panics like propranolol? It can help whilst you're settling down with the drug

I think the main thing is that my anxiety is much worse since I’ve been on it, wish I’d never started and just want it to stop

I was prescribed a 10mg dose ten years ago. My anxiety escalated to a tight knot in my stomach day and night. I stopped taking it partly because I feared practioner (a psychiatrist) would up the dose in a few weeks as I had heard this was par for the treatment. I felt better for mindfulness exercises getting outdoors in nature etc and I was amazed that my crippling panic attacks did cease without medication. I did CBT at same time before taking medication, but it hadn't appeared to make much impact. (Maybe it worked slowly but surely in the background)
Anyway all I can say is that citalopram does not agree with SOME people and you may be one of them. It caused me actual physical symptoms of anxiety which I had never felt so acutely before or since.
I take no medication since then except Vitamin D, HRT and levothyroxine as prescribed.

Taper off slowly don’t go cold turkey, the side effects can be horrid

Agree with others just go back fo 10 for a couple of weeks then 5 then stop. My friend tried it she said was awful she felt like her jaw was permanently clenched and anxiety was off the scale.

Mine took a good three months to work but I adore it now. For god's sake don't cold turkey its incredibly horrible.

Just been researching and citalopram is used off label for anxiety whereas Escitalopram is actually FDA approved for anxiety. Has anyone taken both? Might ring the docs on Monday and ask for a swap

Yes, I really do think you need to have this conversation with your GP. I’m afraid if anyone here actually does urge you to stop taking medication without medical advice then they’re not to be trusted in any case.

My DP takes Escitalopram. Didn't get on with Citalopram at all. No problems with the Escit apart from a few days settling down. Might be worth a try instead of stopping completely.

Ask GP for advice. No one should suffer like that.

I went cold turkey and got myself in a horrible state girl. Reduce gradually and speak to your GP x

I've been wondering about changing my meds so you've given me the push i need xx

i have recently stopped mine after 5 years. Tapered off from 20 to 10mg for 2weeks, just cut them in half. Then after that I cut them into quarters of 5mg. Took these for 2 weeks, then every other day. Then stopped. Feel much better tbh.

I stopped dead with anti-D's when I felt worse on them after a few weeks. No side effects whatsoever and I perked up after a bit.

I was on escitalopram for 9 months, and tapered off it very very slowly. It was fucking BRUTAL coming off the last dose nonetheless. But the 9 months were very useful to restore my equilibrium.

Don't come off citalopram cold turkey! Withdrawal can last for ages and be really unpleasant. I had horrendous side effects coming off it cold turkey including horrible panic attacks for weeks and 'brain zaps' for almost a year. If you decide it's not for you (it wasn't for me) come off it very gradually (go back to 10mg for a few weeks then go to every other day etc)

I agree with the ither comments to speak to your GP, or the pharmacist at your surgery before stopping to take them.

I am on 10 of citalopram, and stopped taking for a short while while there was a delay in a repeat. I was all over the place on those days.

Talk to your doctor and work with them to find a solution. It's not uncommon to feel worse for a while until the antidepressants take full effect. Depression represses the nervous system, so when you lift that effect gradually with medicine, there'll be an overlap where your nervous system is in high enough gear to allow you to feel rotten (anxious, sometimes even suicidal), while the drug is not yet fully antidepressive.