Coming off Citalopram

[MadMadamMim]

Hi all, looking for some advice please.

I've been taking 20mg of citalopram since August 2012. Also took part in CBT, and felt well enough to leave the service in May. Carried on taking the citalopram, and in July I went to the doctors to ask about weaning myself off it. I've spent a month on 10mg daily, and three weeks ago started taking them every other day.

In the last few weeks I can feel the black cloud again - for no particular reason. I've got a shorter temper with the children, feel alternately tearful or really up, and keep getting invasive thoughts about what a crappy place the world is and that there is no escape, it will just always be crap.

I'm self aware enough to know that it IS the depression again. It's not regular and constant enough for me to be really worried but it's making me question whether I need to go back on the 20mg, or whether this is just the citalopram leaving my system, and so I'm having a wobble? Would appreciate hearing about other people's experiences.

TIA

You did the right thing by talking to your doctor before deciding to come off the medication.

When you reduce the mediation you should do it very slowly and give your body time to adjust to every new level in your bloodstream. The amount that you should take should be every day without stop days inbetween. When you take on alternate days; your body is up and down, unsure what is happening and no lower balance is achieved. The safer way would be to take the lowest dose that you can ; but every day. There will be a downslide naturally when you come off altogether and it is wise to give your supporters a 'heads up' that you are due to come off and work out a strategy to deal with black days together.

Sometimes we feel O.K and ready to come off the medication. But sometimes it is the levelness that the meds give that makes us feel alright. In other words; if it was working why come off it yet? If you are determined to stay meds-free then some other support may be necessary.

I think you need to re-approach your G.P. about how you are feeling and seek their advice. Please don't decide to go straight back onto the 20mg. Any re-start would have to be structured to small increases again.

Good Luck

Thanks for your response JohFlow. I did follow the doctors instructions - it was her that advised me to go 10mg every other day, so I'm interested to hear you say I need to not have any stop days.

I wanted to come off the pills because I had been feeling well and constant for a while. That combined with the huge steps forward I'd made with the CBT, I felt ready to fly solo.

I'm scared I'll need to be medicated for the rest of my life, just to feel 'normal'....