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Original poster

Citalopram advice please anyone with experience.

24 replies

VilootShesCute · 30/01/2015 16:18

Sorry if there is a previous post like this, but would very much appreciate some advice on how taking citalopram has affected people, side effects, whether it actually works etc. Thank you so much.

OP posts:
TheFecklessFairy · 31/01/2015 22:31

It didn't work for me. The worst side effect was insomnia (and I mean all night). I took it for 6 weeks and, as I didn't feel it was doing me any good, I stopped. But I understand it does work for some people, and successfully.

ChantenayCarrot1 · 31/01/2015 22:37

I would suggest taking it before bed as it can make you feel sick. Some people report weight gain and as Fairy said, insomnia.

It can take a few weeks to settle down and 'work' and so despite initial side effects, you kind of have to commit to it and try and ride it out otherwise you'll never really know if its worked or not.

rinabean · 01/02/2015 01:59

It works for some people and not others and you'll not know til you've tried it. Same with side effects.

It helped me a little and I got side effects of weird clenching jaw, nausea, dry mouth (not sure there's a single medication that doesn't cause that though), weight gain.

Unless the side effects are untenable (eg on mirtazapine my feet swelled up so much I couldn't wear shoes) keep taking it for at least the first month. They take a few weeks to kick in and often the side effects level out by this time too. Give it a fair trial because it may help you a lot and unfortunately you have to try it yourself because there's no other way.

DropYourSword · 01/02/2015 02:01

Dizziness and nausea. Getting onto it and weaning off it.

tinkerbelletigger · 01/02/2015 02:18

I've been taking it for a few years along with various other meds as I'm Bipolar. I have put on weight but can't pin down which tablets are causing that. That's the worst side effect for me and I want to try and cut my meds down a bit and lose weight this year. You will need to take it for a couple of months to ser if it helps. They all make you feel weird in the beginning.

RandomNPC · 01/02/2015 03:24

I'm on 40mg of it; it's helped the anxiety loads, not so much the depression. Gives me mad dreams.

Millie2013 · 01/02/2015 08:57

It worked really well for me, my mood was better and anxiety was dampened down. The only downside (and reason I stopped taking it) was the weight gain, but that only kicked in at around 8 months, prior to that, I lost weight

Kracken · 01/02/2015 17:58

It has worked really well for me, I have been on it for 4 months. Initial side effects were feeling very tired and a bit odd, with lots of yawning! These lasted about 2 weeks but we're only really bad for the first couple of days so DH stepped in to do everything round the house and with the kids so I could rest and get used to the citralopram.

I felt better (less depressed and anxious) very quickly, after 3 or 4 days. I have lost weight but slightly worried about millie's post above saying she gained weight after 8 months! Because I am feeling much better mentally though I have almost stopped binge eating and am now doing pilates and swimming so that could account for the weight loss too.

I do think the citralopram makes me a bit tired so I take it at 8pm then by 10pm I am ready for bed and by 6am when I get up I feel ok. If I forget and take it later than 8pm I am noticeably more tired at 6am!

I am also having psychotherapy which is incredibly helpful, if quite draining at times!

I would give it a try. See if you can get extra support with day to day stuff for the first few days. If it doesn't work for you there are lots of other medications you can try. Good luck, I really hope you feel better soon x

Strawberryflip · 01/02/2015 19:37

I've been on this for nearly a year now.
The first 4-6 weeks were pretty hard going, i felt sick all day and my anxiety was off the scale. I also lost weight to start with as I felt so sick. I took them at night to start with so I could sleep through the worst.
A year on I can honestly say I am so much better and am happy to keep on taking them as long as I can. The nausea has gone and although I still feel anxious from time to time, I can cope with it now and not let it take over. I'm a much better mum- less shouty and temperamental! Yes I have put on weight but I think that's more to do with my cake addition than the citalopram...
I really hesitated to start them but when I find myself singing along to the radio at full volume and looking forward to things I know its been worth it. I don't ever want to go back to the place I was in last year.
Give yourself plenty of time to get used to them and accept it may be difficult at first x

fiorentina · 03/02/2015 09:34

Sorry to hijack. But I started this yesterday and have a violently upset stomach over night. Is that usual, I know that nausea is common, or do I have a bug? I can't keep taking it if this is how I feel as I've had to take a day off work. Thanks for any advice.

RandomNPC · 03/02/2015 10:35

fiorentina, it's impossible to tell. Any drug can potentially cause nausea/vomiting if you're sensitive to it, but it might be a bug. There's no real way of knowing.

fiorentina · 03/02/2015 10:41

Thank you. Hopefully I keep today's down ok.

MilesHuntsWig · 03/02/2015 23:50

Been on and off citalopram for years. I find it really good for depression, but I know others that haven't. Side effects for me are tiredness, prob weight gain (bit hard to tell as I'm quite chubby at the mo), and upset stomach sometimes.

Upset stomach if I've had alcohol the night before is the worst (my DH and I even have a song about "Citalopram poos" to the tune of Jimmy Nail's "crocodile shoes"... It's a classic).

MilesHuntsWig · 03/02/2015 23:51

Oh, and coming on/off it is a bitch (nausea, generally feeling completely detached etc), but for me lasts a max of about 7 days.

Original poster
VilootShesCute · 04/02/2015 06:01

Thank you all for your experience I really appreciate it.

OP posts:
dooscooby · 04/02/2015 13:22

Hiya-I started taking it yesterday lunchtime-just has second tablet. I'm pretty terrified of it and the side effects but I've got two young kids and need to keep functioning.

I've felt very sick on and off since about 2 hours after taking first tablet. I've also had the hot tingling skin thing and a weird stabbing pain in my toe!

I've actually taken it before and got on well with it 6 years ago-I didn't have any probs coming off it last time either.

Hope the sickness passes soon and you start to feel better asap

orangepudding · 04/02/2015 13:27

I felt numb when I was on it, detached from what was going on around me. I gave up after 6 months.

Starting the medication was difficult, I felt sick, tired and nauseous. I felt fine coming of it.

rambunctious · 04/02/2015 22:53

I've been on it for 2 1/2 years now. i find that i don't have any side effects at all. Actually, I came on the mental health board to check out if anyone had any experiences of withdrawal. Due to my miscalculation i have now not had a dose for about two weeks (I'm picking up my pxt tomorrow). i generally feel fine, but am getting very weepy very quickly. I'm also getting fleeting compunctions to self harm, which I haven't had for years. I'm assuming that these symptoms are due to the withdrawal of the drug from my system, but maybe it's because I KNOW I'm not taking it that I'm getting these things, iyswim! Anyone got any thoughts on this?

tinkerbelletigger · 04/02/2015 23:51

Hi rambunctious, it's never a good thing to suddenly stop tablets. I find that if I forget to take it for a couple days I get a horrible sort of zinging in my head. That reminds me I need to take it and then I'm fine again. I would think you feeling weepy etc is because you suddenly stopped. Hope you feel better when you pick up your script.

RandomNPC · 04/02/2015 23:54

rambunctious, it might be your old symptoms reasserting themselves due to the sudden cessation of your ADs

Smurfingreat · 04/02/2015 23:58

Been on it for 5 years. Really hard to tell you about side affects as I was so ill when I started on it I had no idea what normal was anymore. What I can say is that I now live a pretty normal life, weight problems seem pretty normal for my age (36) and after 2 traumatic attempts to come off it am happy to stay on for the long term. Good luck to you. xx

OydNeverDeclinesGin · 05/02/2015 00:08

I've been on it for two months now. For the first three weeks or so it made me extremely tired and very irritable. I also had vivid dreams and found sleep easy to get into but didn't feel rested after 10 hrs.

Now, after two months, it's working really well for me. I can now see how unwell I was, but I had know idea of that before citalopram. I was really really reluctant to start on anti depressants, but I'm so glad I did.
I would say if you've been advised to commence anti depressants then do.
You might need to try a few before you get the right one for you, but in my limited experience the difference is immense!

Good luck Flowers

OydNeverDeclinesGin · 05/02/2015 00:09

Know= no!

letsghostdance · 10/02/2015 02:02

Citalopram? Huge highs and huge lows.

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