Citalopram- about to give up

[Ames123]

I have restarted Citalopram after 4 months being off them and at 13 days in my anxiety is unbearable😔 I have two DDs and the whole start of he summer holidays has been me rocking back and forward, crying have panic attack after panic attack 😢
I suffer with health anxiety which started two years ago and I managed with meds and CBT to get it under control, but it has came back tearing its ugly head over two weeks ago.
I have been back and forward to the doctors to see if I should lower the does as I am on 20mg but all three gps have told me to stick with it and gave me short term diazepam, which does work but they will not I’ve me anymore (can’t have beta blockers as have asthma)
We are going on holiday on Friday and we have looked forward to it all year as a family and I have said to my husband today I am going to have to stop taking these tablets because I can’t bear to wake up feeling like this while we are there.
Before I do this I just wanted to see if anyone had any sort of positive stories and if anyone would think these would have kicked in by now?
Desperate for a ray of light

Try and hold on if you can - i am back on escitalopram and the first few weeks were honestly awful. I was suicidal and anxious beyond the pale. I too had diazepam which helped to a degree with the anxiety but i think it dampened my mood.

I swapped to escitalopram from citalopram as it seems to have fewer side effects for me its effectively the same drug but i wouldnt accept citalopram now. I was on 40mg citalopram wheras im only on 10mg escitalopram. They dont prescribe it initially as its more expensive!

I would honestly try to hold on as if you stop abruptly you risk withdrawal which is shit too.

I get awfully anxious on holidays and generally dont prebook stuff as i fret too much. So this time i wouldnt book my holiday in case my smear test came abnormal. Now im fretting that the last minute booking we made will be shite

There is so much pressure for the summer holidays to be halcyon days gilled with ice cream and laughter. They are more realustically bickering bored kids and draining of bank accounts

Thanks for replying LEMtheoriginal
Can I ask how long you had the side effects after starting yours initially?
I keep being told 2 weeks but have found people say it varies so much

It varies. This time was the longest it took to settle but i was in a really bad place with a lot of pressure.

1st time they worked imnediately. Second it did take a couple of weeks.

If you can stand it try cammomile tea - i had a breast lump a few years ago (my God - the terror) and meds did nothing but cammomile tea really helped. Tastes like sick though

They usually take about six weeks to kick in hang in, can you get out and do some exercise, it really helps. Also do some CBT sheets if you have them and just try to not to have too many expectations. Mindfulness is also good for panic attacks. .

I went off mine quite suddenly twice and it took about six weeks in each case. CBT helped a bit but exercise and mindfulness were better for me.

Really chamomile tea? I will buy some today and hold my nose! I will try ANYTHING! I can’t think straight.
MrsMarigold did you have any withdrawals when you stopped taking the citalopram? I am just thinking if it gets unbearable and I maybe switch to another med would I have any withdrawal after taking them for 13 days?

Yes, the withdrawal was really bad, I went bonkers, I ran away and hid in an alley at the back of someone's garden, leaving DH with the DC when he was in the middle of a big project at work. I cried in local shops, was totally erratic, my poor DC found I blew hot and cold ans were very confused. I was also suicidal. I was very unreliable with friends and family as I frequently ducked out of things because I couldn't face them, my productivity was very low.

I've been back on the meds for a year now and am actually in.a good place and feeling more confident and my friends and family have been brilliant.

If you switch to escitalopram you can make a straight switch as its pretty much the same drug.

Hinestly i was shocked about the cammomile tea. I actually found it more calming than diazepam . Cant touch the stuf fnow though

I think both Citalopram and CBT are useless - for me. Everyone is different but I was worse on Citalopram - and I tried it for ages - and CBT was a pointless exercise. Proper psychotherapeutic counselling has been more helpful.

I am on 20mg citalopram daily & the side effects in the daytime for me were dreadful for the first few days (I was told to take in the morning) I decided to switch to taking them at bedtime & the difference is amazing, I wasn't anxious before though so that tbh hasn't bothered me but I was crying daily & struggling coping with anything above the 'ordinary', I now feel like I have more control than I have had for years

Oh MrsMarigold that sounds awful 😔 I doubt I would have withdrawals to that extent after just 2 weeks tho do you? I’m so happy you are feeling much better now.
Hi Rebecca36 what type of counselling is that exactly?
I just don’t know what to do.
Will definitely buy the chamomile tea tho LEM.
Also what is do he difference with the escitalopram?

Alwaysthepessemist hanks for replying. How long did your side effects last?

I doubt it, but I would persevere if I were you.

Hi Op, I've tried both citalopram and ecitalopram. Neither did much for me and ecitalopram made me feel very ill! I was put onto Prozac and I never looked back. Took Prozac for 2 years and that was 6 years ago now. I would go back to your GP and see whether another medication would suit you better if you feel that this medication isn't quite right for you,

I couldn't cope with Citalopram. I was worse on it than off. I ended up on a different one and had beta blockers anyway despite asthma. My asthma isn't that bad and the Dr decided the benefits outweighed the risks.

Don't just abruptly stop taking Citalopram as the side effects of doing so will be horrible.

Wean yourself off it little by little.