Fluoxetine

[cakebytheoceon]

Hi everyone. I have been prescribed this to help with my pretty bad anxiety, I have been burying my head in the sand for years before finally realising it's time to do something to help myself along with other coping strategies.
Thing is, I'm anxious about having side affects, it would really help if I could hear some positive outcomes of people who have used this medication. Please and Thankyou!

Hi OP I was prescribed fluoxetine when I was around 17/18 and had been on until last October when we started TTC and my doctor advised I wean myself off it as it would be preferred (I’m now 27 turning 28). For me it helped regulate my mood a lot. I will say I’m not sure how much it did for my anxiety. I had/have really bad social anxiety (fear of embarrassing myself in front of others) which I’ve had since 15 years old and even with fluoxetine I still had symptoms and had a course of CBT while on it. I think it’s definitely worth trying and seeing how you go though. It will be different for everyone. Good luck!

This medication literally saved my life. I’ve been in it on and off for 10 years and honestly can’t put into words how much it’s helped me.

in terms of side effects I had tiredness and some low moods for the first few weeks but really not much else.

Oh and some heart burn due to what the capsules are made of, usually if I don’t quite swallow them properly the first time.

It has been an absolute game changer for my DD (prescribed it for anxiety & depression), she has been on it for around 18 months. She started very very gently on 5mg moving up gradually to 20mg, then up to 40mg. we are now in the process of trying to taper off again to 20mg over the summer.

You do need to watch out for things carefully in the first few weeks (and take with food) keep in touch with your prescriber if you start feeling worse.

Fluoxetine saved my life. I'm wearing off it now due to pregnancy but will probably go back on afterwards. I had minimal side effects, mainly tiredness.

Only thing I will say is that if you decide to come off it, the brain zaps are a bit annoying. But I wouldn't have thought everyone gets those.

Nothing but positives for me with fluoxetine, I’ve been on it for about 5 years and am just about to begin a weaning off programme.
It’s helped me through some difficult times and really balanced me out. I tried to come off it earlier this year but it was too soon, now I’m in a better frame of mind so starting again.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply everyone it's much appreciated. I am on day 3 now and still feeling very much on edge almost waiting for side affects, sounds ridiculous which is why I really feel it would help to hear as many positive outcomes as possible! The gp is calling me in two weeks to see how I'm getting on x

@Kindofcrunchy what do you mean by brain zaps? Like brain fog? That's one of my worse symptoms of anxiety tbh, I am just really struggling to focus on anything/ anyone around me x

It's not as scary as it sounds, sorry. It's just a short dizziness while the drug leaves your system. It wears off, and as I said, I'll be going back on it as soon as I can so it hasn't put me off taking it. Even off it I do feel like my social anxiety is easier to deal with, though I have ongoing issues with depression due to my thyroid so it is necessary for me. You can go on a dose as low as 10mg and it'll effectively take the edge off, it's well worth it.

@Kindofcrunchy bless you Thankyou for explaining! It's strange because I know I need it to help me but a lot of my anxiety is around health so I jump to the worse case scenario that it will make me feel worse. So happy it helped you xx

Thought I'd come back and update!
I feel SO much better. I wish I went on this years ago!
Those who suffered with tiredness does it ease off as you get used to the drug? I literally am struggling to keep my eyes open x

So glad it is helping you.