Sertraline? Citalopram or fluoxetine?

[Whatintheworldgirl]

I have major panic disorder. I'm currently prescribed diazepam and I don't want to be on it because of it's addictive properties. I was on sertraline for 10 weeks and it really didn't help and the nausea from it never left. I only have citalopram a few days as I got a panic attack and fluoxetine aswell I only have four days because it made me so so sick.

My question to you is, which one have you been on and in your opinion which is best? I'm going to the doctor tomorrow and I need to stick to one. I need to be brave and ignore my panic disorder in the initial stages. I just want to be happy. I don't even remember what it feels like anymore and I seriously just want to be able to eat again and not be in fight or flight all the time.

Many thanks for reading

Interesting post. I would immediately say continue with sertraline, because it can take a few months to kick in, however feeling sick after 10 weeks also isn't normal. Sertraline is what is known as an SSRI, (your doctor may have mentioned at one point) and so because of the nausea you mentioned, I would steer clear of both citalopram and fluoxetine since they are also SSRIs. You have a right to request what medication you need, and your doctor will most commonly try to make you take SSRIs first.
Luckily, there are other forms of antidepressants out there. Ask your doctor for non -SSRI antidepressants, or tricyclics. I am on amytriptaline at the moment, which is a tricyclic and I can say that I would not recommend it as it has pretty nasty side effects. Hope this helps, but please remember I am not a doctor. Always consult your doctor first, I am merely someone who also has a history with antidepressants.

IME - diazepam will give me immediate relax from the panic/anxiety attack
The setraline (once in your system) reduce the anxiety and panic attacks I have

I have been prescribed all three over the years. Fluoxetine for about 10 years,then citalopram for nearly 20.
I have now been prescribed sertraline.

I had no side effects whilst on any of them. The re were different reasons why the doctor changed my meds, and overall I’m pleased she did.

however, I have been suffering from stress and associated panic attacks over the last couple of years and I now take propranolol alongside the sertraline.
I find this combination very helpful
. Of course it’s not a cure, I am still waiting for some therapy which I do think is needed but I must say, I am so grateful to have been prescribed these meds as I was so very ill a few months ago.

I've tried sertraline and propranolol too.
Sertraline did help in some ways but I also felt so odd that I came off it after a few months I think.

I've known people who didn't get along with sertraline then try fluoxetine and be better with that.

It's such a shame there are side effects to contend with especially when the people taking meds off this type are already so vulnerable.

Meant to say that propranolol was also very helpful and no side effects.

I was first prescribed fluoxetine as I didn’t get over ‘baby blues’ my last child was 2 when I started with it. I was quite unwell and fluoxetine did work for me.
then years after that I had a major operation that was traumatic and had complications and i developed PTSD alongside other things so I was given citalopram and propranolol.
more recently I had a breakdown. I had stopped taking the citalopram and the propranolol as I thought I was ok.
I was given sertraline and propranolol as I am older and the doc said they could prescribe higher doses of the sertraline than the citalopram if needed. I am happy with this, and I seem to be ok on 150mg, but if not I could have had a higher dose of it apparently.

I've never tried sertraline but know from family and friends that it is very effective against anxiety.

i've had fluoxetine and citalopram before. Citalopram was lovely at curing my depression whilst allowing me to feel human again. If you are severely depressed or have a raging internal monologue, it could be incredibly beneficial. But I stayed on it too long, leading to massive weight gain, appalling brain fog and exhaustion. I ended up sleeping about 16 hours a day, so came off it. I'd advise staying on it for no longer than a year.
Fluoxetine is fine - I had more energy. Slow to take hold so less effective if you need a quick remedy. But also stays a long time in your system so a great AD to titrate off slowly with no side effects. I felt more energetic on it than on Citalopram. But more emotionally blunted.

I'm on sertraline for panic disorder and have been for a couple of years. Im very pleased with how it's working for me. As I recall, it took me 3 months or more to properly wean onto it. At 10 weeks I was very much still at the 'feel worse before you feel better' stage unfortunately - dissociation, nocturnal panic attacks, extreme fatigue among many other things. I felt extremely strange. I really had to persevere and keep the faith (I understand that for some people a particular medication never 'comes good', which is why I'm just telling you my experience, not advising you what to do!). I think the '3 weeks to wean on' thing is a bit optimistic for many people tbh, especially if you're in a very acute place with anxiety and panic when you start, as I was. I now can't remember the last time I was even close to a panic attack, it has changed my life!

If you choose to give it another go, I'd recommend keeping a brief daily symptom diary so that you can recognise general trends of 'feeling better', as it can be very much two steps forward, one step back at the beginning.

@mantlepiece did you change the medication each time because they stopped working (I may need to change medication.)
Did you find the change overs difficult ?

@kizziee i feel like my fluoxetine has stopped working after many years. Dr has prescribed sertraline now so I will see how it works. What did you do and what antidepressants did you go for?

@Sophfj123 In the end I stayed on the tricyclic I was prescribed because things settled a bit. I hope you find the right medication for you. I know it can feel very difficult while waiting for things to stabilise. Don't lose hope.

I started on sertraline and had awful headaches for 6 weeks. Moved to citalopram and had unbearable nausea for 3 weeks (couldn't manage it any longer than that as it was 24/7 nausea) and then Fluoxitine.

Three days of Fluoxitine and it felt like someone had opened the curtains and let the sunshine flood in. Life changing.