On Citalopram, doing well, started counselling and sudden low patch - normal??

[Pipsicle]

Hi

I have been on Cit since March as was diagnosed with PND. Cit worked great for me and I have been firing on all cylinders for the last 9 weeks and sleeping soooo well.

I started counselling a few weeks back and have spent a lot of the time talking about my mother/father issues (basically have no realtionship with them) and suddenly woke on Monday feeling low, sleep has been terrible despite returning to my sleeping pills and feeling miffed that there has been this sudden dip esp as my LO is 1 tomorrow and I have a big party to organise.

Anyone else experience dips while on ADs? esp with counselling involved in the picture? Will my sleep return?

Thanks

Pip

Hi Pip, I have been on Citalopram since January and was doing well, but I have been in a dip for three weeks now. I have started counselling, but only one session so far. What dose are you on? I started on 20mg, then went up to 40.

Hi Wot

I am on 20mg. Off to the Docs tomorrow to check if he thinks I should be on more with counselling in the picture.

I also contacted a local PND group today and they said they suspected the counselling would be the cause of the dip.

Suck a pain in the buttocks!! I suppose it reminds me that I have PND and am not the superwoman I was beginning to think I was who was cured!!!

Pip

how did you get in touch with a local pnd group? I would be interested in doing that?

hi pipsicle,
i am also on citalopram since march, 10mg.
i had depression and anxiety problems.
i am feeling like it helped my anxiety, but about depression i dont feel it helped much.
i am feeling low at the moment, too. i feel so fed up with everything.
i did have counselling before 2-3 times, i made me cry a lot. i felt weight moved away from my shoulders, but in fact i wouldnt want to continue it.
i have used fluoxetine before, for not very long period. i felt it helped depression, but my anxiety was horrible.
i am not thinking to take more than 10mg, because it will be hard to stop when the time comes; after using 6 months.
this is my experience about citalopram.
wish you good luck
lucy

hi pipsicle,
i am also on citalopram since march, 10mg.
i had depression and anxiety problems.
i am feeling like it helped my anxiety, but about depression i dont feel it helped much.
i am feeling low at the moment, too. i feel so fed up with everything.
i did have counselling before 2-3 times, i made me cry a lot. i felt weight moved away from my shoulders, but in fact i wouldnt want to continue it.
i have used fluoxetine before, for not very long period. i felt it helped depression, but my anxiety was horrible.
i am not thinking to take more than 10mg, because it will be hard to stop when the time comes; after using 6 months.
this is my experience about citalopram.
wish you good luck
lucy

Hi Wot - I found a link on Netmums - under the Friends & Support section there is a PND option, I clicked on there and then there is a link to Local Support Groups.

Hope you can see it.

Doc said he was happy with me on 20mg when I saw him and I feelmuch better today although v v odd my period came and I only had my last one a week and a bot ago - and I am such a regular girl. Wonder if the ADs have an effect, Doc did not say so.

Pip

Yes, the ADs do. My periods always used to be regular, but are all over the place now. Small price to pay, though. Off to look at netmums...

Yes, my counsellor warned me that stirring up things by talking about them may well cause a low mood for a couple of days after sessions. Perfectly normal, I think (long as you're not suicidal?)

Not suicidal!!

x

Good girl, so let's just keep talking the talk and taking the tablets

Hi all

Just discovered this part of mumsnet!

I have had PND twice.

I have OCD and general anxiety/depression

I have been on anti-d's for OVER 10 YEARS NOW.I don't look to stop taking them- i prefer to feel generally ok than awful.

I have 3 boys- 2 diagnosed autistic- 3rd being assessed for it next week.

regarding your original post, about feeling down since counselling....

well, having had 2 years of CBT (cognative behavioural therapy) i can state with some confidence that it is 'normal' to feel down in the early stages of counselling.

It will get easier.
please don't give up either the AD or the counselling- sometimes you have to finish the course of counselling befoer you feel the benefit.

you probably feel that you've made a big mistake going for counselling...try to stick with it.

I stopped having CBT 3 years ago- and am still using coping strategies the psychologist suggested.

Depression is a bugger- i rarely cry- so look ok.
inside i feel like a lead weight and have days where i just cannot function and just keep sitting down/going back to bed to sleep.

BUT...those days are now fewer than the good days- so when i have a bad day i have learnt to 'go with it' because i know it will pass.

I see a mental health nurse every 3 weeks (she come to my home) i find that i am sometimes 'low' the day she comes- before she even arrives- just because i know she will want to 'talk' to me!!! Then she comes and we talk. Then the next few days i am inspired to do things. Really i could do with seeing here every 2 weeks- as the 3rd week is hard.

So, keep talking. We understandxxx

Hi Mum23

Thanks for the encouragement. I only have 2 more sessions left as scheme is run thru hubbies work and limited to 6 sessions.

It must be doing something though as having very different dreams about my parents to those which I used to have (no relationship with parents for last 4 years - think big cause of PND). Been feeling tired but not low all this week - cant decide if just knackered, coming down with something or its to do with the counselling still.

Think I need to learn 'to go with it' when I have bad days - having few last week has made me thoughtful about why I feel so tired this week!!

GP said I looked ok and that will look at reducing dosage soon. How do you ever get over PND? I had been going along so happy until last week that I thought it might have gone.

Pipsicle
x

Hi- for me- with PND it was often i'd have a few good days- go everywhere- do everything...clean,cook and tidy up...and then i would be EXHAUSTED and have several days- where everything got in a mess again...ready for my manic few days of cleaning.

For me, my youngest is now 9 and when he was 3 they changed my PND diagnosis for Depression & General Anxiety. My mum is like it- and so i believe i will always be this way.

For you, if there is no family history of depression etc, then you should make a full recovery. I know people who have no sign of PND.

I just think that if you have a predisposition to be depressed- then it hits you full force as PND and once you are aware of it you are then 'tuned in and aware' of ongoing depression.

I know i ahve been like this all my life- but it wasn't till i had PND that i felt disabled by it. Before that i just thought i had mood swings!

How old is your baby?
Does he still have naps?
If so...at those times- shut the curtains- don't do housework- have a nap too.
Alot of PND is made worse by lack of sleep.
make sure you eat regularily too- esp if breastfeeding (which i never managed to ever do!)

Also at the height of my PND (and occasisionally now if i feel v.low) i put in place what my psychiatric nurse said at the time was my "Do Minimal" . She was called June, and i've never forgotten her. Sh used to remind me that on those days 'all i had to do' was MINIMAL STUFF... and even now, i hear myself saying "Do Minimal" when i'm strugling.

Mum23asdXXXXX

ps i seey your baby is 1.... how did the party go?

Think about putting the dose up if it doesn't resolve itself. If you search through threads on here you'll find that it's quite common for the ad's to seem like they've stopped working, and the gps don't always know about this. I had exactly the same thing as you. After about a month on 20mg feeling much better I was suddenly back to how I felt before. (No counselling to affect things either way.) I struggled on for months until I read things on here, then I put the dose up to 30mg and felt much better again. The beneficial effect lasted this time, and after 8 months on 30 mg I am reducing it (on 10mg at the moment) and very happy.

Hi Mum23ASD

Party great thanks and cake I made was wonderful.

Baby naps lots and this week I have been putting my feet up much more than in the last 6 weeks or so. Have cousin and close friend with depression and they are on CIT and say the same thing.

Just wondering if I am pregnant or miscarrying.... more riddles to contend with!

Devonblue

My GP said I may have to go up before I come off slowly so hoping he is pretty clued up.

Thx

Good luck. When I put the dose up to 30mg my dp noticed the difference the same day! Hopefully you will feel better without doing that, but in case you are worried, it's not a slippery slope - I didn't need to increase it again IYSWIM.

Hi Devonblue

Went to GP this morning as woke feeling flat as pancake and just all the old feelings there and have been feeling really odd all week.

Been put up to 30mg and told to go back in 3 weeks to see him.

I think that should sort it. If you search for 'citalopram not working' or 'ad's stopped working' or similar on here you should find quite a few similar stories. Also, some people were changed to other types of ad and they suited them better. Hopefully you'll be fine now.

let us know how you feel...we're listeningxxx

Can you recommend any good books on PND - ones that would help hubbie to understand too?

I've not read THISbook...It sounds a great book.
Here's a few pages from inside the book...
See What You Think

click on the 'see what you think' (the 'THIS' linjk failed!)

Then go to bottom of book cover and click 'next page'

(the reason i recommended this book is i have many books about autism from the same publisher)