Is this anxiety?

[Lipsticklover22]

I have had depression and low self esteem since I was a teenager (Now 35) and have been on Citalopram most of my adult life.

Recently, due to a few factors, such as turning 35 and still being single, the break up of a relationship due to him not wanting to commit, changes at work making things feel unsettled and a flare up of a chronic health condition, I'm wondering if this is contributing to not feeling well, or if there is something more worrying going on.

I was walking around the shops the other day when I suddenly felt unsteady on my feet and like my legs were going to give way, with dizziness. I also went on a date recently and anxiety came over me to the point where I had to excuse myself to the loo for a moment as I suddenly felt dizzy and like I was going to faint! I never usually have problems with these kind of social situations but for the first time I really struggled.

I do feel under a lot of pressure due to the above reasons. I'm not on any sort of Birth Control, last had a blood test about a year and a half ago and nothing major showed up there. I have booked another GP appointment for in a few weeks, but I'm finding things really difficult at the moment with feeling ill most of the time! Is this anxiety? I feel like it might be, but even when just sitting at home, I'm never feeling fully relaxed and I'm always really tired. This has come out of nowhere over the last few weeks and it's really worrying me.

Sounds like you have had quite a stressful time of it so you have every right to be anxious - it's a normal reaction to the problems you've faced. In lots of areas now you can self refer for 6 weeks CBT free on the NHS. It's not great and the therapists can be very varied - they often seem like they are not yet qualified and trying to get experience. But some are good, especially if you just focus on one single issue, like trying to tackle this new anxiety.

Have you tried breath work, meditation, tapping, gentle walks in nature - all those cliched destressors that do actually work? And cut back on caffeine. I now make coffee with half decaff, half normal coffee so it doesn't cause that jittery feeling.

Citalopram definitely made me very very tired - almost drugged with sleepiness. This was way more noticeable when I had been on it for too long - about ten years - I titrated very very slowly and switched to Prozac during that time then titrated very very slowly off that too and stopped altogether.

On Citalopram I did feel dizzy quite quickly if I didn't eat much. I couldn't diet when I was on it as even half a day with calorie deficit left me feeling the way you describe. I put on a stack of weight from the carb cravings. If you get the carb-craving side effect too, it may have destabilised your blood sugar.

You could try eating a Mediterranean or low complex carb, high protein diet for a while, and cutting out refined sugars and carbs - see if that helps.

I also massively recommend taking a probiotic like live yoghurt or kefir or sugar free Actimel every day. I had terrible bad breath when I was on Citalopram, and a stomach ulcer. It can upset the gut bacteria, which can also cause anxiety.

Worth a try. I hope you feel better soon.

I'm not a doc but I would suggest trying to get the GP appointment pulled forward or even pop into an Urgent Care. Sudden dizziness needs checking, imo. Might be something quite minor but best to know.