I’ve had a pretty bad year of it and have been feeling really low of late and have issues with all the things that are out of my control – which are really sending me under. I haven’t been such doing a good job of the things I can control either to be honest.

Anyways I finally went to the doc’s a couple of weeks ago and he’s referred me for counselling. I’ve been back again today for an update and things are no better for me. We had a chat about medication until (but I guess it carries on) the counselling comes through. I’d been against it cos I have fear of it affecting my performance – particularly at work. He’s given me a prescription for Citalopram and left it up to me whether I want to ‘cash it in’. From what he said and what I’ve read I’m gonna feel crap for the next couple of weeks – but should be fine after that.

Anyone got any experience of using it and can offer any reassurance I’m gonna be ok? I’m currently thinking that I will start using it cos I need to do something.

When I get depressed, my anxiety goes through the roof and I get irritable and short tempered which is unacceptable in my position as a househusband and full time carer for my two pre-school aged children..

I find Citalopram excellent for helping manage those symptoms, and other than feeling generally less volatile I haven’t noticed that it has any other effect on me whatsoever..

My other half was prescribed it for post-natal depression and didn’t get on with it all.. it sent her loopy, panic attacks and all sorts, but they could use that info to find something more suitable and soon had her on something that suited her..

It’s addictive in as much as you need to slow your amounts when you’re coming off It. It will feel like you’re thinking in a fog for a while. It can induce heightened feelings of suicide, especially in teenagers at first. It generally works well as a mood improver.

It won’t start to work for 3 to 4 weeks.
It works really good for my friend who suffers from depression. It allows her to have a normal life.
I have bipolar and it sent me completely manic so got taken off it.

I’m interested in this too. I was prescribed it last year and while I went and got the tablets a google search scared the shit out of me and I haven’t used them. My general state improved a bit but I am still up and down. Particularly my anxiety which I really struggle with.

Don’t believe all the horror stories on the net – lots of people take it without major side effects(*). As others have said it takes a few weeks to kick in, so its something you need to commit to.

Also it is in no way a “cure” for anxiety or low mood – that comes through the counseling/other therapy.

(*) – it can mess with your libido/performance so make sure your partner knows about that possibility.

I was prescribed it for mainly anxiety and some depression. It didn’t work for me but it may for you. However go to the CBT and treat the cause and not the symptoms. Have a google about a book by Dr Claire Weekes, thats what worked for me and I’m fine now.

The counselling will do more for you long term than the prescription, also once prescribed it will sit on your medical record and if you’re applying for life insurance in 10 years it will come up so consider all matters seriously before going down that route. I would suggest your performance should be the least of your worries unless your income is predisposed upon your athletic ability. Consider hitting counselling hard, get a full spectrum/SAD light and something non prescription such as St Johns Wort. It will kick in after about 2-3 weeks but also some anti depressants can have some side effects, nothing as serious as depression but noticeable none the less.

Please speak to the GP before taking St Johns Wort. It can actually make you a lot worse.

DO NOT take st johns wort with any prescribed ssri – puts you at risk of serotonin syndrome which is a serious condition.

I’ve been on Citalopram for a few years now. It’s the only thing I’ve found which keeps my IBS under control. Remarkably few side effects for me.

i am not a doctor.

what’s the prescription dose?

doctors seem quite happy to chuck 40mg doses at people, making no effort at all to find the lowest dose that works for the patient.

40 is loads, it will probably make you feel weird for a few weeks when you start, and the withdrawal effects can be a bit scary if/when you feel ready to stop taking it (even if you simply forget to take it for a couple of days).

it may well be that your ‘ideal’ dose is 20/40/whatever you’ve been prescribed, but it may be wise to ease yourself into to by starting at 10mg/day (cut the tablets in half/quarter)

i am not a doctor – you should probably ignore me.

Personally Citalopram worked wonders for me. Completely killed off my anxiety in a matter of days and I went from a gibbering wreck back to normal in a week or so. Absolute life saver. I’ve been on it for 5 years + now. I’m on a lower dose now, but just feel much more normal on the stuff rather than off it. Reflecting on the last 40+ years, my personality was always quite angst and taking Citalopram just normalises it. Happy to spend the rest of my life on it (as is the GP).

With many anti depressants you have to give them time to build up in your system before they have a significant effect, usually 2-3 weeks plus.Another downside is that most of the common side effects will be most severe in the first 2-3 weeks as your body gets used to the meds.A good idea is to begin with 10mg of citalopram for first week ( which is non therapeutic dose) which helps your body to get used to the meds and may minimise any side effects.
If you feel you need them I would give them ago and try stick with them for 2-3 weeks, just taking something can have a beneficial effect.
On the plus side citalopram can be very effective and any side effects will reduce over time.Also if citalopram isnt for you there are loads more anti depressants it’s sometimes just finding the right one for you.I hope this helps and if you want any more info e Mail me.I’m not a doctor but am taking citalopram and I’m probably 6 months further down the road than you.

With many anti depressants you have to give them time to build up in your system before they have a significant effect, usually 2-3 weeks plus.

That was conventional wisdom with SSRIs but more recent research has shown that you can see an affect in a few hours on people’s responses to questions. I’ll post a link if I can find the study…

Essential reading
Hardly a ringing endorsement.
“Without any treatment, most depressions will get better after about 8 months.”
Talking,CBT and exercise are more effective in most cases.

I thought that too footflaps – I’m pretty adept at spotting the effects of chemicals on my mind and body, and I felt noticeably calmer within hours of taking Citalopram..

Another subtle but interesting effect is the strange unnatural yawn that it gives you.. This is associated with Serotonin and the effect can be noticed to a much greater degree when you first start using MDMA..
😉

I’ll go along with exercise and all that being very effective.. also the adage is true that ‘before one gets themselves diagnosed with depression, first ensure that one is not simply surrounding one’s self with arseholes’

Personally, I didn’t get on with it. Was prescribed an initial 4 month’s worth but after 8 weeks or so:

a) their effect was negligible (I simply didn’t feel any better) and
b) I couldn’t handle the side-effect of feeling so tired. I used to have to go home at lunchtime for a powernap FFS!!!

Weened myself off. Also did a concurrent course of CBT which I’m also sure was ineffective…

*Touchwood* I’m on an even keel now.

Good luck with whatever the hell you decide to do.

“Without any treatment, most depressions will get better after about 8 months

I’d have likely not got to 8 months to find out.
Yes, they worked for me. You have to come off gradually though.
Felt nowt for 2 weeks, then became aware that I was looking forward to things again.
At it’s worst, if I could have flicked a switch with no distress on family/friends, I would have done.
40mg is heck of a lot. I’d say half that.

It is as good a place to start as anywhere from an anti depressant perspective.

Each GP has their favourites, what they have used on many patients time and time again. It may work well, it may not, and the latter is quite likely, it can take a a few attempts to find the AD that best suits each patient.

So long as you are not bipolar or acutely anxious already then the side effects in the first few weeks will be annoying, but hopefully tolerable. Go back and see your GP in 2-3 weeks, whilst the meds will not have completely kicked in, it should be possible to tell whether the drug suits.

If you become more anxious and start having panic attacks then go to your GP, SSRIs can make people very anxious in the first few weeks.

Thanks for the responses guys. I’ve picked em up now from the pharmacy 20mg dosage – gonna have to give it a try…..

My wife is on it as she used to get panic attacks. She’s just on a small dose – 10mg – but it’s enough to keep her sane. There appear to be no obvious side effects for her.

Your current situation sounds very similar to where I was over the summer……
After many years managing mood by exercise I ended up doing 13-14 hour days, and completely unable to switch my head off outside work. Enough to tip me over. Probably not uncommonly, I was maintaining a facade at work while starting to fall apart at home.
Usually averse to medication of any sort, I could see that not only was my work/life balance unsustainable, but my relationships with partner & children were likely to be sacrificed too. Hard as it was initially, I accepted I couldn’t handle this unsupported.
Started with 10mg, upped to 20 after a week. Apart from a rather strange, but not unpleasant feeling of disconnection while exercising, and the above noted libido issue, side effects have been minimal and seem to pretty much disappear after a couple of weeks.
Mood transformed – haven’t felt so good mentally for a helluva long time. I now realise I’ve been on a downward trend for way longer than the more recent problems, which only brought it to a head. Mrs actually enjoys my company again(!) and really connecting with the kids. GP is advising stay with it over winter to get back on the straight and narrow, then reduce dosage progressively into spring and re-assess.

Try it – you’ve nothing to lose, and if it doesn’t suit then explore alternatives with your GP.

Funny isn’t it, I’ve been feeling the black dog nipping at my heels a lot today, so much so I went online earlier and amongst other things found the video below, which I thought was excellent.

About 5 years ago I was on Citalopram for about 9 months, it moderated my moods – both bad and good I would say – but I had no nasty side effects.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiCrniLQGYc[/video]

It changed my friends life. They were resistant to try it but eventually tried it and what a difference. It manages all their problems and gives them the ability to cope with what life can throw at them.

Obviously there are different doses, start low or just take half a tablet and take it from there.

You will feel pretty crap for the 1st week but stick with it.

After a few months you will wonder how you ever managed without it and why you didn’t do it sooner.

Good luck

Have been on daily 20mg for 12 months now. I have a very manic work routine due to doing about 3 peoples jobs etc – lots of panic attacks etc. I felt really bad for the first 4/5 weeks and had bad night sweats – I mean soaked through. After that time began to sleep through and the sweats subsided. Now I feel like a bit of an automaton sometimes but can now function.

I was on citalopram for a fair while and changed over to fluoxetine after going private. All I know is that when I came of it I Wasn’t ready. Hence having a bash on fluoxetine. I did go up to 80mg but felt so tired and lethargic and am now out of choice down to 40. I feel much better. CBT did help me a little as well but unfortunately I was a bit stubborn with it. Medication has helped loads even though sometimes I can have bad days. Bit of a ramble but I’m typing on the ipad which makes me marry.

I took citalopram for post-natal depression. It gave me truly horrible anxiety for a couple of weeks before it started working, but ultimately I didn’t get on very well with it as it worsened my migraines.

I was prescribed it for a few months, didn’t notice any difference good or bad. Definitely treat the cause though… Mine was my job was making me a horrible person to be around and my family friends were suffering, had to leave. Things are much better after finding a new job I’m a completely different person

Works wonders for me. Gave me some v wired sensations for the first couple of weeks but that then passed. Been on them for years having stepped down the dose over time.

Mrs Prawny was on it for a while to manage her anxiety and depression, worked pretty well for her, she was awful before, and awful when she tried to come off it the first time. She’s better now though, she complained that it robbed her of her sex drive. I didn’t notice the difference to be fair, I think the kids killed that one off a couple of years before 😡

she complained that it robbed her of her sex drive.

Yep, well known side affect and it’s also prescribed for treating premature ejaculation……

footflaps – Member
she complained that it robbed her of her sex drive.
Yep, well known side affect and it’s also prescribed for treating premature ejaculation……

Hmm, i’m sure we’ve still got some about somewhere… 8)

I’ve been on 20mg since may and tbh not aware of any improvement. Also having CBT and am hopeful that’ll make a difference though it’s still early days.
I was also on Lustral/Sertraline about 15 years ago and didnt see any change on that either.

I was on it for about 1 year or so following a period of bad panic attacks and depression when I was at university. I started on 10mg at my doctors advice, after 2 weeks I didn’t notice a change so my doctor advised doubling the dose. After a week or so I noticed a cahnge. Made me feel less nervous, more able to stay calm and generally less emotional altogether. Bad points were lower libido, less able to feel happier emotions or get excited about very much. But this was negated by the feeling of calm it gives you. I ended up taking 80mg daily to see if it made much difference towards the end. Made me quite tired.
One piece of advice is dont just stop using it, you need to wean off it. I didn’t and it felt like I was having a stoke. Horrible feeling of my brain switching on and off. My own fault as I had run out and didn’t renew my subscription. I went back and got more then weaned myself off.
The problem with tablets for depression is that it supresses the symptoms but doesnt get the the source of theproblem.

I’ve been on 20mg since may and tbh not aware of any improvement

I went up to 40mg when I was very ill, then down to 30 for a while and am now on 20 as a maintenance dose.

I thought that too footflaps – I’m pretty adept at spotting the effects of chemicals on my mind and body, and I felt noticeably calmer within hours of taking Citalopram..

Found a link: http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/06/23/some-antidepressants-work-fast-for-anxiety

Dr. Susannah Murphy, a neuroscientist at the Psychopharmacology and Emotion Research Laboratory at the University of Oxford, says that a single dose of an antidepressant can reduce anxiety within three hours.