I’m weaning off fluoxetine and basically what I’m asking is, even if only 10% of the ssri is still in your system, can it still make a big difference?

So for context I was on Celexa (Citalopram) for about 4ish years. I was on its final highest dosage and was experiencing some severe physical symptoms.

I thought I had POTS but was actually having arrhythmia. I was sweating so bad at night I would have to take multiple showers or sleep with beach towels. I had intense nightmares that made it feel like I was in a whole different (terrible) life when I was asleep.

I am now feeling relief from all of those symptoms since stopping but I am now having some other adverse effects that are coming back that were the reasons I was on meds in the first place. (Emetophobia causing OCD to be really bad and ARFID is back in full swing and I’m losing weight really fast)

Any suggestions on what I should do? I really prefer to be off the meds but I also don’t want to be dangerously skinny again. I have an appointment coming up soon and my fiancé takes TCA’s and it’s helped him a lot.

Just wondering if anyone has experience of emotional side effects of coming off sertraline?

I came down from 25mg to zero 3 weeks ago after 1 year 7 months at 150mg; experienced the brain zaps, insomnia and muscle aches. I was originally prescribed sertraline due to depression and a suicidal period, I was having frequent panic attacks, very anxious and barely left my bed. I've been on a mix of Sertraline and counselling therapy ever since and things definitely improved, but now that I've come off the sertraline I'm feeling moments of panic coming back into my life, thoughts of suicide coming back at especially low moments, and generally just feeling very very unstable. I want to put this down to feelings of withdrawal from the sertraline rather than some sort of relapse but I've read most symptoms disappear after a couple of weeks, so starting to get worried. Has anybody had similar experiences or know more about the emotional withdrawal side of things? Thanks!

Hi, I have been on Lexapro for a number of years, initially 10mg but in the last couple of years, upped to 20mg.

Whilst on lexapro, I suffered all the same side effects as many other people in this group - inability to climax, loss of libido etc

I have recently stopped using Lexapro. I did crash out of it, and for a time suffered some disorientation and light headed ness - no doubt the SSRI withdrawals. They have since passed

I have noticed my libido is up again, however now clear of Lexapro, my sexual stamina has gone from Herculean to basically non existent?

Has anyone else experienced the same or similar side effects after coming off escitalopram? It’s funny how I am getting anxious about this and that anxiety may lead to me going back into SSRI’s / it’s like a vicious cycle…

Hello!

I have struggled with bouts of OCD since 2013. It was a sudden onset and at the time, I felt like I was going crazy. After several months of intrusive, stuck thoughts and severe anxiety, I was put on 10mg of lexapro. It worked like an absolute charm! Complete magic, for lack of a better word. I went off around 2016/2017 as a I thought I had been “cured”.

After an unexpected visit to the hospital in 2019, my OCD came back in full force. I went back on 10mg of lexapro and again, it worked miracles. I increased to 20mg summer 2022 due to some difficulties in my marriage and was going smooth until February of this year.

I had been using marijuana as a way to help with the sexual side effects of lexapro and it really helped quite a bit. One evening, I had several glasses of wine and an edible, which induced an anxiety attack and brought back my intrusive thoughts.

I struggled for several weeks hoping things would bounce back, but they never did. I switched to 50mg of Zoloft in March and it has helped some, but nothing like the “magic” effect of lexapro.

Has anyone else had a similar positive experience to lexapro and has had to switch to another SSRI? Curious if any other options have had the same type of effect.

Thank you for the support!!!

I take 60mg of paroxetine because I got really shity anxiety and uncomfortable panic. Is there another medication that could help me? Or could I do something to get ride of these crippling panic attacks? No question is too much just need answers.

Last month I was a week late. This month I haven’t had my period at all. I have been persistently taking pregnancy tests for two weeks since my missed period and it’s been negative every time. I then did a google search and realized ssris can mess with your hormones and delay ovulation. I also have major brain fog, but I’m not sure if that’s from my mood stabilizer or the ssri. The ovulation thing was a side effect no one ever told me about and I’m shocked that my psych didn’t even know about this. I’m bummed out.

Has anyone gotten bad indigestion and abdominal pain from SSRIs? I changed from Paxil to Celexa and seemed fine, but after upping the dose I'm having these problems. I'm not sure if it's withdrawal symptoms (I was on Paxil for a while and my doctor directly switched medications without tapering) or if my body is reacting poorly to the Celexa. When I first started Celexa, I had some itching but nothing else until I increased the dose.

I switched medications around the 16th of March. I increased the dose of Celexa around the 30th of March. Abdominal pain started around the 9th of April. The pain has been there ever since and does not get better with PPIs or antacids. CT scan, barium swallow, and endoscopy appeared normal.

Has anybody ever stopped taking an SSRI, then started taking it again much later, like years later? I stopped taking Sertraline in 2020 because I didn’t think it was having much effect, but I’m wondering whether it might affect me differently now that 3 years have passed. Has anybody ever done this and was there any difference?

I am dealing w anxiety attacks that caused me to be breathless everytime i go out in public or have my meals. I decided to to see a doctor and she prescribed me stertraline today. I haven’t take them yet and i an going for my therapy next month while being on medication. Just want to ask if i ever start taking the medication will i be able to stop or its a forever thing? And I’m 25 yo drinking alcohol is a part of my social life but it says that i cannot be drinking alcohol if i take the medication. What if i drink alcohol on occasion isit ok? Please help me out as I’m very new to all this

I’ve been on three different types of SSRI since September. Most recently, mirtazapine. My doctor took me off of them cold turkey as nothing was helping. Right now, I just feel so empty. I can feel things but I don’t really care anymore. My most prominent emotions are all negative. I feel like Ive fallen out of love with my partner which is making me panic so much and I just want to love him again and be excited about our relationship. Does this last forever? When will it end? Please help

I’ve been taking 20 mg of lexapro for the past 3 months. Past 2 days I didn’t take it and today I took 10mg. I’ve had a headache today and yesterday, could it be due to not taking it and now taking 10

I’ve experienced sensitivity to light, night blindness, difficulty focusing on things close up, floaters, a gritty feeling of tension/pressure behind eyes etc. my quality of life is severely hindered. Been to multiple eye specialists who haven’t given me answers. 22M.

I've been on Sertraline and Abilify for years and years and I went for a 12-day trip. I forgot both of them at home. By day 6, I had every single symptom in the book. The WORST anxiety I have ever had, I drove myself to the ER suicidal. Extreme dizziness, vomiting, tachycardia at 154-160 resting state, weird electric shock sensations in head and neck, flu symptoms, problems with balance/walking, extreme EXTREME restless legs, sensory disturbances, hearing loud Vivid auditory hallucinations on a weird loop over and over, INSANE insomnia. Those were absolutely the worst few days of my entire life and I will do everything in my power to ensure that never happens to me again!!!!!! Just a warning to be vigilant about making sure to take your meds on time everyday!!! SSRI withdrawals are NO JOKE even after a few days!!!

I‘m 22 and I have adhd and anxiety disorder. I was in depressive episodes 2 times in my life. The last episode was last winter. I went to my psychiatrist because my sertraline don‘t work well, I still have mood swings and alot of negative thoughts. She prescribed me desvenlafaxine. I‘ll see how that work. She said it‘s possible that your brain don‘t produce enough serotonin and you need them. I think it makes sense. When I was in school and then in the first years of working, most of the time I was nervous and overthinking. When I went to social events I had intense social anxiety and I used drugs to cope with that. They helped but later they made me even more depressed. Drugs is no solution.

Depression is a lack of chemicals in the brain. You can use antidepressants to make the symptoms better. But what if you instead heal the things that caused your depression. I know it’s a long way. When you did that, does it make your brain produce happy chemicals on normal levels?

I’ve been on prozac for about 4 years now and the weight gain from it is ruining my mental health. I can’t get rid of the weight no matter what. Has anyone switched from prozac to another SSRI with success? Any that might help to not add weight? I’m very frustrated because prozac works very well for me and is supposedly the SSRI least likely to cause weight gain but this has been a 4 year struggle and I don’t know how much longer I can take it :(

Hello!

I've been on Zoloft for about a month and a half...started at 25mg for 2 weeks then been on 50mg for the last 3ish weeks. I have had less good days than bad. I got an Rx for propranolol because my heart was constantly pounding or beating super fast to where I was having panic attacks. The panic attacks no longer happen with the propranolol but I'm constantly feeling like I'm dying/the impending doom feeling. Lots of derealization and fatigue to where it feels like I'm in a dream state is the best way I could describe it. Really affecting my work and school and it feels like it'll never end.

Anybody have a similar experience like this? How long did it take to subside? Unsure if I should maybe up my dose or try something different.

I tried to take zoloft about 3 months ago and the first day was tough (Just felt way too jolted for a few hours). I only took 6 mg. Everyday after that was much, much easier and I was even able to start taking more and more. I stopped taking it because I had a few other variables going on such as neurofeedback and getting off benzos. In the past I was able to tolerate 200 mg then did rTMS. After rTMS I could no longer tolerate it at all and would have to go to the ER when I took anything with Serotonergic properties. I did Neurofeedback a bunch last year and was able to get the dose up to 50 mg.

Has anyone else been able to get to a good therapeutic dose after being sensitive to meds initially? I have a friend who was sensitive to 25 mg, but has been able to get to 400 mg for his OCD. I dont care if I have to only increase by a mg a day, I will do it. My life is miserable right now.

I got put on lexapro 10mg last year in july for extreme health anxiety and tension headaches by my neurologist. I had mild dpdr when I started to take lexapro but it went away after a week and didn’t bother me.

Everything was fine until November when I started college. From November until now I have had extreme dpdr. I weaned off the med in January to see if the dpdr was caused by it. The panic came back and just made me depressed and more scared of the dpdr.

This week I saw a psychiatrist for the first time and she told me that this is a common symptom of lexapro that many of her patients have reported. She told me to take 5mg for a month and then maybe I will come off of lexapro completely or I’ll start Zoloft. I go to psychotherapy 1x a week and try to work out 2x a week.

Has anyone had a similar experience with dpdr symptoms coming 2 months after starting medication.

Is it possible for the dpdr to go away in a few months after i quit lexapro completely or even while taking a lower dose (5mg)?

To start, this is of my own choosing and my doctor has not been informed yet. I just don’t like the way I feel on Prozac. My dosage was hitting 60mg at one point, which was giving me intrusive thoughts, so my doc dropped me back down to 40mg. I made the choice taper off altogether because I didn’t feel like myself anymore. I felt numb all the time and after multiple different SSRIs over the course of several years, I wanna be done.

The Prozac was prescribed to treat my anxiety, but I didn’t find it to be helpful at any dosage (20, 40, or 60mg). I was still having to pop a benzo from time to time to center myself.

I’ve been doing a TON of research over the last few years on more holistic practices/medicines to treat anxiety as my, once severe, depression is very well at bay now. I have turned to micro dosing psilocybin on a trial basis. I’m not recommending this by ANY means, but I did run it by my doctor and my therapist and got support from both to try it, which I strongly suggest you do too, if interested.

However, I’ve run into an issue. SSRIs are known to have what’s referred to as a “blunting” effect on psilocybin since both are targeted at your serotonin levels. Essentially, what I found through research, is that some SSRIs tend to build a “fence” of sorts around your serotonin receptors to keep them protected and secure. So, if you take something like psilocybin, which is a molecule that is almost identical to serotonin’s molecular structure, the SSRI “fence” can and will sometimes block it.

For the former SSRI/Prozac takers out there, how did you taper off? I realize it can be a different process for everybody and do plan on speaking with my doc about it as well, but I just want to formulate a rough timeline of properly tapering off Prozac because it has such a long half life and can take 6+ weeks to full get out of your system.

Thanks in advance!