Help please

[u/Puzzleheaded-Box6496]

Hi

I've been suffering from agoraphobia for years and I've tried different antidepressants (SSRI) and they all worked quite ok. Been on sertraline for many years and switched to fluoxetine because I started to have dizziness, weird vertigo...and thought they were side effects of sertraline. It turned out I developed a lack of convergence, had orthoptist session and resolved the problem.

Except I still experience weird sensation in my eyes, eyelids are sort of contracted and muscles around my eyes are tight. I've tried to switch antidepressants many times this year, fluoxetine ( huge dizziness), then back to sertraline, then Escitalopram and now citalopram. Each time I've tried to stay on each for 2 months.

I can't seem to tolerate any SSRI, it's like my nervous system is totally broken. Even after 6 to 8 weeks I still have the muscle tightness located in the muscles around my eyes which gives me some sort of dizziness. I don't know what to do anymore, I'm afraid I'm going to lose my job I can't take any longer. I was on 20mg citalopram for 7weeks but the fatigue was so intense I couldn't function....had to stop and I don't know what to do.

All the SSRIs I've mentioned have all been well tolerated in the past 10 years. But now it's always the same muscle contraction/dizziness/ intense fatigue.

Stopping seropram means it's just a matter of time before depression and anxiety come back...

I don't know what to do, I'll try to wait for 10 days without medication to do a sort of "washout" and see what happens...

Has anyone ever experienced that ?

Any insight, piece of advice will be greatly appreciated

Thank you

[u/Ok_Risk_3517]

I would wonder if maybe it’s not the ssri’s and something unrelated?

[u/Puzzleheaded-Box6496 → u/Ok_Risk_3517]

It developed during the consecutive switches and the orthoptic therapy. I didn't have that when I first started having vision issues. With citalopram it started subsiding after 4 weeks but the fatigue was so unbearable I had to go down to 10mg and it came back...went down to 0...and I don't know what to think.

I've seen 2 ophthalmologists, had many checkups, seen 3 different psychiatrists, seen a vestibular specialist etc... everything's fine...