About a year ago, I had a series of scary panic attacks and I was prescribed Celexa. I took 10mg of Celexa for almost a year, and it worked. It took away the panic attacks, the anxiety, and the fear. It also took away my passion, my joy, and my enthusiasm. I became a calm, steady, detached shell of myself. I could have kept going like that and been fine, because well, life was pretty easy. I didn't get angry anymore, didn't get frustrated, and did what needed to be done without complaint.
But I decided I wanted my passion back and I wanted to start caring again. I also felt like I was disappearing. I was ready to find out what would happen if I started feeling real, solid, heartfelt emotions again.
Almost two weeks ago, I went to see my doc for an annual. He said, "Stop taking Celexa whenever you want, it's only 10mg." So I did. Almost overnight my sex drive was back, I was enthusiastic, and ALIVE!
But, it was like I was on speed. And I have been experiencing profound dizziness, aches in my legs, annoyingly vivid dreams, and trouble sleeping. The past two days, I've also had tingling in my hands (which almost always comes with tingling in my brain), and I get sooooo incredibly frustrated/intense/overwhelmed, I'm induced to crying. No particular reason, just need to release from this intensity!
I did a little research, and found out that these are withdrawal symptoms. It doesn't make the symptoms go away to know this. It does, however, make me understand what's going on, and that they will eventually subside.
In a way, these symptoms are a chance for me to practice zen and mindfulness.
Crying helps temporarily. And it feels good. It's amazing to feel my body just NEED to cry without having some kind of specific reason or emotion to go with it. It's like jumping up and down or hitting a pillow. It's a way to release the tension that's constantly building up.
I had gained quite a bit of weight on Celexa, and I was sleeping all the time. I can already feel that weight starting to shed, and I'm sleeping normal hours again, except waking up several times a night from aches and vivid dreams.
One of the weirdest side effects I'm getting is that I feel like I'm having every emotion at the same time. Happy, sad, mad, calm, attentive, bored, enthusiastic, frustrated. It's like a flood gate was opened, and all of the things I wasn't feeling on Celexa are coming in at one time.
In a way, it's a time for me to learn, so when all of this withdrawal is over, I can remember that so much of emotion is physical and chemical. Since none of my emotions are being caused by anything but chemicals, I can't blame it on anything. I really hope I can remember this when I'm no longer beholden by the chemistry in my brain, and see my emotions not as my enemy (like I did before I took Celexa), but as a physical symptom.
Or maybe, this is all the withdrawal symptoms talking :)
One positive symptom, although painful at times because the feeling is so intense, is a renewed energy for writing. Almost an obsession. Writing has taken on a similar function as crying—it's a way for me to get some release. This year on Celexa stalled my desire to write to almost nothing. I would write things, but I didn't really care about them. There was no passion. My muse was taking a vacation.
Now, I again have motivation to write and exercise. Maybe it's the feeling that I'm on speed that's causing this, but man, I'm so glad to have my creativity back. Whether or not it's temporary, I'm going to focus on that part of the withdrawal as much as I can, rather than focusing on the spinning, insomnia, and freaky dreams. (And actually, my freaky dreams have lent to some very interesting story ideas!)
I'm trying to focus on what's good, and to keep reminding myself that these withdrawal symptoms will eventually go away. Sometimes, I feel like I'm at the end of my rope, and I just can't take it anymore. Crying, exercising, writing, and sharing my story with others will get me through.
I've had lots of thoughts during this year, and I continue to wonder about the long-term effects it will have on my zen practice. There is a lesson in here somewhere. Perhaps several. Can I have the egolessness enough to see them?
In case you'd like to know, these are the common side effects of Celexa withdrawal. I put a star next to the ones that people seem to complain about the most on the websites that I visited during my research.
- Anxiety *
- Dizziness *
- Fatigue *
- Headache *
- Insomnia *
- Tremors
- Visual hallucinations
- Diarrhea
- Nausea *
- Vomiting
- Restlessness *
- Blurred vision
- Muscle and joint pain *
- Jolting electric "zaps” *
- Tingling sensations *
- Fever
- Abdominal discomfort
- Flu symptoms and general malaise *
- Anorexia
- Agitation *
- Vertigo *
- Gait disturbances
- Sweating
- Irritability *
- Aggression
- Nightmares and/or vivid dreams *
- Confusion
- Memory and concentration difficulties
- Chills and hot flashes
- Crying spells *
- Suicidal thoughts
- Lethargy
- Weakness
These are the suggestions for getting through the withdrawal symptoms. Although it's highly recommended to taper off the medication slowly as a way to prevent withdrawal, it still seems that many people have some symptoms, even with the taper.
- Drink lots of water
- Exercise (swimming, running, walking, biking, etc.)
- Yoga/Pilates
- Meditation
- Talking to a counselor/therapist or friend a LOT during this time
- Eat regularly and healthy
- Avoid alcohol
- Dramamine (mixed results)
These are some things that worked for me, but nobody else had mentioned them in my research
- Crying and enjoying it
- Ibuprophen for the headaches and muscle aches
- Tylenol Simply Sleep (ask your doctor first!!)
- Mindfulness and "watching" all the symptoms like a movie
- Finding the good that is coming with the withdrawal
- Writing, writing, writing
- Playing games (video, board, card, etc.)
- Doing things I love
- And when the anxiety/restlessness/intensity rears its head - remember it's not ME, it's the chemistry in my brain that's doing this.
If you are reading this and are currently going through Celexa withdrawal, you are not alone.
Namaste
686 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 400 of 686 Newer› Newest»Promobabe,
I could not beleive what I just read!! I thought I was reading about myself, except that I was on Celexa for only one year! The rage!! I thought I was going to loose my mind, it's been two weeks for me now and the rage has lessened but I am still so on EDGE!!! i hope this goes away soon. I hope you feel better and I will be praying for you and everyone out there who is going through this!!! This is so terrible to feel this way!!!
Hey there:
This is my first time checking back on this site since I wrote last week, and I see your newly-posted comment. It's now two weeks since I quit Celexa. That scary rage thing I had has abated; no more freaky episodes, tho I'm on edge more than I'd like to be. The main challenge is the deep, deep sadness and underlying anxiety. I'm not sure how much is just Celexa withdrawal, or some serious stuff in my life that I'm going thru now. I can't tell how much is me, how much is being off the awful drug. I'm just exercising as much as possible (the endorphins help tremendously), focusing on work, letting myself cry (more often than I'd like, for sure) and seeing friends more often. I'll keep checking back to tell you how I'm doing in my Journey Off Celexa. Stay strong, I'm sending good thoughts your way! :) Let me know how you're doing, OK?
Promobabe,
I have the sadness as well so bad. I want this to go away. I cry all the time. I am working out as well. I have really bad ringing in my ears as well. This is just a overall bad feeling. Does anyone elso have this ringing??? I hope you are getting better. Talk to you again soon. Bridget
Hi everybody!
I am SO glad I found this site. I've been on and off Lexapro and Celexa for the past several years, and a few weeks ago I just decided that I'd rather be actively despondent than just a sad zombie. My GP had upped by dose from 20 mg of Celexa to 40 after the 20 wasn't working. I'm much better off now. The withdrawal symptoms DO go away. I have not had all of the ones mentioned, but I can relate to the insomnia, crying jags, and dizziness/nausea QUITE well.
One thing really surprised me: no one on this post has mentioned anything about bodywork, especially Reiki. I've only had three treatments and it's helped me more than ANY pill ever did. I'm not in a major metropolitan area, but through a recommendation from my massage therapist, I've found a WONDERFUL woman who has a PhD in nursing and does Reiki, hypnotherapy, conventional talk therapy, and many other modalities. There are people out there who can help in REAL ways and not by pushing pills.
It is nice to see others who are experiencing what I'm going through. I decided, after immense weight gain on top of an already overweight body, that after 3 years on 40mg of Celexa I wanted off. So I halfed my remaining dosage of about 20 pills and am taking half for 2 weeks and then the third week will take half of a pill every other day and the final weeks I'll go every two days. What brings me to this site was googling Celexa withdrawal because I've been getting dizzy lately for no reason. I figured it must be because of my lowered dosage of Celexa and thank goodness I'm right!
Thanks for writing this...and to the others who are going through this at the same time...good luck! We're not alone!
hello everyone..
today is the start of my forth week coming off celexa 20mg!! wow,i have been so sick,stabbing pain in the top of my head like an ice pick or something,i had a fever of 103 for 4 days and nites. now the past week i've had cripling pains in my joints(mainly on the rite side)and i mean cripling. i took myself to the emergancy room at 2am the other nite,could not step on my rite knee or ankle,it was like it was locked...severe pain!! ive also have mild brain zaps and the uncontrolled crying which i don't mind because i do feel better after...ive have been very snappy at my husband like very angry,then feel terrible because im not an angry person...that has been my journy so far!!
Hi everyone. I also am on Celexa. I was initially put on it after the birth of my daughter to help with post partum depression. My doctor very quickly prescribed them to me without explaining a thing. Of course as a trusting patient I started taking them without question. It wasn't until I tried to stop cold turkey that I realized something was wrong. I started researching the side effects and withdrawls of Celexa and was in shock. I honestly never thought I would be going through this. I feel as if it did help me through a rough spot in my life but the price I am paying now is too high! I have a lot of the same symptoms as everyone else. Loss of memory,feeling of loss of self,extreme fatigue....I have 5 children and have lost all interest and energy to keep up with them. I used to be involved in everything. Now I have to push myself to get them ready for school in the morning. I have lost my emotions somewhere. Honestly it feels as if I have no feeling sometimes. I would rather be overly emotional than feel like this. I would NEVER recommend anyone go on this unless it's truly a serious condition with no otner recourse. I plan on weaning myself off again but I will do it by cutting the dose in half and go from there. Hopefully I will get me back through the process. I cannot deal with another day of wanting to sleep all day not to mention the 35 pounds of weight gain and lack of motivation to take care of myself like I used to:( I wish everyone the best who are in this same situation. It's hard for my family and friends to understand me and they just think it's all in my head and I should be able to control it. I try to tell them I can't and I feel very alone. This site has helped me realize I am not alone:)
This has helped me tremendously! I was put on Celexa in November 2009 and just got off of it this past Easter Sunday. I slowly weened myself off while I started Lactimal.
I started having the brain zaps, nausea and vertigo on Wednesday. I thought I was losing it. It's so comforting to know what I know now.
The Celexa actually worked for me and I felt wonderful and had no side affects at all. The reason I stopped was because they seemed to have lost their power and my Dr. decided to put me on mood stabilizers instead. I'm through taking medication. I plan to be off the Lactimal soon.
Hi again,
It's been 4 weeks today since I quit Celexa. I have never had another crazy episode of weird anxiety at night thank God. My body continues to hurt at different levels every day. I basically have no energy and feel lousy most of the time. I am almost always in a bad mood and irritated. I have still not lost a pound which makes me so angry. I want to just keep writing as I go through this so that others will know their symtoms are just symtoms too. When this awful journey off celexa finally ends I will be so happy to write about it here to give others hope. I also know I will never, never go on another anti-depressant again. I was going through real life issues when I got on the meds. I had no one to talk to as far as family and friends so I took the meds in desperation. Next time I will see a counselor or someone on the street before I choose this route. Any benefit I got from these drugs was gone long ago, it's just been trying to "get clean" for a long time now. First trying to get off Prozac for 7 weeks then going back on because I couldn't take it anymore and now this withdrawl. I will continue on this time knowing it will end some day. It's been so hard for me to exercise since I feel like total crap everyday but I will start today cause I keep reading how much that will help. My recovery is possible right now in large part because of this site. Reading from other people on this journey does so much for me so thank you all.
Hi Bev:
I've almost completed my 4th week off Celexa (like you) and while I still struggle, I'm doing better. The brain zaps are much less, and my energy levels are pretty good. I just want to say: continue to go to the gym, even if you feel like you can't. Just go for a half hour, get some cardio in. This has helped me tremendously! Stay strong..let me know how you're doing...
So glad I found this. I started taking Celexa in 2000 after a string of bad experiences left me very depressed. At the time, I figured I would only be on it for a few months until I started feeling ok again.
Well, a few months turned into several years when my doctor kept insisting that if I felt better, it must be working (she also said things like "You might as well stay on it forever. I'm on it - it's a great drug.")
10 years and 80 pounds later, I decided that I would start looking into why I couldn't lose more than a few pounds no matter what I did. I found more and more sites which mentioned that Celexa caused rapid weight gain which could not be shed as long as you were on the drug. I also found more and more references to things I was experiencing: losing creativity (I was a fairly prolific writer until the year I started taking Celexa) and exacerbation of arthritis (I've gone from mild arthritis in one knee to bone-on-bone in both my knees during this time as well). I decided shortly thereafter to start tapering off my Celexa dosage. I've run out for a few days before and experienced the brain zaps - so I think tapering will work a bit better for me.
I'm on my 3rd day of a 1/2 dose (10mg) and I feel ok except for a little dizziness every now and then. I'll report back periodically to let you know how it goes.
I just ran across this site and i have been having a time with withdrawal from Celexa. I was on 60 mg. I switched to Prozac a couple of weeks ago and the withdrawal from the Celexa was aweful. A couple of days ago they were going to switch me to Effexsor (sp) but it was expensive so i didn't get it. I put myself back on 40 mg Celexa and felt better within a 1/2 hour. I figured out it wasn't the new medicine making me sick but going off the Celexa. I think i will spend the next several months cutting the dose slowly. Weight gain has been a issue for me. I don't know if i will go completely off but i will try to get off 60mg a day.
So far so good. It's been a week on the half dose and I've had very minimal brain zaps and dizzy spells. I've had the vivid dream thing too, but luckily none of them were nightmares - just my normal odd dreams. I actually feel happier and more energetic as well. It's odd how that works - less antidepressant = happier. I'm going to try and cut the dose to 5 mg starting tonight. If I feel ok I'll keep that up until I run out and then hopefully I'll be happily Celexa-free from then on. More updates soon.
I'm on my third day of 5mg and every single joint in my body aches. It's not so bad that I can't move, but it's enough to be really annoying and make me say "ow" every now and then. I still have minimal dizziness and brain zaps though. I don't think I need to go back up to 10mg, I just need to get past this. I can't wait to be free of this stupid drug.
I have been on Celexa 20mg for over a year. I was on Paxil before that and tried to ween myself off. What a mistake! PAXIL IS EVIL!! I swear what a horrible drug! I have been trying to ween myself off of Celexa now for 3 months. I have been taking 10mg now since Feb 1. Now I am taking .5 mg. The urge to cry is driving me crazy!!! I hate this so bad. But I hate to be on these meds even more. They DID work for me, but I cant stand the weight gain. I have tried everything and cannot lose any weight. Hopefully this will help. If anyone has any idea or would like to talk please email me. luckykarin777@aol.com. Thanks and good luck everyone.
What a great blog,,thank you, thank you for posting. I have been off of celexa20 mg. now for 6 days. The dizziness is still there but getting better. I am trusting God to see me throught this, along with natural supplements from Dr. Colberts website, www.icandoit.com. This is an eating plan where he describes neurotransmitters and why oh why we have such difficulty with low serotonin and high sugar/carbs. As an R.N. I would recommend Dr.
Colberts information to all to read. When we suffer from low serotonin and low dopamine our creativity,passion and drive suffer. By pounding sugar and carbs it raises these neurotransmitters, hence we feel better, but send our glucose through the roof and into the basement in a matter of hours. We crash and the maddening cycle begins again. We then go on anti-depressents to ward off these "bad" emotions of anxiety, crying jags, depression and anger. These SSRI's biggest side effect is WEIGHT GAIN. Now how good are we going to feel, by adding 2 to 3 sizes to our clothes. Please empower yourself to heal your body. Ask for God's strength, He tell us in sacred scripture, " I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13. I would recommend the following to speed the healing of your body and lessen the intensity of the withdrawl symptoms. Some sort of physical activity, walking, riding a bike, gardening, cleaning the house. Mat work such as pilates. Supplements such as Serotonin Max 100mg., fiber(to move out toxins from the body),Green Tea elite capsules(increase energy and decrease fogginess), Omega oils to aid in replenishing the over taxed liver, and Barley Life ( greens which give the cells energy and life). Please know I am keeping you all in my prayers. Withdrawl from any medications, alcohol, nicotine and illegal drugs can seem insurmountable, but trust and use good sense. You can do this! Thanks for having this site. Thanks also for your time:)
Ok, so I'm a few days into my second week of 5mg and the pain that was all over my body has now settled in my lower back and my elbows. The brain zaps and dizziness are almost completely gone (1 every few days), but this pain is getting old. Advil barely touches it and alternating soaking in the tub and using the heating pad only lighten it somewhat (and very temporarily).
I had originally planned to stop taking it altogether on Monday, but I'm afraid that the pain will get worse. I think I'll give my body a bit more time to get used to the 5mg, then I might step it down to 2.5 if I can figure out how to cut the pill that small.
Has anyone else experienced this pain (the back pain is the worst - the elbows are just annoying)? I just want to know how soon it goes away or if I need to go to the doctor (just in case it has nothing to do with withdrawal).
It makes me feel good that I am not the only one tying to deal with my prolems. I am siting on my couch right now debating on whether or not I should start back on my celexa, I came off of it about 2 months ago, and now I've had some really tough family mess to deal with and im in school and other things. But I don't want to take a pill every day to feel "numb" I have always had anxiety and I think it makes me tired, so thank all of you for telling your stories it helps to hear how other people have come off of these medications also. Leigh
Diane- Thanks for your encouragement. Trying to do this is scary and i appreciate all your advice and prayers. I am on 20 mg right now down from 60 mg. I am feeling really good right now but from past experience the lower i take this dose the more the pain, dizziness and up set stomach will increase. I am taking it all very slowly. Everyone please share any other ideas you have for the muscle pain, dizzy feeling and feeling like your going to throw up all the time. This is the part that scares me the most.
Can I just say thank you to all of you who have shared your experiences! I started tapering off of Celexa about 6 weeks ago and stopped completely about a week ago. I am feeling so stupid... Seriously having a difficult time putting thought together... The worst part for me is the "zaps" and vertigo sensations. I am also pretty annoyed with my lack of patience lately...
Ok... getting nauseous.... Just wanted to say thank you!
Hello. Thank God for all of you. I have been taking Celexa for about five and a half years now and have decided I am tired of being tired and having not nearly enough sex drive. I only take 10mg per day but didn't take anything two nights ago and then did take 10mg last night. I am going to try to cut to 5 mg per night now instead of 1o every second day. Is there any benefit to simply "pulling the bandaid off" and quitting cold turkey? I am feeling all the things you have all referred to. Particularly brain fog, headachey and a bit nauseous. With God's grace I will get through this. Thank you all and I pray you will feel better soon also.
Still in withdrawls from quitting Celexa. Horrible panic attacks, anxiety, can't fall asleep, and wake up with heart racing. it's been 45 days and I'm praying this is the near end. I had to get off Celexa when I learned through another website that the awful neurapathy in my feet was probably being caused by the Celexas usage. I tapered off but obviously not long enough. I was stuck, I don't have insurance and must go to the local hospital distict healthcare system and the soonest I could get in was May 27 th! Now, I will try to try to approach my depression issue with homepathic stuff first. Regulars M.D.s are going to puch the RX's, despite the side affects and its troubling. If the homeopathic stuff doesn't work, I pray, that next doctor that is assigned to 'care' for me will look at the options that have minimal side affects FIRST.
THanks everyone for your lists and comments and helps <3
Almost done with my 3rd week of 5mg and the back pain is subsiding. It ended up settling in my sciatic nerve on the right side, so I looked up some exercises I could do to relieve the pain - and that worked wonders.
I plan to stop taking it altogether after tonight, so I can hopefully get the worst of the withdrawal out of the way over the weekend. Hopefully the really bad withdrawal symptoms are over with now that I've cut my dose by 15mg. We'll see... Send me all the happy thoughts you can muster. :)
< Is there any benefit to simply "pulling the bandaid off" and quitting cold turkey?>
Don't quit cold turkey... you'll feel awful. I tried that once from 10 mg. and i was so sick. Just keep cutting the dose back every few weeks.
Paula
I have only been on Celexa (citalopram 20mg ) for about 5 months and hate that I have no sex drive at all. My husband and I have always have a very passionate sex life. I want to go off but am scared to death. Does anyone know if my symptoms will be lesser because I have not been on as long. I want off, regardless.
Hello all,
It's time for me to post again. I have been completely off Celexa for 8 weeks now, Thank God!!! It truely feels that I've come through a milestone in my life. I didn't think I would be able to make it off. Thank you to everyone who has posted here. It got me through so many hard times and gave me the courage to keep going. I had gained about 80 pounds in the 4 years I was on anti depressants. I didn't lose any weight the first 5 weeks after I quit so I put my scale away because I was sick of being so angry about it. Now, 3 weeks later, my clothes are getting bigger on me and it feels great. I still haven't weighed myself for my own sake but my weight loss is feeling good. I would like to say I am completely through all the withdrawls but it just isn't over yet. The biggest problem I have is being irritated a lot and having anxiety at night sometimes when I try to go to sleep. Most days are really good now and I am so grateful. I want to encourage every one who is on this journey, it really, really does get better.
That's so good to hear, Bev. I'm on my 6th day without it now and it's good to know that it gets better. It's not horrible right now, but I've got intermittent brain zaps, alternating chills / sweats, and an extreme lack of patience at times. I really don't want to go back on it no matter what, so it's really good to hear that it will smooth out eventually. Keep us posted. :)
I started taking Magnesium Malate 3 days ago and it's been a real help. It definitely takes the edge off the brain zaps - making them much more tolerable. It has also calmed my other symptoms. It doesn't make them go away completely, but they aren't as severe or long-lasting. I definitely recommend taking it if you're going through any of the withdrawal symptoms. :)
I have only been on the drug for 4 months and have started weining myself off due to lack of sex drive. It has been two weeks, only taking half of a 20 mg. Wonder if anyone else came off this soon and what their experience was. I am terrified I will have these described symptoms but so far I feel great. Shakiness has almost stopped already which is great since I am an aspiring artist. Any suggestions or knowledge is greatly appreciated.
Hi everyone, I'm on day two of my second attempt at getting off Celexa. I'd like some advise on how long I should remain on a new dosage before reducing it. I started at 20mg and have gone to 10mg for the past two days. Any recommendations on long I should wait before going to 5mg. Oh and how can I get this awful metallic taste to go away!
Thanks Ava
Has anyone experienced diarrhea with their withdrawals? I just cut from 30 to 20 (under dr. care) two days ago and now I have to stay close to the bathroom.
Dear Friends,
Please read this post. I have just spent 3 days at ER and Hospital for extreme anxiety panic attack. Suddenly I felt I couldn't catch my breathe and I was going to pass out.Even American docs. call this getting over sensitized.It's like a roller coster taking off and your forced to take the ride.I couldn't breath! My daughter drove me to the ER. It was awful. 40 people sick and hurting waiting to be seen with no promise of when.Finally, after 11 hrs.I was called. They made me go into the hospital to do two EKGs to make she the rapid heartrate wasn't from heart damage, etc. I had to beg them for something to calm my heart, bc I couldn't even think straight& couldn't catch my breath. She finally gave me one Zanex. I was beyond exhausted. I left with a RX of Klonopin generic, and it's keeping my heart subdued (thank God)so I can function. Here's my story... I discovered the Celexa was most likely causing the neurapathy in my feet. That became unbearable and the RX's GP prescribed for neurapathy quit working.I didn't think it'd make much difference to get off those two cuz they weren't working Simultaneously, I cdn't get off work to renew my Gold card (county Health Clinic) and made the clear, now I know,mistake of trying to taper off the Celexa & wellbutrin by myself. I didn't know the Amitriptyline, was an 'antidepressant' GP coupled with the gabapentin for the neurapathy.
I feel that the GP you gave this was in error. My alternative medicine practioner believes that the Amitriptyline was the culprit that caused my heart rate to spin out of control. These drugs are known by pharmacists to deplete your body of essenial minerals, etc, to function properly.
PLS HEAR THIS WARNING! We don't realize what these RX's are really doing to our bodies until you get off of them and then other problems arise. So,I am following the regiment provided by my alternative practioner so my body can be strengthen and with Gods help be rebalanced. CoQ 10/Ubiquinol is suppose to help my heart rate normalize. I will have to go to a shrink, but hopefully he will work in conjunction to my regiment. It's been the most awful experience. A comedy of errors, I just didn't see coming, all in an effort to GET HEALTHY! Be sure you know what is in every RX you are taking and don't start weining off without exact doctors directions. The book the pharmacists wrote, maybe you could find on Amazon. God Bless you and may we all find health and peace.
Thanks everyone for leaving posts on this site. My daughter was put on Celexa about a week ago for depression. She attempted suicide and was admitted to a behavioral health hospital for a week. At the hospital they started her on Zoloft 25mg then increased it to 50mg. When she was discharged from the hospital she started having hallucinations in which I contacted the doctor. He changed her to 25mg of Zoloft that didn't seem to change so he switched her to Celexa 10mg. Since then her hallucinations turned into rages and she turned homicidal. My daughter is only 9 years old and I'm so lost with words on her behavior. At night is the worst she is completely out of control. I have read a lot about these antidepressants and found none are approved for children. I came to this site because her doctors aren't of any help. I do not want my child medicated anymore so I stopped her cold turkey yesterday. She was only on the Celexa for a week so I'm hoping the withdrawal won't be so bad. Last night was horrible she woke up at 1 in the morning with an uncontrollable rage. I had to give her the sleeping pill that was prescribed (clonidine)she finally stopped throwing things and fell asleep at 3 this morning. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advise in helping my daughter get through this. Thanks
To the mother that wrote about her 9 year old daughter, my heart goes out to you. I do not believe in medicating a child and wonder what the hell is wrong with these doctors? I have only been on celexa for 4 months and am weining myself off and after just 3 weeks am down to 10 mg. 4 times a week with absolutely no problems. I think your daughter might just be too full of meds in her system. I would switch to another doctor and tell them right out you do not want her medicated. You want her cured the Old Fashioned Way. I am 55 and never, never remember anyone even as a teenager being put on meds. I feel they pass them out too freely now days rather than working on the real problem. Good luck to you and I so wish you and your daughter well !
I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice, I've been terribly depressed for the past year and a half or so and have had anxiety problems for the majority of my life which currently elevated even more, to the point where I began drinking a lot and abusing pharms as a way of coping. I finally went to see a psychiatrist when shit hit the fan basically, and he prescribed me celexa 10mg literally within the first 5 minutes of speaking to him. i wasnt really sure about any of this i dont necessarily approve of psychiatrists, or the way they practice. but i said why not try it. however now i feel a bit unsure about it after feeling the terrible side effects, and im scared of dependency. i also feel the same way while on it, i feel calm, but at the same time emotionless and numb. i get terrible headaches and feel nausea, and a lot more anxiety. i just wanted to get my life back and paint again and enjoy seeing my friends again, and remove the constant trap that depression has shoved me in, but it feels a bit impossible. ive only been taking celexa for about a week i know it takes a while for antidepressants to really kick in, but is this really all there is to it? is that the best people feel on antidepressants? any advice would be great, lets spill the beans im only 18 and in all honesty is an initiative i took on my own, im not sure if its the right one however.
has anyone here tried therapy? if so did you feel any significant results? any help is greatly appreciated
To the person above me, I hate to say this, but that's pretty much what life on Celexa is like. I think you would probably benefit much more from seeing a therapist regularly than from taking Celexa -ESPECIALLY if you want to retain any semblance of creativity. Celexa just kinda of turns you into a numb little automaton - which is a good alternative to some, more severe cases of depression, but to most of us here, it just didn't cut it. I'd definitely try therapy before antidepressants if I were you. I think you'll be a lot better off in the long run.
Also, an update - I've been completely off of Celexa for 18 days now and the withdrawal symptoms have almost stopped. I still get the occasional very mild brain zap, but I have a feeling that I will be out of the woods very soon. I've been taking the Magnesium Malate 3 times a day for most of this time and I totally swear by it. I think I'm almost free, you guys - this is exciting. :)
Thank you for this site and for all the informative posts. I went cold turkey off celexa after taking it many years. It certainly worked very well for me at the time...it was a good drug! It took the edge off. Now it's been more than a month that I've quit, and though I think the worst of the roller coaster is over, I experience still huge periods of daily anxiety, and the worst is insomnia. Acupuncture helped me tremendously the first few weeks, grounding me. My wonderful acupuncturist prepared me for what I was going to go through those early weeks of withdrawal. It was eventful and it wasn't pretty! I thought I could get off celexa alone, without telling anybody - I was wrong, my behavior was too dramatic! My family has been very supportive. I think if you are thinking of withdrawing from celexa, definitely tell the people you live with and those who love you...(& not just your doctor, which I did way after the fact). They have to know what's going on. Chances are they will understand and encourage you to stay with it. Yesterday was an anxious day. I looked for the supply of celexa I had on hand, found it, and seriously considered taking it again. I asked my husband if perhaps this wasn't the best time to get off celexa. so many things are happening and I am really not the center of attention. He was so wonderful: He said it probably takes at least 6 months for the body to rid itself of all traces of the chemical and for it to right itself into proper balance; and that I was much better balanced in mood and feeling now than I had been for a while on celexa! (Go figure.) (I really had felt it was time to stop.) Talking with him made me realize that I can't go back. Tonight I've returned to this post because I still have insomnia and wierd sleeping patterns. And I know this is passing too, and that I embrace the joy of being free! and that I will learn to be calm and peaceful while still accepting all the emotions we are the richer for experiencing. I even feel sleepy now. Bless you all!
It's me again, I just posted, before reading last month's blogs...I am so very moved by all of you. Especially to the Mom of the 9yr old girl. I hope things are better for both of you now. Rages are scary to the person going through them. Try acupuncture! and Reiki together. Rolfing (gentle and compassionate rolfing!) started me on the realization that celexa was not right in my life (I had gotten very used to taking it as just one of my supplements). Was it Magil who wrote about body treatments. Absolutely. Traditional Chinese Medicine - yoga. Find ways to stay with it. DON'T GO BACK! like I almost did today! YIKES can't believe it. Thank God for all of you. I'm sorry we have to go through this, but I'm sure we'll all be alright on the other side!
You are all Saints to me. Thank you to everyone that has shared their experience. My story is similar to everyone elses. I'm just not sure how to wean myself of celexa the best way. I have been on it for 2 years and have been taking 1 every other day for the past 2 or 3 weeks to wean off but when I lengthen that time to 3 or 4 days I get the severe vertigo and upset stomach. I have some other health issues and didn't realize it was the celexa until I took a pill..then the vertigo and upset stomach all went away. Now I am afraid since the vertigo is really dihabilitating. Should I stick to every other day but maybe start cutting the pill in half ? Thanks !!
To above anonymous - yes! Definitely cup the pill in half. You may find you need to take the half dose every day, then you can try every day and a half, and then every 2 days, depending on your sensitivity. I was so sensitive to it that I was finally splitting my 20 mg into 6 little pieces and taking those every other day. Cold turkey is a nightmare, if it takes you a few more weeks to wean off with less effects, all the better :). Good luck!
Thanks to everyone who has posted coments on their experience with getting off Celexa. I have been working at this for the last 3 weeks with the help of a Holistic Dr. I have been on one antidepressant or another for the last 15 years along with anxiety meds. I can't believe this is so hard!!!! I so tired of feeling sick and tired, along with the anxious feelings.... like i want to call the walls, and the sore stomach. The dr. has added some amino acids and other things to help me get through this. I'm beginning to wonder if this will ever end. I guess I'm lookin for a little encouagement today! That this too will end! That there is a rainbow after the storm. I am down to 10 mg from 30 mg so I am making progress. I pray for everyone who is dealing with this daily, I know God has a bigger and better plan for me and that is what I hang on to. God bless all of you!
Those wiening off Celexa or other meds, I STRONGLY recommend you do this under you dr's supervision; to alleviate intrusive symptoms and in case other problems be revealed by stopping usuage. I ended up in ER with shortness of breath, thinking I was having a heart attack and could not distinquish the difference.
Take Care.
Thx anonymus looking for rainbow...me too girl. The anxiety I have from getting off several medicines causes me to get sleepy but not fall asleep at nite and if I take a sleeping pill I'm relentlessly sleepy the next day and it does feel like it will never end. I've been going thru my 'trial' for 2.5 mos. andlike you am taking all kinds of supplements to get my body back in balance. Lets pray for each other and keep in contact! I also believe He Gods healing power for us <3 God Bless
Thank you very much! I have a very similar story and have many of the symptoms listed. (almost all) It has been three weeks since I stopped taking celexa and could not figure out what was going on...... until now. (3:52 am) The best thing is finding out why I have been feeling this way.
Thank you for sharing this information, as my doc also stated there would be no withdraw from this drug. I serously woke my wife up about an hour ago and told her I thought I had a brain tumor due to all of the side effects of withdrawl. whew............. thanks again!
I'm still looking for my rainbow!!!! Man today is hard, I feel so anxious, I just want to climb the walls. I just need to be reassured that this will pass and that I need to hang in there. When will this end!
Just hang in there - I promise it does go away eventually. I'm down to 1 or 2 brain zaps a week as my only withdrawal effects. I promise you, it will get better. Whenever it gets bad, take a hot bath, try some deep breathing, and just tell yourself that it WILL pass. :)
Thanks Tricia! I jsut needed to hear again that it does get better! It's been 10 days since I have been on 10mg and I am starting to feel ALITTLE better! My holistic dr. says it is like your body just screaming at you that it wants the drug. He also assures me that it will get better. I just pray each day that God will give me the patience and the strength to get through this. Each day I make it through is one day closer to feeling good! I HOPE! I will keep looking for that rainbow!
I want to say thank you to everyone, this site calms me down alot. I began taking celexa and wellbutrin in January 2009 after our house burned to the ground and my husband and i split up and almost divorced. It seemed to help, but like most of you know, you soon feel numb and unable to have any emotions. I stopped taking both meds March 18 2010 cold turkey, unaware of withdrawel potential. Boy, I was in for a shock! At first, I had a horrible flu that kept me bedridden for about a week. Then the ugly crept in. Panic attacks and racing heart that kept me mostly confined to a chair all day. Zero appetite, depression, tremors, extreme diarreah, waking up in the middle of the night for no reason, and vivid nightmares consumed me for about 6 weeks. I fainted one morning and my dr put a heart monitor on me and determined i had tachycardia (very rapid heartbeat) and put me on inderal to slow my heart beat. I also started taking magnesium, fish oil, and bcomplex around the same time. I am now at week 11 without meds and some days are better than others. The inderal helped my heart slow down pretty quickly. I now have anxiety and lack of apetite as my main culprits lately. Every morning, withought fail, I wake up at the crack of dawn with heart palpitations and anxiety. I take my inderal and my vitamins, and I usually sit on the couch and watch tv for a few hours, with the anxiety. Some days, it goes away around lunchtime, somedays, not until my husband gets home from work around 5:00. Almost every day, it goes away though before night fall. And sometimes, on the weekend, i dont really experience it at all. (which is a big difference)On one hand, i see progress, from starting out not being able to move off the chair, having full blown panic attacks that lasted all day, every day sometimes, to now, it only being mornings and sometimes day time. But at the same time, i still get vey hopeless wondering if i will ever get completely better. I dont want to wake up every morning with panic and anxiety. (this never happened before taking celexa or during) I dont like the random anxiety attacks that just hit me still out of the blue sometimes. I also need to say two more important things: First, around week 3, i realized caffene made it ALOT worse, so i cut out caffene completley. Also, I started seeing a psycologist last week and he thinks that i have seperation anxiety and am supressing something in my subconscious that is causing my anxiety. I dont agree with him all the way, bc i never have experienced this before in my life! But I have read lots of good things about t alk therapy, so i will continue to go see him. I just wished more people would recognize this for what it is; antidepressant withdrawal. Is there ANYONE out there who had anxiety as the biggest problem in their withdrawal and how long did your withdrawal last? thank you. Christy
I am a 39 year old male who is currently weaning himself off Celexa for anxiety attacks. I want just to just stress my opinion that the American lifestyle is the culprit for our mental ills. I feel like I need to medicate myself just to live it. I am currently travelling in Africa for the summer and cant stress enough how much more alive and healthy I feel. The sun is wonderful. We arent meant to be driving, sitting at home all day watching tv, eating crap food or spending time at the mall. Just my 2 cents. I am down from 20 mg to 10 for a week now and have slight dizziness sometimes but so far so good. Some trouble getting to sleep. Will take 10mg every other day for the next week. I have only been on it for 6 months. But have been on SSRIS for short times in stressful anxious times in my life. Good luck everyone!
I too am so glad that I found this site. I am a 47 year old female, married, two daughters, 8 and 10. I work full time, but was at home for the first 7 years of my daughters' lives. I have been on 60 mg of Celexa since August 2005, and about three weeks ago I began a slow weaning process, down to 40 mg. Although I am still on a very high dose compared to most people on this site, I have experienced extreme hunger, followed by nausea after whatever I eat, and diahrea every day. It is uncomfortable, but not as bad as the symptoms I see here, so far. I anticipate that as I lessen my dose, I will go through what you've described. I am worried about work, about how I treat my children and husband. How do you explain this to kids?
I also have increased my drinking over the past few years, so that I am in the position to need withdrawal from alcohol and celexa. I am scared on both counts, and don't know if I can do it while maintaining my "normal" life. I do long for more feelings (both my parents died during the time I've been on Celexa, and I barely eeked out a tear!) I am numb, and my sex drive is completely absent. These things are what is driving me to withdraw so I can know what normal feels like.
Thanks to all of you for your stories, it does make me feel better.
I'm on 20 mg of Citalopram (Celexa) a day, and I have been on this drug for about 2 1/2 years. I have gained 10 pounds and have felt the "blah" emotionless feelings that people talk about. My sex drive is ok, but mainly I'm worried about just being "on" a drug at all. I do suffer from depression, but I made it a long time (48 years) without antidepressant meds, and I would like to be drug-free. I'm also a competitive rower, and I feel like my "fire" has really been subdued. I now look at the years I was so into it as living another life. I want to get that back again.
Here's my thing - just tonight I started reading all these withdrawal-issue blogs and it's scaring the hell out of me! Tammy's blog on this site, however, was much more soothing and hopeful. Tammy I hope you read this. I would love to hear from you. I want to go off the drug soon but I am scared.
Many thanks.
Tommy- I would first discuss going off Celexa with your psychaitrist or doctor, and make a plan to do it. Cold turkey is not the best way to go. Don't learn it the hard way like I did.
I tapered from 40 to 0mgs over the course of 18 months. I would go down 10mgs about every three-six months. It took awhile, and didn't completely stop the withdrawl symptoms but they weren't as bad as they could've been.
I was on Celexa, wellbutrin, amitriptylene and gabapentin. Its been 3 mos. and 3 wks on paxil.The anxiety is still rising up, trying to control but it's not as intense as it was but the adrenaline is still pumping...this was validated by reading info on another site. I'm now trying the natural, "Seriphos" nutrient, which is proven to stop the adrenals from pumping it out all the time. I haven't sleep a good, restful night sleep in months, I get so so sleep and can only sleep 6 or 7 hrs and that's waking up at 3 a.m. So, the Seriphos did make me sleepy (thank God) and I hope it keeps working so my brain can get reprogrammed.
Wonder how my shrink will react to this 'non prescription drug' approach?! lol...Look out doctors! If you truly want to help humans, you may need to educate yourself in herbs, vitamins and nutrients!
I am going through exactly the same thing! I am attempting for the 3rd time to detox myself from 10mg a day of Celexa.. I googled and found some helpful hints that I want to share... OMEGA 3 pills!! These little gems are saving me from giving up again because of the flu symptoms, ringing ears and wierd brain tremor things that make me feel so sick to my stomach. I cannot stand the fish oil Omega3 suppliments because of the "fish burps" so I have been taking the flaxseed ones and they seem to be working just as well. Also I have been drinking the Whey Protein shakes in the morning which I read is supposed to help with the wierd brain tremor things. So this entire weekend I have been feeling great and I thought maybe I was just through the woods on the withdrawl symptoms, but I forgot my Omega3 pills at home today and I feel HORRIBLE!! The flu symptoms and brain tremors are back. They pretty much sell these suppliments everywhere. Good luck everyone, I have detoxed myself from 6 different meds in the last 2 years that my wacko psychiatrist put me on when I was in a really bad marriage and celexa has been my biggest challenge. I had this psychologist telling me I was bi-polar but really I was just in a really bad marriage and lacked coping skills to be able to deal with all the anger and depression I was feeling. I left the ex and gotten off the meds and other than feeling sick from the celexa withdrawls I am happy and healthy.
One more thing... My current awesomely amazing boyfriend also said that he thinks that for some reason I look more beautiful to him in the last week even though I dont feel good.. He said its like my eyes are more alive than they were before... So I agree with the zombie comments.. We as human beings are supposed to have feelings and emotions.. Good and bad. We just need develop the skills to be able to deal with all of them, something you cant do in the "zombie zone"
I'm starting to leave celexa behind, as I've been taking this pill for 3 years. My original reason is to have a baby and I don't want to be on any type of medication (this is the only pill I take). Also I've realized that I lost my old fun self,the gal that loved to do everything! I currently take 20mg and my doctor has me taking 10mg for 2 weeks then I will take 5mg for 2 weeks and then I'm done (hopefully)! I'm only on day 3 and I feel some nausea, my head hurts and some bathroom problems. It helped to read many of these comments after searching many sites to find nothing I could relate to. I too have been blaah since taking this pill, not to mention the memory loss and significant weight gain. I will say that if I never mentioned stopping this medication, my doctor would have let me continue taking it for years and I now realized over the last few days that 3 years was too long and I should have tried this maybe 18 months - 2ys ago. I will update my progress and withdrawal symptons again. Good luck to everyone and I believe it is worth a try to be drug/pill free.
I'm a 25 year old female and I weaned off Celexa after about 3 years on it and have been completely off it for one month now. For a while I had "brain zaps" but those have passed. However, for the last two or three weeks I have been feeling very dizzy. The dizzyness has gotten worse and worse and now it's really bad. I also feel very disconnected and "out of it." I feel weak and just walking up one flight of stairs seems to exhaust me. I've also been having heart palpitations. Finally, my anxiety and depression are back in full force. I don't want to go back on it though because it made me gain 50 pounds and killed my sex drive.
My doc was surprised that I had withdrawal symptoms this long after stopping and said that they usually lasted for only a week or so. Has anyone else had withdrawal for more than a week? Has anyone had extreme dizzyness? And if so, did it eventually go away? I'm trying to resist going back on, and just want to know, how long will I have to suffer?
Finally, did anyone find that the anxiety/depression was really bad as a withdrawal symptom and did that also ease up when withdrawal ended? I'm afraid that if this is how I feel without meds then I will have to go onto some other med again. But if this is just a part of withdrawal and the anxiety and depression will ease along with physical symptoms, then maybe I can hold on.
One more thing, my doc suggested maybe trying wellbutrin instead of celexa. Has anyone ever tried both, and if so, how do they compare?
Even though I'm finding it hard to hang in there, I wish everyone else the best in your struggles. You can do it! (I hope I can too).
Anonymous, my Psychiatrist told me with my anxiety I should never have been given Welbutrin (I was put on it before Celexa and ended up huddled in the corner of a department store because my paranoia was so bad). They treat different things.
I have been off Celexa for a few months now, and only the anxiety has returned. Since my husband and I are trying to conceive, my doc wanted me to try Buspar - it is strictly for anxiety and after 4 weeks of taking it, I have noticed a few distinct changes: I am no longer afraid to call people from work (cold / warm calls) and I am less worried about what people think of me. It's probably not for everyone, but it seems to be helping me.
Please note, this is in no way endorsing anyone to get on another drug after the hell of getting off Celexa! I hope you are able to find respite from the anxiety :)
Hey y'all! I'm on Day 8 of WD from Celexa and Trazadon. I accidentlly quit Celexa cold turkey and after reading around about Celexa, decided I didn't want to take any more meds that messed with my brain chem.
Anyway, the first few days were hell, but I'm finally starting to see the sun again. One thing that helped me that I don't think has been mentioned is Tang. I know that sounds stupid, but back in my teens, I went to drug rehab and they really pushed us to drink Tang. Thought about that 3 days ago when I felt like I was dying from the "flu," and got my husband to get me some. I've drank a lot of water as well, but I really did start feeling better after I started drinking the Tang - like I was finally getting re-hydrated.
Don't know if it'll help anyone else, but if it does, then it was worth the time to post.
I was prescribed Lexapro in the highest dose almost 3 years ago. Eventually after 2 years it wore off, and a new doctor (due to a move) prescribed me Celexa at 40mg per day. I became a zombie to emotions and real life. I did not care about anything. I also had to fear, panic, anxiety, stress. I have been weaning myself off on my own for about 2 months now. I cut my dose in half for a month, then a third for a month; it has now been 4 days completely off.
I did not expect to have such heavy symptoms still, which kinda freaks me out that anyone would suggest someone get started on this medication, or have manufactured it for that matter.
I want my love life with my husband back, my love and passion for being outdoors and with animals. I know this will get better, and at least have taken some good out of all of this, knowing it's not anyone elses fault for the way I feel. It's all in my head, a bunch of misplaced chemicals that can be overcome by more positive influences and practices in my life. I am 31 and want my life back.
Thank you much! This is a great post and the most comforting I've found in my research.
Hello all,
I hope everyone on here is doing ok and I truely wish everyone the best in their journeys off celexa. I have now been off celexa for 4 months. I wanted to let you all know how the journey has progressed for me. After about 3 months off I started feeling depressed again and just thought that this was how life was going to be now and I truely longed to go back on the drugs but I just kept going. Well, to my surprise starting about 2 or 3 weeks ago I began to come out of that depression and began to feel good again. I mean better than I've felt in years. I got my energy back, my body and mind felt good and clear. I thought it was really important for me to post this because I know for me the recovery period has lasted months not weeks and I'm so glad to know that now. At this point I am actually wondering if the drug did "fix" something in my brain cause I really feel good. I am so glad I didn't give up and go back on celexa or another drug cause I didn't realize I was still in the recovery process. So I just want to encourage people who are still struggling after 2 or 3 months to just hang in a little longer cause it might just get a whole lot better soon.
This is my fourth day without Celexa. I've decided to go cold turkey (I know it's not generally recommended). After the umpteenth visit to my doctor over the last 10 months, I realize that there will be no relief from the symptoms I have on Celexa unless I get off them, and the withdrawal symptoms, though different, might not be as debilitating as the ones I have right now. I'm not recommending this for others and I might change my mind when the nausea hits, but that's the plan for now. After years of coping with mild depression and anxiety/panic attacks by using meditation, reikki, deep breathing and mindfulness techniques, my world came crashing down when my father was diagnosed with cancer and passed away quickly. Instead of falling back on my holistic practices, I asked the doctor to prescribe an anti-depressant. Celexa was her choice. In hindsight, I know that this lapse of reason on my part has led to excessive weight gain, mental fog, neck and headaches, severe teeth clenching, occasional insomnia and regular and debilitating lethargy, chills, hot flashes, and my favourite – excessive sweating. Should a drug that's suppose to lift you out of your funk create a whole new kind of funk? This is the question I've been asking myself and the doctor. After reading all of the posts here I'm convinced that my decision to break free from Celexa is the right one. I've also managed to find a great psychotherapist - which is really whatl I needed from the start. Wish me luck!
Can anyone tell me how long the withdrawal lasts? After taking Celexa for 8 years, I've gone off cold turkey, and this is day 12. I had some mysterious aches and pains, and those seem to have passed, but now I'm getting days where I'm waaaaaaay blue, with crying jags and the like. How do I know when the withdrawal's over and what's left is just my own personality?
P.S. It hasn't been all bad though. My husband says I'm a lot more animated than I've been in a long time, some weight's coming off, and the sex is amazing! But I'm worried my mood swings are going to lead me to say or do something that I'll regret later.
Hi Everyone suffering from Celexa withdrawal, I found this great site called 'theroadback.org' It is actually a free online book that goes into detail our withdrawal symptoms. They are trying to sell supplements, however, the information they are giving for free is invaluable.
I am starting withdrawal from 10 years on Celexa and have many symptoms expressed in these posts. Thank you all for your wisdom. At least this is not, The Road Less Traveled!!
loro
I've been on 10mg of Celexa for a little over a year now; and I'm in the weaning process. I thought at first I could just quit (cold turkey)then about a week later I started feeling nauseas to the point I would get sick, I was having the brain zaps and vertigo. I called my Dr. and she recommended that I wean; so for 2 wks I took a pill every other day, next 2 wks took a pill every 2 days and now I'm down to a pill every 3 days and I woke up feeling ill and dizzy this morning but it finally subsided (for now anyway). I've been weaning for 4 wks now and plan to for 4 more weeks. I'm just so afraid when I get down to one pill a week I won't be able to quit it and I have to. Does anyone know how bad the side effects will be after 8 wks of weaning??? ADVICE PLEASE!?!?
MC, What helped me was once I got down to a pill every few days, I then would take half a pill every 2-3 days. If you keep taking the full dose, you may experience worse side effects (this is just in my experience). I got to the point where I was taking 2.5 mg every 5 days. One day, after a couple of months of weaning off, I forgot to take it and did not have any more side effects. It may take longer than 4 more weeks, but you will get there!!!
A mon avis,
Thank you very much; I will definately take your advice!
Can anyone please help me? My withdrawal (mostly bad dizzyness, feeling out of it and trouble concentrating or doing even simple tasks) has lasted 10 weeks and counting. Did anyone else have withdrawal for this long? All my searches have suggested 2-3 weeks of symptoms, but mine have lasted SO much longer. Did ANYONE else have this? I'm freaking out!
Anon, withdrawals won't last that long. See your doctor, and ask him/her about the dizziness on its own, not as a withdrawal symptom, so they check out everything. Good luck. Hope it's just simply stress related.
I tapered off of celexa fairly quickly .. my dr. would not get back to me! It is amazing all of these things that people have posted cause I have felt alll of these things. I had believed that I have fallen in love and I wanted to be able to feel all of the happy feelings that come along with it. This is why I stopped taking it. I work in retail and sometimes it is very difficult to deal with the withdrawl symptoms especially the diziness! I am so happy to hear that people are going through this with me. I am very upset that I didn't know these things when beginning celexa. Had I known these things I probably would not have taken such a dehabilitator. I never really felt as though it did that much for me. coming off of the drug is absolutely aweful but I keep trying to tell myself that I can do this and I have wonderful things to look foward to!... How long is this going to last... I was on 20 mg. once a day for the last two years?
Oh my God! Thank you for this site and all the posts. I was ready to check myself into the looney bin. I've only been on Celexa for 6 months after experiencing major depression after the death of my mom and stepdad and the discovery that my long-term boyfriend had cheated. I was taking 20 mg. I cut it down to 10 mg for 3 weeks and went off completely 3 days ago. I've been nauseated, vomiting, crying, irritable (that may be an understatement -- temper tantrums have been huge), sensitive, restless, tingly . . . I feel like I'm not quite here -- just watching me. However, I gained a lot of weight on Celexa (15 lbs) and near the end couldn't stop eating. My appetite already seems to have normalized. I also had difficulty reaching orgasm and low desire for sex on it, and that has already improved. Just really can't wait to stop crying and slamming doors and feeling dizzy and tingly.
Your post has helped a lot, knowing I'm not the only one that has gone through this. Thank you for your words.
I had been dating someone for a number of months and became really attached... TOO attached. Well, the relationship started going South so I went in for (what my friend advised) a "maintenance" dose in preparation for a break-up.
The doc prescribed me 20mg tablets of Celexa... I was to start with 10mg and move my way up to 40mg. I didn't take his advice and did 20mg/day week 1 and then 40mg/day starting the second week.
Within 1 day of taking my first 20mg pill I was amazed at the results. I literally felt like a new person and every bit of anxiety I had was erased. That went on for a couple days then the dreaded break-up happened. I was actually ok with it... it completely amazed me that I seemed to be unaffected by a relationship that just melted down.
A few more days went by and I started to feel a little anxious... so I bumped up to 40mg. My anxiety has been climbing ever since but it's hard to say if it's the movement to a higher dose or just me being bummed in general.
The main sides that are getting me are: the anxiety of course... and insomnia. I sleep for maybe 4 hours max and then toss and turn the rest of the night.
I am considering going back to 20mg for a week, then 10 for another week, then either 5mg alternating days or just quitting. Bear in mind I am not even 2 full weeks in to this yet... Any opinions?
I have been on celexa for 7 years! i ran out of my prescription about 5 days ago and have not refilled it. I am so sick of being dependent on a drug to make me feel "normal". I really do not want to take celexa anymore. I used to take 20mg/day and have cut down over the last year to a 20mg pill every other night. Last time I just stopped taking celexa was 2 yrs ago. I was so depressed and overwhelmed with emotion that I took a lot of pills and alcohol. I am not sure if this was a suicide attempt or a pathetic attempt for attention at the time. Either way I am worried that I may try this again if I stop taking celexa. I feel that I am in a better place now but still get scared that the feeling of wanting to "give up" may happen again if I stop taking celexa. But I do not want to feel numb anymore. Any advice people have would be greatly appreciated.
Jessica
P.S. I have been off of Celexa cold turkey for 5 days and do not feel much withdrawal. Trouble sleeping is the only symptom that I have noticed. How long does it typically take for celexa to leave your system?
Thanks to everyone! There is comfort in reading all of your blogs.
Ok, I officially weaned off my 10mg of Celexa for 8 weeks and I don't have any side effects (except for maybe one minor "brain zap" a day) which is great considering I thought it would take ALOT longer!! The key was SLOW WEANING.....I only went off to try and have a baby and now I'm completely convinced I will go back on afterwards; I didn't realize how much the Celexa evened my moods out and I slept better!
I am grateful to find this site. I have been on 20-30 mg celexa for about 8 years. Cut down go 20 then 10 mg in the past couple weeks. Didn't realize the weird thoughts and feelings were withdrawal symptoms. Have had feelings of being invisible, that no one really cares if I am here or not. Also having intense leg pain at night, chills, abdominal pain and a hollow sound in my head. Are these symptoms of withdrawal or am I really in trouble here? Joyce
I'm in withdrawal from Celexa now,,, my doctor prescribed Citalapram for me about 3 years ago, around the time that a cherished friend committed suicide,,, Her husband is an alcoholic, and I think she was drinking more,,, don't know if she was on anything for depression,,, but she had every reason to be taking something to dull her pain.
Anyway,,, oddly enough,,, I've been having most all of the symptoms and more WHILE TAKING THE DRUG,,, with it getting worse and worse... It was my Pharmacist who rang the alarm bell for me, that I was actually taking Celexa,,after I had vowed never to take a pill that had an X in its name, because I had been damaged so much from Vioxx in the months before IT was taken off the shelves. I am appalled to think that my doctor put me on a drug that raised my BP for all this time, when she already had me on several meds to keep it low.. Both parents died of strokes before 70, and I'm considered high risk, since I reacted badly immediately when given Vioxx for a mysterious illness,, in much pain,,, and developed Atril Fibrillation after 2 doses, turned into 13 days of it. My doctor is still in DENIAL that it was Vioxx that caused my sudden heart problems at that time, even though in the same breath as her telling me I had A-FIB, she said,,,"Stop taking the Vioxx!". The side effects I have had while on citalapram/celexa are: Higher BP, the sudden bodily electrical joltings, muscle pain and weakness, Head feeling like it's about to explode, abdominal discomfort big time,,, hot flashes (I'm 74 now), flu with horrible coughing, and a persistent cough,,throat discomfort getting worse each day,,, Weeks of illness at a time,,,, and everytime I saw the doctor about any of these things, she chalked it up to my getting older,,,and reached for her prescription pad to give me something else to mask my symptoms. At the age of 52, I was told that I must have a radical hysterectomy (preventative ovarian cancer surgery), followed up with eight years on premarin, which led to Hormonally induced breast cancer,,, radical mastectomy,, tamoxifen for 5 years,,, and a kind of 'out-of-body existence' where I'm trying to have energy to get everything done before I die. I have lost faith in what the doctors tell me, because looking back,,, all my troubles seem to be the result of one eager surgeon's rush to operate on me 22 years ago. He didn't come into my hospital room once in the week following my operation,,,,(I never had another sexual urge or was even able to feel orgasm since that surgery). But, that Ob/gyn saw me in his office 6 wks. later and put me on 'premarin. He died from smoking about 10 years ago.
Reading all the stories on your site is like looking in a mirror. I hope that by my own initiative to wean off of Celexa, I will one day soon return to a semblance of good health,,, and not have to attribute all these pains to old age and arthritis, as my family doctor is prone to do. Now, I must tell my doctor that I've stopped taking her prescribed Celexa drug and why. She will not like this. I think she is just too busy to learn anything but what the Drug salespeople tell her about their products. She cares, but she wants me to know clearly that "She" is the Doctor, and I am the patient. Lucky me. Thanks for listening,,,, it really helps to know I'm not crazy, and it will get better.
I've been on Celexa/Citalopram since April of 2001--so for almost 9 1/2 years, 40mg that whole time. I had been dx'd with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and had uncontrollable panic attacks for a while in addition to a situational depression, so Celexa was a life-saver at that time. Because of big life changes and my paralyzing fear of going back to the dark place I was before, it was never a "good time" to quit taking it. This past month, my Celexa had stopped working at full tilt; I had terrible sadness (but like so many others before, found it nearly impossible to even feel it fully enough to cry while on Celexa). As I saw I was running out of my bottle, I tapered a little until the bottle was gone, and I quit.
That was 8 days ago. I'm having increasingly frequent withdrawal symptoms, most notably the dizziness and brain zap, as well as tingling of my extremities at the same time. Nausea (so far no vomiting) and insomnia, as well. I imagine that, coming off of 9+ years of 40mg, I'm going to get considerably worse before better. BUT I've also experienced a positive side to stopping: I have clarity of thought again, a vivacity to my thought process that I just haven't had since my days as an undergraduate (pre-medication). All this time, I had blamed my feeling of a dulled intellect on having 2 children, now ages 2 and 5. ;)
I saw my naturopath this week for a combination of reasons, only one of which was depression/med cessation. She identified an underlying cause--one that clarified why 40mg was my effective dose for so long and why it wasn't effective anymore anyway: low progesterone. In addition to a tincture for that, I have a mood enhancing tincture, a fabulous multivitamin, magnesium supplement, top of the line probiotic, and orders to continue with my mega-dose of fish oil. Plus a referral to a seminar about drug-free treatments for depression and anxiety (nutritional and cognitive therapy-based).
As bad as I feel now, I've been through a 10-week digestive cleanse with her, and I came out on the other side of that feeling better than ever before, so I know I can slug through this withdrawal and the other side will be amazing. And I can be ME (unfiltered, as one commenter wrote) for the first time in more than a decade.
So all that to say: this post and subsequent comments/support has been valuable to me already (Hey, I'm NOT psychotic, just temporarily a little nuts!) and I hope to revisit as I need encouragement.
Namaste.
Now for questions...
I'm still nursing my 2.5yo, and he's having some serious clinginess and sleeplessness now, too. He *is* getting a molar, but the motrin should have kicked teething pain's butt by now. Could he be withdrawing, too?? (poor baby. mama feels bad on several levels, yk?)
AND
3 days after stopping, I had a day with terrible abdominal bloating/pain. It subsided for a couple of days, but came back today with a vengeance. My stools have been softer for once in my adult life in the past couple days, too (I have Celiac, and have struggled with "lazy bowel" my whole life despite using every form of fiber known to humanity). I wonder if it's possible that the Celexa had a role in that "laziness" that refused to resolve even after I cut out *every* single food to which I was intolerant and began eating an almost vegan diet. I wonder if some of this abdominal pain and bloating may be related to my bowel coming back online, as it were.
I noticed very few comments here mentioning abdominal pain/cramping/bloating, despite them being a noted withdrawal side effect, but figured it was at least worth asking. (There's a chance it's diverticulitis, though I've never been dx'd with it, but the timing just seems too "perfect" to not be a withdrawal effect.)
TIA
I've been on Celexa for 2 months. Being apprehensive about side effects and not sure if I even wanted to go the SSRI/drug treatment route, plus fear of withdrawal symptoms, I alternated 5mg, 10mg every other day.
I haven't been at all happy with how I've felt since the first month: insomnia, headache, sinus problems, fatigue, stomach upset, MOODIER than before, forgetful and outside myself. Worse is how it's effected my work (low energy in a start-up co. is a very bad thing) and how I interact with colleagues and them with me. I've gone from the pet to the pest and have alienated one or two coworkers with my moods. I can't afford to lose my job.
Of course now the doctor just wants to increase the dosage. I won't do that and resolve to discontinue. Now I'm afraid what withdrawals I may have and further repercussions.
Can anyone enlighten me to how I may fare given the short time I've been on Celexa and the relatively small 5~10mg dose? Will withdrawal be any less or have these two unpleasant months being on Celexa result in more trouble and a long titration?
Wow is all I can say. I quiet cold turkey 8 days ago and since then have been experiencing weird things in my head, buzzing, dizziness to a point and slight body disjointment, like when I take zumba I feel like I am really moving well, but when I see my feet they don't seem to be moving at all, but I have to say all this will pass hopefullly and the old me will return, sex is great without medication I forgot how good it can be and actually wanting to is a great sensation as well, as for the wierd rush of emotions I have been trying to breathe alot, doing yoga seems to help and walking, but I hope it passes soon or my family might want me to go back on the meds, never really wanted to go on but found they did help, hoping that with yoga, walking and accupuncture and my kids are older, that I can make this work, if need be therapy again, but didn't really get much out of it, but maybe because I didn't feel anything either. One good thing is I can laugh and cry again. I can remember tearing up at a commercial in the last few days I do that again, how nice, and laughing I could pee myself I have so enjoyed classic sitcom humor this week.
so just wanted to say thank you and I will definitely be rereading some of the comments, know others are going thur the same thing really helps, and I would have to agree run on blogging definetely seems to be a side affect, but it is nice to be able to articulate what we want to say and not just think it and feel nothing. thanks again.
Hello. I just started taking Celexa 3 days ago. I will say that today i wanted to cry and couldnt even force myself to cry. There are a few things that dont bother me at all. Sometimes i feel spaced out. Im 20 and a college student and its not good for your mind to be out in space during class....I dont think I can take this medicine now.
Thanks for the post. After a year and a half of being blank minded and a shell of who I used to be I decided to just stop taking the celexa. I don't know if this weird feeling is from the withdrawal or what but it sucks. I have seen that if I cry, it makes me feel better. I'm going through so many emmotions and sometimes i feel as if i would feel better back ON the medicine.
I am experiencing this and your comments have helped me to feel better. I was on celexa for about a year in 2007-2008, then went off it. Then I went back on it a year later, and now I have just finished tapering off it. Last time I went off it I didn't remember these withdrawal symptoms...it probably does not help that I went to a wedding last weekend and drank too much. A hangover combined with celexa withdrawal is terrible! I am trying to take things easy right now and relax, but there are a lot of events coming up. I think it is overall better for me not to be on celexa, so I will have to make it through and get support from people as I go! What really helps is to know that it is only temporary and to take care of yourself.
The anti-anxiety part of the celexa was making me feel emotionless, which I needed after my son died because I was a complete wreck. It was very helpful. I was on it for two years and I knew, even from missing one pill, that I was going to have a hard time coming off of it. I knew I still needed the anti-depressant, just not the anti-anxiety anymore. My Dr. prescribed me an anti-depressant and I began that and went off the celexa. I was so dizzy the first day, I couldn't get out of bed. The second day I was okay if I was sitting, but could only go about ten feet before having to sit down and get my bearings again. I felt awful! Each day it gradually improved and after several weeks I felt "normal" again. No anxiety attacks either, which tells me I didn't need it anymore. I wish I would have began the new anti depressants before completely coming off the celexa or reducing it by half as I began the new... maybe the side effects/withdrawals wouldn't have been so drastic. I am thankful that I had it when I needed it because it probably kept me from having a complete breakdown!
Beverly's post helped me a lot. I've read through so many of these posts & have similar withdrawal symptoms, but hers are almost just like mine. The closer it gets to bedtime the more anxious I become. I lay down & my chest becomes so tight I fear I may be having a heart attack & can't catch my breath. When I try to drink more than one swallow of water at a time I feel like I'm drowning & feel completely panicked. Anybody else feel like this? Thanks for this sight...it has been a big help knowing I'm not the only one.
soulstatoo
This was most helpful. The only questions I have are... How long did the withdrawal symptoms last? How are you doing now?
Doing some reading through this has been helpful. I have been off Celexa for just over two weeks. I hardly weaned myself. I went from 40 mg to 20 mg only for a few days then off altogether.
I have had big-time headaches, flu-like symptoms and a generally foggy feeling. I feel like I'm this far I might as well ride it out. If anyone has a similar story of how they've coped with the withdrawals, please let me know. What kind of time frame am I looking at to getting past the worst of it?
Thanks,
Chris
Thank you so much for a great post. Finally, somewhere that the real problems of drugs like this are explored. I'd been put on a couple of courses of prozac when I was younger to coast me through some difficult times (mainly exams etc.) and not really had any problems. This year, I went through a rough time in my first post-uni job. After a 10 minute long 'consultation' with my GP, I was instantly put on Citalopram.
My first pill was like a little blanket of instant calm, and my remembrance of that initial feeling is what kept me convinced it was worth living with. I suffered side effect after side effect, without really linking them together - twitchy legs, weight gain, headaches, nausea, so so so many, all throughout the 6 months I was on it.
Then, in August, I ran out. Fine, I thought - on Prozac it never mattered if I just stopped. I can just come off them until I get back in to see my doctor. Three days off, and I was certain I was seriously ill. Flu-like symptoms, sobbing my eyes out, just every horrible thing. I thought I was dying or going insane, and all too late I realised it was down to withdrawal. I popped one pill when I got my new prescription, and BANG - I felt new again.
Two months on, and I'm sick of the things. They've made me tired, sick, stressed out and unhappy. I am NOT 'depressed enough' to warrant this kind of drug. I just need to be told to pull myself together a bit. So, today you find me 11 days into my withdrawal. It's been disgustingly horrible. Physical symptoms have been terrible, from chills and hot sweats to huge bizarre coughing fits and asthma attacks, to crying and screaming and getting SO angry I thought I'd explode.
But the worst thing? That nobody really talks about this. Thank god I found all the experiences on this site! I've tried other websites, but people seem really unwilling to talk about it! I can only imagine people who want to stay on the drug HAVE to ignore the bad stuff out there. On one popular forum I wrote a withdrawal diary detailing my symptoms, with the intention of helping people out, and recieved not a single reply!! The only way we can know what this drug does is by talking about it and sharing experiences.
Thank you, once again, for your site.
This post is very helpful to me. However, I found Celexa to be a wonderful benefit for the 10 years I was taking it. It corrected the biological imbalance that was making me depressed when I had no reason to be. The only reason I stopped taking it was beacuse the depression came back, so my doctor agreed it was time to try something else.
My doctor did not suggest tapering off the medication. I was on a very high dose, 80mg, since 40 had stopped working but doubling it made it work again.
Problem is, he prescribed Welbutrin right away. I thought what I was feeling was side effects of Welbutrin but now I have no way to know if it was a bad reaction to that, or withdrawal symptoms from Celexa.
I have some Celexa left. I'm tempted to take some to calm the symptoms. But I've already gone weeks without it, so should I just hang tough?
Fred
Fred, of course I recommend talking to a doctor about it -- preferably one that isn't just all about pushing meds on you.
My personal example: I am out of the withdrawal symptoms. It took about three total weeks. I feel more energetic and more vocal about things like I used to be. That's not a bad thing. I think the Celexa sapped my energy to be strong for myself.
I quit cold turkey on a 40 mg dose. It was really tough about week two of being off them. 80 could be tougher obviously, but if you've been off it for a while it could be worth it to ride it out. I wouldn't recommend doing that without talking to a doctor.
I have been off Celexa now for just about 3 months, and I am experiencing lows I have never felt before. I went on it for anxiety, and now that I'm off, the anxiety is there, although not like when I first came off.
My sex drive is back, and it's good to not be numb to everything, but these low moods are absolutely brutal. It almost feels I don't know who I am anymore. I hope this is the effect of the Celexa, and not the person I am going to be for the rest of my life, because I hate it.
I'm SO grateful for everyone's comments. I was diagnosed with depression 5 years ago and have been on Celexa ever since. My highest dosage was 40mg, which I stayed on for years. After getting married, and feeling as though I was handling "life" better, I was tired of my drug-pushing psychiatrist (who literally told me I will need to be on Celexa the REST of my life, I'm only 26...I was terrified) I decided I needed extra help. I started seeing a therapist and talking out my issues and facing them head on. I have since decreased my dosage and have been off Celexa for 2 whole weeks - woo hoo! I was feeling fine at first, then I became extremely lethargic - sleeping 10 hours during the work week and dragging my bum out of bed. I figured I was possibly getting a cold. Then I started getting this weird dizziness...when I would try and concentrate on something my eyes/brain would shift and twitch around. Again, thinking I was getting a cold I thought maybe I was getting an inner ear infection. The dizziness got much worse, having to pull over while driving, leaving work early to lay down, stuck in bed/couch for hours every day. I felt like I was going insane...then I had a thought *maybe it's withdrawl*. I started googling anti-despressant side effects a few days ago and felt some relief, that what I was feeling was normal and I wasn't crazy. Then I found this website!!! I'm literally crying as I write this because I am so thankful for everyone's input. Withdrawl is a very difficult process, but it will be soo worth it in the end!
Hi everyone,
Like you all, I too am trying to get off the SSRI Celexa.
I started taking the drug for depression and anxiety after my mother passed away. It was a real bad time for me and the drug did work, it got me through it. That was in 2007.
it's now 2010, I've been on this drug for 3 years (20MG) and it's past time to get off this medication. It served it's purpose but I want my old self back. enough is enough....
Last Monday I took my pill as usual, then skipped Tue. and Wed. Took it again Thursday and that was the last time I took it. 7 days and counting....
So far my symptoms aren't too bad. A little dizzy and a very small headache. I have tried this twice before......
here's hoping this time I can do it!
Alan (day7)
Two years on Celexa, for depression related to stroke disability and anxiety about my son deployed on multiple, risky JSOC combat tours. This is my seventh day of not taking it. I cut my daily does from 40mg down to 20mg several months ago.
I felt very dizzy this week and diarrhea (BAD) on Saturday but what a relief to be off this drug.
I switched from Lexapro 20mg to Celexa 20mg because my doc said it was the same med but cheaper! Well, after a few days I became a zombie! I would just get out of bed, sit in a chair all day and stare! Not even remembering what I am watching. A few days ago (After taking celexa for 1.5 months) I quit cold turkey and now having all of the symptoms mentioned. Brain zaps, muscle jolts, CRAZY nightmares, vertigo, etc. I went back on 10mg of Lexapro today. I had been on Lexapro for about 5 years with absolutley no problems compared to that with Celexa. Don't let docs tell you that there is no difference between the two. I studied the difference between the two and there is a difference with the "neurotransmitters" chain. I will never take Celexa again.
Well, I've been off Celexa for about 2 1/2 months and things are much better. It took about 6 or 7 weeks before the "drowning" feeling and the feeling of heart attacks went away. Sex is better & I feel much more animated. Don't give up if you are having withdrawal symptoms. Everyone is different and it does get better.
You have no idea just how helpful this blog is to me. I was on Paxil 20 mg for 9.5 years and switched to Celexa in hopes of coming off of the meds altogether. I took half of Paxil and half a dose of Celexa for about 3 days and then completely dropped the Paxil. I was only on 20mg a day and then dropped to 10mg a day for about 1 month. I was perfectly fine. Super easy switch. Only had a headache for about 3 days and freakishly vivid dreams. 6 days ago I stopped taking the Celexa. I didn't start getting a headache until about 2-3 days later. It truly helps to know that other people out there are experiencing all emotions all at once and feeling overwhelmed. Stay strong, we can do this.
I am now off Celexa 20mg daily and have weened myself down to 5mg Lexapro and hope to be totally off by the end of the week. I also remember while on Celexa that I had TERRIBLE aches in my neck? (weird). I feel so much better now and after 5 years of antidepressants I can finally tell I new life! No more "stoned" feelings and don't sit, stare, or have racing thoughts anymore! Why it took so long to quit is probably due to being scared of the withdrawals (Brain zaps, Jolts, etc.) but weaning off was no problem. I would suggest everyone wean off and see how you feel! If you don't like the way you feel after taking antidepressents for so long you can always go back on! Good luck and thanks for all of the posts!
I started taking celexa for anxiety in May of this year. I figured it was time to come off and cut back from 20mgs to 10 for 2 months, then started skipping the 10mgs for about 2 weeks. I thought all was well...think I had one or two "fabulous" days before being hit by many of the symptoms mentioned. My anxiety levels were/are very high, I had some very dark, depressed moods and crying spells(unusual for me), the brain zaps, nausea, diarrhea etc etc etc. Because I work in mental health, I was able to talk to a psychiatrist who told me that withdrawal only lasts a week or two, I which case, I am left to believe that I must be really losing it! I spoke with my family doctor, a Naturopath Doctor and my co-workers and no one (including myself until now) seemed aware of this syndrome! This has floored me, as like I said, I work in mental health and talk to people all day who are taking these medications. After some on line research, I was able to find that there exists some knowledge in the medical arena of this problem. It is called "SSRI Discontinuation Syndrome". This also helped me feel more "normal"! It has been very helpful and comforting for me to read that others have experienced the things that I have and I am grateful to all of you for sharing. I would also like to add that I have very openly talked about my experiences with this to my co-workers so that they will be armed with this knowledge in their role as helpers. If we don't know what is happening, people are very likely to get put on another medication to combat their symptoms which may well be medication driven, thereby perpetuating a long time cycle of medication when it may not be needed. I do want to be clear that I am not against medication...I have seem it literally change lives for the better, but we need to know what may be happening to us when we choose to discontinue them as do our Doctors! Best to you all.
PS- It would be helpful to hear more about time frames around cessation of symptoms! I am almost 7 weeks off and some things are better but some are not.
After a 20lb weight gain in six months, I decided it was time to quit Celexa. I have struggled with obesity my whole entire life. Finally, in my mid-thirties, I felt I had conquered my battle having successfully maintained an acceptable weight for three years. Then, my father died. I got severely depressed and began suffering panic attacks for a year, but was still able to maintain my weight. My psychiatrist assured me that Celexa caused weight loss and not weight gain. Well, I am more depressed than ever. After reading so many blogs, I've learned that people can't get the weight off after quitting Celexa. I feel betrayed. So far, I've been tapering myself off the medication with the help of my psych. Each time I decreased the dosage I suffered from withdrawal symptoms, so I decided to quit cold turkey. I was down to 5mg every three days. It's been over a week, and so far I only have the crying spells and a little bit of rage. I am so grateful to have stumbled across this post. I hope after this medication is out of my system completely, my body will again respond to my healthy, active lifestyle in a positive way.
After being on Celexa 20mg daily for two years I read the recent post about weaning off of celexa and see if I am still depressed. I took the medication initially due to a bad relationship that ended. I decided to wean off of the medication and have been experiencing some of the symptoms mentioned (electrical brain zaps, jolts, etc.) but overall I am starting to feel so much better. I also agree that if you have been on antidepresants for a long period of time to wean off, give it a little time and see how you feel. If you are still deppresed you can always start back on again but for me I dont feel stoned anymore or drugged.
I'm on my 6th day without Celexa. Yesterday I had some tremors, nausea, irritability, anxiety, and the feeling like my brain is weak and disconnected (I'm not quite sure how to explain it in terms that make sense though). I anticipated these symptoms as a result of past experiences learning the hard way as I'm sure you all can relate. I have been medicating myself in the morning with 40 mg's of prilosec for the stomach throbbing and nausea, which seems to work because today I was able to eat a few things, whereas yesterday was a no go at all. The only thing I am experiencing at this point is the weird sensations I described above with my head/brain. I have taken 25 mg's of benedryl and two doses of omega 3 and liquid B. So far so good at this point. I'm scared because I have been on Celexa for 5 years and tried many times to get off it. This time I managed to wean myself from 20 to 10 to 5 and then 5 every other day gradually increasing it to 3 days then 4 etc. I went down to 2 1/2 mg's from there and now I'm down to nothing for 6 days. I can't say I feel awful at this point, but I'm wondering later down the road if I'm going to go in "crash mode". Anyone have any insights on this? It pains me to read all the horror stories because I definitely can relate and it is a hellish living nightmare. I wouldn't wish anything like that on my worst enemy. The not knowing what the future holds without meds is scary since I have always thought I'd have to be on them the rest of my life.
Thank you for sharing this information. I stopped taking Celexa about 2 weeks ago and it has not been fun. I was nauseous for the first 4 days. I also have the common side effects of headaches, major dizziness and crying spells.
Thank you for sharing
It's comforting to know that I'm not going insane. What's amazing is noticing all of the people that have made inquiries about withdrawal that have come to this site. I've been off Celexa 10mg for about a week and I've had numerous symptoms too, most alarming the nightmares. Nightmares that have caused me to wake up gasping for air. Insomnia has also a bit of an inconvenience and can drive you mad. I thought an antidepressant was the answer and now that my personal science experiment is almost over I can't to get back to feeling emotions, good and bad. Thanks again for the post. It's quite obvious I'm not alone.
It's good to read this is doing so much good for people. I've been off Celexa for three months and I feel great. This site was most helpful in getting over the withdrawals. Main thing I told myself is that I wasn't going crazy and that I wasn't going to have a heart attack. If I can workout and break a fierce sweat, then those little flutters that used to drive me batty were only in mind.
Stay with it everyone. It gets much better. :)
My first post was New Year's Day when I was at day 6 of the withdrawals. It's weird not having to rely upon these meds and manage to get sleep yet wake up at a reasonable time in the morning, 7:30 a.m. rather than around noon, which is what I normally was accustomed to. I do get some interrupted sleep, which I believe will eventually resolve itself. I still get the stomach churning and I'm down to taking 20 mg's of prilosec but I did add some ginger root to the mix and that makes a huge difference. Still getting those brain waves of weirdness but to a lesser degree. It mainly happens when I'm not busy doing something or I'm out and about. What I neglected to mention in my previous post is that I don't dare go anywhere after I have eaten something because I have to remain close to the bathroom. My gut is still holding me prisoner in that area, but I must say it's not painful to go. Two beneficial things I have noticed is my clothes are fitting better, which tells me I have lost weight, and last night when I washed my hair, it was the first time in a long time that it felt very clean, shiny, and doesn't have that heavy feeling to it. Also, there's one more thing is that I don't feel dehydrated internally and my mouth, eyes, nose, etc aren't dry either. Has anyone else noticed that? For the last part, has anyone looked into L-theanine supplements to aid with the anxiety and stress accompanied by the withdrawals? It's a natural product from GNC that I picked up yesterday and worked for me. I was wondering if anyone else has benefited from it as well.
My body won't shut down at all to sleep tonight. I have been having esophageal spasms, shakes, and extreme restlessness. I am tired, but I can't sleep and if I try to, I start getting anxiety. I'm about ready to throw in the towel I'm in tears. I hate this so much. I'm in my second week. I just want it to go away, but I'm afraid it truly will never. At least this part. I feel so trapped like a caged animal and extremely frightened. Anti-depressants til death do we part.
This is some great information - I tried explaining the zaps in my head and my doc blew me off. Everytime I try and wean myself from Celexa, I get the zaps and they get more frequent the longer I am off. I finally give up and get back on. Has anyone completely got off Celexa and had the zaps go away? I would rather have the anxiety and passion.
My Celexa prescription ran out on Christmas Day. I thought what a great time to move forward in my life. Just 2 days without the medication I got vertigo, nausea, severe headaches, and pain in the neck and shoulder areas as well as diarrhea. 2 weeks later it is the same, possibly worse. How was I supposed to know I would suffer so badly? Nice to know there is hope after withdrawal. I have had a strong desire to exercise and have cried over everything. Kinda feels good except for the extreme dizziness. Feels like I've had 2-3 coctails. YIKES!
I posted on December 23 and wanted to make sure I wasn't someone who only commented at the peak of my "pain" and didn't bother to talk about getting better.It seems true with me that I hit bottom right before things started to improve, so hang on and be hopeful! It has been almost 2 months and am I pretty much symptom free!. Don't loose sight of the possibility that a lot of your symptoms will pass. I won't say I have no anxiety, as I did originally start celexa due to anxiety, but I am managing it so much better now that I am not dealing with "brain zaps", nausea, wild dreams, aches and pains, diarrhea, crying spells and so forth. I have found a book called "Panic Away" that has been incredibly helpful in teaching me a different way to deal with anxiety, something called "paradoxical intent". Check it out.
If you are suffering, know that it gets better and continue doing all the positive and caring things for yourself that you can.
Bright Blessing.
How long will it last?
I've been off Celexa since Novmeber 2010 and tapered slowly. I did experience all of the side effects. It seems that the only side effect that I still have right now is the feeling of anxiety right around my heart area. I am thinking this will eventually go away but I'm wondering how long. Everytime I experience this I'm not worrying and nothing is going on that should make this happen. I just breathe deeply and relax.
I mentioned in an earlier post that once you have weaned off of celexa, get through the withdrawals and still depressed that you can always go back on meds. If you do go back on meds PLEASE switch from Celexa to Lexapro if you decide to stay on. Trust me, the difference is amazing. I am off both now but took Lexapro for a few years and then changed to Celexa because it is a cheaper medication. When on Celexa 20mg I felt sooo stoned and out of it! All I did was sit and stare at things like a zombie. My closest friends and relatives also noticed as they asked me if I was O.K. I took the Celexa for 3mths and decided to go back on Lexapro 10mg and after a week was back to my normal self. Lexapro is a more refined antidepressant than Celexa and also does not have one particular agonist that from what I understand causes the "stoned" feeling.
I did eventually manage to wean off of the Lexapro as well and if you gradually reduce your dose you may still have some brain zaps, etc. but not as severe as weaning off of Celexa as I tried to do that and could not which is why I switched back to Lexapro and weaned off off that. Lexapro does cost alot more but my doctor gave me samples (10mg blister packs)which I broke into 5mg for a week and then just bit a piece off for a week or so until I stopped completley.
I was on Celexa for severe Panic Disorder for just over 4 years. I haven't taken my Celexa in 5 days now. I have mostly tolerable dizziness, massive brain zaps, some nausea, disturbed sleep patterns, I'm up all night because I can't sleep, and then when I finally do sleep I'll sleep well over 12 hours. I've been having major mood swings and trouble concentrating. I have all but given up on reading for now, which is a pass time I love, because I have to read the same paragraph 5 or 6 times and I'm still not sure I grasp the meaning of what I'm reading.
I am not going to go back on any meds though. I know this will get better and that eventually, I will be myself again without any of these withdrawal symptoms.
Even this morning I got a glimmer of how much better things will be when I actually had an overwhelming desire to have sex with my husband, and then really enjoyed it. TMI, maybe, but I am just trying to let others who read this and are dealing with withdrawal symptoms know that things will get better, not just better as the symptoms will stop, but better as in better than before when you were meds, and possibly better than before you went on the meds.
Hey thanks for that post! I was on Lexapro 10mg for 6 months and Celexa 10mg which is like a lexsapro 5mg for 6 months. I have for next three been tapering my self off of the medication and find slight shot of vertigo with my withdraw symptoms, i had a mild case of depression, but I have not been able to hit the bike becuase its so frigging cold this winter! In my case how long do you think I should watch for withdraw symptoms. I was not diagnosed with any specific problem...but i the world of EMTs and Paramedics sometimes you hit a crack and that is why I do not work as much in the field anymore
I too am going through major withdrawl brom going off celexa. I was on 60 mg and weened myself to 20 mg 13 days ago and wnet cold turey. I am having severe headaches,, stabbing pains, was glad to see someone else mentioned this as I went to dr. My blood pressure was elevated which I have never had before. I am taking lots of natural supplements recommended by my chiro and nutritionist. My nutritionist explained that yourbody is trying to rebalance. I also usee essential oils for headaches, panic attacks and anxiety. Any ideas on remedies for headaches??
I am 46 years old have been on Celexa for 6 years for all the reasons everyone else has. I went from 40mg to 20mg for a week and then stopped just what the doc orderd. Well, I have been so dizzy and the anger that I have is terrible! Sick to my stomach etc... for 2 weeks being off. When does it stop???? How long is the withdralls??? Is it Months weeks what someone help. I am so tired also all the time!!!! How long!!!
I'm so glad that you shared your story with all of us out here in the big bad world! I'm weening myself off Celexa as we speak. I quit smoking 8 months ago and because I started having panic attacks and anxiety, they gave me celexa and eventually moved me all the way up to 40 mg. I have never taken a long term drug in my life until now and its very frustrating. I have weened myself down to 20 mg as of today so in about 2 or 3 weeks, I'll go down another 10mg to see how I feel. The only thing is, is that I slowly weened and I am withdrawing. I feel all the withdrawl symptoms that you put stars next to and a couple more. I have a great support system in my boyfriend though and even if I cry for no reason, he is right there to help me through it. The celexa was starting to give me anxiety and wasn't doing anything for me anymore, so wish me luck that I dont have to go on an alternative med, they scare the crap out of me. I want to be normal again and live my life!!
Just wanted to check back in. It is now day 17 off of celexa. My headaches have subsided, thank god. I started acupuncture and have had 2 treatments, is helping tremendously with all side effects. Spend the $$ on you and your health, there is nothing more important! All side effects have lessened!! Hang in there, this blog saved me!!!
I have been on celex for the past 11 years and have tried to quit several times. Everytime I can't take the side effects and begin taking the meds again. Once again, 4 weeks ago I quit taking the meds and the side effects haven't gotten any better. As a matter of fact the past week was the worst. I am very frustrated to the point of cry or yelling at everyone. My biggest fear is maybe this is just who I am. The dizziness and fatigue hasn't let up yet either. And to top it off I'm gaining weight. I wish I had never heard of Celexa.
Thank you for the post, I started celexa and was boosted to 20mg very early in my time of taking it, i then had my medication stolen, and had been thinking of getting off of it anyway because of the side effects, besides weightgain, i felt crazy, i couldnt control my emotions and would either be very blank with little emotion for anything, or Id be too intense, crying and having panic attacks... So I stopped taking it three days ago, and while this has been hard for me, I think it will be a really good idea. I feel clearer, and while I still have anxiety and still feel depressed sometimes, it is so much better than when I was on it. And its good to know my emotions are my own, or will be when the withdrawls are done. Thank you for informing me of whatsto come and hoe to confront that.
Thanks very much for this post and also to everyone else who has commented. It's good to know I'm not the only one (not even by a long shot, apparently!).
I am in the process of trying to get off of Celexa. I had been on 20 mg for the past 5.5 years. Unlike many people here, I can't say I noticed any kind of "dulling" of my emotions or personality or even any major sexual side effects. Not having problems with this in some ways has not been such a good thing since I haven't been motivated to get off of the medication and here I am, over 5 years later!
Anyway, I started lowering my dose about 3 weeks ago, alternating 20 mg and 10 mg each day but I'm already trying to go down to 10 mg everyday. I'm wondering if this is too fast. I plan on remaining at 10 mg for a while, until I feel more stabilized.
I have not experienced any of these brain "zaps" that people have noticed. At least not yet. My main problem has been my moods - I am very irritable, feeling sad and depressed and I cry very easily. Everything that I have felt somewhat sad or down about over the last few months seems so much worse. :( It's like having a prolonged bout of really bad PMS. This sucks!
It worries me that it seems the most common side effects are physical symptoms (brain zaps, flu-like symptoms, etc) and there seems to be less about emotional side effects. I know a lot of people have mentioned emotional side effects, but these seem to take second place to the physical ones.
I am so scared that this is just the way I am off of the drug and that I will never be "normal" off of it. I know I am probably worrying too much about this so soon into the process, but I want to get off and stay off this drug without becoming an emotionally unstable psycho! I really hope this is just a part of my body and brain chemistry adjusting and not some sign of the way the rest of my life off anti-depressants will be.
Ech, I guess I'm feeling a bit hopeless about it at the moment. I hope this is also a part of the withdrawal.
im like the poster above. When i went on celexa i didnt have many side effect either. didnt make me a zombie or anything...cant say the same when they first tried me out on paxil (very vivid intrusive thoughts of killing or hurting my family...made me a recluse because i was afraid to be around them cuz i thought i would hurt them) and effexor rx (every time one of the time capsels would pop i was instantly high and saw tracers lol)
now its been 4 years on celexa at 20mg. its time for me to quit..... i just started my taper yesterday to 10mg...but im really scared of the withdrawl that is going to come later on.
i would love to hear more stories of people who have gotten thought the withdrawl and how they are now if there is anyone who can share those stories...i need to know it gets better.
thanks!
I have to mirror a lot of the comments. First off, thank you for the clear explanation of what you experienced. I too am now 5 days off of Celexa (mine was a 2 week taper down from 40mg per my doctor). Now that I am off I feel the emotions, the sensations coming back, life returning I suppose. Of course, I also feel like someone hit me with a train. My legs hurt, I'm hungry and I've been getting dizzy spells. It's great to know there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Not knowing that there would be withdrawal symptoms I tried to go off Celexa about a year ago after taking for 1 year. Couldn't handle the dizziness and felt the panic attacks again so I thought I wasn't "ready" to go off of it. Now after another year of being on Celexa am realizing that all of the things I was feeling and experiencing were the withdrawal symptoms. No one talked to me about this. Not my physician and had not heard any one else mention this before until trying to find my own explaination to the symptoms I feel when the medication is discontinued. I appreciate all of the comments that are posted here and hope I can make it through the next few weeks or more. Crossing my fingers.
Just as the original poster stated, I've come to realize that I can be more in control of my feelings and there are ways to cope with the panic attacks other than strong medications.
I too have lost my passions, sex drive, gained 10 lbs that just won't go away, and feel that general "oh well, all is well". I'm looking forward to feeling again.
I'm currently studying/practicing to obtain my yoga instructor license, so I hope my meditation and excersise will help me through this. I also just today realized that caffiene wreaks havoc on how pronounced the symptoms may feel. So, lots of water for me!
My fiance and I are planning our wedding for later this year to combine our families. We each have 3 children full time since both of our ex-spouses have passed away. The stresses of caring for 6 children and a new relationship were the reasons for starting the Celexa in the first place. Now we have had the last 3 1/2 years to adjust and get over some of the bumps that come along with joining families together.
So wish me luck!
This is very, very, helpful thank you so much. I thought I knew a lot of about pharmaceuticals and I do but I really underestimated the power of legal anti-psychotic medications since they didn't seem to be too effective at making me feel good. If I had taken heroin instead of celexa I'd still be going through crazy hellish withdrawal but at least I would have floated in heaven for once in my life. This stuff straight up didn't work and now it's torturing me when I try to leave it.
I know exactly what to do to stop these symptoms but I never thought that it was the celexa. It's federally approved and my doctor prescribed it to me. And all the other doctors I've talked to in my life since I started celexa saw it and let it go on. I don't hate them for it, I think they don't realize what they're doing and it was my mistake to trust them as perfect.
Wow I thought I was the only one going through this. I'm so happy I'm not. Right now i'm extemely light headed almost feel like my head weighs 20 pounds lol... I have so many different emotions. Saddness, Anger, Rage and most of all I feel like I'm going to explode into a million trillion pieces. If anyone wants to connect with me I'd be more then happy too talk with you. Add me to msn .. I'm looking for ppl who also are going through a lot with this medication and may have troubles in their life. mom4life1979@hotmail.com
I am so thankful for all your comments. I have been struggling the most with nausea,flu like symptoms,insomnia and depression. I have a low grade fever that comes and goes. Has anyone experienced the fever? I had my last dose 3 weeks ago.
Thanks for any input.
Wanted to give a big THANK YOU. I am starting to get off Celaxa. I see I need to do it slowly. Been taking 20 m, going to reduce to 10 maybe every other day; taper myself off. All of the posts are so on the mark. A part of me and who I am was taken away due to Celexa. The lifeless part I can relate to; no emotions ya know. Thanks so much.
Just a few words..thank you SO MUCH. You have no idea how reassured and comforted I feel after reading your post/experiences as I am going through the exact same thing. I do hope you are keeping well. Thank you again, for sharing, and all the best to you!
I am not very good at replying to each comment here, but I want to say that I read them all and I'm so glad that people are finding hope and solace by reading this post and the stories in the comments. Good luck to you all and wishing you a quick and complete recovery from your withdrawal symptoms.
My thank you msg above was in response to Namaste's post in May '09. You have helped me MORE than you know and I thank you again. Much love and peace to you.
-Sonya
All - I am so uplifted by all these stories. It has given me the motivation to come off and stay off. I want my life back - whatever the consequences, at least it is me.
I have also been motivated to start a forum on this so we can share, such as we do here. I think it could turn out to be a wealth of information.
Please join me - will also be looking for moderators.
http://reallydontknow.com/celexa
Namaste
I would love it if you would be an administrator on this board with me. I think the forum will compliment your page well - we can post your Zen Pizza page on the forum
im on my first week off celexa and these brain zaps are getting to me but thanks to his site im not alone, also tired of no being myself and just no feeling normal thanks for the info and god bless.
Thank you so much for posting this. I have been on an antidepressant for almost 2 years now. When I told my doctor that I was sleeping all the time he just doubled my celexa and sent me home. I was so upset, I didn't listen and stayed with my normal doseage. I am currently trying to get off it now. I'm slowing tapering off. I hope it will help stop most of the symptoms! Wish me luck! Thanks again for the wonderful post! It was so helpful!
I have been on Celexa for years - I am a 37 year old male and I started probably at the age of 30-32. I went to the lower 10mg a couple years ago and anytime I miss a day, I get the side effects. I had been wanting to get off it, so I missed Wednesday nite too, and then Thursday, and so on. I have finally decided that I want control back. I am older and smarter and can deal with the anxiety (I think). Much better than living a muted life. I want that passion back, as imperfect as it may be. It has been a very rough 5 days- terrible head zaps, mood swings, very vivid dreams, usually sexual in nature and a ravenous appetite, insomnia worse than usual. I will say that the weekend with my little girls was much more 'real' though. Admittingly, I probably snapped at them a couple times, when I shouldn't, but they had a dad they never saw and they loved it.
I am really hoping the head zaps stop soon - that is the worst. Withdrawals I guess - detoxing like anyone else would on any other drug, prescript or not.
My questions are for those who have went off - how long did your zaps last and what effective ways did you cope with the onset of anxiety after stopping? Shawn http://TheCelexaZap.com>
For those asking about the head zaps, they lasted about four to six weeks for me, but I was determined to ride it out. I have been off the Celexa for about four months now.
I feel way better and more in control now than when I was on the meds. My anxiety issues are few and far between. I'm just not letting myself mull things over and over in my head anymore. It's just not worth it.
Tough it out if you can. You will be glad you did.
Thank you for posting this site. It is probably the most informative withdrawal information I have found online. I just got off Celexa after tapering from 10 mg to 5 mg. Even though it is a low dose, my body is quite sensitive and I am having withdrawal symptoms. The brain zaps..the leg pain at night (ugg!)...I know it is all withdrawal and I am willing to ride it out. It was SO great to hear the successes and to know that this will end at some point! I also feel "alive" once again and have my energy and life back with but now with more clarity and peace. Thanks again
Monday, March 7th was the last time I took Celexa (last week). Today, 11 days later, the zaps are still present, but not as bad.
I have had a lot more energy, sleeping better, food tastes better, a more positive attitude. Sex is much better, but the desire has wained a little. Hopefully, that is temporary. I am taking Vit B, St john's wort and 5-HTP. I think it helps some.
The withdrawals suck and I can't wait to see how things are after all the withdrawals are gone.
Shawn - thecelexazap.com administrator
What a wonderful thing to come across, especially when you are playing the "waiting" game with your Doctor. 18 months ago I began suffering from anxiety/panic attacks and had been struggling with depression. My doctor started me on Celexa 20 mg and right away I felt like my life had been given back. 1 month later I found myself right where I had been again with the anxiety getting increasingly worse. At this time my dose was increased to 40 mg. This did not have the effect like when I was put on the Celexa initially so it was up to 60 mg I went. Now 35 lbs heavier, numb, unmotivated, and watching life pass me by I have decided (after being told by my doctor I could stop the celexa without tappering) that I was going to try to take back some control. I have been experiencing 80% of the withdrawl symptoms by dropping from 60 mg to 40 mg. I thought my mental illness was declining and that I would not be able to return to work. I feel so horrible and the withdrawl symptoms are wreaking more havoc on my marriage and family than the initial mental issues. The flood of emotions, brain zaps, night terrors its just too much. Been down 7 days now and I am terrified to take the next step...or at least I was until I found this site. Too all of you who have posted thank you!!! You may have given me the strength to get through this and have a well needed discussion with my doctor. Prozac has also been mentioned. Does anyone have any input regarding this drug or switching from celexa to another drug?
Thanks for these posts there really helping, just to know that so many people are feeling the same way is in some way making me feel better, I weaned of celexa for about a month and the troubles started when i stopped completely. Brain zaps, vivid dreams, vertigo, crying, ringing in my ears...etc. I dont know about the rest of you but im sooooo mad that this drug is even on the market if its gonna hurt people so bad, phisically and emotionally. Right now it feels like its never going to end but im sure you all felt that way at some point, im just wondering, I have this restless kind of pain,or stiffness in my legs, sortof on the back side of my thighs and below my knees. anyone else have these strange feelings in there legs? sometimes it just feels like i have to run. I have been doing more reaserch on the restless legs and it seems to have something to do with Dopemine, and i figured since the chemicals in my brain are so screwed up right now that its making my legs restless. Along with all the other horrible symptoms. Just wondering what you think. (sorry about the crappy spelling)
Thanks so much for sharing this...walking the same path... -Lucien
I have all the same symptoms and they all seem to effect me in various ways, which tells me that we are all alike and yet different. My greatest problem with withdrawal is the anger I feel. I go from 1 to 10 in a snap. My wife does not support me getting off my meds, not necessarily because of how I was before I took Celexa in the first place but because of the severity of the withdrawal. At one point she wouldn't leave me alone with the kids; which brings up a different issue. My kids are 2 and 5 and they feel every bit of anxiety I have. It is as though they magnify my anger/anxiety in their own behavior. So an unseen side-effect is my kids feeling all of my anxiety.
Here is what helps me:
1. Taper slowly and under professional supervision.
2. Meditate for long periods of time. I use an iPhone app called "Dream" while I lay flat on my bed.
3.I pray, not with words but in images of being held by a loving parent. The stronger the withdrawal symptom the warmer the embrace.
4. If you are hungry eat as much as you need and drink lots of water...no coffee. If your body craves sugar eat the stuff and deal with the weight when the symptoms are not present.
5. This withdrawal is nothing to be taken lightly. Plan your escape and give yourself a lot of time. Be intentional.
6. Enjoy having your libido back, and use it often whether alone or with a partner(s). I haven't felt as much power in my orgasms and desire since I was 16. My penis and groin area has redeveloped its familiar tingle when I am aroused; hell that is enough to pay for the mind zaps and dizziness.
6. This last one is counter intuitive. When it comes to your physical condition/feeling, don't listen to your body. It has been tricked while on the meds to believe that it is ok and now that the med is gone it cannot determine what it is feeling or how to react. If you have slept well for 8 hours or more (and I get exhausted) get up and move and the feeling will pass. Do not sit for too long. You have to exercise! Leave the place where you are feeling the anxiety, fear, tension, anger etc, and walk, run, box, sit-up, push-up, whatever it takes. I read that one dude used acupuncture and it doesn't surprise me that it worked.
There is no magic silver bullet. Withdrawal is a process and will take time. Communicate with others who are suffering and help one another out. Personally, I could use someone to get me off my ass when the perceived exhaustion set in.
I can only speak for myself here. This medication certainly helped me get through a terrible time in my life but that time is over and I have "processed" the stuff emotionally via cognitive behavioral therapy and 12-step work. Celexa was helpful but it is nothing to tinker with light-heartedly. We are dealing with our brains and the empirical science behind psychotropics is not as sound as MD's would have us believe. On the other hand, for the truly chronically depressed these meds are nothing less than little miracles.
Sam -
Great to read your post. I have been off for just over a month. Was on for years. Wasn’t on for depression, but for anxiety. But, like a dummy, I was hard-headed and went cold turkey. It was terrible – the first few days, I didn’t feel I would make it.
I am happy to say I am past the zaps - it was terrible and debilitating. I have also found similar positive results in the sex area. Unfortunately, I have had the control of a 16 year old! Trying not to be graphic, but before going off meds, I had 'staying power'; not so much now and I hope that gets better! I attribute it to the extra libido and extra sensitivity.
I also fly off the handle too easy and I have no patience. I have also started meditating. While a skeptic on such methods, I think it actually helps. I also feel less emotion most of them time, but at times something will trigger a wave of emotion and I get over emotional.
But I feel more like myself – more energy, more focused, more driven. It has been a tough adjustment for those around me that were used to the medicated me. The best way I can describe being on Celexa was that life was muted. I would much rather be unmated and deal with my anxiety and impatience with other methods.
Hi, I think I have almost read every post on here. lol. This site is a life-saver. I have been taking Celexa 40mg for a little over a year now and have gained 30 pds and feel emotionally dull. I have tried just about every SSRI out there for the past 10 years on and off. Well, a week ago I decided enough was enough and cold turkey quit. I have felt like a zombie, unable to enjoy anything in life for 10 years and I am absolutly tired of feeling this way. I have started experiencing the withdrawal symptoms for the past couple of days now; nausea, brain zaps, fatigue, crying spells (which I'm kinda enjoying and make me feel better),and aches all over. I'm sure I should have tapered myself off after reading all the posts on here. I just want so badly to feel normal again. I have not had a sex-drive in yrs and have had trouble concentrating, memory problems and list goes on. Could these symptoms be from taking the Celexa or any SSRI??? Should I go back on celexa and start to wean myself off to cut back on the withdrawal symptoms? I just feel like I'm going crazy. HELP plz.
Oy my god...everything you have explained is IDENTICAL to me..especially the loss of energy and passion while on the drug. You really hit the nail on the head here.
How can you still going to work with all these withdrawals effects?? I am just thinking to take them again as its so hard passing through days of work and family. I was at 20 mg one day on two and now taking 1 day on three since 2 weeks, feeling very bad since 5 days... and not having stop them completely yet! I am so discouraged but make me feel better to read your posts as I was sure that this was the depressive me that was coming back. Anyone with IBS and or functionnal dyspepsy who had stop his celexa? Symptoms worst after or no changes?
Thank you very much.
Gb
I have been on Celexa since November of 02. That’s almost 9 years. I started Celexa after a debilitating anxiety attack toward the end of my third pregnancy. Anxiety was something I had fought since my late teens, but had never been medicated for. It helped. When life got rough and anxiety would rear it’s ugly head my doctor would up my dose. I spent most of the last 9 years moving between 20 and 40 mg, with short periods of time at 60mg when things were really rough.
At the end of last month, I decided enough was enough. I wanted to find out who I really am with out the meds. Sure, I didn’t have anxiety, but I didn’t have any real emotions either. I home school my 3 children, and everyone is always asking how I handle the stress. There was no stress. I was numb. There was no true emotions, just existing.
Almost 2 years ago my husband and I went through a VERY difficult time of betrayal and recommitment. Without Celexa I know we wouldn’t have made it, and for that I am grateful. We have moved on, we have forgiven and created a new life together. So now in our new life, where things are good, I wanted to be drug free. My doctor and I had talked about tapering the meds when I was ready to get off, and I did. Probably not as slowly as I should have or over enough time, but I am off. I have been Celexa free for 1 week, and 2 days ago became horribly ill with nausea, dizziness, body aches, and vertigo. I didn’t know what was wrong with me. When I woke up on day 2 and still had the same feelings, my dear hubby decided to research Celexa withdrawal.
I had no idea that all these things are related to the withdrawal. My bizarre dreams that keep me from sleeping, vertigo that makes it impossible for me to drive. Nausea made worse by eating, but then vertigo and dizziness that get worse when I don’t. Yesterday I simply slept all day. It was too hard to be up. But not from depression, rather, my inability to think and focus.
I was so relieved when my hubby forwarded me this link and I saw that so many others are going through this same thing. I am not nuts and this will pass. Some great pointers I found here was to stop caffeine, drink more water, eat more, exercise, (though I’m not sure how to do that when I can hardly stand up.) and just be patient. Hubby brought home multi-vitamins and St. Johns Wart for me last night and I am going to try 5-HTP.
Being able to talk to someone has helped. 9 years ago, I couldn’t have explained all this to Hubby with out fear of rejection. But now we are a new couple. I spent hours Sunday explaining to him how I felt on Celexa. How muted my life has been. I want to be excited when my kids discover something new, I want to remember what I was just thinking about, I want to truly experience sex, not just participate. He had no idea. We talked about the support I would need going forward. I will need to learn to recognize and deal with emotions I haven’t had in 9 years. He will need to be patient as I learn to control my emotions that sometimes just jump out at him or the kids. There is an authentic me in here somewhere that neither of us knows and I truly hope we can both love her.
Good luck to all of you. My thoughts and prayers are with you as we move forward through this nightmare to our authentic self’s.
Hi everyone. This site was so timely for me and has calmed my fears! I canceled a doctor's appointment for this morning and couldn't explain why. But after reading these posts, I got my answer! I know now why I have such horrible headaches, muscle pain, irritability, insomnia, hyper-energy...you name it, if it's on the list of withdrawal symptoms, I have it! I even worried that my constant vertigo was due to a tumor or something! It's been a month since I started weaning myself off Celexa (Citalopram) and I'm encouraged to know that it should be coming to an end soon. I had only been taking it for a few months, so am astounded that the symptoms should be so severe! On Celexa, I wasn't at all emotional, which I felt was good and thought it meant that I had gained better control over my emotions. However, looking back, I now realize that I was detached and didn't have any zest for living. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you all!!! I now can go forward with confidence that I'm not going to die...instead, that I will live again!!
Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences. I can't remember how long I've been on Celexa. Years. I have tried a few times to go off of it, but this time, I'm doing it. I'm on day 8 of my withdrawals and it's not that fun.
I have managed to go to work and do a few other activities, but I find that late in the day is the worst for me. I feel more disoriented after 5 pm it seems.
The heat (pre-summer heating here in texas!) is unbearable and as a result I haven't wanted to go outside for my regular 3 mile walks. I think the sweating would be good for detoxing, but i'm afraid of waking up on the pavement, or in a hospital if I pass out on the street. LOL... So i'm staying inside for now with the blinds closed and the ceiling fan on high.
My strategy has been Coke and ibuprofen. Also some fatty/hi carb foods just to boost my natural serotonin... life is short there though, and I'm cringe at the calorie intake. But it helps.
Anyway, happy to have the company in this trial and tribulation. It will be worth it to have a clear mind again off of this drug.
S.
Hey everyone. I too was so glad to find this post. I've expierence almost exaclt as the original poster did with my withdrawal. I'm on day 10 quitting cold turkey and the dizzyness has almost subsided, but some muscle pain has started. THese are nothing I can handle them, but I am however worried about some extreme anger and aggression over small things. I worry that it's just me and not the withdrawal. Please did anyone else expeirence thise?
Thanks!
Very insightful, and although unfortunate for all involved here... I am relieved to hear these symptoms of withdrawal. It's a long list! Longer than I thought possible when I decided to go "Cold Turkey" from Celexa about a month ago. These brain jolts which I have now dubbed "Zingy Zaps" are still frequent, and apparently seem to intensify briefly when I smoke, and also during times of exertion. I am experiencing lung soreness and a constant low-level ringing in my ears. I look forward to a life free of this drug, and look forward to "living" once again. Good luck to all!
Thank you for this. I have been on celexa for 11 years and it has saved my life. I am currently in withdrawal because I do not have a local doctor (i live in the sticks) and am between written RXs.
I am one person who will be going back onto Celexa when I am able to put the pieces together.
I never found that it killed my passion or sexuality- the physicial symptoms NOT on it were intense and I could not live with them. It has given me my life back. (chemical depression) I have tried many, many alternative therapies- but this is the only thing that worked for me.
I applaud those who can come off of the medications- but if you do find that you need it, thats ok too.
JEA
Hi all. I have been going through a divorce for the past year and a half and the stress of that and being a single mom to two toddlers and the primary income earner had gotten to be overwhelming. My doctor prescribed zoloft. I began having awful stomach problems - like food poisoning - that landed me in the hospital for a week. They thought it was food poisoning. It was horrible. I lost 30 pounds or so - not the way you want to! I went off it successfully with no problems, then back on it a few months later. During the off time, I had no stomach issues. Back on it, they cropped up again. I didn't make the connection so I was having all kinds of tests for everything imaginable. Went off for good and the stomach stuff went away but I had a suicidal episode and landed in the hospital again for 10 days, this time on a psych ward. That's where they prescribed Celexa. Been on this for about 4 months. The psychiatrist wanted to up it to 30 mgs but after two days of that, I decided I was catatonic. Couldn't get out of bed. Even on 20 mgs, I was napping every day. Not like me at all (and not OK for my lifestyle and responsibilities). I felt less stressed for sure, but more depressed because I started packing on pounds. I am now 15 pounds heavier than when I was prescribed this med. So I started weaning off very slowly last week. I went from 20 to 10 mgs, and the only side effect so far has been the crying. However, I am at the tail end of the divorce too, and there are just sad things about this I wonder if any normal person would be crying about.
I agree with everyone on this site that pumping yourself with meds isn't going to change the challenges of life. I think I'd rather cry and have emotions than be so carefree - and still somewhat depressed - and FATTER THAN EVER!!!!
Please wish me luck. I'm going to stay on 10 mgs for a while, but I am looking forward to getting off this altogether hopefully in the next couple of months.
Any words of wisdom or support - especially with the weight stuff, are welcome! Oh, and the second day after dropping the dose I was 3 pounds lighter already. Go figure.
Claire
Awe this post and all these comments are really incredible. I am so happy to know that I too am not alone, I am sad that there are others fighting and struggling too, but grateful that there is so much support. I was on Celexa for 2 years, trying to get off it now...it's been really hard. The things that are helping me, are taking omega-3, multi-vitamens, eating really healthy, and exercising as mush as my body will allow. I send everyone as much healing love as I can! keep fighting, we will be healthy and happy again!
After about a year and a half of being on citalopram, I asked my doc about coming off. (It was never supposed to be long term) She says to me, why stop a good thing?...Whatever! I decided on my own to stop because I got pregnant. The dizziness is the worst especially when I move my head around. Its like I can feel my heart beating behind my eyeballs. And the "elevator feeling" as I call it in my head. Or vertigo. Its been about a week now and I`m happy I've found this post. I will be patient and know that these horrible feelings of withdrawl will subside soon.
Thank you soooo much for this forum! I have been on and off celexa for OCD and anxiety since i was 14 (15 years). I have decided once and for all to stop celexa. Weaned myself off of 20 mg. and been completely off now for 4 days. Sooooo depressed and angry....all these feelings are coming up. I HATE how I've spent over half of my life on meds....like I've been a zombie, not the real me. Anytime I got emotional about something, my parents asked "Did you take your meds?" or raised my dose. Like, a teenager isn't supposed to be emotional!!! It's like I need to learn how to handle life all over again. Just need to vent...feeling very alone and like my life has been a waste. Hope all of us here find our way to happiness soon. Good luck to everyone :)
THIS may explain why I've been wanting to rip the heads off the majority of people who cross my path ;-)
Spent just over a year taking 40mg of Celexa and stopped taking it a few weeks ago. Hopefully this won't last too much longer. Thanks for the heads up, not sure how I missed this on my search for the cause of my recent irritability.
Hope all's well with you :-)
Thank you everyone for sharing your stories. I have been off celexa for 14 days now (cold turkey). I think the worst thing for me is the headaces and ringing in my ears. It is driving me crazy. Is there any natural way to help with the side affects????
The only thing that helped me was drinking LOTS of water, sleeping a lot, eating as much as I wanted, and exercising like a feind.
I'm glad I came across this blog today. I have been trying for quite some time to put a name to the experience in my head if I missed a pill- and now that I am weaning off of the meds altogether. Shocks, jolts, twinges- was the best I could describe it, but I don't think anyone who hasn't experienced it can really understand. 'Mind Zaps' as they have been called here, is a fitting name. And I am glad I'm not alone! Sometimes it felt like I was going crazy to experience something I couldn't really describe. I have also had a constant ache in my neck and very vivid dreams that I had not realized could be symptoms of the withdrawal. Thank you for the post and everyone who has commented.
this is great to read other people have had the sme affects that I am going through. I have been so scared that I was going to loss my memory and mind because of all these withdrawels. The only thing is I have been off of celexa for about 8 months and still feel the withdrawels and have had the anxiety start up again. I am trying to find another alternative. Does anyone have suggestions
Thanks everyone for your posts. You've helped me so much today as I am getting that I am withdrawing from Celexa which happens to be a very powerful drug and that I am not alone. All of the symptoms that I haven't been talking/writing about are from going off this drug four days ago. I had weaned myself down to 5 mg a day from 40 over about 2 years' time. I'm finding that twice daily yoga and/or Pilates and focusing on my breath helps smooth out the "zaps", the pain behind my eyes and my general feelings of exhaustion and malaise. The brain is a powerful thing! I am looking forward to making decisions again, getting a job, getting involved with friends and my community and regaining interest in sex and that is more exciting to me than the ugliness of this withdrawal.
Part 1 of 4
THANK YOU all for your posts. I am so grateful you all took the time to post here and share what you are going through. My post is long, but I really want to share my story with you and everyone who comes after. I think it’s so important that we support each other and share what we are going through. I hope others can feel the same relief and comfort I feel knowing what to expect and hearing that I am not going crazy and I’m not alone.
I have been off and on several AD and anti-anxiety medications over the past ten years (Zoloft, Paxil, Wellbutrin, Effexor, Lexapro, and Celexa). I believe that I have GAD and mild chemical depression. Most of the time I can handle the ups and downs of life, but when I experience major situational stress I can become debilitated. I started taking Celexa in June of 2010, mostly because I was stuck in a terrible job. Due to a management change in late 2006, things became completely unbearable. My duties were enjoyable, but the atmosphere became oppressive and abusive. At first I thought I would be able to handle it if I just stuck it out, but it got increasingly worse as the months wore on. Once I finally realized how awful it was going to be long term and how much it was affecting my entire life (happiness, health, relationships, social life, motivation, creativity), it was a horrible time to look for another job due to the economy. I was scared and very anxious ALL the time, always waiting for the next crisis, always looking over my shoulder. I was depressed and felt so hopeless and powerless. I saw no end in sight – the new management was fairly young with no retirement in sight, and not likely to promote or move on in the foreseeable future. I started seeing therapist (not my first time in therapy) and started Celexa – 20 mg for the first month then up to 40 mg.
Firstly, I cannot stress enough the necessity of talk therapy. If you can in any way afford it, DO IT. And for those of you who may feel ashamed about going to therapy, please do not. If you need it, please take care of yourself and seek help. I am not saying that therapy will cure everything, but you can always learn better ways of coping. I do want to be clear that I am prone to anxiety, and have been my whole life regardless of situational stress. This is where the therapy has been invaluable to me – learning how to recognize how much the anxiety affects me, how it touches every aspect of my life in some way or another, and how to learn more effective ways to cope with it, how to tame it. This is not something that can be accomplished with medication alone. The medication may dull it, but as soon as the medication stops, the anxiety seeps right back in. It’s a lot of work, it’s hard, it’s scary, but it’s absolutely worth learning how to temper the anxiety and not let it take control of me. When I look back to who I was a year ago, I realize how much more confident and happy I feel now. I certainly still struggle with anxiety, but I learn every day how to navigate life and feel less scared. I have made so much progress thanks to my therapist and my very supportive boyfriend, family, and friends. Whatever your struggle is, therapy CAN help you learn a better way of coping. It may not cure you, but it will give you the tools you need to be stronger and more capable of dealing with your world.
Continued . . .
Part 2 of 4
Secondly, I do absolutely believe that there are times when medication is an absolute necessity. For people with chemical depression, medication is a miracle that gives you your life back. It’s no different than medicine for high blood pressure or diabetes. I HAD to have something to help me get out of bed every day, not fall into the black hole of wishing I was dead, continue therapy, and have the motivation and energy to do the work to get better. I also needed it to face my terrible job every day. Celexa definitely helped me with my anxiety enough to manage to keep my job. I know there are a lot of reasons, many mentioned here, why people do not want to take medication. I agree with many of them. But I also feel that there are times when the positive effects of the medication (like not wanting to die, being able to get out of bed) outweigh the negative effects.
I did experience the “dulling” people have mentioned here. When I first went on Celexa, that was actually such a relief. It calmed the sharp edges of anxiety, depression, rage, and the terrible feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, powerlessness, “what’s the point?”. Unfortunately, this “dulling” does happen to good feelings too, like excitement, joy, creativity, sex. For many months, it was worth it to me to sacrifice the enjoyment of the highs to not struggle with the lows.
I recently got a new job and some other things in my life have also begun to improve. As I was going through the process of getting and starting my new job, I experienced almost no excitement. I could have coped with enjoying only mild excitement, but I had almost NONE. It was very disappointing and I am very sad to have missed out on that experience. I realized then that overall I was blah. I felt like a zombie. I wasn’t writing or taking pictures or wanting to be social or generally enjoying the fun things of life. I wasn’t doing the things I love to do, I wasn’t me anymore. I was spending all my free time sleeping, mindlessly surfing the internet, reading to escape and keep my mind occupied, and feeling antsy. I had lost all my passion, and I desperately want it back. That’s when I said to myself, ok you need to get off this medicine. It’s time for you to take the world straight now, I think you can handle it without the medication.
This is how I think about it: The medication’s job is to shave off emotional peaks and valleys, whatever intensity those highs and lows may be. When I started the medication, I needed it to soften the extreme lows and the sometimes extreme anxiety so that I could function. When I was having the extremes lows and anxiety, the medicine worked well and I was grateful to have it. Even though it also shaved off the extreme highs, it was a worthwhile tradeoff. I still was able to enjoy normal highs and lows, and that was acceptable to me. Once my job situation improved and the extreme lows and anxiety subsided, the medicine continued to do it’s job. It continued to shave off my peaks and valleys, only my lows were no longer extreme. Therefore, at that point it was shaving off the edges of “normal” feelings, positive ones included. That’s when I felt like I didn’t “need” it or want it anymore, and I was ready to try coping with life on my own again. I want to actively participate and experience my life again, not be just a spectator. I hope to find that I am more capable of handing life’s ups and downs than I was before I went on Celexa, and I expect that will be the case. I already feel stronger and more capable, and as the Celexa clears from my system I think that will only become more and more apparent. I am ready to embrace the new improved me.
Continued . . .
Part 3 of 4
Just a reminder, I was in therapy the entire time I was on Celexa. So while my brain chemistry was being chemically rewired by Celexa, I was also changing thought processes and behavior patterns. I was learning the whole time how to more effectively cope with my struggles and my world, and how to be more comfortable in my own skin. I believe that the months on Celexa (as with the months on the other AD/AAs I have taken) have helped my brain create new pathways and to function more effectively. I do not believe this change ceases completely when I quit taking the medication. I believe my brain will continue to use those newly created pathways and continue to function more effectively even after my system is completely free of any trace of Celexa. In addition, I am still working on my anxiety and mild depression with my therapist, learning the most useful and effective ways to deal with my world. In short, I do NOT regret taking the medication. It was what I desperately needed at the time, even with the side effects. If you need it to cope and survive, I don’t feel you should regret taking it either. If you needed it, you needed it. Period.
Note: I am 36 years old, female, in a relationship, no kids. I take birth control daily. I get migraines and have for about 10 years. I take 5mg Zomig orally disintegrating tablets as needed for the migraines. I very infrequently take 0.5mg Clonazepam (Klonopin) for anxiety.
Side effects I experienced while on Celexa: When I first started taking it, I had some nausea. I never vomited or had diarrhea, but the upset stomach was annoying and distracting. I experienced more headaches/migraines than usual. Those two side effects subsided after six weeks or so. I also experienced the dulling of emotional reactions, which for me was the point of taking the medication and therefore a welcome effect. Weight gain (I was already overweight, but I gained more). Inability to cry, even when I wanted to. Inability to experience full orgasm and decreased sex drive. After about nine months I had dulling of emotions and creativity that disturbed me (the zombie feeling). I wasn’t enjoying the full experience of life, and I felt like it was Celexa that was causing that. That’s when I decided to quit.
Withdrawal symptoms I experienced: I went from 40mg to 20mg. I took the 20mg for four days, and then stopped cold turkey. I had one instance of the “brain zing”. I experienced the brain zing (I called it the electric light socket) when going off Effexor about five years ago, and it was very pronounced and disorienting. I expected to have that again with Celexa, but I only experienced it once the second day, and it was so mild that I don’t think I would have noticed it if I hadn’t been expecting it. I have also had nausea and abdominal discomfort, insomnia, and muscle and joint aches. I usually run warm, and have noticed that I have been more cold the past few days. We are having strange weather here for May and it’s been cold and rainy, so it’s hard to tell if that’s withdrawal or just a response the weather.
I have NOT experienced: Increased anxiety, increased depression, rage, vertigo, diarrhea, vomiting, nightmares, panic attacks. I haven’t cried yet either . . . I do hope this one changes as I would like to be ABLE to cry again, when appropriate.
Continued . . .
Part 4 of 4
I’m very glad to have found this blog and have read about all your experiences. I did know about the “brain zing” withdrawal symptom, but did not know about the nausea, insomnia, muscle/joint aches, and feeling cold. I had been experiencing them, but hadn’t connected it with the Celexa withdrawal. I’m glad to know I’m not getting sick, or having some other problem. I have taken some PM pain reliever for the insomnia and aches at night, and ibuprofen for the daytime aches. I also started taking extra Omega 3 as several people here have suggested that. It seems to be helping, but I’m only on day two of trying that. The withdrawal has been annoying, but mostly mild. I’m not having a “horror story” withdrawal experience (at least not yet). The most annoying effect to me is the nausea, although it has made it easier not to eat : ) I do want to share that not everyone has terrible withdrawal symptoms. I realize that my withdrawal period is not over yet, but I have not had debilitating effects at this point and I don’t expect I will. The effects I have experienced thus far have been annoying, but completely manageable. I have not missed any work or been unable to have interactions with friends, family, and co-workers. It helped tremendously to read everyone’s experiences here so I know that the effects I AM experiencing are common and temporary. I hope this gives some hope to those of you who are considering quitting your medication but afraid to try.
I’m NOT recommending to anyone that you try quitting “cold turkey”. It’s just how I do things and what works best for me. You absolutely must do this the way that works best for YOU. I know I will have the withdrawal symptoms whether I taper or just quit. I would rather have the more severe withdrawal symptoms for a shorter period of time than have less severe but stretch it out. I just want to be off the medication. I want my creativity and zest for life back.
I wish all of you the best of luck, whatever your struggles are and wherever you are on your journey. Depression and anxiety are very difficult and scary illnesses and I feel for everyone who must go through life with such obstacles. I am very lucky to have supportive, understanding people in my life and to have found an excellent counselor. I know it’s so hard to plod through your day, feeling like things will never get better. But they will. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Take good care of yourself and don’t be hard on yourself. It takes time to heal. You deserve to have your passion back, to live life to the fullest. Stick with it. You’ll be glad you did.
The End.
I just want to say that I am coming off Celexa and I want to stab things. Including my temple with a butter knife. I wish I could exercise if I wasn't completely devoid of energy.
Hello all :) I just wanted some input from you guys. My fiance has been on celexa for about 5 months now and its destroying our relationship :( when he takes the med regularly he's like a zombie, when he misses a dose he's so unstable - irritable, depressed, paranoid (he accuses me of cheating on him constantly, even though I've done nothing to make him suspect such a thing). Hes also become very clingy to the point that I can't even be in a different room from him. When he's irritable it's enough to scare me :( I want to suggest him getting off the med but am afraid things might get worse. Any suggestions for how I should go about talking to him about this and/or how to hand the side effects if he does decide to get off the medication? I don't want our relationship to end, I just want the man I fell in love with back :( Many thanks in advance.
Hello all! Just want to say that I have found comfort in the posts on this site and feel compelled to write here about the symptoms I have experienced in the past week after stopping the 40mg Celexa dose I was taking everyday for two years. I stopped cold turkey.. and now think that I should have gradually weaned off it instead. Oh well..My list of annoyances from this withdrawal include cold flashes, irritability, strange and sometimes nightmarish dreams, and something I can only describe as "mini" panics--- an increase in my breathing and heartrate accompanied by the "brain zaps" that have been mentioned by others here. I feel relieved to have read that others have experienced the same sort of symptoms.. It is much easier now to cope with them. Thank you! J
Hi everyone... I have been reading all of the posts and really know what you're going through - been there, doing that! I was prescribed Celexa 2 years ago for anxiety/vertigo attacks, and 20 pounds later, I'm working my way off of it! Was up to 30 mg and since January this year I have gradually reduced the dosage - down to 5 mg every other day. Going more than 2 or 3 days without it, I realize how powerful this stuff is! Holy Toledo! This morning i had the brain zaps, and so I took 5 mg (kind of doing a Monday Wednesday Friday thing for now). I got to work and had a mini-panic attack, felt like I was going to black out at my desk, felt agitated... I hate this. So I'm concentrating on exercise, drinking more water, and meditating. I hope I don't have to take time off work for this. My job is pretty stressful (the cause of the panic attack 2 years ago and the Celexa prescription). So I'm glad I found this group. Good luck to everyone - sounds like we're all in the same boat, more or less!
Fatkitty
I was prescribed 30 mg celexa 2 years ago, and have been gradually coming off of it since January. I'm down to 5 mg Mon, Wed, Fri - and I can really feel the zaps if I go beyond 2 days off. Makes me realize how powerful this stuff is... way more than Zoloft (was on that during my divorce).
I had a mini panic attack this morning at work - felt like I was going to black out - and very agitated. I hate this stuff. Never again!
I forget the dose i was taking of Celexa before i quit, but i had been on it for a year much like yourself. I felt it suppressed ambition, and passion. I felt slower, less enthusiastic and unable to fully wake up. I decided to quit taking it all together one day and since then have been experiencing some similar symptoms, nothing i cant manage but eventually they become frustrating. I feel like crying but dont let myself, and i tend to over react with frustration or anger. However, i have feel my drive slowly returning to me a year after quitting. Playing guitar could not be a better tool for helping me off any drug in my opinion.
Thank you so much for your post, i no longer feel like i am alone with these symptoms from Celexa and glad to hear exercise and other stress relief is working God Speed and good luck!
Wow. I'm so glad I came across this. I'm in the process of attempting to come off celexa for what seems like the millionth time. Each time I try, when the withdrawal symptoms get too bad to handle I start taking it again. It feels like I'll never get over that "hump" people speak of when the withdrawal symptoms are at their worst. I get to the point where I can no longer accomplish my day to day activities so I am forced to begin taking it again.
This time around I very slowly tapered off the celexa then switched to the same dosage of zoloft and tapered off that. But here I am, only 4 days without any meds and feeling AWFUL. Terrible vertigo, brain "zaps", crying spells, body aches, headaches, and extreme feelings of hopelessness.
I almost feel as if it would be nice (and appropriate!) to check into an inpatient detox...for a drug that was prescribed to me by a doctor and always taken appropriately!! (Yes, a doctor is overseeing the tapering off of and switching medications) If I had known that coming off of the medication would be this hard I would have thought twice before I began taking them. I feel like people need to be made aware of the difficulties they will face should they choose to stop taking their medication in the future.
I wish for the best for everyone who has posted on here and I am extremely grateful to be able to read experiences of other people...makes me feel a little less alone.
Take care, everyone.
-E
I'm so glad I came across this page.. your thoughts are very helpful and i have now more understanding as to why I feel certain things and why I've been having vivid dreams lately.
Thanks so much, once again.
The withdrawl symptoms we are experiencing will last anywhere from as little as one week, but more likely, up to eight weeks. Sorry guys! Everybody is different and the length of time people have been on it varies widely therefore, it really will vary depending on those factors. I know Im not giving much hope right now, but do be prepared for the long haul. Prepare youself to cope with this mostly on your own. Also, dont depend on your doctor for support, information, or much care at all, during this most difficult time in your life.
I am seven days off Effexor. I have been to see my doctor three times this week, once with my mother, and Im 39, complaining of all the symptoms listed in all these posts, Oh and i also had one visit to the ER dept, this week as well.
My doctor has done nothing, other than want to put me on Celexa. He got angry with me the other day and walked out of the exam room when I said I was hesitant to go on another anti-depressant considering the hell I am experiencing with comming of Effexor.
Because both are SSRI's I wanted to see what the withdrawl symptoms of Celexa were. Well, they are all the same as Effexor and there is more info in this blog than you will find at your doctors office. I AM IN NO WAY A MEDICAL PROFFESSIONAL, BUT......
When you first go off your med, it is quite scary, awfull, difficult, gross, in the first week. I recommend staying with or being with a family member or someone close to you that you can be with around the clock for the first few days. If you find a few tabs of valium, ativan, that will be helpfull with a few of the symptoms, but not all. Dont get carried away here now with these, and if you ask your doctor for them he may label you a 'drug seeker' and refuse.
Do try to fight through as much as you possibly can on your own. Use ativan, valium, sparingly at night for a short bit, if at all.
Do be gentle with yourself, you will be so miserable, you wont be able to stand yourself, its ok, its not 'you'. Its your malfunctioning brain. This too will pass.
Taking at least 1000mcg/day of vitamin B12, 1200mg or more of the brain food omega 3-6-9, 3000iu-5000iu/day of vitamin D, 300mg/day vitamin B6, a calcium-magnesium supplement and of course 1000mg-2000mg/day of vitamin C, can't hurt. Again, Im not a medical person, but formulas similar to the above, are used in 'Ortho-molecular therapy'.(treating depression with vitamins).
And of course, use as many tips as you can find in blogs similar to, and including this one. Writing, praying, reading affirmations often, exercising, eating better, trying to incorporate some other changes at the same time.
For me, i found smoking pot, something that usually brought me pleasure, made it way worse, so dont do that. I would stay away from booze, but i havent drank during this, so im not really sure.
I never got any info from my doctor. I wish he would of said something, anything, like, 'oh yes, these are withdrawls, you will feel this,its not uncommon,,,or,,you can do this,,or sorry, nothing I can do, just suck it up. I would have appreciated anything. Hopefully someone will find some comfort in the info I tried to provide above.
Also, along with all those horrible symptoms everyone is endurring, I sweat heavily during this time, it just comes on all of a sudden, or, when i wake up from a wacked dream, my head is dripping like crazy. I wonder if anyone else gets the sweats with this.
I just want to see what I will be like when Im off these, since I have been on them approx. 17 years. It will be nice to have an erection again or at least, have some desire, i also wanna feel what its like to not be so sleepy and no drive, all the time. I wanna feel emotion again. If I get to out of control, I can always go back to a SSRI, but I really want to try without.
Good luck and hang in there. It is possible. Thanks.
Drew
dmarceton@hotmail.com
Wow. I have been on Celexa at 40 mg for over 8 years and was recently asked by my doctor if I wanted to "get off that stuff." When I asked if he thought I was ready, he replied, "Well, how's your gratitude?" This is NOT the doctor that prescribed the meds, and I kind of love him for having faith in the power of gratitude. So I have begun to taper. I am at 20 mg and on day four at that dose. I am experiencing some dizziness, but overall, feel so good about my decision that it only seems minor.
I do modified EMDR with myself if my emotions are getting the better of me. My triage is 1. EMDR (moving my eyes from points left to right and identifying where in my body the discomfort is and maybe what is behind it.) 2. Consciously let in some higher power to help me heal (God, goddesses, etc.). 3. Do something nice for someone else, even if I don't feel like it. 4. Excercise. These are working.
So far. But it's day four. I will keep posting my progress. Thank goodness for all of you.
Thank goodness for this site. On Celexa for about 2.5 years. Down from 60mg, to 40, to 20, to 10, to 5, and now off (over the course of several weeks... and according to my dr. who said it'll take "2 weeks to come off" - but I went with about 4 weeks instead..perhaps still not long enough). The dizziness, muscle aches, chills, sweats, dreams... makes it hard to be a full-time professional, a mother to 2 small kids, a good wife. I am terrified by the posts that say these symptoms could last 8 weeks or more... I am in peak season at work and can't afford to be ineffective and my poor kids need their normal mother back... not a mother curled in the fetal position shivering under a blanket in the middle of June. Any ideas?? Anyone that actually got through these symptoms quicker? I'm terrified I'll get back on just to avoid these symptoms. So tired of being a slave to the pills...
I came off under the care of a naturopath, who added some amino acids that naturally helped to alleviate the symptoms I was treating with Celexa (can't remember what most of them are, though; sorry), but also had me on some high quality megadose of multivitamin/mineral and antioxidant supplement (including an extra 1000mg of VitC on top of regular vitamin). I feel like it did what it was meant to do--help detox more quickly and the amino acids softened the blow.
But even though my taper off of 40mg was longer (about 4 weeks), and my withdrawal symptoms weren't as bad as many for as long, I was still an emotional MESS for about 3 weeks. I'm still trying to find the right combo of amino acids to make up for my body's natural imbalance, but it feels good to know I'm working with my body's nature rather than against it.
I took my last 5 mg last Tuesday 6/21 and so far I'm feeling pretty good. Been tapering down from 30 mg since December/January - I can't imagine coming down within 4 weeks! Yikes! Still experiencing the "zaps" or brain flashes, and noticed slight dizziness now and then, especially when I'm working on my computer. I make sure I'm drinking enough water during the day, avoiding sugar, walking at least 30 min daily. Omega 3,6,9 capsules twice/day seem to help with the flashes/zaps. My mood seems good for the most part; agitation/frustration now and then but no melt-downs (ha). Just glad to be getting off this stuff. Good luck to everyone. Take it slow and you'll get through it.
This site is very helpful. I started taking celexa 10 mg 4 months ago for extreme depression. It started working within 3 days, and I no longer felt suicidal every day. For the first few weeks I felt almost euphoric, had wonderful dreams and woke up happy, my fear and anger subsided and I felt like I did when I was a young woman. That has flattened out a bit and if I get enough sleep, I have vivid dreams, sometimes good, sometimes bad. I find I get very down, difficulty concentrating, a bit sad, when I haven't had enough sleep even on the celexa. I have accidentally forgotten to take it for a day and felt no effects whatsoever. I am supposed to take this for a year and then try stopping it, i was dreading the side effects so this site was fabulous at giving me hope. I honestly don't mind having my range of emotions flattened. With a husband with mental illness, a daughter and a demanding job, I wasn't finding a whole lot of happiness in life, just a lot of frustration, sadness, feeling like I was lost in the machine, so the celexa helps me not feel guilty when I take time for me, or I put down my foot with my kids, or don't take my husband's or bosses behaviour or comments personally. As a result, everyone around me seems to have levelled off in their behaviour because I'm not flipping out as much an unable to deal with stress. I did find that I was enjoying food way too much and putting on weight, so I pushed myself to exercise more and it's starting to come off now. I hope this information is helpful to someone. I call this medication my little "i don't give a crap" pill, which is what you need sometimes, especially when depression makes you feel worthless, helpless and worst of all, suicidal.
thank you thank you thank you so much. i am crying right now because you described everything so perfectly. i've been on celexa for 3 months and i cannot be on it...yes i was kind and not angry but i lost all my personality.......i felt like a shell of myself. im slowly tapering off and i cant wait to get myself back. im sick of being detached from my emotions.
I found this site today and it was like a godsend...thank you so much, everyone, for your candor and courage. :) I took celexa for anxiety for a year a half, and just a few weeks ago stopped taking my dose of 20mg. I know now why people decide to "relapse" and start taking the med again...but I won't let myself, not after reading all of these posts. Thank you again. I have felt awful in the last few weeks, many of the nasty and debilitating symptoms described by previous posts. I know I can get through, but just having a website to read through when I am feeling especially low is so great. Thank you all again, and remember, we can get through this. :)
Thank you so much for posting this! I have been on celexa for three and a half years and have been anywhere from 20 up to 60mg. I have recently (10 days ago) gone from 40mg to 0mg due to my doctor refusing to refill because I don't have the money to go see her. It has been VERY har on not just me but my husband and daughter as well. I have moments where I can't figure out what is going on with my emotions, I am so mad but so sad and so grateful and so happy all at once...no wonder my husband doesn't understand!!! I am now at this point seeing that I don't ever want to become dependent on any sort of antidepressants because of the hold it has on you. I have gone through the past 3 years like a zombie and have losta. Lot of friends...I am sooo ready to have a passionate and exciting life back! I used to be the life of the party but now I am a shadow in the corner, I just only pray the withdrawal symptoms with subside soon!! I am relieved to know that I am not the only one...we can all get through this! God bless everyone!
Thank you so much for posting this! My husband thought I was crazy when I would tell him I would get these weird dizzy feelings/electric "zaps" - turns out, it's a common effect! I have also been having very vivid and realistic dreams, I will be very happy when this part of my withdrawl is over!!
You just never know who your posts will touch. Original post was May2009 and look at all the people you have inspired and given hope to.
I'm tired too of being a slave to the pill. I'm scared to come off but more scared to stay on. So many questions run through my head, can I function without it? What if I really do need it? What if staying on it (been taking it for 6 years now) just makes me more listless and indifferent to people and the insanity of the world?
I don't like not being in control, but it has been a long time since I was in control I've forgotten what it is like. Like anything we do to numb reality, its an addiction. I realize that. I hope I'm strong enough to pull through the weaning process. Wishing us all love and luck.
Thank you for this post! There are lots of inspiring and informative stories in this thread.
I started taking citalopram about a year gao for panic attacks and anxieties that led to depression. My Dr. said that it might be a delayed PPD since I was having the symptoms while I was pregnant with my youngest son who is 3 years old now. I am off the meds for almost 6 weeks now. I followed glenmullens advise in tapering off my AD even thought my dr. said that I can stop taking it since it was only 10 mg. I started with 5 mgs for 2 weeks then 2.5 for another 2 weeks then 0. I had headaches (first 3 days) nightmares, vivid dreams and visual hallucinations right before I doze off. I had these symptoms days after going to 0 then after 3-5 weeks I was feeling great! But on my 6th week I have been feeling so disconnected, anxious, tired and like on the verge of crying anytime. I was worried coould this be depression again?It has been 5 days this way and I am really hoping that this is still a withdrawal phase. I read an article which someone posted and it stated that it can take several months for the boyu to get rid of the AD and at times still mimic the withdrawal symptoms. If clinical depression is ever to came back it can take months or years and it will creep slowly not suddenly. So, this is my hope since mine was sudden I hope it's just my body going through detox.
I hope someone who has come off their ADs for a month or two would share their story if ever they still experience withdrawal symptoms at this point.
By the way, I just ordered Omega 3 mood with high EPA,heard it does wonders. I will let you know how it goes when I start taking them.
Let's keep our hopes high and let's get healed from depression!
Take Care!
Charlie
I'm glad that the posters here are refraining from judging others who are going through withdrawal. Yes, it is better to go down slowly, which I did, *against the advice of my PCP. She said that 20mg is such a low dose that I there is no protocol for weaning, that it's not necessary. Well, I weaned anyway. And I'm still having terrible withdrawal: vertigo, dizziness, nausea, aching, tears.
But I'm also having this other symptom: hope. I haven't felt hope like this for the 30 months I was taking this drug. I know the symptoms will pass. My life will not always be like this.
In the meantime, I'm writing in the morning when instill feel pretty good, reading mysteries and crying through the afternoons when i feel miserable, knitting in the evenings when I feel bed but not debilitated, and taking Benadryl as a stopgap for the week or two I'm going through this.
--k
Update: 3 days ago I posted that I was having about 5 days of low mood and anxiety___this is my 6th week by the way. On the next day I was feeling a lot better, less anxious and gaining more energy. Emotionally/ psychologically I am feeling better than 4 days ago but I've been starting to experience some dizziness and sometimes I feel nauseated. It's a good thing I am busy with my kids' activities during the day that I don't have the time to pay attention to the new symptoms ___ but it is bothersome at times. I also started taking the Omega 3 mood today, I took 1 instead of 2 since I have a small built. I will keep you posted on how it goes but I am really hoping that it will make a difference in my moods.
Take care guys!
-Charlie-
I was just prescribed the generic Celexa med. today and have taken only one 10mg pill and immediately have all the same symptomd you all are talking about for withdrawls. Dizzy, nausea, tired, foggy, feel like s zombie already. I am not going to take this drug! I have been researching on line this afternoon to find there are several holistic non drug options yo elevate seratonin that I will now explore. I also believe my mood isues are menopause related. Thank you all for this information you have shared!
Hi guys! Still having the heavy feeling in the head, headache and a bit of dizziness but so far it's been bearable. I remember I mentioned in my first post about a book that I followed when tapering my AD. It was a very helpful book for any of us who are still having withdrawals or are planning to come off AD. I highly recommend Dr. Joeseph Glenmullen's book 'the Antidepressant Solution'. This helped me understand clearly what my body was going through during those early days of withdrawals. It reassured me that all those nightmares, visual hallucinations and eye sensitivities, just to mention a few, were all going to pass. He has a list of psychiatric symptoms like anything that mimics depressions and anxieties and another set of Medical symptoms such as headache, nausea, etc.
I hope you guys are all hangin' in there. Let's all be strong!
-Charlie-
In relation to my latest post:
The psychiatrist I was seeing didn't advise me to taper off but I did. he also told me that if I have any symptoms that I feel I cannot bear (take note, NOT withdrawals...he never mentioned that) I'll have to take my AD again. If I did not know about 'withdrawal' symptoms and how bad it can be I would have taken the pill in a snap. But reading glenmullen's book made me realize that I have to give my body a chance to get used to not having the AD in my system and give myself a chance to see my capability in handling these symptoms. I am giving myself a chance now...let's see how it goes. I know that we all experience these withdrawal symptoms in different intensities but maybe we just have to give our bodies a chance to handle it on its own...but I also believe that if one cannot handle it he or she should not feel bad going back to AD. Let's just hope for the best for everybody here.
- me again, Charlie-
Thanks so much for your insightful comments on Celexa withdrawal symptoms. I had taken Celexa for almost 3 years and never really had a downside to it. It gave me my life back as far as I'm concerned. But, I am not big on taking medication so I am weaning off the Celexa this summer. I haven't taken it in about a month and was thinking about starting it up again because of the dizziness, headaches, etc. Now that I know that these shall pass too, I think I will stick it out a bit longer and see if this subsides. I appreciate the encouragement.
I just came off of Celexa on my own choosing. I'm just tired of taking pills for everything. The one thing I am noticing that I haven't seen in any of the comments is an anger and intolerance toward everything my significant other seems to say, do, think... Is this part of it? I am fine with most other people, but just seem to be taking everything out on him. Thanks for your input.
I can't believe that I'm still getting WD symptoms after nearly 30 days since taking 5 mg of celexa. This tells me how powerful it is, and I'm very glad to be getting off of it. Still experiencing the zaps/flashes/blinks, especially when I'm tired - which I am today because another WD symptom, INSOMNIA, has crept in. Oh Joy! And achiness, like I've been hit by a bus. Had a thought the other day: do you suppose the pharmaceutical company that makes Celexa knew about the WD symptoms during their clinical trials, but chose to leave it alone - because - the WD symptoms mimic depression/anxiety, and therefore possibly motivate the patient to resume the medication? A guaranteed profit! Now, wouldn't that be something! Sheesh. That's enough to make me want to quit, if I didn't have a good reason of my own.
Thank you for this post, and also all the great comments. Always feels better to know you are not alone. I went from a 20mg dosage of Lexapro to 10mg of Celexa over the Christmas holidays. My insurance refused to pay for Lexapro, so they switched me, not knowing that a 20 mg dose of Lexapro is equal to 40 mg of Celexa, definitely not 10 mg. Anyways, I went through some withdrawal then, but they only lasted about two weeks since I was on something new now. Life was better on the low dosage Celexa, but I am thinking about getting pregnant now and wanted to be off everything. It's only been about a week but I've had the anxiety attacks, out of proportion frustration and jittery feelings while trying to sleep. Worst of all are the headaches and dizziness. I feel seasick all the time. My headache was so bad today I couldn't go to work and had to use a sick day. Like I said, it's only been a week and it's already unbearable. I am reading your stories to give me strength and hoping I can make it through this. Thank you again.
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