Anyone else use Celexa? How long for side effects to die down?

[TinysMom]

As of tomorrow night - I will have been on Celexa all of one week for my depression and anxiety.

I'm feeling MUCH better and am able to think more clearly, etc.

HOWEVER...I'm also sleeping way too much - am not hungry at all - and have a few other minor side effects.

In the past I've taken Paxil and it seems like it took me about 6 weeks to stop wanting to sleep all the time...I'm wondering how long it should take my body to adjust to the Celexa...the doctor said it shouldn't take that long...

Anyway - hoping to hear from others who have used it - feel free to pm me if you want.

It is nice to be clear-headed and laughing and smiling again....when I am awake that is....

 

[Flashy]

It's roughly about the same. I think it's the same group of meds right? SSRIs? They are all pretty similar when it comes to side effects, so within 4-6 weeks it should all ease.

Hope it helps

ETA, now I know the UK name I know that yes, it is an SSRI and so the side effects will be similar to other SSRIs. This is also one of my failed meds, so yeh, Ive been on it.

 

[tonyshuman]

Wanting to sleep all the time can be a symptom of depression, so I would guess that the med hasn't totally kicked in yet. It can take 2-4 weeks for these drugs to have their full effects. They seem to impact different depression symptoms at different rates as well.

For instance, you've probably heard of adolescents having increased suicidal behavior immediately after going on antidepressants for the first time. A lot of times, these kids will have suicidal thoughts as part of depression, but they're too tired and disjointed to carry their plans out. Some feel like so much of a failure that they don't try to kill themselves because they think they'll screw it up and fail. Immediately after starting the meds (and hopefully getting intial therapy), the kids start being able to put plans together, think clearly, and have confidence that they can carry plans out. They still have suicidal thoughts, since these are a symptom that go away more slowly, so there's an increased incidence of suicidal behavior.

You may not even have noticed wanting to sleep all the time and not being hungry before you were on the meds because there were other symptoms that were more noticeable. For instance, I tried to go off of an SSRI a few years ago, and the symptoms that occurred were not at all like the depression I had that started me on the SSRI. I had started it with suicidal thoughts, feelings of hopelessness, fear of getting out of bed, and the new symptoms were sleeping and crying all the time.

Because we don't know how SSRIs work, or what's going on at a molecular level in depression, they take longer to work than most other drugs. They also work in different people differently. Some drugs will be great for one person and terrible for another. Relatives of mine have been great on Prozac, but it made me literally unable to sleep. There's also no way to determine if the side effect will occur, so it's a process of trial and error. Doctors usually start with the ones that are best tolerated and then move to others if those don't work. I would say if you still have side effects you don't like after taking the full therapeutic dose for 2 weeks, ask for a change. You shouldn't have to put up with those side effects since there are so many other options out there.

[[hugs]]

 

[Pet_Bunny]

There are manydifferent types available now,and what Claire said, each one will have a different effect on different people.

You have to work with your doctor to find out the correct dosage and how long you have to use it before you can feel that it is working for you.The doctor will start you off at a certain amount and increase or decrease the dosage.It may take several weeks to make any slight adjustments, so you have to be patient.But only you know if it is working or not. It also takes a long time to get off the medicationor toswitch to another antidepressant. I think once you tried one type, you can't go back to it.

 

[Flashy]

Just wanted to apologise for my previous post. It was a load of garbage, so sorry for that. Not sure what I was thinking.

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

I am no longer taking Celexa but have in the past. It takes at least a month to really kick in, so what you're feeling are likely not side effects of the meds, but of the anxiety/depression. It will get better! Celexa really helped a lot. Within months of it kicking in, my life did a complete 180 and within the year I was completely weaned off of all meds. It has been 6 years since that and I just recently decided to go back on medication. The stress of college hasn't been good on my anxiety!