Hi, wondering if I am alone. I was prescribed 10mg of Cit for Anxiety. My GP decided its all I need and we continue that way, its 'just to take the edge off' and to be fair I think its right. Though at this low dose, after 2 months, I wondering if its even actually doing anything. Any experiences here?
I am on a small dose as my anxiety is relitively minor, well comapred to many stories a read here where folks struggle to even go out etc. I feel really upset for you guys, how I feel is bad enough but soem of you need medals for what you deal with.
10mg is the lowest does you can take, but I think citalopram are quite strong compared to other antidepressants. I'm on 10mg too and they help me a bit. I want to increase to 20mg but GP won't let me as I suffer badly with the side effects.
Hi Martin, I've been on 10mg for about 3 weeks now, the side effects have levelled off and I feel like it's helping so I think that may be it for me too! But I have an appointment to check back with the doctor in a few weeks so il see what he says. Il try and remember to keep you posted. I went through hell the first week with the side effects, I felt like I was going completely mad! So I don't really want to up the dose unless it's necessary as iv read it will start all over again! I guess everyone's different but it seems to be quite rare for 10mg to be enough to really make a difference. It's very difficult to tell what's down to the drug and what's down to the natural ups and downs of anxiety x
Hello Martin, I am on 10mg of Citalopram and find it takes the edge off. I was initially prescribed 20mg for anxiety and panic attacks. I couldn't cope with the side effects on 20mg so went down to 10mg with the GP's advice. I have only had a couple of panic attacks in about 11 months and anxiety is hardly there now. So for me the meds are working. I would prefer to not have to take any at all, but for now i can manage on this low dose.
Hi Amy, I didn't increase to 20mg i started on 20mg and side effects were awful so after a week i went to 10mg with GP'S advice. I have since stayed on the 10mg. I have been able to cope on the lower dose so don't feel the need to increase now.
Good to hear some are managing on a low dose, I guess we all respond diffently. I had the option to increase to 20 but I felt the less I go onto, the less I need to ween off of. Also GP felt all I needed was this 'edge off'. My anxiety manifested itself, at its worst as a daily 'feeling of dred' and that led to a fear of not being in control. I had a constant tightness in the chest and a dull ache. Tension headaches came and went and I eneded up with a sleep disorder. These then created a vicious circle which I needed to break. It was all triggered through work based stress. I fortunately never got to depression as I acted very early but I can see how it comes on as the anxiety was exhausting and made me very low with it. I refused meds to start with.
To give all hope ... I treid some CBT and therapy to deal with the sources of my stress and to understand my anxiety. That helped a lot. I went private and it was worth the investment. I was on teh wat to recovery, but then as life does a few difficulties came along (just bad timing) and get me a set back. So I accepted a low dose of Cit to just help me through and now I feel well on the way out of this. I will probably run to 6 months on 10mg and hopefully be in a position to come off altogether.
My top tip? use couselling or similar to understand the source of your troubles and then you can begin to recover. Understanding and accepting are the first two most important steps. Use meds to help you along of course.
Hi I was on 30mg then 20 then 10mg for 3 months roughly before I stopped them altogether. Been 3 weeks off meds now first 2 weeks was not good but now I'm feeling good head cleared & not so bad as was.I had cbt & really helped too
Thanks for this thread Martin. It summarises everything I'm thinking and feeling. I've started on 10mg of cit. first week the side effects were awful. 2nd week I started to feel a little better, and the side effects subsided. Been on the pills now for 14 days. Now feeling not so great. Feeling down again, and wondering if the 10mg is enough. I read a lot about giving this pill time to work, but now I'm getting anxious it's not. I'm worrying about having to up the dose, reliving the side effects. What happens again if it's not enough. And of course, will I get off them in the future then.
Ive been referred for CBT on the NHS, but the referral is painfully slow. The route of my troubles lie in WRS, but financial pressures mean private CBT is not an option. I'm keen to settle into a routine where I feel things are beginning to work well. Love to hear from you guys and how things have progressed in the last 2 weeks since beginning this thread. Thanks.