Citalopran and extreme exhaustion.

Treatment and medication
1

Hello, i am new to this forum, i have been reading some of the posts but have not come across someone who´s going through the same experience as me,but i do have seen some posts that do come close.

I have been on citalopram for almost 8 weeks now,and i feel extreemly tired. I would not have a problem with it,but i have a ten month old baby.

And i have trouble keeping awake,especially in the morning after he wakes up. I have found my self falling asleep and this makes me feel angry at my self,and also worried.

I told my doctor about it,and she told me it would go away in a month.

But the way i am feeling i can´t wait a month,i don´t know what to do.

I have read some post that some of you have made saying that it gets better after 8 weeks. I trully hope so because i don´t want to keep on living like this.

I also don´t feel the need to eat,and i find my self not wanting to do anything. At the moment i just take care of my son,and everything else i just do whenever. 

Some times i think,i should not have started taking it, i did feel tired before taking it,but not like this. Also i can sleep before 1am and when i fall asleep i just want to keep on sleeping.

I don´t know who to talk to, and my GP is not really helping.

So any comments from anyone who is taking it or has taken citalopram and knows about feeling like this,would be really helpful.

I have been feeling hopeless,because i feel like i am not doing my best in anything.

If i will feel better any time soon,i won´t mind keeping on taking it,but i wonder if it´s worth it.

i don´t know what to do.

 

2

Hi Taina, Everyone has different side effects and some last tonger than others but stick with it, it can take a while for medication to start working but all I can say is stay with it but if you feel nothing has changed then speak to your GP. Have you noticed anything else apart from tiredness, has your mood changed, anxiety eased

3

Im in the same boat and my doctor is the same, tells me the exhaustion will ease soon, it is a real problem but a few people have told me it does get better, im on week 8 and it is slowly getting better, hang in there im sure the tiredness is better than how you were feeling before you started the medication? Hang in there, let us know how you get on

4

Thank you so much for your reply´s

I was not feeling like this when i started.

The tiredness came on week 4 i can´t really remember.

I can deal with everything else,but this is driving me mad

i am on 10mg, which is not that high, i am feeling a lot better but i don´t want to go out,i go out when i have to,but while i am out i find that i am not that anxious.

i do feel anxious before i leave the house,so much that it makes me sick,but i think it´s because i just put too much tough into it.

I will keep on taking it, i just wondered if i would be getting better soon.

 

5

It sounds alrrady that the advantages are out weighing the disadvantages as you say you are not snxious when you eventually get out. Ive been on 10mg for about 6 month and the side effects will lessen, it takes a lot of patience but hang in there coz its worth it x

6

Thank you, and even tho is not easy i will keep on going

7

I think my body needs a certain ammount of sleep i don´t know what else could be.

i went out today and felt tired when i got home, after i put my son to bed i laid on the couch to watch tv,and fell asleep. 

 

8

I was going to post about the same thing. I take my tablets in the evening and I'm really tired. I go to work and I don't do anything too tiring but I go home and I can barely keep my eyes open. I'll have a nap for an hour and then i'm up all night. Cit always gives me insomnia but when I was on it before I got Amitriphyline to help me sleep at night. Its 11:30 and I'm exhausted!! I'm going to try switching to taking my tablets in the morning from and hopefully that will help. Last weekend I slept all weekend I was that tired.

9

Hi Taina 

This evening I visited my GP due to the same side effects your having! 

I have been on Citalopram since January 10mg and now due to increase my dose.

citalopram is making my exhausted! I have a 7 year old son which is also hard. The GP suggested I take Citalopram in the morning. But like you, because I still don't have an appetite I feel so weak with little energy! So the best thing is to drink loads of fluids and eat little & often! - Energy levels will start to increase!

hang on in there though! hope you feel better soon. xxxxx

10

When i started i took them at night,and because i did not fall asleep untill after 1 i started taken them in the morning and that´s when it all started.

The thing is i am scared i just fall asleep and don´t even know.

It stops around 12 then i am tired all day and around 8PM i feel i bit better.

I hope it goes well for you.

11

I do drink a lot,and even more now that i am on this medication.

I do forget to eat but have been pushing my self to eat. 

I don´t really feel hungry but even when i do i just don´t have the energy to cook, i used to before taking the meds. I put all my energy into taking care of my son,and at times i feel so bad,because i feel like i´m not doing much with him. 

I can´t wait till i feel better, if only i could keep awake,and feel a bit less tired.

I am alright with everything else.

12

has any of you tried to change the time of taking the medication.

I am taking it in the morning now, i changed to the morning because i did not have any side effects,but now i do. 

So i am thinking of swicthing back and take it at night, i don´t know if this may help.

I am really confused,and my GP tells me it doesn´t matter what time i take it.

I just want to feel better, so i can do more things with my son.