Citlopram side effect help; major night panics causing sleepless nights

Mental health
1

Hi all, I've been looking at a few threads and at questions about insomnia and know it's a common side effect but I was wondering if this is also 'normal' on citlopram? I'm up to day 7 on 10mg and take them at around 11am-1pm.

I've had some of the side effects - nothing MAJOR (I'm sure my anxiety makes them seem worse than what they are; slight dry eyes and mouth, dizziness, slight trouble focusing, possibly increased sugar cravings)

But one that is totally freaking me out is at night time not only my anxiety increases majorly but I have terrible insomnia - waking in panic every 5 minutes after falling asleep!! It's so frightening and I'm not sure why it's just at night, I managed to sleep during the day fine. I also feel dizzy and lightheaded and feel like my heart is going to stop when I'm in this dazed sleepy mode I wake up in. Is this normal? I have had panic attacks on it at night and morning, it calms throughout the day but I have lost hours and nights of sleep because of it - I'm on holiday and unable to speak to my doctor about it yet, also is eye sensitivy to light normal? Thank you for reading xx

2

lele

Try taking the medication at night, half an hour before bedtime. Give the medication time to work another four or five weeks

If you use Citalopram before bed it should make you sleep, take the med with a drop of milk, it will clear the medication from your throat.

If you feel in four weeks you are still having problems, see your GP. He May up your medication when He feels it is beneficil.

Always listen to GP advice

BOB

3

Was normal for me. I stopped it partly because it calmed the panic attacks, but made my overall anxiety worse.. I'm now on buspar which is solely for anxiety, where citalopram is for depression.. If you have anxiety and not very much depression, ask your doctor about buspar.. Twice a day and though I'm nowhere near back to normal, it is slowly taking effect. Very slowly lol

4

Also if you want to stay on this med, I took mine before bed and it kept me up all night. I switched to taking it at 8am and it helped a bit sleepwise.