Flouxetine Side Effects Push Through or Sleep?

Treatment and medication
1

Hello everyone,

Short version 20mg Fluoxetine (Prozac), on day 9, most annoying/intense side effects - rapid heart rate, mood swings, increased anxiety, disrupted sleep, reduced appetite, jittery. 

I've been browsing forms like this for the past few days and it seems like everything gets worse on week two with day 13 and 14 being horrible but then week three things start to calm down. (The prospect of worse side effects really scare me but that's something for another day.)

Currently I feel like I have the flu. Weak, shaky, messed up appetite, ect. While I'm not tired I did just take an hour nap and easily feel like I could take another one. Over these next five days I'm assuming things are going to get worse and it looks like I have two options: Power through it, go about my normal routine as much as I can, and distract myself as much as possible. Or kinda give up, do the bare minimum and sleep a lot so I don't have to suffer the side effects. 

Is what I've heard about week two being hell correct? People who have been on Fluo/Prozac longer than me did you power through? Did it help?

Any coping tips would be greatly appreciated. 

 

2

I can share ALL of the symptoms you just listed.

I am on week 4 after stopping it cold turkey in early Feb 2018.  I restarted on March 26 on 20mg dose I take in the AM.

What I have done that has helped is:

1. Go to work no matter how cruddy I feel

2. Take walks, even short ones

3. Drink Chamonille tea, helps take the edge off

4 Take Complex b vitamin supplements as I am still not eating well

5. I got a prescription of Klonopin to help manage the anxiety

6. Go visit with my neighbors in the evening, just small talk, but it occupies my mind and stops me from focusing on my physical symptoms

7. I am reading a book about co dependence (my rather died in 2016 and I have no more immediate family)

With regard to to week 2 being ■■■■, that will vary, I can say this for sure, I feel overall better in terms of mood and depression but I still have wretching in the AM (although I can eat fine in the evening).  Please note that the things I listed above, none by itself is a cure all, but rather combined they do help.

Today is a good day relatively speaking for me. Yesterday I was so tired I napped through most of the day.

I will encourage you to hang in there as Prozac is NOT a fast acting AD med.  Katecogs has also posted some good advice on here and I advise you to read up on what she has gone through.

Keep in mind, we're all different so what works for one person might not work for the next.  But believe this, we WILL all manage to get through this, it will be hard, there will be ups and downs but remember, there are millions all over who take AD and do just fine. Someday we'll be in that group

3

Thank you so much for the reply and the tips and I'll go check out Katecogs. 

I've got some anxiety tea and B vitamins I'll start using. I have noticed that being around people really helps.

When I was first prescribed this I naively hoped I would be one of the people who A) had few symptoms or B) had a positive response quickly.

The idea of side effect lasting weeks or months honestly scares me but after a little browsing I am aware of how much worse things could be and I'm grateful they're not. 

Thank you so much for that last paragraph. I will hang in there as best I can. You'll probably see some more post from me in the future. Either as a (hopefully positive) update or uh, more whining, for a lack of a better term.  

How/when did you know you needed something to help you with your anxiety?

4

Back in March 2017 I was having panic attacks at night, waking up in a frightful state, out of my mind literally, I was prescribed Ativan which I took at night .5mg with prozac.  This was 6 months after my dad died and I guess now, looking back,I never processed the grief correctly or in a positive manner.

When I had issues back in Feb this year, after going off it, I told doc the ativan was not working as well and thus he prescribed me Klonopin.  From what I have read both of these are often given with AD to smooth out the bumps until the AD kicks in fully.  That is probably where you and I are now in this journey.

Forgot to mention, I am seeing a therapist to try to understand my grief and depression and develop some good strategies to cope so eventually I won't have to take the prozac. That being said, I may be on it for some time to come and I am fine with that.  While there are many here who have written about their troubles, let's consider the millions who DO take AD meds and have no issues at all.

I agree being around people helps a lot. Espeically positive, caring, compassionate people.  By you doing that, you are taking your mind of your issues, even if for a short while, eventually you'll be at a point where your coping skills will be first rate.