Should I switch meds?

Treatment and medication
1

I was on 20mg of flouxetine for two weeks and experienced awful side effects, and then they cleared up. My psychiatrist increased my dose to 40mg and I felt nothing for the first two weeks and then hit with the lowest low. I was crying, unmotivated, sleeping a lot, depressed, had suicidal imaginings, depersonalization, I experienced those feelings for a few days but they are getting better a little bit. I am a little happier but still depressed, not crying, I am still kind of lethargic but more motivated to do things like take a shower and exercise. I find that I am sleeping a lot more at night and waking up at like 10 when I used to wake up at 8 and I don't feel like getting out of bed. But once I get up I start to get better. I don't know if I should just keep sticking with fluoxetine or switch? The process is so slow. I've been on fluoxetine for 6 weeks, and on 40mg for 3. Is this going to work? Should I switch meds?

2

I feel like you I'm on 3rd week of 40mg but everyone on here and who I know personally says to stick with it and that it Will work

3

I understand you.

I am week 4 on 20mg and today I feel terrible.

I had to drink Propranolol 20 and xanax .25 just to get down the terrible anxiety that kick me today.

I had fast heart rate...

I am thinking to up my dose on 40 mg but I am scared what the side effects will be.

Dr said it's ok to go up but I wanted to stick on 20 until week 4 is finished cause I thought to stay and be patient maybe 20 will hit too...

I really don't know what to do...

Please advise...

A

4

Hi Alex

How are you feel

5

Sorry about that hit reply way to early

How are you feeling on the 20mg

Other than the side effects

Have you noticed any improvement

At all ?

6

Hi daz,

Thanks for asking...

I am week 4 on 20mg and today I feel terrible.

I had to drink Propranolol 20 and xanax .25 just to get down the terrible anxiety that kick me today.

I had fast heart rate...

I am thinking to up my dose on 40 mg but I am scared what the side effects will be.

Dr said it's ok to go up but I wanted to stick on 20 until week 4 is finished cause I thought to stay and be patient maybe 20 will hit too...

I really don't know what to do...

How are you ....any improvement?

7

Well it's been up and down all the time..

Some times I really feel better..

Some side effects subsided a little bit but I have still bad days like today...

I hope I will manage to stick with it...

You?

Any improvement?

8

Hi valerieanne

If you've noticed some improvements

Then it's worth hanging in there

This drug seemingly does take time to work

Some say 6 weeks others say 8 and so on

When did you notice a slight improvement

?

9

Alex / valerieanne

I started on the 5th feb

For the 1st 3/4 weeks I was all over the place but I stuck it out after getting advice from on here I to was at my wits end . I used to get just a couple of hours that were good now I get

2 maybe 4 good days

Although even now for me it's still early days I would say but I've seen

What this med can do and I'm glad

Because at first I had my doubts

What I will say is everyone is different

Each has a different response / circumstance therefore I understand

When you begin to wonder if this med is right . a great example of a drug not working with me was mirtazapine the side effects outweighed the benefits that's how I ended up on the flux

10

Good job daz....I am truly happy for you....I started on 25 of February...20 mg in the morning.

I truly hope it will kick me soon.

What is your dosage and when do you take it?

A

11

I been on 40 for 7 weeks all I want to do is sleep all the time and don't want to do any thing anyone else fill like this 

12

20mg in the morning

13

Sorry for disturbing but one more question?

Do you take any additional pills like benzodiazepines or diazepam or something for better sleep? Or Propranolol?

A

14

Just hang in there everyone. IT can take several weeks for to really work. That's because it acts so slowly which is a good thing. Anxiety, Tiredness, panic attacked and everything are very very normal. But give it time . 6-8 weeks we were told, and it took 9. The last week was tough and my son nearly gave up, a mum watching your  child go through the side effects was terrible but he persevered and suddenly it was much better. Changing meds now is unlikely to help and you'll have to start all over. Flou is about the mist effective med out there. Just stick with it...

15

Since prozac makes me tired can I transition it to night? Will that be better?

16

Yup, you can take fluo when it works best for you. My son started in the ams but it made him feel dizzy and queasy, so he switched to evenings which was much better, then he missed a do se and switched back to ams, . Back now on the evening dose though as that's much better. 

17

Each time your dose is increased you'll get the side effects again.  You have to be so, so patient on this type of meds because it doesn't work quickly.  Keep on going, don't give up, accept whatever happens at the moment and I promise it will all get better.  You'll feel like yourself again.

A broken bone take time to heal, and so does this illness.  Took me 3-4 months to feel some benefit and by 6 months I'd recovered.  And that's from 15 years of being ill.  

Patience, perseverance and even more patience on top ;-)

K xx

18

I've also watched my son go through this Cat ..... heartbreaking isn't it.  It's taken him a good 5 months of being up and down, and is now back to being himself again. Great to hear him laugh again :-)

19

Hi katecogs

Sorry for disturbing but one more question?

Do you take any additional pills like benzodiazepines or diazepam or something for better sleep? Or Propranolol?

Just to help until flu kick...

A

20

I take 10mg of amitriptayline for sleep

It does help although I still wake early

But not too early if you know what I mean