Feeling terribley depressed days after drinking some wine on Fluoxetine

nh_user_1482460
Wed, 28 Feb 2024 11:37:07 +0000
Treatment and medication

Hi community

Reaching out for some advice and other opinions/stories from people that may have done the same as me!

Now, I know we are not supposed to drink any alcohol while taking fluoxetine, but I have broken the rule on a few occasions as I wanted to be social and go out with my friends… something I’d missed doing and which also helps me to feel better by being around people.

I’ve been on 20mg for about 7 weeks now after changing over from escitalopram (which just left me fatigued for the month I was on it). A few times I have had one small beer of an evening with a friend and it didn’t seem to affect me at all. My overall mood seemed to have been improving, much less negative rumination (which I think is the main cause of my depression/anxiety issues) and improved focus.

Then last weekend I drank maybe half a bottle of wine at a dinner and have felt miserable since the day after! And it’s now 4 days later. Feels like I have undone the good work that the drug may have been doing.
Of course, there could be other factors at play (not just alcohol) that are making me feel like this, but I would love to hear some other people’s experiences of what happened when they drank alcohol while on fluoxetine.

For now, I think I will have to avoid alcohol altogether: I deserve my mental health to be as strong as possible. Thanks in advance all!

3 posts - 3 participants