Kitkat: Hi everyone

[Kitkat]

Hello 

i am a new user And a little scared to post my first post 

so hear it goes 

I started sertraline in 2019 after suffering from postpartum depression and anxiety after having my two children and their dad left in 2018 and I went down hill 

 

the sertraline seemed to help get me out of that funk for a while in 2021 I cold turkey quit from 100mg I new nothing about withdrawal or tapering 

 

I crashed hard a month later I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t sit still , continuous panic attacks couldn’t be alone , I was told this was worsening of my symptoms and put back on 50mg in October 2021 i stabilised after a few weeks 

 

in August 2022 I came off 50mg due to feeling unmotivated and sluggish and foggy headed

 

i crashed in November 25th 2022 panic , fear , no sleep, shaking 

went back on 50mg December 1st had horrific side effects 

No appetite, suicidal thoughts all day , I wasn’t safe stayed on sertraline until jan 14th 2023 

dr moved me to citalopram 5mg Jan 16th

Which I am still currently on , a few side effects but doing ok currently I know now switching isn’t always a good idea but I couldn’t carry on with the sertraline and I couldn’t be on nothing at all. 
 

I am not planning on switching or adding any other medication 

if and when I stabilise on the citalopram fully my idea is to do a long hold of a few months then very super slowly come off using the liquid which I would appreciate help with 

 

many thanks 

kitkat

[Gridley]

Welcome to SA, kitkat.  I'm sorry you're going through this.  

 

To give members the best information, we ask them to summarize their medication history in a signature -- drugs, doses, dates, and discontinuations & reinstatements, in the last 12-24 months particularly.  A last format is best.

 

Account Settings – Create or Edit a signature.

 

The symptoms you experienced after you cold turkey in 2021 and 2022 were very probably withdrawal.  These drugs change the architecture of the brain and have to be tapered slowly to allow the brain to recover.  Unfortunately, doctors know little to nothing about withdrawal and misdiagnose withdrawal as "return of the underlying condition" and put their patients on more drugs.  The damage is not permanent.  So you have a better idea of what you have been experiencing, here is some information on withdrawal:

 

 

What is withdrawal syndrome.

 

Daily Checklist of Antidepressant Withdrawal Symptoms (PDF) 

 

Brain Remodelling 

 

Video:  Healing From Antidepressants - Patterns of Recovery

 

I hope the switch to Citalopram works well for you.  You will need to stabilize on it for several months before you consider tapering.  When the time comes, please be aware that doctors are not aware of the need for slow tapering.  We recommend tapering by no more than 10% of your current dose every 4 weeks.

 

Why taper by 10% of my dosage?

 

This link is specifically about tapering Citalopram.

 

Tips for tapering off citalopram (Celexa)

 

We don't recommend a lot of supplements on SA, as many members report being sensitive to them due to our over-reactive nervous systems, but two supplements that we do recommend are magnesium (glycinate is a good form) and omega 3 (fish oil). Many people find these to be calming to the nervous system. 

 

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker 

 

Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) 

 

Add in one at a time and at a low dose in case you do experience problems.

 

This is your Introduction topic, where you can ask questions and connect with other members. We're glad you found your way here.

 

 

[Kitkat]

Thankyou gridley 

 

I hope it works well to im just trying to stay positive 

I forgot to mention I went to 10mg on the 23rd which is where I will stay until I stabilise and will hold for a little while to give my self time to recover- does this sound like a good idea 

 

I’m definitely going to come off the citalopram slowly using the liquid I was actually going to do it slower than the 10% with longer holds in between just to make it gentle on my nervous system 

my dr agrees with this 

 

I will add in a small amount of one supplement at a time once I know if the citalopram is going to work as I don’t want to change to many things at once 

[Gridley]

4 hours ago, Kitkat said:

I went to 10mg on the 23rd which is where I will stay until I stabilise and will hold for a little while to give my self time to recover- does this sound like a good idea 

That's fine.  But give yourself plenty of time to recover from the switch.  See how you're feeling before you make any further changes.

 

4 hours ago, Kitkat said:

I will add in a small amount of one supplement at a time once I know if the citalopram is going to work as I don’t want to change to many things at once 

That sounds fine too. Only one change at a time.

 

 

[Kitkat]

Thankyou 

I definitely won’t be making any changes again 

 

thankyou for your reply  once I’m ready to taper I might need help with the measurements or %s to drop I’m not very good at maths lol 

 

hope all is well 

[Gridley]

9 minutes ago, Kitkat said:

once I’m ready to taper I might need help with the measurements or %s to drop I’m not very good at maths l

Just let us know and we can help.