harvardhopeful: Citalopram/Celexa - Terrible Withdrawal

[harvardhopeful]

Hello! I am a 22 year old woman who was first prescribed 10mg of Celexa in January 2022, then 20mg in March 2022. I had never had any issues with anxiety or depression, but at the time was in the midst of an Adderall addiction that had left me with depressive comedowns to the point of suicidal ideation. 

 

I ultimately said goodbye to Adderall in March 2023 and went cold-turkey without any lingering side effects. I continued to take 20mg Celexa daily until the end of April, when I realized that the medication was numbing my emotions and curbing my anxiety to the point that I felt no urgency over anything. My prescriber's instructions for tapering, I have learned, were much too fast – I cut from 20mg to 10mg at the end of April, and held there for a month before cutting from 10mg to 0mg over the course of June/July. 

 

My last dose of Celexa was on July 9th. Symptoms of withdrawal were noticeable shortly thereafter, but have really peaked over the past 2 weeks. I had severe gastrointestinal side effects (took laxatives for 10 days straight), feelings of depersonalization and dizziness, difficulty staying asleep, elevated heart rate, and severe episodes of hopelessness and lack of motivation. I decided to reinstate 2.5mg as of Saturday, which resolved my gastrointestinal issues but otherwise has not made a significant difference yet in terms of mental stability. I am not sure where to go from here – I plan to meet with a new psychiatrist this week, but this has been the most difficult thing I have ever encountered.

 

Curious if anyone has had a similar experience, has any recommendations, or even just words of support. I am so desperate for my life back. Thank you so much.

Edited August 27, 2023 by manymoretodays
name to topic title

[Onmyway]

Hi @harvardhopeful

how do you feel now on the 2.5mg? Have more symptoms settled? 

 

I would recommend that you do not change drugs if your doctor prescribes them as that can lead to even more symptoms if you are hypersensitive. If 2.5mg has made some changes and hasn't made anything worse, you may wish to go to a higher dose. But pls updates us before you do.  It may be enough - it was enough for me but took me a few months to stabilize completely. 

 

OMW

[harvardhopeful]

Hi, OMW. Thank you so much for responding. I ultimately decided to up my dose to 3.5mg, which I've been on for a week now. I am feeling much better symptoms-wise. I am thinking of stabilizing here for at least another 2 weeks before decreasing until 3.2 or 3.25. 

[Onmyway]

Hi @harvardhopeful

we would advise that you hold at that dosage for at least 4 weeks to give your body some respite. 

Can you pls update your signature with this new information? 
OMW

[harvardhopeful]

That is the pace I’d like to go at, but at the same time I really struggle being on Celexa. I feel like I either experience terrible side effects (lack of motivation, total emotional flatness, hair loss, irritability) or withdrawal with very little middle ground. 

 

Part of me really wants to give Prozac a shot and taper from there. But my psychiatrist is recommending that I cross-titrate 2.5mg Celexa and 5mg Prozac for a week, and something about that plan doesn’t sit right with me. I do think I need off of the Celexa though. How was your experience switching from Xanax to Klonopin?

[Onmyway]

Hi @harvardhopeful, 

we do not recommend switching to prozac as a way to come off of drugs. Here is our post on it. The reason is that it is not clear that prozac will deal with the withdrawal effects and people on prozac do get withdrawal effects though it is easier to quit than other drugs like paxil and escitalopram. 

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/topic/19373-the-prozac-switch-or-bridging-with-fluoxetine/#comment-13616

 

Many doctors assume that withdrawal happens because some drugs come out of your body quickly and prozac itself is a drug with a very long half life. But withdrawal, as we have come to know it, is much more than getting the drug out of your body.

 

My experience with xanax and clonazepam - 

I took xanax only to treat what I now know to be withdrawal effects but at the time thought was simply anxiety. I took very low doses (0.5mg a day in 2 doses I think was my highest dose) for less than a month and it worked really well for me - it stopped the anxiety and did not have side effects. However, I realized I was getting properly addicted to it - I was clockwatching waiting for my next dose and I knew what was happening. I mistakenly thought that clonazepam would be similar but with a longer half life would not cause addiction. It was not at all similar. Clonazepam made me very sluggish and nauseous and depressed (diazepam did that to me as well when I took it many years ago). I realized what was happening and took it very rarely, only if I didn't sleep for a very long time. And stopped it within a couple of months of irregular dosing. Basically, my doctor gave me 8 pills of 2mg and I was taking 0.25mg/day and I still think I have 3-4 pills somewhere. 

 

These drugs may be from the same class but they are not at all the same in their effect - for example I was given prozac many years ago for a few days and it made me so nauseous and dizzy that I could barely walk properly. 

 

Have a read of the prozac bridge thread and see how you feel. My advise would be to not change things much but you know yourself best. 

Since you increased your dose of citalopram - have things become better or worse for you? 

 

Pls keep track of your symptoms throughout the day and post them here. Have a look at @ccloudyrose's intro who is also posting daily symptoms and you can follow her example. 

OMW

 

 

[harvardhopeful]

Hi, OMW. I wish I would have heeded your advice. I abruptly stopped Celexa cold turkey and have been in severe withdrawal since November. I foolishly went to another psychiatrist who put me on Wellbutrin, Buspirone, and Seroquel/Abilify/Latuda/Clonazepam each for 1-3 weeks at a time. I can’t imagine the disruption this has caused and I feel worse than ever. I should have just reinstated the Celexa when the WD symptoms appeared. 

 

Would reinstatement be a good idea at this point, after stopping September 5? I’m so desperate for relief. 

[harvardhopeful]

Hi All,

 

I had never taken medication prior to being prescribed 20mg of Adderall and 20mg of Celexa in 2021. I quit Adderall CT in March 2023 and tapered Celexa way too quickly from April to July 2023. I entered protracted withdrawal with panic attacks, anxiety, and insomnia in August, and somehow managed in this fashion from August to December. While it should've been clear to me to reinstate Celexa at a small dose, my doctor placed me on a carousel of drugs, including:

Clonazepam .5mg

Seroquel 100-300mg (taken for 2 weeks in December, CTed to Abilify)

Abilify 1mg-7.5mg (taken for 3 weeks in January, CTed to Latuda)

Latuda 20mg (currently on Day 13, want to get off as I have no business being on APs)

I feel foolish for allowing myself to have so rapidly switched from medication to medication and am now more lost/worried than ever. I am wondering if it is worth reinstating Celexa at this point, but not sure how my nervous system will handle it. I also greatly want off the antipsychotics, as my dopamine receptors were sensitive post-Adderall and I have no business being on them in the first place, and am not sure what to do. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[harvardhopeful]

Hi All,

 

I had never taken any medication or had any mental health issues prior to (illicitly) being prescribed 20mg of Adderall in February 2021. The depression and anxiety caused by the Adderall led me to being prescribed 10mg of Celexa in January 2022, and updosed to 20mg in February 2022. I quit Adderall CT in March 2023 and tapered Celexa way too quickly, going from 20mg to 0mg from April 27 to July 3 2023. I entered protracted withdrawal with panic attacks, anxiety, and insomnia just four weeks later, and somehow managed in this state from August to December. While it should've been clear to me that this was withdrawal, I saw a doctor who placed me on a carousel of antipsychotic drugs, including:

Clonazepam .25mg daily (taken since 10 December 2023)

Seroquel 100-300mg (taken for 2 weeks in December, CTed to Abilify)

Abilify 1mg-7.5mg (taken for 3 weeks in January, CTed to Latuda)

Latuda 20mg (taken for 3 weeks late January-early February, CTed)

Lexapro 2.5mg (taken since 19 February 2024)

I feel foolish for allowing myself to have so rapidly switched from medication to medication and am now more lost/worried than ever. I am suffering from extreme symptoms including dissociation, derealization, a blank mind, inability to focus, extreme rumination, persistent worry, and hypervigilance. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Emonda]

Hi Harvardhopeful,

I've just moved your new post back to your own thread.

 

Each member has only ONE Introduction topic.  Your own Introduction topic is the best place to ask questions and the place to journal your progress.  This keeps your history in one place and means you do not have to repeat your story. 

 

Regards