Staal Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Hey all, I am 24, and have had very mild anxiety issues for most of my life. It wasn't until recently that i decided to go to the doctor to see if anything could be done. I took Escitalopram 4 days ago (10mg) and again the next day, but stopped when i discovered i was no longer able to ejaculate/orgasm. I decided my mild anxiety was not worth the sexual trade off, and will just try exercising and eating healthier. So the point of this post, i decided to try and achieve orgasm again tonight(almost 3 days after the last pilli took), because i was worried after the first time, and i still was not able to. Having only taken 2 10mg pills, i figured it would be out of my system by now. This is really starting to worry me. Does anyone know if this is a long lasting side effect, or something that should return to normal in a week or so? Thanks. Staal. Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted January 23, 2016 Administrator Share Posted January 23, 2016 Welcome, Staal. Did you take only 2 doses of escilatopram? Sexual problems are a very common side effect of antidepressants, particularly SSRIs. Some people are very sensitive to their effects. It may take a while, but your sexual response should gradually come back. Stay calm and let your body heal. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus apace41 Posted January 23, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted January 23, 2016 Staal, Alto's advice is what we typically see. I don't believe I've ever seen a case of sexual dysfunction that lasted long term after a very short term use. Because sexual dysfunction has such a strong psychological component to it, however, if you obsess about the problem you can prolong the time it takes to recover. Best, Andy Sertraline 50mg and Clonazapam .375mg from 2000 -- symptoms of dizziness Spring 2012 increased to .5 Clonazapam and 100mg Sertraline -- no improvement Benzo microtaper from November 2012 to November 2014 (followed benzo sites "taper benzo first") Started Sertraline taper in December 2014 cut by 25mg to 75mg; 62.5mg 1/1/15 and 50mg on 2/1/15 Held at 50mg through April 5 to use liquid Reduced dosage in 10% or less drops from 50mg to 25mg -- at single tablet of 25mg on 10/5/15 Transitioned to all liquid for accuracy while tapering -- Horrible insomnia -- back to 25mg liquid and held until October 1, 2016 10/16 -- 11/18 tapered very slowly to 10.6mg. No real improvement and never really stable so updosed to 12.5mg (1/2 a pill) for convenience and long hold. After 8+ months of holding with no noticeable improvement decided to add .4ml of liquid Prozac (about 1.5mg) to see if that improves the situation Supplements, Magnesium, D3, Omega 3, curcumin, Valerian, 81mg Aspirin, L-Theanine, Vit. C, Link to comment
Christian Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 The fact that you listened to your body's bad reaction and quit after only two days of use is a blessing. You are very lucky. Many of us just kept taking them even though our bodies were sending us bad signals and as a result sex is the last thing on our minds in our current conditions. Lexapro: started in 2002 at 10 mgs. Ambien: started as a as needed sleep aid in 2010. Quit Lexapro cold turkey in June 20015 due to contributing to low sodium issues. Restarted Lexapro in late November for a week (only 5 mgs) but quit due to dizziness side effects. Side effects worsened for 3 weeks until 12/24/15: Protracted WD hit, experienced extreme anxiety, insomnia lack of full concentration and social challenges. Reinstated Lexapro on 1/1/16 at 5 mgs. Increased per Dr to 7.5 MG. Tapered off Lexapro in March 2016. Started 50MG of Seroquel in late January 2016 for bedtime to help in eliminate Ambien. Tapered off both Seroquel and Ambien in March 2016. 2/14/16: Prescribed both Remeron (15 MG) and Temazapam (15 MG) for sleep. Also use Klonopin and Ambien again in place of Temazapam to avoid addiction. However I did take Temazapam 60 straight days 6/15/16: Stopped use of all benzo's and now use Belsomra 1-2 times a week. Still on 15 MG of Remeron 10/11/16: Off all psych medications After kindling, trying to regain my strength suffering from severe mental and physical fatigue. Link to comment
Staal Posted January 24, 2016 Author Share Posted January 24, 2016 Welcome, Staal. Did you take only 2 doses of escilatopram? Sexual problems are a very common side effect of antidepressants, particularly SSRIs. Some people are very sensitive to their effects. It may take a while, but your sexual response should gradually come back. Stay calm and let your body heal. Thank you all for the responses, its been calming my mind a bit. Alto, Yes i only took two 10mg doses of escilatopram. My plan is to give it a week before i give it another go. Try and let everything clear my system. Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted January 24, 2016 Administrator Share Posted January 24, 2016 Just relax as much as you can and be relieved you didn't take the drug longer. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Songbird Posted January 24, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted January 24, 2016 I am 24, and have had very mild anxiety issues for most of my life. It wasn't until recently that i decided to go to the doctor to see if anything could be done. You might want to look into non-med approaches to anxiety. There is a lot that can be done that doesn't involve meds. For example, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and mindfulness can be very helpful for anxiety. If you are having anxiety attacks, look into books and recordings by Dr. Claire Weekes. Relaxation techniques can also be very helpful, e.g. progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, gentle yoga, etc. 2001–2002 paroxetine 2003 citalopram 2004-2008 paroxetine (various failed tapers) 2008 paroxetine slow taper down to 2016 Aug off paroxetine2016 citalopram May 20mg Oct 15mg … slow taper down2018 citalopram 13 Feb 4.6mg 15 Mar 4.4mg 29 Apr 4.2mg 6 Jul 4.1mg 17 Aug 4.0mg 18 Nov 3.8mg 2019 15 Mar 3.6mg 21 May 3.4mg 26 Dec 3.2mg 2020 19 Feb 3.0mg 19 Jul 2.9mg 16 Sep 2.8mg 25 Oct 2.7mg 23 Oct 2.6mg 24 Dec 2.5mg 2021 29 Aug 2.4mg 15 Nov 2.3mg Link to comment
Staal Posted January 27, 2016 Author Share Posted January 27, 2016 Update for those who are curious or may stumble upon this in the future with the same problem: I seem to have some returned sexual function. I was able to achieve orgasm today but it was a lot more difficult than normal. Maintaining an erection was an issue but the ejaculation has returned. I assume things will be back to normal soon. -Staal Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted January 27, 2016 Administrator Share Posted January 27, 2016 That's good to hear. Please be aware you probably will have similar reactions to serotonergic antidepressants, and maybe the others as well. This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Mort81 Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Thats good to hear , it will restore back to normal over time. Like Alto said you are probably very sensitive to antidepressants so I would never touch one of those again. Good things or anxiety are Magnesium supplements and baths . Calming teas ,meditation, Exercise but dont over do it. and doing what you can to not think about it . So do stuff you enjoy . Your a very young guy so Anxiety is very normal at this stage of your life , school , jobs , relationships and all that. Many of us are mis diagnosed with things at a young age but really we were normal and just going through life. Goodluck going forward. Was on 30mg (Lexapro) for 7-8yrs20mg for 3 months (This was my choice my Doc wanted me to drop much faster)15 mg 2week10mg 2 weeks 5 mg 1 week0 since August 24th . PPI Dexlant 30 mg taper has begun. Cutting 20% currently. using zantac as needed. Benzo is currently 0.10mg Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus apace41 Posted January 27, 2016 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted January 27, 2016 Your a very young guy so Anxiety is very normal at this stage of your life , school , jobs , relationships and all that. Many of us are mis diagnosed with things at a young age but really we were normal and just going through life. Brilliant words from Mort. The key is to learn the coping mechanisms when you are young so that as trials and tribulations come up during your life you have tools in your toolbox to deal with them. If you never get started on the psych med merry-go-round you never have to deal with getting off as it spins faster and faster. Best, Andy Sertraline 50mg and Clonazapam .375mg from 2000 -- symptoms of dizziness Spring 2012 increased to .5 Clonazapam and 100mg Sertraline -- no improvement Benzo microtaper from November 2012 to November 2014 (followed benzo sites "taper benzo first") Started Sertraline taper in December 2014 cut by 25mg to 75mg; 62.5mg 1/1/15 and 50mg on 2/1/15 Held at 50mg through April 5 to use liquid Reduced dosage in 10% or less drops from 50mg to 25mg -- at single tablet of 25mg on 10/5/15 Transitioned to all liquid for accuracy while tapering -- Horrible insomnia -- back to 25mg liquid and held until October 1, 2016 10/16 -- 11/18 tapered very slowly to 10.6mg. No real improvement and never really stable so updosed to 12.5mg (1/2 a pill) for convenience and long hold. After 8+ months of holding with no noticeable improvement decided to add .4ml of liquid Prozac (about 1.5mg) to see if that improves the situation Supplements, Magnesium, D3, Omega 3, curcumin, Valerian, 81mg Aspirin, L-Theanine, Vit. C, Link to comment
Futurerecovery Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 You should never take it again. And also no other SSRI or SSNRI. When you take it again, it can persist forever. It is called PSSD. Even when you take just one pill. There are thousands of people who suffer from PSSD. And I have read dozens of PSSD reports from people who took it only for a few days. For example see akakoom's thread (akakoom doesn't mention his sexual symptoms on the first page)http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/8554-akakoom-lost-in-no-mans-land/?fromsearch=1 or my thread http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/10067-futurerecovery-pssd-after-a-few-days/?fromsearch=1or Ghost's thread http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/9564-gh0sts-escitalopram-wd/?fromsearch=1 I suffer from extreme PSSD since January 2015 (2x5mg Escitalopram and a few weeks later 4x2.5mg Escitalopram). It destroyed my life. German fMRI study about PSSD http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/14351-take-part-in-new-pssd-study/ Please also complete this questionnaire in order to possibly promote Italian PSSD research if you have PSSD / Post-SSRI PGAD:http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/4587-persistent-genital-arousal-disorder-pgad/?p=247055 Link to comment
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