citalopram ~ how can i stop?

shabbie · #1 (**permalink**) 03-10-2008, 07:20 AM

ive been taking citalopram since october.

at first i took it in the mornings but it made me feel really nauseas (sp?) all day especially when it was getting near meal times. it made spotting any potential hypos very difficult too.

so i shifted it to bedtime, presto! no more nausea.

but these last few months i'm waking every morning at around 3/4 am and my mind is racing so i cant get to sleep again until it settles down about 2 hours later...by which time its time to get up for work and i'm thouroughly exhausted!

i forgot a dose the other night and had my best nights sleep in ages, i felt really rested in the morning!

so i tried switching the dose back to the morning again, and guess what? yep i felt lousy all day with nausea again!

so how do i go about stopping this medication? i only take 10mg per day.
the last dose i took was yesterday morning.

morrisma · #2 (**permalink**) 03-10-2008, 10:46 AM

Not sure what the drug is for but can you split the dose half at night & half in the morning? Or take it after a meal to help reduce the nausea?
Mike

Evermont · #3 (**permalink**) 03-10-2008, 11:12 AM

I looked it up here (link). You didn't mention which of the four or more indications you have.

Why not ask your doctor to prescribe an alternative, or if your problem is BDD or OCD seek some non-pharmaceutical therapy. No meds, no side effects.

Sleep is important - I need to work on my sleep situation myself.

Kim_in_TN · #4 (**permalink**) 03-10-2008, 11:19 AM

Citalopram is the generic for Celexa which is an anti-depressant. I take mine each morning with a meal and have never had any problems with nausea. I take 40 mg. per day and have for years now. Try taking it after you have eaten a good meal, preferably after breakfast or at least after lunch!

Good luck, and do not stop it without talking with your doctor first!

shabbie · #5 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 03:30 AM

i will go and see my doc very soon. after trying to spread out my doses i felt really anxious yesterday for no apparent reason. so have resumed the medication as it was prescribed

at 40 yrs old i could very well be starting 'the change', which would explain the symptoms. (dont 'they' say "late start... early finish"? at 18 years old i was a very late starter)

i'm naturally a very positive optimistic person, and to feel anxiety like i did feels more like chemical than psychological problems at work here.

shabbie · #6 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 07:15 AM

ive booked an appointment with the doc for some hormone blood tests

Jan B · #7 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 07:20 AM

Sharon,

I started "changing" in my mid thirties and was completely "done" two years ago at 44. Then after wondering if I had some serious problems, learned that type 1 (I see you are 1.5) diabetic women "change" early!! Good luck w/your appointment.

shabbie · #8 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 11:26 AM

..............thanks jan

Kim_in_TN · #9 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 04:00 PM

Sharon, I have complained of anxiety / panic attacks for years. I always keep Xanax on hand for the really bad times but I have to be feeling REALLY bad before I will take one. One RX will last me a year or more!

Anyway, in the past year or two I have been experiencing them more frequently at night. I finally have charted them out and found that they coincide with my cycles .... therefore what I thought were panic attacks are more than likely hot flashes! Just a little info for you to think about!

Good luck with your appointment!

shabbie · #10 (**permalink**) 03-12-2008, 12:36 PM

i tried some herbal stuff a few years ago for anxiety, it really sedated me. i was fit for absolutely nothing at all!
i think it had valerian in it.

funny thing was on the bottle though
"in case of overdose, seek medical advice if still awake" !!!

Kim_in_TN · #11 (**permalink**) 03-12-2008, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shabbie

i tried some herbal stuff a few years ago for anxiety, it really sedated me. i was fit for absolutely nothing at all!
i think it had valerian in it.

funny thing was on the bottle though
"in case of overdose, seek medical advice if still awake" !!!

OH MY! Well, that was a big help, huh?

notme · #12 (**permalink**) 03-12-2008, 03:20 PM

I can sympathize with medications that cause nausea. I recently started on Ambien CR for my sleeping problems. I took it for a few days with no side effects, then started to experience nausea after eating. No matter what I ate (drinking water was the worst) I felt nauseated. Very frustrating. I left on vacation a few weeks back and while I was flying, I didn't take the Ambien. By the time we were half way across country I was nauseas and could not sleep for anything. When we arrived at our destination, I was so sick I ended up in bed for a day. I didn't realize until much later that what I was experiencing was Ambien withdrawl. I did not go back to taking it.

Talk to your doctor about coming off citalopram. He may want to reduce your doses slowly and start you on something else that has fewer side effects. Sheesh, I hate drugs.

Chris1975 · #13 (**permalink**) 03-28-2008, 10:07 AM

Have you ever tried alternative medication? Have you've done research and see what is available. I figure that if you suffer any kind of side effects from drugs like how you were suffering from nausea, it's your body telling you that this shouldn't be in you body. I am very leary of any pharmaceutical drugs and have always look for all natural products or herbal supplements. Always do your own research.

I hope this will help you out.

shabbie · #14 (**permalink**) 03-28-2008, 10:27 AM

thanks for your support everyone.

i had a good chat with the doc, he is sending me for hormone tests.
it seems i'm waking in the night with sweats (hormones !)
if im going through the change i'm quite happy about that to be honest. i can always take herbals for it to help me along the way

i decided under his advice to keep taking the citalopram.