Citalopram (Celexa)
Citalopram is still one of the most widely prescribed antidepressants for anxiety and panic disorder, despite its makers, Lundbeck, producing an updated version called Escitalopram. As with most antidepressants it is known more commonly by various marketing names:
Celexa, Cipramil, Emocal, Sepram, Seropram
Personal reports by citalopram users
These statements about the use of Citalopram come from people who have actually used it. They are taken from a number of sources and may not be indicative. They do however give you some idea of what other people have made of citalopram.I take Citalopram. Only started a month ago and it seems to be working okay, it has settled my moods a great deal, which is what I think I needed the most.
I take Citalopram (20mg) once every day and have been on them for about four months now. In the past, my body hasn't seemed to like anti-anxiety meds and I've usually been sick as a dog from them. But with Citalopram I don't really have any side effects at all!
Celexa had plenty of side effects for me. I felt dopey, I couldn't sleep, I had sexual difficulties (ejaculation problems) and I seemed to lose my memory easily, forgetting lots of words and little things.
It did work for me! My anxiety got a lot better, i slept through the night and rarely felt any anxiety symptoms when I was out and about. I should also say though that I felt a bit sleepy in the day, didn't like getting out of bed, and couldn't stop yawning! A small price to pay!
At first I felt awful. I felt the weirdest out of body experience you can imagine. A very haunting emptiness that will stay with me for a long time. I wanted to ditch the Citalopram on day one, but for some reason I didn't and on day two I felt much better. From then on it was all good news. But the very first day was hell!
Depression in a pill! I will never touch this stuff again. Felt more anxious and depressed than ever before, was really worried about myself. There must be better ways!
When I started taking Citalopram I was 80kg. Now I am 97kg! It has worked for my depression, but at the cost of my physical health?
Alternatives to Citalopram.
Given that new research casts doubt on the efficacy of some popular SSRI drugs, why not take an alternative approach? I recommend the following books on alternatives to SSRIs such as Celexa: Books available in the USA
and Books available in the UK/Europe
. Both Tryptophan and 5-HTP have been suggested as worthwhile alternatives You can reas more about them by following those links. Get over anxiety - Click Here.
Details about Citalopram.
Standard dose 20mg which can be raised if necessary up to 60mg (which is unusual). Also available in a 10mg dose which is not generally thought to be a therapeutic dose for normal adults.
No liquid form is currently available. Liquid form SSRI's are useful when withdrawing as a more precise dose can be measured as opposed to chopping a tablet into pieces.
The half life is about 35 hours (which is good as it means one tends not to get so much of a yo-yo effect if a dose is missed or taken late).
Possible side effects are: fatigue, weight increase/decrease, drowsiness, dry mouth, increased sweating (hyperhidrosis), trembling, headache, constant yawning, dizziness, sleep disturbances, cardiac arrythmia, blood pressure, nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, heightened anorgasmia in females, impotence and ejaculatory problems.
Side effects should be reported to the doctor. More info: rxlist and the official Citalopram homepage from the makers of the drug.
Also see this blog entry about withdrawing from Citalopram. And also read about Citalopram / Celexa and weight gain.