Posted by Diffy Q on September 13, 2005, at 11:43:53
In reply to Re: Any weight gain on Celexa?, posted by ksvt on October 21, 2000, at 21:13:23
I took Celexa for 4 years. I actually lost weight so I can't help you there... However- I will tell you my experience of getting off of Celexa. It was very difficult. It really made me angry after all was said and done that my psychopharm. did't clue me in! The fiorst few times I tried to go off of it I felt like I was losing my mind - like I was insane. (And I had lowered my dose from 30mg to 10 mg well before this.) I tried reducing to 5 and then stopped taking it for 3 or 4 days. I did this twice about a year apart. Then I would go back on becasue I was SOO insane/ crazy/ angry. I freaked out becasue I thought things like "wow I really am emotionally unstable...I will probably have to stay on this drug forever becasue look how I am with out it!" When I told the psych this she said stuff like 'well, maybe you are not ready to go off..." What a crock of sh*t!!!!! I did a ton of research and learned that there are big time withdrawal symptoms with Celexa and you will feel unnaturally insane when getting off of them. I eventually got off of them by cutting my 10 mg pills in quarters an then eigths (no joke!) and just kept tapering down. In the end I only took some whenever I started to feel nuts. After time I could go 3 or 4 days and then just take a wee crumb of a pill and feel ok and then eventually I didn't need them anymore.
I felt FINE when all was said and done. I still have anxiety/ depression issues but they are less severe than 4 years ago. And I realize now that I did not cry AT ALL while taking Celexa. I used to cry at a moving TV commercial. I never did that w/ Celexa. I didn't cry when my best friends father died...Not me.It was like being numbed. Also - as another poster said on this site- it was like being numbed form the waist down. Big time! I am pleased to say that off of Celexa I have my sex drive and hot buttons back:)
So seriously think about getting off of it. There are many alternatives - I have used SAMe to good effect. There is also Claronet and many others- check it out!
Good luck!!
Diffy
poster:Diffy Q
thread:2871
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050909/msgs/554644.html