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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by precious on August 31, 2001, at 22:37:39
can any tell me what citaloprom and paroxetine and venlafaxine are used for? a friend's husband has been taking them and she found them hidden, he's been experiencing mood swings and has been very irritable and then he acts like nothing is wrong. his behavior has not been normal and is acting like a different person. are these medications used for the treatment for depression? i've looked up all three and i'm confused. can anyone please help?
Posted by Janelle on August 31, 2001, at 22:58:51
In reply to need some help, posted by precious on August 31, 2001, at 22:37:39
Hi,
These are all SRI anti-depressants. Citalopram is the generic name for Celexa, Paroxetine is the generic name for Paxil, and Venlafaxine is the generic name for Effexor.
They all have side effects, which vary from individual to individual, dosage, length of time taken and so forth.
It could very well be that your friend's husband's "abnormal" behavior is due, at least in part, to taking these meds. Is he taking ALL three - if so, woweeee, that is a lot and quite a combination.
I'm sure others here will give you more info. This is just the nuts and bolts.
Posted by precious on August 31, 2001, at 23:18:46
In reply to Re: need some help » precious, posted by Janelle on August 31, 2001, at 22:58:51
Thanks for the nuts and bolts. She found all three of these, and he tells her that he's taking none of them. They are all prescribed to him, however, by the same doctor. Wouldn't the doctor know not to prescribe these together if they aren't supposed to be used in combination? So the way I understand it from what you've written is that he would be in a depressed state to be prescribed these meds? I also found through internet research that taking all of these could cause serotonin syndrome, which doesn't sound too inviting. What is that? I've tried to look it up but I still can't understand what that syndrome is, other than it appears harmful. Any more info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Posted by ChrisK on September 1, 2001, at 4:18:08
In reply to Re: need some help, posted by precious on August 31, 2001, at 23:18:46
The most likely scenario is that this guy was prescribed these meds one at a time and didn't react to them so a new one was tried. They are all antidepressants and wouldn't normally be prescribed together. Have your friend check the dates on the scripts to see if there is about a 6-8 week difference between the refill dates. That's generally a fair trial for these meds.
These meds are nothing to be afraid of except that he didn't tell his wife that he was having problems with depression. Some studies show that up to 10% of the population is on some type of medication for depression or anxiety. It's a lot more common than people think.
One last thing, if your friend is very concerned about the mood swing problems than she should ask him to go to a psychiatrist instead of a GP. In the long run it will be better that way since most GPs have limited knowledge of psych meds.
> Thanks for the nuts and bolts. She found all three of these, and he tells her that he's taking none of them. They are all prescribed to him, however, by the same doctor. Wouldn't the doctor know not to prescribe these together if they aren't supposed to be used in combination? So the way I understand it from what you've written is that he would be in a depressed state to be prescribed these meds? I also found through internet research that taking all of these could cause serotonin syndrome, which doesn't sound too inviting. What is that? I've tried to look it up but I still can't understand what that syndrome is, other than it appears harmful. Any more info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
This is the end of the thread.
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