![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by resnick on February 1, 2007, at 6:53:01
I am a long-term OCD sufferer( 10+ years ) . I have taken Prozac, Zoloft , Paxil and Lexapro in the past. Prozac and Zoloft pooped out after a while , though they worked extremely well for a couple of years each . Paxil also worked but left me very tired . I was on Lexapro for a couple of years and it was excellent, but I stopped it about 10 months back because I needed to lose weight. 4 months back, my OCD symptoms( only obsessive , no overt physical compulsions but tremendous anxiety ) returned in full swing . I started taking Zoloft but suffered horribly . Not only did it not work, but it escalated my anxiety tremendously. I stopped Zoloft after 1 and a half months and moved back to Lexapro . I take quite a high dose ( 40 mg ) but this time around, even after nearly 2 months , there is very little benefit( and I have generally responded to medicines within 3 weeks or less ) . Maybe the anxiety associated with obsessions has reduced a little, but the frequency of obsessing is still terribly high . I am quite at my wits end here.
My question to all knowledgeable people out there on this board is whether it is common for a med to lose its efficacy when stopped for a period of time and then restarted . Should I wait some more time for Lexapro to work ?
Virtually every SSRI I have taken has worked for me at least for a period of time. However , ever since the 5-6 months without drugs, things seemed to have changed. What explains this ?
Posted by Phillipa on February 1, 2007, at 9:24:47
In reply to Lexapro not working second time around, posted by resnick on February 1, 2007, at 6:53:01
Maybe the chamicals in your body have changed or you don't respond to SSRI's anymore? What does your pdoc say? Love Phillipa
Posted by laima on February 1, 2007, at 9:37:13
In reply to Re: Lexapro not working second time around » resnick, posted by Phillipa on February 1, 2007, at 9:24:47
You know, I've noticed a lot of reports here from people who return to a med which used to work great for them in the past, only to find it no longer works at all, or much less than it did before. There is a person who had that problem with parnate, I think there were some other MAOI stories, I experienced it myself with prozac (the mood boost part), zyprexa (the mood boost part), and even ritalin (the mood boost and appetite part).By what mechanism does this happen? It seems to be a problem with a number of meds.
As an interesting aside, I had a consultation with a super-expert-for-tough-cases a while back. One of the things he did was rattle off the names of lots of drugs, and he wanted me to say yes or no if I ever used it-even if for one day. He didn't care for how long I used it, or what my reaction to it was-not even if I found it helpful or effective-- just if I ever injested. But that consulation was so brisk despite its 2 1/2 hour length, and mostly he just collected lots of info about me to discuss later with my own doctor. I had lots of questions, but regretfully never got to asking what that excersise was all about. I wonder if it's related in any way to an idea about drugs not working the same way on the second go? I find the possibility very curious.
Posted by stargazer on February 2, 2007, at 0:21:49
In reply to Re:not working second time around, posted by laima on February 1, 2007, at 9:37:13
My experience with retrys of meds has been limited but I did not respond to Marplan second time around. The reason for that may have been the drug was reformulated and did not contain same chemical components as original. Or reviewing my notes, I was already onLamictal when the Marplan was added, so unlike the first time, it was not a clean trial. And I don't believe I had success on Marplan initially but had different meds added on and off for more than a year before it worked. I must have been more patient back then.
There are so many AD's, I don't think I've tried all of them but it seems like I should have in all the years treating my depression.
My next trials may include celexa or nardil which both worked well for a few years, but since I failed the last time I'm not as confident as I once was for success with a retrial.
There's so many factors with why they stop working the first time but mostly it is a biochemical one, where your body's reactions change constantly along with hormonal levels and metabolism, which never stays the same, and over time the changes become permanent, rather than fluctuating within a more constant range.
I believe some doctors can fine tune drugs better than others so if you have a particularly gifted pdoc, you may have a better changce of finding the right med or meds at the right dose. In looking back at my notes I was surprised at some of the changes my pdoc made that today I would have challenged him on.
But that hasn't increased my success with getting any of these meds to work for very long, especially as I have gotten older and my depression has become more resistent. It's true what they say about the longer you have it...
SG
Posted by resnick on February 2, 2007, at 7:24:12
In reply to Re:not working second time around, posted by stargazer on February 2, 2007, at 0:21:49
Thanks for your great responses . I really do not know why drugs stop working for me , and why a drug that was working great stops working after a gap of a few months .
What is the typical time period you should give to a drug before going off it. I am on Lexapro for nearly a couple of months now at 40 mg, and yet the benefits are not much. On the other hand, without it, I would probably be much worse off.
Can it happen that if you go back to a drug which pooped out after a long gap ( several years ), it starts working again ? I was thinking of Prozac which stopped working nearly 6 years back when I stopped it. Or do you think I should stick to lexapro. I do need something to control the anxiety spurts though , maybe a benzo.
Posted by Nolegirl323 on February 3, 2007, at 13:56:31
In reply to Lexapro not working second time around, posted by resnick on February 1, 2007, at 6:53:01
> I am a long-term OCD sufferer( 10+ years ) . I have taken Prozac, Zoloft , Paxil and Lexapro in the past. Prozac and Zoloft pooped out after a while , though they worked extremely well for a couple of years each . Paxil also worked but left me very tired . I was on Lexapro for a couple of years and it was excellent, but I stopped it about 10 months back because I needed to lose weight. 4 months back, my OCD symptoms( only obsessive , no overt physical compulsions but tremendous anxiety ) returned in full swing . I started taking Zoloft but suffered horribly . Not only did it not work, but it escalated my anxiety tremendously. I stopped Zoloft after 1 and a half months and moved back to Lexapro . I take quite a high dose ( 40 mg ) but this time around, even after nearly 2 months , there is very little benefit( and I have generally responded to medicines within 3 weeks or less ) . Maybe the anxiety associated with obsessions has reduced a little, but the frequency of obsessing is still terribly high . I am quite at my wits end here.
>
> My question to all knowledgeable people out there on this board is whether it is common for a med to lose its efficacy when stopped for a period of time and then restarted . Should I wait some more time for Lexapro to work ?
>
> Virtually every SSRI I have taken has worked for me at least for a period of time. However , ever since the 5-6 months without drugs, things seemed to have changed. What explains this ?Hi!
You sound exactly like me. I am also a sufferer of OCD (among other things), and I also take 40 mgs' of Lexapro to deal with the OBSESSIONAL thinking. I too don't have many of the compulsions that typically affect those who suffer from OCD, but the obsessions leave me completely debilitated at times.
I have experienced great relief from Lexapro. I have been on it for only a year, but the obsessions have subsided substantially.
I don't count so much anymore either.I'm sorry that the Lex isn't working for you.
The only other drug (other than the ones that you have mentioned) is Luvox, to which I had horrible reactions to.Some people have had success on Luvox, my my experience was horrific.
Good Luck!
Posted by Phillipa on February 3, 2007, at 19:26:57
In reply to Re: Lexapro not working second time around, posted by Nolegirl323 on February 3, 2007, at 13:56:31
What happened on luvox? As it is the only ad I get no side effects on? Love Phillipa
Posted by nolegirl23 on February 3, 2007, at 22:30:33
In reply to Re: Lexapro not working second time around » Nolegirl323, posted by Phillipa on February 3, 2007, at 19:26:57
> What happened on luvox? As it is the only ad I get no side effects on? Love Phillipa
Hi Phillipa,
I could not sleep, it was horrible. It would take me hours to fall asleep (even with Vistaril) and when I did sleep, I had agitating and frustrating dreams which in turn made me wake up with anxiety.I tend to blame Luvox for my increased anxiety as well. I was in an inpatient hospital setting when I was put on Luvox. Prior to being admitted to this hospital I was on 40 mgs of lexapro. They (hospital staff) said that I was on too much Lexapro, and that they could not justify having me on so much lexapro when there was another drug out there (Luvox) that has been approved for OCD.
So, they took me down to 20mgs of Lex, and added Luvox (50 mgs at first, then up to 75). I had more anxiety than ever, and, I had these hot flashes - I'm 25!!So, that is my personal experience with Luvox. We all react differently I suppose!
Have a great night!
~ Shanon ~
Posted by Phillipa on February 3, 2007, at 22:47:23
In reply to Re: Lexapro not working second time around, posted by nolegirl23 on February 3, 2007, at 22:30:33
I started on luvox inpatient too. First night I was given 50mg when I tolerated that 50mg am , 50mg pm and when I left the hospital was on 250mg with 6mg of ativan and 5cc of chloral hydrate to sleep. Funny I tried lexapro and felt so angry and running up and down the street. I stuck with it for about a week. So wierd as luvox is supposed to be the most sedatative SSRI. Love Phillipa
Posted by deniseuk190466 on February 8, 2007, at 13:32:57
In reply to Lexapro not working second time around, posted by resnick on February 1, 2007, at 6:53:01
Hi,
I suffer from depression and anxiety. Years ago, when I was in my 20s, I was on a small dose (20mg) of Seroxat and it worked really, really well for me. I then came off it when I hit 30 because I wanted to do it alone. I was fine for three years and then I started to get suicidally depressed. I tried going back on 20mg of Seroxat but to no avail, then for the next two years I tried lots of drugs to no avail. Then Spring of 2003 I went back on Seroxat at 40mg and it suddenly started to work but never as well as before but even so I suddenly felt as though life was worth living again and I made the most of it.
Then in 2005 it seemed to stop working. I have come off it a few times and gone back on it and it hasn't worked as well. I'm now off everything (have been for about two months (just taking Zyprexa 10mg every seven days) and if I don't take it after seven days my mood goes really really low.
Part of me just wants to get back on Seroxat again because I wasn't this bad but then part of me is scared it won't work at all and then another part of me thinks maybe I should try something else (like lexapro). I don't know what to do either. I'm very worried about where my mood is going.
Anyway, just wanted you to know that you are not alone,although it's probably not a consolation.
Just keep trying and keep us updated.
Denise
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.