Anti depressant/anxiety medication

With recent events with my stress levels and anxiety and tbh probably past events i tried alot of self help and attended talking therapy courses aswell and also stopping drinking unfortunately my anxiety was not improving so the doctor has placed me onto escitalopam lowest dose 5mg once daily and advised me to take them at night before bed.
Ive only been on them since friday evening, saturday i slept almost all day and then all night, sunday i had a headache all day and today headache gone apart from a few twinges but ive been spaced out all day and at times its like a mild dizziness which has freaked me out.
Anyone else experienced these types of side affects when starting a new medication? Im really hoping it subsides, sometime this afternoon it did a bit then came back unfortunately. Early days just freaked me out slightly!

That is the generic for Lexapro. I took that for awhile. I was having a hard time managing my anxiety and it REALLY helped. I didn’t have much for side effects with it, which is a blessing. What dosage are you on? It did help me feel ‘normal’, which was much needed.

I tried another one prior to settling on that one and it gave me terrible side effects and anxiety. I couldn’t get thru the breaking in period.

Talk to your doctor about it and be sure you are taking a low dose. Oftentimes the breaking in period is rough for a week or two.

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Im on the lowest dose 5 mg once daily :slight_smile: ill admit i did not feel stressed even once at work today which was very weird for me but i was so spaced out nothing was phasing me atall id like to be like that without the the spaceyness! I have a review appointment with the doctor in just over 2 weeks to discuss.

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I may try this will see how i am tomorrow thank you for the advise.
I feel fine wellness wise mostly i dont have any nausea, no change to appetite its just the spaceyoutness

Well, at least no anxiety!!

Some this morning more me panicking being so spaced out however!

It usually takes a few days at least to build up on your system.

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I remember it being pretty weird when I first came onto meds. It lasted about a month though got far less severe day by day. The first week was the worst.
Weird taste in my mouth, sleepy/wide awake at strange times, lack of appetite, became more prone to panic attacks for a few days.

It sucked!

But, the time since has been so much better. Hope it does for you too.

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Hi Stormy, I used to take citalopram, the side effects are pretty much the same as escitalopram. The spaced out feeling and dizziness are apparently normal in the beginning, I was told to expect it. I found I would get like vertigo attack’s where I suddenly felt a bit like I was swaying and needed to hold something, I also felt like I was kind of outside myself, not really present in whatever situation I was in if that makes sense. This lasted about two weeks when I started them, although the second week was better and the same again when I was weaning them down to stop them.
Just be a bit careful, I came over spaced out when I was driving one time and totally could not recall the give way rules on a roundabout, that particular day the feeling lasted all day until I slept. Not trying to scare you just saying be aware of how you’re feeling, which you obviously already are :slightly_smiling_face:. It does pass and for me the medication worked very well

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A pharmacist is the best person to speak with, they know more than doctors about meds.

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Hi I think it’s just your body adjusting. I have taken many medications over the years, then come off them because feel like they are not working or think I am ok and don’t need them. I’ve been on sertraline for about 8 months now. Had it in the past but thought I would give it another go. My doctor went straight in at prescribing 100mg. I felt really rough and spaced out for a week then was ok. The first couple of days I was pretty much out of action.what you’ve described is not unusual, if you can stick with them the side effects should settle down.

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Hi I was on it, and I felt the same way. It’s the best if you take it before bed for sure. It will fade away at least it did for me. Maybe about three weeks I felt back to normal and my mood did level out.

I actually feel a bit more human today thankfully!
Bad nights sleep though! Quite sweaty like clammy if that makes sense and skin is very dry but i can cope with that :slight_smile:

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Maybe start a short journal entry to describe physical / mental side effects, if any, felt each day and how you are feeling emotionally and how you slept, etc. You can share it with your doctor and you can use it to evaluate progress on how it is working. Maybe rate each thing on a number scale.

Just a thought. :hugs:

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The side effects of Lexapro are pretty weird that first week. There are still some the next week, but you feel so much better it doesn’t matter. Lexapro generally has the least amount of side effects of all the anxiety reducing SSRI’s, which is to say people get through that adjustment period better. The one that annoyed me the most was that I couldn’t focus my eyes on anything. This made me exhausted! It went away though, like 7 to 10 days or so.

My doctor tells me to take it in the morning to reduce sleep disturbances. I was on 15 mgs at my peak, but the constant dreams made me crazy. Now I’ve settled at 10 mgs. Can you call your doctor to talk about the time you take it? My doctor says that here in the US it is generally prescribed to take in the morning.

Keep us updated! Lexapro helps me tremendously and I’d say that getting through that adjustment period is worth it.

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Here is one. Happy to answer any questions to my best and latest knowledge.
Not a doctor and not giving medical advice but informing. Just want this to be clear.
Thank you @anon44659383 for acknowledging that. I appreciate it.

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This is so true, I’ve been a nurse for years and very early on learnt that the pharmacist is the one to ask over the Dr every time (no disrespect to any doctors here but it’s true in my experience)

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Great idea ill do this :slight_smile:

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Thanks everyone for your replies :slight_smile:

I just started the same medication yesterday, but I am taking 10mg. So far the only notable side effect was some difficulty going to sleep last night. Other than that, I am feeling ok so far. I am curious to know how the next two weeks will go though as my body adjusts.