I feel alot more human today than i did yesterday so thats good! Awful nights sleep last night so im really tired today so hopefully ill fall asleep easily!
Good luck with yours too 
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I have had Generalized Anxiety Disorder since the age of 8 and recently developed PTSD where, if I am triggered enough (which can be a simple as a door slamming shut), I will dissociate. None of the previous therapy skills I had were quite enough to tackle this problem so my doctors and I decided to put me on an SSRI. The first one we tried was Sertraline which is generic Zoloft. I could not tolerate the side effects of that one since they made me so physically ill I couldnāt even get up to therapeutic dosing levels. So we switched me to Citalopram which is generic Celexa. This one has been wonderful with no side effects when I started taking it since I took it at night. I missed a dose once though and took it late which puts the time I take it in the morning now. Since taking it in the morning I do notice that Iāll be a bit dizzy/ woozy almost like Iām drunk or stoned only a little bit weirder. The longer I take it in the morning though the less I notice this side effect/ the less this side effect happens and I think this happened because a) I changed the time which threw off the balance and b) I was sleeping through these sensations before so I hadnāt gotten use to how they feel. It can take a long time to adjust to an SSRI or other depression/anxiety meds simply because they work by building up in your system so first you are building up and then, once you are at maintenance levels in your system, you still have to adjust to that new normal.
All that being said, if you can tolerate the medication, take it for a month or two ( I know, it seems like forever!) to really give it time to settle in and then if you find the effects still bothersome talk to your doctor about trying a different one (and by bothersome I mean if you simply donāt like how it makes you feel then that is grounds for switching. It doesnāt have to make you sick for you to switch). Everyone reacts differently to these meds so donāt worry if one isnāt a good fit; there are plenty to try out. Definitely stick by it though since part of recovery is managing underlying stressors that feed our addictions such as depression and anxiety. Also quitting depression/anxiety meds randomly can put you in pretty intense withdrawal depending on length of use and how quickly your brain adapts to the medication since they alter brain chemistry. Ask your doctor how to safely step down to quit or how to safely switch so you dont have to suffer or get sick from withdrawal. Good luck and I hope you find relief.
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Thank you for your reply im on week two and the side effects are very tolerable currently more tired than usual first thing in the morning and if im not working i can easily fall asleep for a good few hours. Headache on and off but nothing to bad head always feels like its filled with something but again not to bad.
The dizziness has subsided every now and then i feel a bit spaced out but not near as much as i was.
Last week i felt great anxiety wise nothing was phasing me. This week its like my body is battling my head like it wants to worry but its not letting itself so i get some anxiety at times but again im nowhere near like i was currently. But everything is still adjusting so im expecting ups and downs
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Sounds like things are settling down!! Glad to hear it.
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Yeah feeling so much more human 
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48 days AF. Day 30 of Prozacā¦woke up today with no motivation. Should be excited for I love my new job, bit still had to force myself to get out of bed. Felt blahs all dayā¦do I up the dose or just ride this wave out and see how I feel this weekend (already anxious about spending day with people I barely know on Sunday, wifeās friends)
Iāve been taking Lexapro for probably about six months I started off taking 10mg for the first week and after that I jumped up to 20 mg the first day I ever took it I was so freaking stoned Iām like good grief but my body adjust very quickly to it. If you think that 5 mg is too much you can always cut it in half I know a couple people that are on it to they donāt really have any side effects from it just cut it in half and see how it does for you
Have you felt better until today, or has there been little to no change? If you have been feeling a little better, Iād say give it a few days. If you havenāt felt any positive effects, call your doctor tomorrow. You can always call your doc anyway, just to run the situation by them.
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Since Iāve been sober (51 days) Iāve started having panic attacks. Years ago (before active alcoholism) I took an anti depressant, but I went off when I had my kids. A doctor asked me today if I wanted to go back on something, but I was hesitant and instead of readily agreeing I decided to wait it out & see if this anxiety continues. Is this a common issue that creeps up when we sober up? I know advice here is not the same as a medical opinion, but what has everyoneās personal experience been with anxiety while sober? Anyone suddenly develop it when it had never been an issue previously? If you had it before, has it gotten better or worse?
Personally Iāve had maybe 3 in the last 20 years and now Iāve had just as many in a month/ six weeksā¦ and some have been triggered by things that never bothered me before; in the company of people Iām very comfortable with.
Thanks for bringing up this topic & sorry if I should have started a new thread- I got a little excited about the idea that I wasnāt alone with this anxiety BS lol.
Think I was feeling better. Not sure if itās the meds or being more active, and am I more active because of the meds. It may be just stress, which I just compounded with a promotion at work. So still sorting it out.
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Hi @Rebekky, I had something similar happen to me when I was further along in my sobriety. I had never had anxiety or panic attacks before, I had definite anxiety and depressionā¦but no attacksā¦so it was odd (and scary) when I started feeling super anxious and had panic attacks once I was well into sobriety. I ended up going on Lexapro (first tried buspar which didnāt agree with me). The Lexapro (generic version) worked really well at leveling me out and taking away the anxiety. I stayed on it for a few months and then weaned off of it (in January of this year). I havenāt had any attacks since then and my anxiety is manageable when it pops up. I could have stayed on the Lexapro, but I wanted to try managing the anxiety in non medication ways. If I need it i will take it again.
I have heard from others who had anxiety come up after getting sober. I think it has to do with our nervous systems settling in to the non alcohol life. We go thru a period of finding our new physiological normal. For some of us we will need medication for our diagnosed conditions. And the medication will work as intended instead of having to work against the alcohol.
Do talk to your doctor about it and figure out what works best for your situation.
Great job on your 51 days!!!
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Thanks so much for sharing your perspective and experience!
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