Celexa or Lexapro?

[redding1]

I was thinking about changing from Celexa to Lexapro. I still have obsessive thoughts and feel the Celexa might not be doing anything for my anxiety. What about Effexor? I heard the withdrawals are bad? What about Buspar? Any luck with that drug?

[ThousandJulys]

I went from 20mg Celexa, to 10mg of Lexapro.  Celexa has two isomers, one of which is more potent (the S isomer, thus "escitalopram" instead of "arcitalopram.)  (r)citalopram has actually been shown to blunt the effects of escitalopram, and that's half of Celexa.  So theoretically, taking just the (s) isomer has greater antidepressant activity.  You would think 10mg of Lexapro equates to 20mg Celexa, but this isn't the case.  It is a bit more potent and in my experience works much better.

[redding1]

Thank you for all your comments. I will go ahead and give Lexapro a try. I know Celexa is cheaper but money is not a problem when it comes to my sanity! I guess I can always go back onto Celexa if Lexapro makes me feel worse...right?

[M4Y0U]

Lexapro is a metabolite of Celexa... it's ''the new Celexa''. Supposed to have less side-effects for that matter. Just think of the tricyclic nortriptyline being the major active metabolite of amiltrityline which makes nortriptyline a second generation tricyclic.

M4

[Sue357]

Hi.  About a week ago my pdoc took my off of celexa and switched me to lexapro.  I seem to be doing better but it has only been a week. Paxiled is right, they are similar drugs as my doc explained to me. But some people do better on one or the other.  I was on Celexa for almost a year and it didn't seem to be doing anything for me.

[Paxiled]

Lexapro is pretty similar to Celexa -- it's the same core drug.  They do feel different, but if Celexa isn't working, it's probably best to move to another med.  Effexor isn't usually used if your main symptom is anxiety, since it is a stimulating antidepressant.  Works for some anyway, but it would usually be used only if your anxiety was secondary to depression.  Buspar has not done well in trials, and is only used these days much as an augmentation to certain ssris.  Some people do well on it, I guess, but it just hasn't panned out in the science.

[mammo]

We can't accurately answer your question because what works well for one, may not for another.  We all respond differently to these types of medications, and what works well for one, doesn't for another.  I think it's best that you talk this over with your doctor so the two of you can decide what is best for you and your needs.  Take care.