Aa
Celexa vs Zoloft
I think I am going to switch from Zoloft to Celexa. I am going to my doctor this week to ask about it. I KNOW that we all are different & every medicine will affect us on a different level, but is there a difference between the two? I hope I don't have the same side effects I had on Zoloft.
Best Answer
That makes me feel better. Thank you. When he said that Paxil was sedating but then mentioned the side effects (possible drug interactions, not so good on the liver & excessive weight gain) I chose the Lex. Did you have any start up side effects? I plan to start it tomorrow night. =) How have you been?
I had zero side effects from Lexapro and it worked really well for me for eight years. It's the only SSRI that didn't cause me any bad side effects; Celexa wasn't too bad either, but it didn't work well for me. I'm the same...barely get out of bed, anxious all the time. I've been on the Zoloft for over a month now and don't see any improvement, but my doctor wants me to give it another two weeks...oh...and now I have hand tremors. :)
Not hand tremors! That is the one and only reason I had to stop taking it. I hope I don't get the same effect from the Lex. What mg of Lex did you take? I hoped by now you will see some improvement. If you don't in 2 weeks what will the next course of treatment be? Are you not getting out of bed due to anxiety or that you don't feel well?
Yep, tremors! I have been on my laptop a lot lately so I noticed it a few days ago, but it may have been going on this whole time for all I know. They aren't interfering with my daily life, though, so that's at least good. I was supposed to start off on 10 mg of Lexapro, but the pharmacy screwed up the order and gave me 20 mg. My doctor looked in his Journal of Medicine and showed me that it's been proven there is virtually no difference between 10 and 20 mg, so he kept me on the 20 mg dosage. I had ZERO side effects with Lexapro, and I can't say that about any other SSRI, and even a lot of other drugs. I can't even take Sudafed without getting jittery, and have a hard time with some antibiotics, so I hope that Lexapro works as well for you as it did for me.
I haven't been out of bed much this week, with exception of today. I e-mailed my doc and told her I'm so depressed that I don't even feel like getting up anymore (regardless of how I feel), that I feel worse on the Zoloft than off, that I quit my job because of this, etc. Her response was to try Zoloft for two more weeks, what I'm experiencing is "normal", and that "once the dust settles, quitting my job may be the best thing for me". She kind of missed the point that while yes, my job was awful, anxiety shouldn't be so bad that it forces you to quit your job because you can't physically handle it. Ay yi yi.
I have a therapy appointment tomorrow, so hoping the psychologist has some ideas for me, but I've about given up on therapy. One I saw for two months kicked me out, as she couldn't find any rhyme or reason for my anxiety, and said I'm very rational and didn't need to be there. :p I tell ya', I sure don't feel like the most normal person!
Have you started on the Lexapro yet? I think part of the reason I didn't have side effects from that drug is because I tried Paxil and Effexor for about six weeks prior and those gave me some nasty effects. I think my body probably built up a bit of a tolerance already, and the doctor concurred, so hopefully since you already took Zoloft for a month, you will have an easy time, too!
Keep us posted!
I haven't been out of bed much this week, with exception of today. I e-mailed my doc and told her I'm so depressed that I don't even feel like getting up anymore (regardless of how I feel), that I feel worse on the Zoloft than off, that I quit my job because of this, etc. Her response was to try Zoloft for two more weeks, what I'm experiencing is "normal", and that "once the dust settles, quitting my job may be the best thing for me". She kind of missed the point that while yes, my job was awful, anxiety shouldn't be so bad that it forces you to quit your job because you can't physically handle it. Ay yi yi.
I have a therapy appointment tomorrow, so hoping the psychologist has some ideas for me, but I've about given up on therapy. One I saw for two months kicked me out, as she couldn't find any rhyme or reason for my anxiety, and said I'm very rational and didn't need to be there. :p I tell ya', I sure don't feel like the most normal person!
Have you started on the Lexapro yet? I think part of the reason I didn't have side effects from that drug is because I tried Paxil and Effexor for about six weeks prior and those gave me some nasty effects. I think my body probably built up a bit of a tolerance already, and the doctor concurred, so hopefully since you already took Zoloft for a month, you will have an easy time, too!
Keep us posted!
Are you feeling better? I haven't been on in a while. I haven't felt the best. I started the Lex this morning. I am nauesous and guess what???? I feel a little jittery. Shoot! I had such high hopes for this. I will give it some more time since I just started. I don't understand. Maybe my body is rejecting SSRIs. I don't know. I hope the Z has kicked in for you.
Do NOT get yourself stuck in the trap of assuming that every little sensation means you mean not tolerate a medication. MANY of these meds will cause some degree of side effects for a lot of people....and EVERY thing you have described are common side effects. Also remember what I told you about going on these meds the second time around and that it may me a bit more difficult? That, coupled with your history (or tremors for example)...you HAVE to be patient and HAVE to expect that you may (MAY) have a few rough weeks. The trade off is well worth it though.
You have taken one dose of the Lexapro and already have instantly started negative thinking, worrying if you are going to be able to tolerate it. WAY too early to make ANY kind of determination. To be fair, you have to give this at least about 4 weeks, to give any side effect a change to start improving, and to let the med start working.
Your experience with Zoloft was unfortunate, I still think you would have come out on the other side feeling better, and the side effects would have ceased, but I understand you couldn't stand it anymore and I don't blame you. I DO think a big part of it was you sort of setting yourself up to fail a wee bit, and I would hate to see you do the same with the Lexapro.
It will be NORMAL in the next 1-2 weeks (maybe a bit more for you) to feel more anxious, jittery, have some possible GI upset (nausea, diarrhea), insomnia, drowsiness, headaches. Those are commonly reported, initial side effects. The Valium will help with some of that.
Try VERY hard to have a positive attitude about this....tell yourself this WILL work, and it will be worth enduring a short period of time with side effects IF you get them.
THIS post of yours is classic negative, self defeatist attitude:
I started the Lex this morning. I am nauesous and guess what???? I feel a little jittery. Shoot! I had such high hopes for this. I will give it some more time since I just started. I don't understand. Maybe my body is rejecting SSRIs. I don't know. I hope the Z has kicked in for you. .
ONE dose, and you're talking about your body rejecting the med? Saying you "HAD" such high hopes? ONE dose, darlin'! ONE! That's nothing. Give yourself some time with this...the busier you stay, the better. If you don't distract yourself, you will continue to overthink this, catastrophize every sensation, and simply set yourself up to fail. Give this a chance. You can do it!
You have taken one dose of the Lexapro and already have instantly started negative thinking, worrying if you are going to be able to tolerate it. WAY too early to make ANY kind of determination. To be fair, you have to give this at least about 4 weeks, to give any side effect a change to start improving, and to let the med start working.
Your experience with Zoloft was unfortunate, I still think you would have come out on the other side feeling better, and the side effects would have ceased, but I understand you couldn't stand it anymore and I don't blame you. I DO think a big part of it was you sort of setting yourself up to fail a wee bit, and I would hate to see you do the same with the Lexapro.
It will be NORMAL in the next 1-2 weeks (maybe a bit more for you) to feel more anxious, jittery, have some possible GI upset (nausea, diarrhea), insomnia, drowsiness, headaches. Those are commonly reported, initial side effects. The Valium will help with some of that.
Try VERY hard to have a positive attitude about this....tell yourself this WILL work, and it will be worth enduring a short period of time with side effects IF you get them.
THIS post of yours is classic negative, self defeatist attitude:
I started the Lex this morning. I am nauesous and guess what???? I feel a little jittery. Shoot! I had such high hopes for this. I will give it some more time since I just started. I don't understand. Maybe my body is rejecting SSRIs. I don't know. I hope the Z has kicked in for you. .
ONE dose, and you're talking about your body rejecting the med? Saying you "HAD" such high hopes? ONE dose, darlin'! ONE! That's nothing. Give yourself some time with this...the busier you stay, the better. If you don't distract yourself, you will continue to overthink this, catastrophize every sensation, and simply set yourself up to fail. Give this a chance. You can do it!
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Anxiety Community
Find out what can trigger a panic attack – and what to do if you have one.
A guide to 10 common phobias.
Take control of tension today.
These simple pick-me-ups squash stress.
Don’t let the winter chill send your smile into deep hibernation. Try these 10 mood-boosting tips to get your happy back
Want to wake up rested and refreshed?
While two meds might both be SSRIs, they all work a little differently in their mechanism of action. The end result is the same (an increased amount of serotonin in the brain)..but how you get there is different with each med, hence why there are so many varying experiences.
Cymbalta tends to be a bit activating, so that may not be the best choice, ask your doctor about it. There's no way to predict how you will do on something else, but let's hope well. I STRONGLY urge you to have a back up plan in place to help deal with any side effects, should they occur. A short acting benzo would be appropriate. I know you're fearful after your experience with Xanax but it's worth a try. Ativan tends to be a little less intense, so you could try that. Again, mention it to your doctor. Whatever you do...don't make any changes...stay on your current dose of the Zoloft until you get in to see him.
Again, remain open mided. Do NOT go into the doctor's office with a mind full of what you will or won't take. Let the doctor make some recommendations, then have a discussion from there. With the new world of google, we are all so quick to want to play doctor...lol.
Good luck....update us on the new plan.