Do antidepressants get better after a while? (4 weeks on Citalopram)
So far I’ve tried Sertraline 50mg, Venlafaxine, and now Citalopram for the last 4 weeks. I only stayed on Sertraline for about 2 weeks because I was struggling badly with the adjustment period and wanted to stop. My GP suggested switching to Citalopram because it can be better for anxiety. I honestly can’t fully tell if the meds are working yet because I removed my biggest trigger before starting them. I think they might be stabilising my mood a bit, but it’s hard to know because the side effects are negatively affecting me and my overall mood.
The biggest issue is how much they’ve affected my relationship. My sex drive and desire for affection have dropped massively. It’s caused a lot of issues in my relationship. My brain also feels much fuzzier and my concentration is worse than before. I already struggle with concentration and I’m planning to look into a possible ADHD diagnosis, but the antidepressants have definitely made that side of things worse. I’ve also had mild headaches on and off. At first they affected my sleep and caused nausea to a point where it was harder to manage , so I had to experiment with what time I took them. Lately I’ve also been extremely exhausted and can easily sleep for another 3–6 hours during the day. The brain fog is crazy and I’ve locked myself out of my house (3-5 times) more in the last few weeks than my entire life.
I recently left my previous job because it wasn’t good for my mental health, and I wanted time to adjust to the medication before looking for something else. I wouldn’t say I feel severely depressed — more low mood, emotionally unstable at times, and frustrated — but I mainly started medication to help stabilise my mood. I’m mostly just too exhausted to even relax and concentrate on things. I’m eating healthy, drinking water and sleeping enough but still feel awful. I feel the symptoms hitting hard 2-3 hours usually after taking a dose. The nausea is awful. I’ve become a lot more irritated and struggling to engage in Threapy as I feel so exhausted
I know I’m only 4 weeks in and I’m willing to give it more time, but I’m worried about whether this is normal or if things actually improve. I can’t tell if I’m feeling depressed in general or if the antidepressants make it worse. I do know they make me feel not like myself and I felt better during the time I missed doses to switch to new medication. I want to take my mental health seriously so I’m willing to take meds if it helps but I just don’t seem to be having any luck. I was on Sertraline 25mg years ago and it really helped me through a rough patch.
Would really appreciate hearing other people’s experiences.