u/SentientPotato2020

So I was talking to a new GP today about the meds they put me on and she seemed a bit skeptical about drug therapy and was really pushing the idea that all I need to do wa exercise more. Granted I live a relatively sedentary lifestyle, but I’d like to hear from people who are using exercise for dealing with real anxiety and mental health struggles above and beyond day to day stress being hard to handle.

Did you see results similar to going on meds? How long did the results take to kick in? How much are you exercising? Based on my general fitness level I was going to have another crack a C25k, it’s just a matter of finding the time…

So I’ve been on antidepressants for at least 15 years. I started in grad school on lexapro and then at some point switched over to sertraline. I had been on that for at least ten years before deciding I was tired of the sexual side effects so I decided to take things into my own hands and just cold turkey last August. Dumb move, I know, but I didn’t realise the impact they were having on me since I couldn’t really remember life without them.

I remember one incident after coming off meds of becoming emotionally overwhelmed while traveling, but other than that it went relatively smoothly and the sexual side effects were totally gone. I felt like a new person.

The down side came at the start of April. I don’t know if it was a delayed side effect or the stress of a project at work combined with some home stuff, but things got bad. I called the doctor to see about getting back on meds and told them I wanted something without the sexual side effects so they put me on Citalopram.

I’ve been on that for just over two weeks. First 10 days sucked, but I seem to be normalising. Thing is, I am noticing that there do seem to be some side effects on citalopram I don’t love. I have another consult with my doctor to talk about how things are at the 4 week mark. Wondering if I stick it out on new med or see about going back on the meds I know. I have some big work projects coming up and I feel like I may already be drawing some attention for not performing at my previous level.

I imagine I’ll just stick with new meds and ride it through as a lifer. Looks like citalopram can have some heart issues when I pass into old age, but that’s a future me problem…. Immostly interested in hearing stories and seeing how other people have dealt with this.

46M. I’ve been on celexa for two weeks now. The first week had some significant side effects, but they’re starting to modulate. One thing I have noticed though is I wake up about an hour before my alarm and then have a hard time getting fully awake in the morning. I’ve been morning dosing so far (around 9 am). Wondering if I should switch to evening dosing. I don't want to play around with dosing too much, though so maybe I just tough it out morning dosing until six weeks?