Let's Talk About Lexapro

[Time4Grace]

Hi all. Lexapro is one of the meds I'm on and I'm beginning to question its' effectiveness. First I'd like to know about the side effects others have experienced. I definitely have the dry mouth that is enough in itself to make me want to stop taking it. Also, has anyone noticed a sense of fogginess or hard to get motivated while on It? Would that feeling mean maybe It's not working? And, what are your experiences with coming off of the medication? How do recommend doing that? Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences with it. Blessings, Carol

[Agora1]

Hi Thecollielady, I've been on Lexapro for about 4 years now and it's the only thing I'm on. Got off Benzos close to 3 years ago. Lexapro carries me through with no side effects short of the dry mouth. Feel energetic, clear headed, and back to my own self again. Everyone is different as well as everyone hits that plateau where it will no longer work. I intend one day soon to wean off Lexapro. It will be done the same way I got off benzos. Slow and safe, cutting dosages every 2 weeks. Never going up on a dose once it's been cut. Steady, going forward under the supervision of your psychiatrist is the best way. Everything depends in how long and what dose you have been on which is taken into consideration. Be safe. Good Luck

[Time4Grace in reply to Agora1]

Thank you for sharing that Agora.I would also like to get off the amytriptaline. But too many at once is not a good idea I'm sure. I wonder how one knows if they are ready for that, and which one to do first. I'm glad you've been doing well. It's always nice to hear a success story. Blessings, Carol

[Agora1 in reply to Time4Grace]

Usually it's not a matter of being ready for that. For me, it was a matter of the benzo no longer working and switching to another benzo wasn't the answer, so why continue putting that into my body? The symptoms were going to be bad either way, so why not take that chance that getting off the drug would be better in the long run. And it was. No easy but so worth it. I wish you well Carol, we're always here to support you as well as celebrate successes. x

[seaShelly]

May I ask what dose you take? I'm on 5mg Lexapro. I have heard people say that Lexapro "dulled" them too much. They felt like they were too numb. For me Lexapro on 5mg doesn't make me feel numb or dull. It helped me to stop having awful panic attacks. Years ago I wasn't having anxiety just depression and took Lexapro back then. While it helped, I couldn't have an orgasm. 😳 So I've never wanted to go up to 10mg again. (I don't have that problem on 5mg). The only other side effect i notice is that I often feel like I clench my jaw /want to chew gum, but that could be stress itself, so I'm not sure I can blame the Lexapro.

[seaShelly]

Oh and in the past when I took 10mg I weaned myself off by cutting it in half and taking half a pill (5mg) every day for about 3 weeks. Then I took the same thing, 5mg, every other day for a few weeks. And then eventually I just stopped altogether. I had a lot of dizziness during that time and also for a while afterwards - I think it took a good 3-4 months for that to end but eventually it did. Have you ever tried wellbutrin? It doesn't help much with anxiety but is good for depression and isn't an ssri so it works the brain differently. Might be Worth a try . I had vivid dreams on that but not nightmares. I had to go off of it because it raised my blood pressure and I'm overweight. Otherwise I would have stayed on that one.

[Time4Grace]

Thank you both for sharing. Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. My daughter has been going through some high stress events lately herself and I have tried to be there for her as much as I can. I'm on 10 mg Lexapro, also 25 mg Elevil, 10mg Lotensin. I suffer mostly from migraines and anxiety. At this point I'm not sure which drug is for what. I have another appointment coming up when I will ask more questions, but for right now I'm just confused at this point. I like the idea of cutting them in half like you did seashelly but they're so small how do you do That? Carol