Fluoxetine day 22

[Missjaney68]

Hi everyone I'm new to this forum I'm on fluoxetine 20mg for depression I'm on day 22,..the first 2 weeks I thought I was getting somewhere then all the side effects kicked in big style! Insomnia.increasing anxiety ( especially in the morning) which I didn't have before taking the meds ?? Little or no appetite .not eaten at all some days..the feeling of not really knowing how I feel (if that makes sence) kind of a detached everythings unreal feeling .want to cry but can't ..please someone tell me it gets better..Feel like stopping them altogether .look forward to hearing your experiences good or bad ..kind regards ..Jane

[MAS_Nurse]

Hello Missjaney68, Welcome to this supportive community. Take a look at this link to the NHS Choices website for more information about Fluoxetine, what you are experiencing is not unusual and it takes a while for the body to adjust to this type of medication. But there are more serious less common side effects which you should be aware of. There's helpful advice about how and when to take your medication and how to cope with the side effects. I think it is important for you to let your GP and your pharmacist, know what's happening and how you are responding to the medication, as they should be keeping a close eye on you and need to be aware of any changes positive or negative. Please do not suddenly stop taking them as you could trigger a relapse and severe withdrawal symptoms. If your doctor decides to stop the medication they will wean you off slowly.

beta.nhs.uk/medicines/fluox...

mind.org.uk/information-sup...

Keep in touch. Hopefully you will find other users on here who will empathise and understand what you are going through. Hope this helps.

[Missjaney68 in reply to MAS_Nurse]

Thank you so much for replying ..I just felt it's was maybe just me imaging the worst ..I'm back at the doctors tomorrow afternoon I will tell him all the symptoms I'm experiencing and see what he says .I don't want to feel like this anymore just want to feel like myself again .thank you again for your support and advice

Kind regards jane xx

[Suzie40]

I've had two experiences of Fluoxetine at this dose. I'll tell you about both.

I first took it in 2015. I was already on another antidepressant (I think Sertraline but may have been Citalopram) and i moved straight from that to Fluoxetine. It was a seamless transition; I adjusted well and made a good recovery from that particular episode of depression.

I came off it in February of this year and started it again about five months later. This time I've been on it for about six weeks and my experience has been quite different. I'm also getting lots of anxiety in the mornings and I don't actually feel like I'm any less depressed than I was when I started back on them. It might be more to do with the fact that my CPN thinks it's a mood disorder I have, as opposed to depression, and Fluoxetine is not the right medication for this. The jury's out at the moment.

You say you thought you were getting somewhere in the first two weeks. That's more likely to be a placebo effect. In my experience of popping happy pills, the felling of relief that you've actually made a positive step towards your recovery is usually enough to lift your mood for a while after you start your medication. The real effects will start to happen in the next week or so and you should begin to feel better again x

[Missjaney68 in reply to Suzie40]

Lucy34

Thank you so much for your reply .I'm going to stick it out till the 6 weeks Mark I have to give the drug a fair go .it doesn't help I'm perimenopausal plus possible issues with my thyroid I'm seeing doctors today for blood test result regarding these 2 issues just feel like everything is being thrown at me all at once..thankfully I have a very understanding sympathetic caring hubby and family who are supporting me thru this as well as fabulous forums like this I think I'd have gone under otherwise. Thank you so much

Jane xx