Anybody here on Prozac/Fluoxetine?

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

I’ve been prescribed Prozac for depression and I started taking it two weeks ago. I haven’t noticed any effect on my mood/mental health so far, but I’ve already experienced an array of side effects such as low sex drive, inability to orgasm and sort of hot flashes. My appetite is still okay, though. I am on 20 mg per day and I usually take it with my breakfast, but today I had it after only a cup of coffee and it caused horrible heartburn. I’ve never had heartburn before in my life so it was very unpleasant.

I’m not sure whether I should keep on taking it since I only see side effects and no improvement. I’ve heard it might take a month or two to kick in, so maybe I should just wait a bit? I know I should not do anything without consulting my doctor first, but I would like some thoughts/advice.

 

[JoeBloggs]

My husbands is on it, he’s been on it for about 2 years now. It took about 6 months to really have its full effect.

He can have it without food but drinks lots of water with it. His sex drive is low, but is better than it was pre tablets.

If you are worried I would check in with your doctor but I wouldn’t stop taking it. My husband was told things might get worse before they got better, they didn’t but I was not an instant fix by any means.

 

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

My husbands is on it, he’s been on it for about 2 years now. It took about 6 months to really have its full effect.

He can have it without food but drinks lots of water with it. His sex drive is low, but is better than it was pre tablets.

If you are worried I would check in with your doctor but I wouldn’t stop taking it. My husband was told things might get worse before they got better, they didn’t but I was not an instant fix by any means.

Thank you so much, that’s very helpful! I know I should probably wait a bit, but I’m that kind of person who always wants instant results so it’s difficult

 

[WhiteRose]

Hi, I have been prescribed Citolpram which i think is another brand of Prozac, I take 20mg first thing in the morning as this is when you need your serotonin boosted for the day ahead. I haven't noticed any drastic side affects, i am peri-menopausal so use it alongside HRT. I was also warned by my GP that I could take a big dip before seeing any improvements which did happen after a few weeks. I have now been on it about 6 weeks and definitely seeing the benefits so I would advise for you to persevere with it for another good few weeks. Has your GP asked for a follow up before the reissue the prescription?

 

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

Hi, I have been prescribed Citolpram which i think is another brand of Prozac, I take 20mg first thing in the morning as this is when you need your serotonin boosted for the day ahead. I haven't noticed any drastic side affects, i am peri-menopausal so use it alongside HRT. I was also warned by my GP that I could take a big dip before seeing any improvements which did happen after a few weeks. I have now been on it about 6 weeks and definitely seeing the benefits so I would advise for you to persevere with it for another good few weeks. Has your GP asked for a follow up before the reissue the prescription?

Thank you! No, they did not ask for a follow up, now that I think of it.

 

[Blond3g1rl]

I used to be on fluoxetine, at one point I was on 60mg. When I first went on them my GP advised I took them at night as I would then sleep through any side effects.

 

[discopanda]

I’ve been on fluoxetine for ages, it’s the only one which doesn’t give me awful headaches. I’m on 40mg a day and it takes time to build up. I had a follow up after a month.

Everyone is different. For some people it might kick in within days, for others, months. If you feel comfortable carrying on for a bit, I would recommend that, if not, definitely talk to your doctor. Good luck, you will find what suits you!

Btw, Citalopram and Prozac/fluoxetine are not the same but are in the same drug group, SSRI’s.

 

[Wolfshead]

I hope you are (or planning to) having some other kind of treatment in addition to the medication. While I would never advise someone NOT to take their prescribed medication, anti-depressants are not a long-term solution. And yes, I'm speaking from experience. Most of them take at least three weeks to have any noticeable effect. Conversely, if you do decide to stop taking them for whatever reason, then make sure you wean yourself off them very gradually. I wish you good luck!

 

[1001 others]

It was one of the first ones I ever tried, and I found the side effects too hard to deal with. Perhaps give it two more weeks and if you're still noticing more side effects than benefits ask to trial something else. I take Sertraline now (have done so for years and my doctor has advised me to stay on it for the rest of my life for free-floating anxiety), which is very gentle ... even if it does make me feel a little robotic.

 

[GingerSquirrel]

I am on fluoxetine and found it took around a month for my body to get used to it, but since then I have had no issues. My husband, on the other hand, had to have his ad changed from fluoxetine to venlafaxine because fluoxetine just didn’t suit him at all. I think it can be a bit of trial and error to find the right one for you, but if my experience is anything to go by, I would give it a few more weeks

 

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

Thank you so much everyone for your thoughts! I think I’m going to wait a couple of weeks and see if it gets better.

 

[MyLittlePony25]

Yep, you definitely need to give it a while longer. I’m not on it now but I did get up to 60mg, if you still feel no benefit in a few weeks then go back and you may need an increase.

side effects from meds can be awful but soon settle when your body has gotten used to it.

 

[LateG0ssiper]

I'm taking Fluoxetine, have been for a few months now. Sometimes I think I get hot during the night but it rarely happens now and I'm not really experiencing any other side effects.

 

[Loveitme]

I was on it about two months before I got pregnant .It made me go ‘high’ after about two weeks,I was full of energy ,hyper,had feelings of euphoria .Then that soon wore off and I just felt a bit nothing really .I came off it when I found out I was pregnant and was given wrong information by a medical professional that I needed to stop taking it due to pregnancy .I just stopped cold turkey and I went into severe depression.
Other than that I didn’t have any side affects .I’m on sertraline now but only a low dose and tbh it kicked in very quickly and worked for a couple of weeks ,It took away my suicidal thoughts and I felt less angry and more calm but now it’s worn off so I’m going to try a higher dose.
I do hope you are feeling better soon

 

[hol20x]

I can honestly say that Fluoxetine saved my life. I was suffering from severe postnatal depression, I was suicidal, and my doctor put me on Fluoxetine 20mg daily. I started to feel a little bit better after 2 weeks, but it can take 6-8 weeks to feel the difference. I had my dose doubled after a while. I don’t recall having any nasty side effects apart from really vivid dreams.

 

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

Thank you so much everyone! I still take my medication, but I’m on 40mg a day now and I feel so much better! I haven’t experienced heartburn anymore, but I now make sure I take it with food.

 

[Allthevest20]

Fluoxetine made me sleep 24/7 was very odd. After a few trials I'm settled on Escitalopram now and was told I've got to stay on for it at least a year. My anxiety has dropped dramatically.

 

[Raymond Luxury-Yacht]

Thanks for your input @Allthevest20!

Is anyone still reading this thread? If so, I would love to know whether you noticed any changes in your appetite and weight when taking Fluoxetine. I have been taking it for a month, I’m now on 40 mg per day and this week I noticed I have no appetite, which is very unlike me and has never happened to me before. I do get hungry, but the idea of eating something just does not seem appealing anymore. I still eat three meals a day but now it’s more of a chore than a necessity or a pleasure. Considering Fluoxetine needs a month or so to kick in, can it be another side effect? It’s a bit confusing because I still had my appetite when I first started taking it, plus the heatwave might be decreasing it for all I know

 

[Apple In My Pie]

Hijacking this thread for advice…

I finally went to my GP after having issues with anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and was prescribed fluoxetine as he was concerned I was developing OCD tendencies. I tend to have one big ’episode’ a month where I get anxious about a specific thing, and fixate on it and struggle to calm myself down for ages, this is where the OCD tendencies come in, the slightest thing will keep it going for days (e.g. not wearing the ‘right’ coloured clothes) and I struggle to sleep. Slowly it will subside until the next time.

I have been on a dose of 20mg every other day so far but I only started taking the medication a week ago so have only had five doses total. I know it takes a month to kick in and can’t say that I’ve felt many side effects. My anxiety has increased though, I find the slightest thing will set me off now rather than one big main trigger iyswim. It seems too early for this to be happening though given that I haven’t taken that many doses so I don’t know if it’s just my mind playing tricks on me. Has anyone experienced this or something similar?

 

[Loveitme]

Hijacking this thread for advice…

I finally went to my GP after having issues with anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and was prescribed fluoxetine as he was concerned I was developing OCD tendencies. I tend to have one big ’episode’ a month where I get anxious about a specific thing, and fixate on it and struggle to calm myself down for ages, this is where the OCD tendencies come in, the slightest thing will keep it going for days (e.g. not wearing the ‘right’ coloured clothes) and I struggle to sleep. Slowly it will subside until the next time.

I have been on a dose of 20mg every other day so far but I only started taking the medication a week ago so have only had five doses total. I know it takes a month to kick in and can’t say that I’ve felt many side effects. My anxiety has increased though, I find the slightest thing will set me off now rather than one big main trigger iyswim. It seems too early for this to be happening though given that I haven’t taken that many doses so I don’t know if it’s just my mind playing tricks on me. Has anyone experienced this or something similar?

My gp told me fluoxetine isn’t the best for anxiety and is more successful treating depression .What about trying sertraline? That helped my anxiety