I’m new to this whole world of, well all of this. I had my first “anxiety attack” beginning of January, went to ER as I didn’t know what was going on. Ran tests, sent me home with a couple days worth of Ativan. The rest of that week, it was like a flip was switched and suddenly I was completely unable to control anxiety. I was a mess. Appetite completely gone, lost 10 lbs in a matter of days, couldn’t get out of bed, couldn’t work... just all of a sudden. I went to my doctor a week later and he started me on 10mg Lexapro and 1mg Ativan as needed. It’s been almost 3 weeks, and in the beginning I had a hell of a time with side effects. Pretty much had all of them. Now at nearly 3 weeks, some things have improved as far as appetite is back, anxiety is better though still there (I still take at least 0.5 Ativan a day), I have periods of the day I feel “normal” but it’s brief. The side effects I’m still dealing with are diarrhea (for the entire month of January, this has been my life) and trouble sleeping at night, and being very tired during most of the day. I seem to get some energy late evening finally, but that energy often feels like over-caffeinated or something. Jittery, restless, fidgety and I am not a fan of how that feels. I’ve experimented taking my pills at different times of day but it doesn’t seem to make a difference. Will these side effects go away ever? Is this not the med for me, or do I just need to give it more time?
3 weeks on Lexapro. Side effects are fatigue, insomnia, feeling jittery?
Question posted by Mh33 on 4 Feb 2018
Last updated on 15 February 2021
3 Answers
I know this is an older post, but my situation has been very similar! Sleeplessness/Anxiety/Depression just came out of nowhere about six weeks ago!
I'm on Day 14 of Lexapro and my insomnia is still bad, even with the help of 0.5mg Ativan. Did your situation improve? I'm trying to make it to the 4-week mark before switching meds.
Hi, New!
These excerpts may help:
"Psychiatric
Very common (10% or more of users): Insomnia (up to 14%)"
"Side effects have been reported to be generally mild and transient. They are most common during the first 2 weeks of treatment and decrease in intensity and frequency with continued treatment. They generally do not lead to treatment cessation."
"How Long Does It Take For Escitalopram To Work?
Sleep, energy, or appetite may show some improvement within the first 1-2 weeks. Improvement in these physical symptoms can be an important early signal that the medication is working. Depressed mood, anxiety, and lack of interest in activities may need up to 6-8 weeks to fully improve."
Wildcat
Your story is so similar to mine it’s eerie. I had anxiety that started in January with all the symptoms you described and I wasn’t on any medication until February when I started Wellbutrin. I am having issues with sleep on it and my doctor suggested Lexapro instead but now I’m not sure since it made you jittery. How are you doing now ?
I am so sorry you have had a rough time. That your anxiety came on so suddenly. Didn't your doctor suggest other things (counselling) or anything first? I have had anxiety and depression for over 30 years (65 year old young female) that was controlled for most of that time with Paxil. Then a few years ago I became worse and was switched to Sertraline (horrible for me). I have been on Lexapro for 9 weeks and it is like night and day. I have tons of energy and feel all my creativeness coming back (after 3 years of sleeping and isolation). However, I can relate with the "jitteriness" you talk about. I take my Lex at 5am and by 6pm feel the way you describe. I used to take 1mg of Ativan at that time each day but my doctor wants me off it, so I have gradually reduced to .5 and now .25 (not easy the pills are so tiny). I do want off them but am concerned about how I will get through this time of day.
However, I notice that if I can get out and walk or something (winter is really putting a punch to this and I can't wait for spring) I soon feel a little better.
I do not sleep either. I am exhausted by 9pm and sleep for about 3 hours before I start to wake up and look at the clock. I am relieved at 5am to get up.
I hope that this all goes away some day. I can only hope as the Lexapro is really helping in all other ways. I am going to take a vacation, and hope that the warmth and sun will help. I really think that not being in the cold, dark days of February will help. Try some exercise, or talk to the doctor. Lexapro does take at least 6 weeks to show changes.
Good luck with your recovery.
Thank you for your reply... No, my dr did not encourage me to try other things first, I wish he had. I did take it upon myself to start seeing a therapist, Ive seen her twice now, not sure she is the best fit for me as I didnt leave either session feeling like it was anything more than just me talking, she hasnt been offering me much in the way of tools to cope or anything. Ive started looking around for a new therapist but I will go to this one a couple more times to see if it gets better. Ive always been an anxious person as far as I worry about pretty much everything more so than the average person, but i have never had my anxiety manifest itself into the physical symptoms that it did that sent me to the ER.
I had A LOT of life stressers in December, and my dad died last year so I assume it all just finally became too much and came to a head? Idk, my therapist seems to believe I am depressed but that was based off asking me how I am feeling and me describing the hell that was my lexapro start up, which apparently sounded a lot like depression symptoms. I didnt have any of those symptoms before starting on this medication. Im not a person that can say I have struggled with depression or anxiety attacks prior to this experience. So, idk if any of this is even necessary for me. I just know I was in the ER and the week following the ER I was a mess with anxiety... but this all has felt very premature and a bit of jumping the gun with this treatment. But I went along with it because for one, i didnt know much about the medications, if i had I NEVER would have started them, and two, I felt so crappy that week after the ER I felt pretty desperate. But I think if I never started the lexapro, I'd already be back to my regular self by now. its hard to know though...
just an update... I went to my dr today to discuss these side effects. He felt that despite these side effects that i was making good progress on the lexapro and wants to keep at it another few weeks. He prescribed ambien to help me with the insomnia, and said to try benefiber for the bowel issues. Said that he thinks with more time on the lexapro, these things will level out and hopefully I will not need the ativan or ambien after awhile. fingers crossed. Ambien makes me a bit nervous but I am very much hopeful for a good nights sleep
Related topics
lexapro, anxiety, insomnia, side effect, fatigue, emergency room
Further information
- Lexapro uses and safety info
- Lexapro prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Lexapro (detailed)
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