Quote:
quote:Originally posted by 77private
I have been taking Lexapro to relieve neuropathy due to the chemotherapy. Has anyone had any problems with this drug, such as weight gain, liver problems. Thank you. |
Hi. I have been taking Lexapro for about six months. It's one of the newer SSRI's (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, and was recommended by my MD as a better pharmaceutical way to address depression than, say,
Zoloft, because it appears to provide results a bit more quickly and is advertised as having fewer unpleasant side effects. These often include loss of libido, dryness of the mouth, slight dizziness or loss of appetite. Personally I don't feel that any of the SSRI's can fulfill such promises, but at least it has not produced that cottony mouth or dizziness in my case. I interpret neuropathy to be the degradation of nerve cells that can result in a wide variety of reduced function, from impaired eyesight to ringing in the ears to trembling hands, etc. Of course I understand that chemotherapy is no walk in the park either, and I wish you well with that process. As to your specific worries, I have not experienced weight gain or any compromise of liver function. In a way, Lexapro is like a vitamin for the brain: your body will use as much of it as necessary and excrete the rest. In my experience dosage was a big issue. Since most non-psychiatric MDs will start a patient off on 20mgs taken each morning. I started at 20 mgs. but soon began to experience what is called "emotional blunting," which is exactly what it sounds like. I've levelled out at 10mgs. daily. The primary purpose of a drug like Lexapro is not to make a person suddenly bouncy and joyful all the time, but to smooth out the peaks and valleys of emotion that I imagine chemotherapy can make even rougher, and also in your case, "lubricate" nerve connections in the brain with slightly increased levels of serotonin in order to reduce the severity of the symptoms of the neuropathies you are experiencing. I agree with your pharmacology student responder from the UK: it's best to consult with your physician -- always. The problem is that it can be difficult to get an oncologist to take the time to go into the metabolic processes of what is considered by most to be a drug used solely to treat depression. I am not a doctor, but from my personal experience with Lexapro and my reading on SSRIs in general, the drug is very unlikely to directly cause any adverse effects on systemic metabolic functions like liver, kidney, gastrointestinal, etc.
Best wishes
Wendell