I just started on 20 mg fluoxetine yesterday for OCD and depression, and today woke up with nausea, dizziness, sweaty hands and overall feeling quite stimulated. My question is, how long should I put up with these side effects before I call it quits? P.s., I have not yet experienced a decrease in OCD or depression symptoms. I plan to take prozac for 4-6 weeks to see if I improve.
If and when will prozac side effects lessen?
Question posted by heatherfeather24 on 2 May 2015
Last updated on 4 March 2025 (12 weeks ago) by Lisa from LA
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5 Answers
Lisa from LA
4 March 2025
It worked best for me when I started on only 5 mg of Prozac . I got it in a liquid form .
I think 20 mg to start with is giving you those side effects . I felt much better after just a couple of weeks on 5 mg . Some of us are more sensitive to medication . I started to feel relaxed on 5mg .. I never upped it . But I felt so much better that I was able to be more sociable , started dating and going out again . I felt like negative thoughts disappeared before they could form . Maybe 20mg is too much for you . See about getting it down to at most 10ng . Do not give up on this med . My parents were both sick with terminal cancer and this drug helped me cope .
Eventually I started traveling again , and regained my sense of humor .
Not much weight gain !! I had taken lexapro , do not like those drugs that cause a ton of weight gain .
It will get better
SDA34
7 May 2015
Would suggest you start at a lower dose and taper up. Hopefully you have the tablet rather than the capsule... but take 10mg daily for one to two weeks then bump up to the full 20mg dose. This will give your body time to adjust to the change in serotonin and will reduce the adverse effects. Additionally, it typically takes several weeks to start seeing results with these drugs. You are waiting on extensive chemical cascades which change protein and receptor expression. Takes time. Prior answer is correct for 6 weeks until full effect. I agree that if you maintain on 20mg your adverse symptoms will likely take up to 2 to 3 weeks to improve.
imbatman
3 May 2015
It usually takes 4-6 weeks for Prozac to actually start 'working' (as with most antidepressants). If you're seeing a shrink, he/she should have recommended that you use it for a minimum of 6 months (as is common practice) as it slowly has to be increased, then slowly decreased..
Were you put on 20 mg immediately? The 'normal' starting dose is 10 mg, then after 1 week (sometimes 2 weeks) it's increased to 20 mg. So that is why you might be having quite strong side effects. It's because of this slowly increasing and lowering of dosage why it takes weeks (or months) to get off the medication, as you have to lower your dosage safely. Usually 10 mg per week (10 mg per 2 weeks if you want to be super careful to ensure less chances of side-effects or withdrawals)... Most shrinks actually seem to recommend starting with taking the dose every other day for a week to start (whether lowering or starting the medication)...
then after 1-2 weeks of every other day, you increase or decrease the dosage.
Also, it is not uncommon to actually feel worse in the first 2 weeks of starting - so just try to stay positive..
imbatman
3 May 2015
When I say 'usually 10 mg per week' or '10 mg per 2 weeks' I mean the dosage is lowered (or increased) every week or 2 weeks. Although the absolute safest to decrease chances of side effects (or withdrawals when decreasing) is to start with every other day, then by week.
E.g if you're starting with the medication: 10 mg every other day for 2 weeks, then 20 mg every day... Same is applicable when lowering dose.
I'm no health professional but I've had a very good shrink who helped me get on and off antidepressants with no to little side-effects.
Stephen Treloar
2 May 2015
"Stimulated" worried me as prozac took 12 days to send me me hypermanic for a few weeks, then hypomanic for a few more and then left me drowning in an ocean of anxiety.
heatherfeather24
3 May 2015
that's concerning. do you have a history of bipolar tendencies or did it come out of left field?
Stephen Treloar
3 May 2015
They changed their mind last year and I don't put much stock in names: Bipolar 1, schizo affective disorder, GAD and severe depression ohhh I forgot the auditory hallucinations and 2 personality disorders.
Just Labels...
Inactive
2 May 2015
The side effects usually subside within a few weeks. If your nauseated try taking it in the morning with breakfast. Also it can take between 4-6 weeks before reaching the full therapeutic level; however, you may start feeling better in 2-3 weeks..
Inactive
2 May 2015
Some people have said they started feeling better in a week with prozac, so hopefully you're feeling better soon..
heatherfeather24
3 May 2015
okay. thank you kindly!
Related topics
prozac, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, nausea/vomiting, fluoxetine, major depressive disorder, side effect, anxiety and stress
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