Celexa and Insomnia: What Users Say (Page 3)

• Mat...
• January 22, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "First day taking it, at 8 pm, the medication peaks at 4 hours, so at midnight I looked in the mirror and my pupils were dilated. I felt very jittery, I was unable to sleep, I felt a strange sensation creep up my body and to my head, hot flashes, it felt hot at 73 degrees. It wasn't all too bad, I did feel a bit joyful and playful after I slowly forgot about the other effects. The second day, same time, same effects, and I went to sleep. I woke up at 9 am on the dot. I again had a strange sensation overwhelm me, I had vomiting and had a panic attack. I called my doctor and was advised to stop taking the medication. I did not respond well to this medication."

• Anonymous
• July 27, 2011

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "I have been taking Celexa, in total for about 5 weeks. My doctor started me at 10 mg for a week, then 20 mg for a week, then 40 mg. I have been taking 40 mg for about 2.5 weeks now. Celexa helped my depression, which was from the anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, after about a week. I am also taking Klonopin 0.5 mg at night to help me sleep. My doctor said it would take at least 3 weeks, maybe as long as 6 weeks on my 40 mg to control my severe anxiety and out-of-nowhere panic attacks. I made the mistake of taking myself off of my Klonopin this past Friday. I have gradually gotten worse since. I am seeing my doctor today, but I already know it's because I stopped taking my Klonopin too soon, and the Celexa hasn't reached its full potential yet."

• Nat...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 2, 2018

For Anxiety and Stress "I've been taking the generic version, citalopram, for almost 10 years. I now take 10 mg. I was on 20 mg to start. The difference to not taking it is that people like me when I'm on it. I'm naturally introverted and skittish around people. I have to interact with the public on my job. I can hold myself together better and can even find joy talking to people-something that was foreign to me prior to taking citalopram. Side effects for me include insomnia, loss of sex drive, blocked thinking (just sort of blank inside), excessive smiling (as in, I can't stop even if something horrible happened that day and I don't want to smile. Feels like someone hijacked my face). Despite that, I wish I had found this drug much earlier in my life."

• fee...
• July 18, 2009

For Depression "I have been taking citalopram 60 mg for about 3 years. At first, it was working great, I was smiling more and laughing from the bottom of my stomach instead of just my throat. Now, though, I feel like it has completely stopped working. I have mood swings, anxiety, fears, not sleeping, waking up before dawn, etc. I don't know if it's just me or if my medicine is telling me it needs a change. What else can I try? I need my life back, my children need me."

• Anonymous
• October 1, 2012

For Depression "Gave this a try after the culmination of several things. Another round of double depression hit me in the spring, and I decided to go with Dr.'s advice and try this. This is month 7, and I have stopped it because of the following: severe headaches, claustrophobia, dizziness, stomach upset, heart pounding, severe insomnia, feeling like I wanted to scream but can't get it out. It has essentially numbed my emotions, and it's not a good thing. I go back in a few days to get something different."

• Kyl...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 22, 2016

For Depression "I am 33 years old and have been depressed for as long as I can remember. This year I took the leap and accepted the fact that I need medications to continue living a functional life. I was prescribed 20 mg Celexa once a day. For the first two months, things were getting better, I did experience some insomnia, but that subsided after two weeks. I eventually plateaued and was given a new dose of 40 mg. Not sure how much it has helped, I constantly feel tired and lack motivation. I will looking at other meds when I see my doc next."

• can...
• August 25, 2011

For Panic Disorder "20 mg citalopram caused me to have severe anxiety attacks, feel like I cannot relax ever, cannot sleep, I feel dizzy all the time and nauseous, and it's given me horrible digestive problems. I have taken Zoloft and Paxil with good results for years, but started having sexual dysfunction and was switched to citalopram. It stopped my crying spells, but I feel like my depression is still there. I just cannot let out my feelings due to this medicine. The only positive is that I can just barely manage to function sexually. I am really surprised to see all these good reviews on here as to how it made others less anxious and more positive and social and even drowsy, as it has had the total opposite effect on me."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 3, 2017

For Anxiety and Stress "Vivid dreams/nightmares alternating with insomnia. Jaw clenching, teeth grinding at night. IBS-like symptoms. Short-term memory loss was the most disturbing. I would be right in the middle of a sentence and everything would drop, I would stop and have to try to remember what I was talking about or what I had wanted to say, which was both embarrassing and upsetting. By the year-end on this medication, the side effects completely overtook the benefits of this medication and I stopped."

• Bec...
• November 27, 2016

For Anxiety and Stress "My doctor started me off with 10 mg, then two weeks after, I went up to 20 mg. I feel great, and my depression is gone. However, I've been on it for a month and a half and find that I can't sleep. Before Celexa, I was sleeping too much, and now I can't sleep unless I recreationally take Xanax. Now my anxiety is high because I can't sleep, and when I do sleep, it's because of Xanax, which makes me sleep for 12 hours, and then I wake up late, and I'm unmotivated to do anything. Should I see my doctor for this? I love Xanax because it makes me feel better for my anxiety at night, but I'm scared I'll start abusing it, especially since I don't have a prescription."

• Ash...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 21, 2023

"I'm 18 and diagnosed with OCD and GAD. A few months after getting a diagnosis, I was prescribed 10 mg of Celexa. I was on Celexa for roughly a year and a half. I took it every morning once a day. I saw absolutely no positive changes in anything. My intrusive thoughts, compulsions, and overall anxiety worsened while on the drug. When I spoke to the medical professional who'd prescribed the medication, she suggested upping the dosage to 20 mg. I agreed, being 17 at the time and just desperate for some sort of relief. The higher dosage came with new side effects. I could no longer sleep, a racing heart would keep me up for hours, and I was constantly restless. It felt like I'd had ten cups of coffee. My hands shook, and I looked like I was always on edge. I've been off the medication for a short while now, and I'm no longer experiencing any of the negative side effects. It was easy to take but unfortunately didn't help me at all."

• ale...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 12, 2012

For Depression "I'm 19 years old and had been struggling with depression since I was a kid. I was against antidepressants all my life until I went off on my freshman year of college out of state and found it impossible to control my emotions. I became suicidal and was thinking about trying illegal drugs. Finally, I told the school counselor that I needed help. She diagnosed me with mild depression and prescribed 20 mg every day. I've been on it for a bit over a month, and my life has changed. My emotions are reasonable and under control, I'm much more agreeable, energetic, and optimistic. Side effects from the first two weeks were: dry mouth, excessive yawning, insomnia, and a bit of anxiety/hyperactivity. Still have decreased sex drive though."

• Anonymous
• December 13, 2010

For Depression "This medicine is not for me. I only took it for three nights, and I started throwing up, seeing things that were not there. I have a huge headache, felt like I was hit by a truck. Have been getting cold sweats and just felt like I was going to die. My heart rate jumped up to 175, and I normally run at 86ish. I have not been able to eat, and I sleep but not like I used to. I am asleep but I hear everything. This medicine is not for me. I hope other people have better luck."

• Lex...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 10, 2016

For Depression "25 yr old, female. I've been taking 20 mg for 2 weeks now. Only side effect was insomnia, so I started taking it in the morning. Maybe a loss in sex drive? No other side effects, though. It hasn't kicked in yet."

• snu...
• April 18, 2011

For Depression "I have struggled with anxiety, depression, and insomnia my whole life. Nothing ever had any noticeable effects until I was prescribed Celexa back in 2007. I was on it for years, then decided to try life without it and was tapered off. The thing about Celexa (and all antidepressants) is they work well in that you won't spend as much time crying and all that, but they also inhibit you from feeling genuine euphoria! You just stay at a baseline."

• Anonymous
• August 17, 2021

For Anxiety and Stress "I started taking this medication at 10 mg at the end of May. It’s now mid-August, and I will admit it took a while to work. The first couple of days, my side effects were enhanced anxiety, could not sleep, early awakening, fast heartbeat, and headache, but it all went away after the first week. Before taking citalopram, I would have breakdowns out of nowhere, intrusive thoughts, and panic attacks. I tried everything before trying medication because I was definitely hesitant, but I’m really glad I tried it. It’s now been over two months, and I feel a lot better. I don’t worry about having to leave a situation because of a breakdown anymore, and I get less panic and can brush off intrusive thoughts. Obviously, there’s no magic pill, so I still get anxiety, and I still have bad days (especially around the time of my period), but citalopram has helped a lot, and my family and friends have noticed. It’s really nice not to be crying all the time, lol."

• Not...
• September 27, 2017

For Anxiety and Stress "Worst experience of my life on this drug. Extreme insomnia, even taking an Ambien would not get me to sleep. If I did get a little sleep, it was not restful, felt awake. Could not remember what happened 5 minutes ago. Short-term memory gone. Could not eat, I would try, but could barely swallow, and food would fall out of my mouth, especially carbs like bread. Major muscle twitching, extreme sweating, especially in inappropriate places like my groin, so then I had even more anxiety feeling like I looked like I wet my pants. Headaches. This happened on a low dose taking it 3-4 weeks. Once stopping Celexa, it took me 3-4 months to feel normal again, however, I also feel this drug did some permanent damage to my brain."

• did...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 20, 2018

For Anxiety and Stress "I took Celexa for about a year. It did work on anxiety, however, I ended up tapering off and stopping completely because I was noticing that I was having these memory issues. I would be in the middle of a sentence or thought, and everything would just drop - I would have to stop, regroup my thoughts, and try to remember what I wanted to say and could not. This was not only scary to me, but I was becoming very embarrassed and conscious of this weird memory side effect. The second issue was sleep. My sleep would be almost robotic, if that makes sense. I would wake each morning at a certain time and be unable to go back to sleep. It felt like I had not deeply slept during the night, and I could feel it upon waking - not necessarily sleepy, but revved up and unable to sleep in/sleep any further."

• Tee...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 1, 2019

For Depression "I switched from Prozac to Celexa earlier this year, thinking it would be more helpful than Prozac. I felt better for a short period of time, and then it quit working. Now I have more anxiety than I first started with. I’m trying to wean off sleep meds but found that Celexa causes insomnia, so how does that help? I’m beginning to have severe stomach issues that I think are related to the increased anxiety. I think I want to go back to the Prozac. I didn’t have these kinds of issues."

• Aub...
• August 20, 2017

For Anxiety and Stress "Okay, I have been on Celexa for about a week now. I'm currently working 6 days a week, 9-10 hour shifts, so I'm exhausted as it is. And I feel like I can't sleep, and for the past two days, I haven't been wanting to eat at all. Is this normal for this medicine? I'm on 20 mg once a day?"

• Anonymous
• June 2, 2010

For Panic Disorder "I have always struggled with generalized anxiety, but a year and a half ago, I had an awful panic attack out of nowhere and have been controlled with panic attacks ever since. I switched to Celexa because Zoloft did not seem to be working anymore. I have been on Celexa for 2 weeks and still feel anxious. I am also suffering from insomnia and body jerks when I am trying to fall asleep. I just found out I am pregnant, so I had to stop taking Klonopin, and I am weaning off Celexa. I am so excited about the pregnancy, but so nervous about my panic and anxiety. I am planning on intense cognitive therapy to help me through the next 9 months. I pray for a healthy and panic-free pregnancy! Celexa did not seem to do the trick for me."

• Hum...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 19, 2021

For Depression "I was on 40 mg Celexa for 2 years, then switched to Lexapro 20 mg because I have been told it's more effective and easy to find in my country. I got pain everywhere, all my body, weakness, and anxiety more. That's why I switched again to Celexa 40 mg. No pain. No panic attacks, I'm more active, but I suffered with insomnia... no problem..."

• Lil...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 24, 2016

For Anxiety and Stress "I've been on 10 mg for five days. First day I had the shakes and was cold and hot. Second day I was a little better, the shakes stopped, but I didn't eat much. Third day I ate two meals and moved around and threw up that night. Fourth day I ate like no other, but had diarrhea. Fifth day, a little out of it, yawning a lot, yes. Sometimes it's hard to sleep, then others, heart rate a little high at times too, but I hope I'll be OK. I'm only 5 foot and weigh 109 pounds. I don't do well with meds."

• Anonymous
• April 23, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "I've been on Celexa now for about 2 months for anxiety. It really helps for the anxiety, but I have trouble falling asleep. When I do fall asleep, I have long, vivid dreams all night. Very weird dreams."

• Non...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• May 22, 2017

For Depression "This drug used to do wonders. I went on it because one antidepressant wasn't enough to get me out of bed and moving. It lifted me up and gave me the motivation to be able to take care of my daily living needs and hold a stable job. The side effect that caused them to take me off of it was because it was making me manic (as I am bipolar), and it caused me to make quick, risky, and ill-advised life decisions. Taking me off the drug has effectively stopped the quick life decision side effect, and after getting off of it, I've been able to think more clearly, be more mindful of my movement and thought processes, and gave me a general feeling of wellness. The negative of getting off of it, however, is that I lost my ability to sleep well."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 28, 2017

For Depression "I started out on 10 mg of Celexa; nothing happened. When I got to 20 mg, I started feeling sick (I felt like I was going to vomit all the time) and irritated. Once I got to 40 mg, I began to feel impulsive and wired. I could barely sleep, and I was doing risky things; even my friends said I wasn't myself! I got put on Neurontin after this; I'm glad I switched."