Celexa and Tiredness: What Users Say (Page 4)

• Hal...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 22, 2016

For Depression "I was put on Celexa for depression, bipolar as well as my OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). I started off taking 10 mg and then later upgraded to 20 mg, but my experience wasn't entirely the greatest. The Celexa aggravated my OCD tics, making them occur more frequently, which automatically raised my level of anxiety and stress. I am always tired and feel like a complete zombie, I find it tiring to even laugh and smile. My appetite has increased drastically, I pretty much never stop eating. And it has really affected my bipolar, making me very irritable. Ever since I've been on Celexa, I've had many child-like tantrums where I have gotten physically violent. This pill wasn't for me. I am currently still on Celexa but am being weaned off of it."

• tra...
• August 17, 2010

For Depression "I've been taking citalopram for about 8 months now for mild depression and anxiety. I started off taking 10 mg and have slowly increased to 30 mg. I haven't noticed any change in my low-grade depression, but have noticed that I'm less anxious in social situations. I'm going to stop taking it after talking to my doctor because the side effects aren't worth it for me. I sweat profusely, which offsets the social anxiety benefit as it embarrasses me to be so sweaty (it's summer in South Carolina). I'm also really tired all the time and constantly crave food. So far I've gained 15 lbs since starting citalopram. Overall, the minor benefit doesn't outweigh the crappy side effects I'm having."

• Anonymous
• December 19, 2011

For Anxiety and Stress "I am a newbie on this medicine. I went to the doctor because I had been for months in a state of constant terror, like the feeling you would get if you were driving down the road and a kid ran out in front of the car. That feeling was with me 24/7. I had terrible nightmares. Since the first day I took Celexa, my terror subsided by about 80%. Day 4, I am a bit edgy, but I took a half Xanax and am okay now. Before, I was taking four Xanax a day and I was still not coping. My side effects have been being more tired than usual, although today I am just fine. I am constipated, but a stool softener worked that out. I just pray the bad feelings stay away and I don't become non-compliant, which is typical for me. I always find a reason to stop medicines."

• Chu...
• March 5, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "I've been on Celexa now for 4 weeks and have noticed improvement in my mood, stress, and anxiety. I would recommend taking it at night as that way you won't feel as tired when you get up, and you aren't aware of other symptoms as much. I take it an hour before I go to bed, and I can start to feel tired, so it does help with sleep. I started at 10, now at 20, and I think I'll see if I can go to 25 mg. I still take the clonazepam at night too, though I was taking 1 pill, I cut back to 1/2 a pill, as in the morning I was really groggy. In the end, you do have to work with this medication. It's not for everyone, you will have side effects that for the most part will go away, and like any other medicine, it's trial and error."

• Anonymous
• July 8, 2012

For Depression "I was on Celexa and Xanax for 8 months, and thankfully didn’t experience any crazy side effects; was just a little more tired than usual, but not to the extent that it was affecting my work or social life. I thought I was fine and no longer needed to take medication, so I weaned myself off in early February; however, within 2 months, I started feeling the way I had been feeling prior to starting treatment. For months, I tried making myself believe that I was just feeling stress and anxiety because of work, but after battling mood swings, distancing myself from my friends and family, drinking and smoking excessively, and being in a seemingly perpetual funk, I realized it really wasn’t fine and it was time to get my life back. Last week, I started yoga, took a break from alcohol, and went to see a doctor. He put me back on Celexa and switched me from Xanax to Klonopin. Today is my first day back on the medication, and although I am not thrilled to be back on this type of treatment, I am very much looking forward to feeling 'normal' again."

• Anonymous
• January 24, 2010

For Anxiety and Stress "I took citalopram for 3 years until I realized it was the drug that was making me so tired. It certainly helped with my anxiety-related issues, however, I was needing to go to bed at the same time as my children in the evening. I have since switched to Zoloft and am having much better results as far as energy goes."

• 28 ...
• April 22, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "I suffered from anxiety since the passing of my parents. I couldn't be the passenger in a vehicle, go in an elevator, or use revolving doors. I found it difficult to be around a lot of people, I also began to not feel happy anymore. My husband finally acknowledged the change, and I did something about it. I am on Celexa 10 mg, and it has made me so much more calm and relaxed. The only side effect: I yawn a lot and it makes me tired."

• 28 ...
• April 22, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "I suffered from anxiety since the passing of my parents. I couldn't be the passenger in a vehicle, go in an elevator, or use revolving doors. I found it difficult to be around a lot of people, I also began to not feel happy anymore. My husband finally acknowledged the change, and I did something about it. I am on Celexa 10 mg, and it has made me so much more calm and relaxed. The only side effect: I yawn a lot and it makes me tired."

• 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
• November 18, 2012

For Depression "I started out liking Celexa because it calmed me down. I had way fewer temper tantrums. But now, after three months, I am tired all the time, and I've gained a ton of weight despite constant exercise and even dieting more. Other friends of mine lost weight on it, unfortunately, all bodies are different, and mine did not respond so positively. I'm calling my doctor tomorrow to try Wellbutrin."

• bri...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 10, 2017

For Anxiety and Stress "Coming onto this medication, at first, I didn't notice anything in particular. I was on the train, and I just noticed that my disoriented thoughts and feeling super nervous calmed quite a bit. I did notice I didn't talk as much as I did before I started the medication. It helps with my depersonalization. But at the same time, it adds fuel to my underlying depression that I had in the past. At the same time, I believe that's a good thing. Because it's helping me heal hidden broken parts of myself. It especially helps when talking to my therapist about my past. I hate how tired I am, as I am typing this, I think I yawned at least 8 times. Delayed orgasms suck as well...but sometimes I take a day off from taking one pill, so it's okay."

• Cra...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 16, 2018

For Anxiety and Stress "Helped me for about 6-7 years. Wouldn’t recommend for anyone new. Felt like a complete zombie, tired all the time, couldn’t remember much, couldn’t really focus on much, and a complete loss of sex drive. (I’m a 21-year-old male, so having to explain to some girls why I couldn’t do it was pretty embarrassing). Works well for the anxiety part, but in my opinion, I’d try something else first. Also, Celexa recently stopped working, and tapering off is quite difficult. (Brain zaps, twitches, etc...)."

• Anonymous
• December 21, 2011

For Anxiety and Stress "Really helps with my anxiety, which is the main reason for going on it. However, the underlying depression that was masked by anxiety is not being helped by Citalopram. So, rate it for anxiety, but find it makes me emotionless, totally apathetic, and tired all the time. So, solves one problem but makes me feel even more depressed."

• aud...
• May 28, 2011

For Depression "Since I graduated high school, I have been on a number of antidepressants. So far, Celexa is the only one that relieved my anxiety and left my sex drive alone. I've been getting better sleep at night, but I feel a little tired during the day at times. But that definitely beats staying up all night with racing thoughts. I like it so far."

• Geo...
• March 2, 2012

For Depression "I stayed on Celexa for about 6 years, as it was the SSRI with the least side effects. It worked fine for my depression and took 6 weeks to become effective (that's about the same as I experienced with all SSRIs). I ended up going off of it due to profuse sweating and elevated blood pressure (my normal is 110/70, it shot to 135/90). Diarrhea, weird dreams, and constant tiredness were also problems."

• Anonymous
• November 5, 2011

For Depression "I was diagnosed with Bipolar I a couple of months ago, and have already tried quite a few medicines. They all made me feel horrible! I wanted to avoid taking lithium, so my doctor tried me on Celexa for my depression and Lamictal for my mania. I've only been taking it for a week and feel great! I can't tell you how relieved I am to feel like a normal person, it's been a few years since I could actually say I feel normal. The only side effects of the Celexa I had were insomnia and yawning, and they're both already starting to go away. I'm very pleased with this medication."

• khi...
• April 4, 2012

For Anxiety and Stress "I have had depression my whole life. Tried Zoloft, Effexor, and three other medicines. I have been on this for a month now, and it's been great. Still have sadness, but that's normal because I lost my dad not too long ago, so I am still grieving. The tiredness was the worst side effect, and I still have it, but I am hoping that it will go away the longer I take it. The only reason I didn't rate it so high is that I haven't been on it too long."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 23, 2021

For Anxiety and Stress "I have been on Celexa for 3 weeks now, and I can already feel a huge difference. I was having panic attacks while at work to where I would need to walk away and go into a bathroom to calm down. I would have meltdowns at home, getting home from work and having to deal with my two boys (3 years old & 10 years old), who were not listening and coming home to a messy house after working all day. Now I come home, and I am more at ease, calm, and not having any attacks. The first week and a half were a little rough with the side effects: tiredness, nausea, headaches, increased panic attacks, hot flash symptoms (sweating a lot), hungry (I am talking every 10 minutes, not feeling full hungry), and now on week 3, all of my symptoms have gone away. I am taking 10 mg Celexa, and I see my primary on 11/30 for a follow-up, so hopefully, by week 4-6, my anxiety will be gone as well."

• Anonymous
• May 31, 2012

For Depression "I have been on this almost a month. It doesn't seem to work every day. And the side effects are not so good either. I get headaches, yawning, can't sleep, and if I forget to take it that day, my belly hurts really bad, and I feel like throwing up. But I am giving it a little more time to get my body used to it. I hope I can find a better medicine or something."

• asl...
• March 1, 2011

For Anxiety and Stress "I was prescribed Celexa and Ativan for severe anxiety. I was told to take Celexa 20 mg in the morning as soon as I got up and take Ativan 3x a day. So far, so good if you want to zero emotions. I work in a high-stress job and can't be a zombie all day, so I quit taking the Ativan. Seems as though the Celexa is doing its job pretty well. I'm able to function at work, just a bit lethargic. Tomorrow will be 1 week, and the Dr. said it will take up to a month to receive the full benefits. Fingers crossed!"

• Anonymous
• December 16, 2010

For Anxiety and Stress "I went on 20 mg of Celexa following a nervous breakdown my senior year of high school. Into my first semester at college, I realized that while I was on this medicine, I just didn't care about anything. I was lethargic and tired all of the time, and I could never participate in my classes. I went on for a while being almost completely unaware of my surroundings until I started experimenting a little with it. I would go off of it for a few days, and when I began feeling down again, I would resume. Obviously, this had horrible consequences, and I found myself in the acute care department the night before my calculus midterm. Following the incident, I went to my doctor and insisted that I be phased off Celexa, and since then, have been fine."

• Anonymous
• December 16, 2010

For Anxiety and Stress "I went on 20 mg of Celexa following a nervous breakdown my senior year of high school. Into my first semester at college, I realized that while I was on this medicine, I just didn't care about anything. I was lethargic and tired all of the time, and I could never participate in my classes. I went on for a while being almost completely unaware of my surroundings until I started experimenting a little with it. I would go off of it for a few days, and when I began feeling down again, I would resume. Obviously, this had horrible consequences, and I found myself in the acute care department the night before my calculus midterm. Following the incident, I went to my doctor and insisted that I be phased off Celexa, and since then, have been fine."

• Anonymous
• June 6, 2011

For Depression "At first, Celexa really helped. I had more energy, was happy, and was like my old self. That lasted only about 3 weeks before I started feeling bad again and wanting to sleep all the time. I also had a claustrophobic feeling like I couldn't breathe. I told my doctor, and he also prescribed trazodone to take with it because he thought this would level me out. The combination of the 2 made me dizzy, sick, and very tired all the time. I couldn't even wake up when my baby was crying in the room next to me. Needless to say, I had to quit taking the medicine. I wished it would have continued to work like it did those first 3 weeks. Also, I started to eat more after the euphoric 3 weeks were gone."

• Anonymous
• April 13, 2012

For Depression "I have been on 40 mg Celexa for well over a year. I was put on it after my depression didn't respond to Prozac. It made me tired for the first few weeks and whenever my doctor increased the dose, but that subsides. It does not help much for anxiety for me, but greatly improves my depression."

• Anonymous
• April 15, 2011

For Depression "Just in my first week of taking Celexa 20 mg for depression and mood swings. I have had a terrible headache since I took the first dose, very nauseous, and this yawning-gagging thing is worrying me, but mood-wise I can already tell a difference. I hope it continues to work well."