Fluoxetine and Sexual Dysfunction: What Users Say (Page 5)

• vol...
• May 14, 2011

Fluoxetine for Depression "I took Prozac for 3 months at 10 mg to treat depression from bipolar disorder type I. I felt numb, and I just didn't care about much of anything while taking Prozac. I felt very indifferent toward most things. I also experienced a very low sex drive and difficulty in achieving orgasm."

• wil...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 27, 2023

For Depression "Fluoxetine changed my life. I have generalized anxiety disorder, depression, PTSD, and after 20 years, I didn't realize how different the world could feel. The first 6 weeks were definitely an adjustment: sweating, the disorientation does occur, there also was a decrease in libido, but with counseling as well, it can become easier to manage. Now, 2 years after being prescribed, no side effects that disrupt my day-to-day."

• Man...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 19, 2018

For Depression "I have been taking fluoxetine off and on for about six months. I had previously been on Cipralex for a year and had tapered off due to side effects. I am happy with Prozac, it’s addressed my anxiety, depression, and PMDD issues quite well. I am on 20 mg daily, and sometimes I take a break due to sexual side effects. All in all, I am very happy with this SSRI. It has very few side effects, and I feel like my true self on it, like I did when I was a kid and relatively carefree. Sometimes I think I can live without it, but after a while, my bad outlook and negativity come back, no matter how hard I try to escape it and focus on CBT."

• PTS...
• January 27, 2016

For Depression "Changed my life within a month of taking. Initially gave me an upset stomach, but the wait was worth it. My wife said she 'felt like she was walking on eggshells.' Now, I am more relaxed and a better husband. Sex drive has been affected, but I can live with that, just being happy and enjoying life again."

• Mud...
• August 10, 2011

Fluoxetine for Depression "This medication has caused severe sexual side effects. As a 58-year-old active person, I have been on this for two years. Although this did wonders for my panic and depression, it has leveled my libido, and I can't climax."

• Mud...
• August 10, 2011

Fluoxetine for Depression "This medication has caused severe sexual side effects. As a 58-year-old active person, I have been on this for two years. Although this did wonders for my panic and depression, it has leveled my libido, and I can't climax."

• use...
• June 20, 2014

For Anxiety and Stress "Great for me! Life changer. My day-to-day anxiety is pretty much gone. I take 40 mg every night. A bit more tired in the mornings, making it harder to wake up. Decreased sex drive. Still take 2 to 3 mg of Xanax only when giving speeches and presentations to large groups (only when needed, as Xanax can be dangerous)."

• sag...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 21, 2021

For Anxiety and Stress "Fluoxetine can really help, but you need the right dose or else it will mess you up. My psychiatrist has me on 40 mg right now for depression/anxiety, and it makes me feel extremely nauseous if I don’t eat something with my meds and in the morning. Keep in mind I’m 18, about 5’7" and weigh around 120 lb, so based on the other responses I probably shouldn’t be on that high of a dose. I also can’t cry and have no sex drive and have been experiencing night sweats, which I know can come from fluoxetine. I went up to 40 mg within the last few months, and I’m pretty sure I'm worse off for it, so I’m going to try to lower my dose at my next appointment. It does help stabilize my mood, and I feel better in general, but I wouldn't say they make me happy, just more numb to negative emotions."

• hop...
• August 29, 2018

For Anxiety and Stress "I have been on this medication for over 15 years. I was on 20 mg/day Fluoxetine for many years, and my Dr. had me couple the Fluoxetine with Effexor 75 mg/day. While I was able to tolerate the side effects (excessive sweating, dry mouth, low libido), when life got better a few months ago, I finally managed to get off of Effexor for good. However, after a few months, my anxiety was no longer under control, and I had to increase my Fluoxetine from 20 mg to 40 mg. Side effects mentioned above decreased significantly since getting off Effexor. The increase in Fluoxetine dosage did help, although not entirely. Therefore, I have recently increased my dose again to 60 mg. I'm hopeful that side effects will still be lower than from both SSRIs. My Dr. has also prescribed clonazepam, which is helping my anxiety until Fluoxetine's dose has effect. All in all, Fluoxetine has been wonderful for me, even though I am now having to increase the dosage."

• Ann...
• July 17, 2017

For Anxiety and Stress "I had been experiencing anxiety for a long time and have always been a worrywart in general. I had been going to therapy, and my therapist suggested going to a psychiatrist, who diagnosed me with generalized anxiety and prescribed me 20 mg of fluoxetine. I gotta say, it has truly helped! I've been on it about 10 weeks now, and I feel pretty great! I still get anxiety, but nothing compared to what I had before. I'm also generally happier. My only complaints are that I don't sleep as well. I take the fluoxetine in the morning, but still find myself waking up through the night, which makes me very tired during the day. My libido has also basically disappeared since going on it, so I will talk to my doctor about it. Other than that, it's great!"

• Flo...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 7, 2017

For Depression "Helped with depressive thoughts and episodes quite a bit. I was in a toxic environment at work and home, which were one and the same. Started at 10 mg for 4 weeks, which helped a little with my symptoms of 'negative rumination,' where I could only think of mistakes I made and how I couldn't concentrate at work. Went from functioning 30% to 70%. Increased to 20 mg, even though I hesitated because I was experiencing some unpleasant side effects. They indeed worsened on 20 mg, to my un-surprise. I had low sex drive before because of the depression, but my desire is gone now because of the medication. Starting to feel numb, and there's something inside me that won't relax. I quit my job and moved, too. Still have some anxiety."

• Anonymous
• March 7, 2012

Fluoxetine for Depression "I am 19 years old, and I was on liquid Prozac for about 3 months. During the 3 months of Prozac, I found that I was more tired and unable to concentrate. I found that I was even more anxious when on this medicine, more depressed, and I gained a considerable amount of weight. Before Prozac, I was 130 lbs, then I was around 155 lbs by the end of the 3 months. While on this, I had no energy, no motivation to move on with my life, or no desire to engage in social interaction. My sex drive had gone way down, and I was not very interested in having sex. Now, I have been off the Prozac for about 6-7 months, and I am slightly more motivated, my sex drive has gone way up, but my weight is still the same."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 17, 2021

For Anxiety and Stress "I was initially placed on fluoxetine for anxiety. My symptoms over time shifted from anxiety to more depression. My dose increased over time to 80 mg once a day. For me, it completely and fully treated my anxiety, and I was able to do things that my anxiety would have prevented me from doing before. I did notice a decrease in libido, and I experienced weight loss on this drug (it seems to be completely dependent on how your anxiety/depression impacts your appetite, I would overeat when I was stressed, the fluoxetine helped manage the stress so I wouldn't overeat, meaning that I lost weight). At the dose that I was on though, I was extremely drowsy at all times and could sleep for 16+ hours a day if I didn't set alarms, and had to take multiple naps throughout the day. I was brought back down to 40 mg, and the drowsiness has almost completely disappeared. Different people can have very different reactions to the same SSRI."

• iam...
• April 20, 2010

Fluoxetine for Depression "I have clinical depression, and Prozac is how I initially got introduced to the world of pharmaceuticals. I took two types of fluoxetine; one from the hospital (green) and the other from Target (white). While the ones given to me at the hospital worked well, the ones from Target did not work at all! The side effects for me were: no ability to feel any emotion, zombie-like, tired 24/7, no appetite (I lived off of one slice of pizza a day along with some cranberry juice, and it had to be forced down), decreased libido, giddiness, constant mind fog, a feeling of euphoria followed by fatigue, dry mouth. It worked better than Cymbalta, but since fluoxetine is generic, my doctor doesn't approve of it."

• Vic...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 21, 2018

Fluoxetine for Depression "Two years ago, when I was 20 years old in college, suffering from a terrible episode of depression, I was prescribed my first antidepressant: Prozac. After three weeks, I felt AMAZING. I was having sexual dysfunction, so they added Wellbutrin. I felt great for almost two months until I had my first and only seizure. (Wellbutrin lowers the threshold for seizures.) I discontinued Wellbutrin. I tried Prozac after the seizure, and it had no positive effect like it did. In retrospect, I believe that the Prozac induced a hypomanic episode. I have never had a hypomanic episode before then or since."

• Dot...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 23, 2015

For Anxiety and Stress "Started 6th of May, so hasn't been long. Suffered severe post-natal depression with youngest child 9 years ago, got over that and have been fine up until recently. I had a miscarriage over Christmas, and over the months following, found myself getting very low again, but most of all noticed the anxiety, hypochondria, and irritation. Doctor put me on 20 mg fluoxetine a day, and seems to be good so far. Definitely less anxiety, but also definitely lack of energy, and I have tiredness. No matter how much sleep I get, I feel like a zombie in the morning and yawn a lot until I have some coffee. My sense of humor, libido, and appetite have decreased, but I am putting that down to a 'can't be bothered' feeling. Sticking with it for now. Gives a hangover from hell too!!!"

• Whi...
• June 9, 2015

For Depression "For the first few months, the medication was very successful in terms of giving me the energy and 'drive' to get out of bed and do something with my day. However, there are sexual side effects as climax became near impossible. This wears off with time, both the energy and the sexual side effects. After my body became accustomed to the medication, I lost the extra energy and I became sexually 'functional' again. After approximately 6 months, my depression returned and was accompanied by severe anxiety, a condition I had never dealt with before. I've since stopped taking Prozac and noticed significant improvements in my overall life. My experience with Prozac was that it's good in the short term, but not for the long haul."

• Gem...
• March 6, 2021

Fluoxetine "I had a great experience on Prozac for my generalized anxiety disorder and mild depression. At a higher dose, I got some sexual side effects. Now on Trintellix, and it’s not going so well, so I may just switch back. It helped my mood a lot and calmed me down. Great drug."

• Anonymous
• November 21, 2016

For Depression "This medicine is horrible. I just started taking it a month ago and I'm already considering stopping it completely. Side effects were not horrible. I had lots of dizzy spells, though. Only lasted for the first week, though. Now I feel even more depressed than I was before I started the meds. Absolutely no sex drive whatsoever. I also have bad chest and upper back pains that I believe are due to anxiety from the medication. Would not recommend this medication to anyone."

• exo...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 24, 2021

For Depression "Was prescribed fluoxetine many years ago due to depression, anxiety, and OCD. I also have autism, which was diagnosed some time later. My anhedonia (lack of pleasure in things) got much worse - I was losing interest in my hobbies. I also had physical side effects such as lower libido. I could never get past the trial stage because I felt better without it despite my suicidal thinking."

• Nat...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 25, 2021

For Depression "While fluoxetine was better than other SSRIs I have tried, it was not good for me by any means. If anything, this really neutralized me out and didn’t help my anxiety. It also destroyed any libido I had and made me gain 20 lbs. When I went off it, I gained an additional 10 lbs, despite being active and a healthy vegetarian of 13+ years. For the first time in my life, I am obese. It’s been difficult trying to shed the extra pounds and it’s not helping my confidence."

• The...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 16, 2021

For Depression "I’ve tried 5+ other antidepressants prior to trying Prozac. Everything worked for a while but eventually lost efficacy or resulted in side effects that were too much to handle. I weaned off Zoloft and transitioned to Prozac per my doctor’s recommendation and felt better in 3-4 weeks. I’ve been on 20mg for a year now and just elected to up my dose to 40mg due to the overwhelming inertia of the world right now. I’m looking forward to the results, honestly. For women who lost their sex drive or ability to orgasm on other meds, Prozac reversed the issue, and it’s been a game changer! Don’t let society’s views of mental health direct your choices, the medicine works better for some, and maybe Prozac isn’t your best med, but it beats feeling awful all the time, I promise!"

• The...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 16, 2021

For Depression "I’ve tried 5+ other antidepressants prior to trying Prozac. Everything worked for a while but eventually lost efficacy or resulted in side effects that were too much to handle. I weaned off Zoloft and transitioned to Prozac per my doctor’s recommendation and felt better in 3-4 weeks. I’ve been on 20mg for a year now and just elected to up my dose to 40mg due to the overwhelming inertia of the world right now. I’m looking forward to the results, honestly. For women who lost their sex drive or ability to orgasm on other meds, Prozac reversed the issue, and it’s been a game changer! Don’t let society’s views of mental health direct your choices, the medicine works better for some, and maybe Prozac isn’t your best med, but it beats feeling awful all the time, I promise!"

• Anonymous
• February 8, 2013

For Anxiety and Stress "20 y/o female being treated for anxiety. I have been on Zoloft, Lexapro, and am now coming off of fluoxetine to switch to Viibryd. Lexapro made me feel like I was just physically present, I only went through the motions of life, I felt lifeless. Zoloft made me sleep all day, I could sleep for 12 hours at night and take two naps and do the same thing the next day. I really loved fluoxetine, it really worked for my anxiety, however, some days on this medication, I would go into a deep depression, but only for a night. I have lost all my libido being on fluoxetine, which is my main reason for switching. Would recommend trying this because I have also heard many success stories from others I know on it."

• Hop...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 3, 2022

For Depression "I have dealt with sensitivity, depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicidality, emotional fluctuations, and insomnia since childhood. Since I have two sisters on fluoxetine, I decided to try it, but on extremely low dosages due to my sensitivity to SSRIs (they induce hypomania). I had to start with 1.25 mg daily, and gradually increased to 2.5 mg and 5 mg. Short-term effects: drop in libido, slight urinary blockage, 'tunnel vision', change of body smell, pressure in my lower throat, itchiness and warm feeling in the face, fast heartbeats, and gas. One week later - intense suicidality and emotional pain, intrusive thoughts, and sensitivity to sensory input. Ten days later - woke up feeling calm, hopeful, and normal. Three months later - a bit tired during the day, flatter emotions, fewer thoughts (for better and worse), drop in visual imagination and creativity, fuzzily warm and happy no matter what. Depression is a nightmare, so I'm willing to pay the price (creativity returns when not taking for one day)."