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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by freelante on March 24, 2006, at 13:04:47
I started to take effexor at first was good result for all my pain.. social phobia and depression but I became too irritable and fight with my husband all the time lot's anger... not too good.. then ask for something less agitated the doc give me lexapro..it's been 2 months on and now the opposit.. no motivation at all feel like staying on the coach all day..not good . I heard taking with willburtin would five me energy and be good toghether.. what should I do? because I can't stop I have to go look for a job and very nervous , without it I want be able to deal with all...
Posted by Racer on March 24, 2006, at 13:47:02
In reply to lexapro no motivation??, posted by freelante on March 24, 2006, at 13:04:47
What do you do? Taking it as a given that you mean, "Aside from talking with my doctor..."?
There are a lot of options for you. It could be that Lexapro is not the drug for you. While the SSRIs are all in one class, all the drugs are a bit different, so if one improves your depression, but has some side effects, you can try another. Prozac and Zoloft are known as the more activating SSRIs, Paxil tends to be more sedating (but better for anxiety), etc. So, trying another SSRI is definitely an option.
If Effexor improved your depression and anxiety, you could also try Cymbalta. It's a newer drug in the same class, which is being touted as having fewer side effects. (Although, frankly, it hasn't seemed overwhelmingly effective for many people, either. It does help many, though.)
Adding Wellbutrin to Lexapro is certainly an option, although it can increase anxiety for a lot of people. Also, while it may be activating, that doesn't mean that it will actually counter the sort of lethargy that you seem to be describing. In real life, things that make sense don't always happen with these drugs. :-} It may be worth a try, though.
Other options involve things like going back on Effexor, if it was effective for you, but adding in a drug like Buspar to counter the irritability. Again, might work. Also, switching to a different class of drug might be a good option. There are newer drugs like Remeron, or older drugs like nortriptyline or desipramine, or if you're willing to adjust your diet to accommodate them, the MAOIs are often thought to be the most effective AD of all. (The dietary restrictions, though, are enough to keep some people away from them.)
You're certainly nowhere near the end of your options, and I wish you luck with your doctor.
(Forgot to mention: if your GP is prescribing for you, get a referral to a psychiatrist. They know more about these drugs, and about the symptoms they are most likely to address. It's worth it, even if you have your GP continue the prescribing longer term once you've found a good treatment.)
Posted by Phillipa on March 24, 2006, at 20:15:08
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by Racer on March 24, 2006, at 13:47:02
Luvox is sedating but at higher doses supposed to give energy but wellbutrin seem to be very popular for energy. Love Phillipa
Posted by bart on March 24, 2006, at 21:33:26
In reply to lexapro no motivation??, posted by freelante on March 24, 2006, at 13:04:47
try asking about provigil (modafinil). It's supposedly schedule Iv drug but good for daytime sleepiness and lack of alertness
Posted by Meri-Tuuli on March 25, 2006, at 2:44:52
In reply to lexapro no motivation??, posted by freelante on March 24, 2006, at 13:04:47
Personally, I was on celexa (which is almost identical to lexapro) and it made me really tired with no motivation whatsoever and everything was a huge effort......I think it is the lexapro making you tired. I would talk to my doc about switching meds or adding something else in the mix. When I was taking the celexa, I was convinced that the tiredness was just me being 'lazy'. Now I know it was the drug....
Good luck.
Posted by freelante on March 27, 2006, at 12:25:43
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by Meri-Tuuli on March 25, 2006, at 2:44:52
I think that what is was,, it wasn't the right one for me. Because I change to effexor and right away I feel to get up out the house, read and play with my baby. I have energy back and feel better, but at the end of the day I feel I still get a little irritable and impatient, I 'm scared that I will get the anger again, last time when my husband started to argue with me and we we're fighting out of the blue I started to get real angry and want to punch him? Let say I'm already short temper but I dont know if the drug is making worst or what ,,, we were moving at the time , I was stress.. I dont know maybe it's a sign of bipolar or mania??
Posted by Racer on March 27, 2006, at 13:23:59
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by freelante on March 27, 2006, at 12:25:43
It could be bipolar -- irritability can be a symptom of hypomania. Of course, it could just be that your husband was driving you crazy-er during an already stressful time... (Remember: just because we suffer mental illness, does not mean that we're not allowed to be angry, or even impatient and annoyed by unhelpful spouses...)
If the Effexor helps more than the Lexapro, but you still get irritable in the evenings, it might be worth talking to your doctor about augmenting it with a drug like Lamictal -- which works as a mood stabilizer and might help; or Buspar, which works as an anxiolytic. But I certainly wouldn't go from a mostly effective medication to one that you can't function on, just because of a little residual symptomology...
Good luck.
Posted by freelante on March 27, 2006, at 20:29:38
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by Racer on March 27, 2006, at 13:23:59
thank, it's true since I know I have a problem I been trying so hard to change to become a better person , I can't help to think that it's mostly all my fault for our fights . it get very confusing sometime and I have nobody to talk to about this.. My husband can't handle that, I don't want him to know I take the pills because I'm afraid one day if I leave him he would take my baby from me. I will try to join a group to talk. that why I like this site it help alot .
Posted by deniseuk on March 30, 2006, at 9:30:07
In reply to lexapro no motivation??, posted by freelante on March 24, 2006, at 13:04:47
Hi,
I empathise with you, doesn't sound like a good omen to me if two months on and you're still feeling lethargic.
I know when Seroxat stopped working I was having the same symptoms so have come off it cold turkey, I'm hoping that Zyprexa once every 7 days will keep me going instead.
I haven't read the other responses to your post but I expect somebody has suggested adding stimulants or Wellbutrin as there seems to be this theory that when SSRIs make you feel lethargic it's a problem with dopamine, I'm not so sure about this myself.
Can I ask you how much Effexor you were taking when it helped?
Denise
Posted by m72 on March 30, 2006, at 18:18:59
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by deniseuk on March 30, 2006, at 9:30:07
Hi! I was taking lexapro (10 mg) for 2 1/2 months since last december and it seemed to be working well. but the cost was high so when i asked my psychiatrist if there's any other medicine that i could try, he prescribed 10 mg celexa for me. my pharmacist told me and also i read on internet that 10 mg lexapro is actually equivalent to 40 mg of celexa, but when i asked my doctor about it, he denied. i started taking celexa at 10 mg, it was not doing any good, so i asked my doctor and he told me to take 20 mg instead. i've been taking 20 mg since and it's not helping much either. on weekdays while at work i am tired all day, don't feel like talking much with my co-workers, and irritable. on weekends i don't feel like getting off of bed, so i just sleep whole day and then feel miserable about wasting all the time not doing anything. last week when i saw the doctor, i told him how i felt and asked him if i should increase the dose of celexa or go back to lexapro. he suggested that i should try getting more sleep, sleep at the same time every day, and if that doesn't help then see him in four weeks and talk about medicine. i failed to convince him that sleep had nothing to do with it. i am tired of seeing him and paying the specialist co-pay every few days. what he does is he just blabbers on and does not listen to me.
my questions are:
can somebody tell me the difference that they felt between lexapro and celexa? is lexapro a better medicine compared to celexa?
what is the equivalent dose of celexa if compared to 10 mg lexapro?
can i have medicine prescribed by my PCP and avoid going to the psychiatrist so often?
also, i have been having severe sexual side effects from both the medicines. is that normal from these medicines?
please help by shedding some light into these problems.
Posted by m72 on March 30, 2006, at 18:28:05
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by m72 on March 30, 2006, at 18:18:59
i forgot to mention something; from the pharmacy they have given me generic citalopram instead of celexa; could that have something to do about the medicine being ineffective?
Posted by freelante on March 31, 2006, at 0:23:07
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by deniseuk on March 30, 2006, at 9:30:07
Hi Denise, I started with 25 and then when up to 37 once a day. but I remember reading that the suggesting dose was 75 per day. so for 2 weeek I tried 37 twice a day,,, maybe that's why. I must be very sensative... so now I started again my effexor and it's been 5 days I feel good much more motivated , clean the house ,go take walk outside, I 'm really happy about that only in 5 days I see a difference , I been taking xanax once a day at bed time with it. seem to work good , I will ask doc to give me buspar instead supposly it's better with it... will see... I hope it good.
Posted by freelante on March 31, 2006, at 0:30:40
In reply to Re: lexapro no motivation??, posted by m72 on March 30, 2006, at 18:28:05
hey, m72,, I use celexa long time ago, and recently the lexapro and it did the exact same feeling for me.. sleepy no motivation and it didnt' even help for depression too. so since I try effexor I think it's better for me , I wasnt sure at first but now the more the days go I'm sure I feel much better, just hang in there and keep trying different , I'm sure you don't have to get brand name for efficacity... I will chedk on that too, much cheaper...
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