citalopram possible side effects

I may be lambasted by others here who have had enough of my nutritional-deficiency talk, but as no one else has replied to you, I didn't want to see you left dangling here.

I am aware of how unconventional this sounds and it probably isn't what you want to hear, but please try dipping into my topic called "Change your diet, change your life" with the links and info there before you dismiss what I say completely.

My opinion is this. Psychotropic drugs are toxic. They flood your system with serotonin, which can cause all kinds of problems, and there is no scientific basis for the belief that a lack of serotonin (or any other neurotransmitter) is what causes mental illness in the first place.

Yes I think it's very likely that the citalopram is causing your jaw snapping. It's also likely that in time it will exacerbate your heart condition, as well as doing other unpleasant things like making you prone to developing type II diabetes. My best advice to you is to taper off of it very slowly, avoid taking any more of this kind of medication, and work on addressing the core cause of the depression. Positive changes in diet, and taking vitamins, are what I believe to be the way to good health; and also counselling and cognitive-behavioural therapy can help too, depending on what your individual issues are.

I'm sorry I can't be more help but this is what I feel you need to do in your situation.

Best,
Linda.

The doctor will recognise this as a typical side effect of an antidepressant and switch the antidepressant he's on. If this is the preferred solution then fine.

Hi there Sunnysky,

I'm afraid you'll find it rather quiet here at the moment. People are enjoying their summers :)

You say you're looking for a way to cope with SAD without antidepressants. You'll find my ideas about this in the subject titled Change Your Diet, Change Your Life.

I don't know what the person who started this particular subject has decided to do, or if he's reading what people have written here, but I just wanted to comment on the extract from the citalopram leaflet that you printed here.

People need to keep in mind that pharmaceutical companies want to sell their drugs, and they will not print anything negative about the drugs unless they absolutely have to. The fact that they mention suicide at all reflects years of litigation and thousands of cases. They will say that nothing is proven -- anyone can claim that it was "the depression" not "the drug" -- but they have still been made to put black boxes on antidepressants saying they are unsuitable for under-18s because of possible risk of suicide. Recently the makers of Paxil/Seroxat have been made to increase the age range. Unfortunately thousands of young people are still given these medications despite the risks.

I do not accept that 1 in 5 or 1 in 6 people develop side effects on these mdications. Most clinical trials on these kinds of drugs are done by the drug companies themselves, and they know all the tricks of the trade for obtaining the desired outcomes in these trials. (See a recent article I posted in Change Your Diet, Change Your Life about this if you want to know more.) I do know that I had the same horrible litany of side effects with every medication I tried, and I tried several; and it is hard to find a single person who can say that they are completely side-effect free on these drugs. My doctors didn't even ask about the side effects; and when I tried to tell them, they didn't want to know.

The withdrawal effects are of course underplayed too. I could list hundreds here, and sometimes some of them can last for years. Sometimes there is permanent damage done. These things do fortunately creep into the news from time to time. Recently on the BBC news site there was an article linking long-term use of Cipramil to something called metabolic syndrome, which can include high blood pressure and type II diabetes.

I belong a list where people go to get off these drugs and heal through nutrition; I also belong to a list of people who share news and information about SSRIs and sometimes take protest action; some of them have lost loved ones who committed suicide while on antidepressants. They can attest to all the things I've said here.

I don't know if this interests you at all but I thought it needed a response. If I can be of more help to you, please let me know.

Best,
Linda.

I have been on citalopram for six months,I have had the jaw cracking and teeth grinding, the grinding stopped after a while. I didn't want to go on them but the doctor made me realise how depressed I was! after a few changes in my life I wish to come off them I have started to reduce the dose but haven't told my doc yet, but does anyone know whether there are long term after affects from being on these drugs? my biggest dread is putting on weight due to a slowed down metabolic rate!

As well as exercise, eating stimulates your metabolism, so be sure to divide your food through the day rather than just having one big meal per day.

I've just been put on Citalopram off the doctor. I have a tingling sensation in my jaw and glands And they feel puffed up. I've been taking it two days . Also I'm very dizzy . Could this be due to the medication ? The doctors thinks it's nothing to do with the
medication
Thanks

I start on 10mg every other day, then 10g each day, then do 20/10 alternate days etc. Also the same in reverse when I come off them in the spring. I get side effects when I get on them, but it's worth it for how much better I feel 'in myself'.

Feeling a lot better now we are having brighter days, reduced med and not needing as much sleep.

You're welcome. Good luck! :-)