Dementia Related Post

Citalopram is different again!

Citalopram is used to treat depression mainly. It is known as a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI). You have more likely heard of Prozac, well this is an SSRI too. People know it as the Happy Drug.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, the thing that helps messages pass from one cell to another. SSRIs block this process and thereby increase the levels of Serotonin. It is low levels of Serotonin in the brain that is believed to cause depression, so you can see the logic, increase Serotonin and relieve depression. However, Serotonin is not just in the brain; it is present throughout the body. The highest levels are found in the gut. How SSRIs affect these other organs is unclear.

I’ve been on Citalopram for some time, and I can not remember what for. If it is for depression, well I’ve never been so depressed as I am now.

I was on the recommended dose for depression of 20mg. This last month it has been cut to 10mg.

What I have noticed:

Continual numb headache

Upset stomach and urgency to go

Dizzy spells

Out of space, spatial awareness strange.

Panicking that something is wrong, with me, outside and worse with my son and daughter.

My vision is blurred and has been like this for as long as I can remember. It seems to keep changing for the constant rotating thing to being more jittery.

Lack of taste and strange taste; like sucking an old coin

Worst of all, I have had several blackout/seizures. I’m not sure if they are seizures as it seems different. I’m not aware of them coming on, but when I recover, I seem more on high, panicking to get moving, my heart beats erratically, and I cannot switch off.

Sleep is terrible, and I keep waking to something all the time.

This is the second week, so I’m hoping it will start to settle. The doctor has said not to change anything over the next month. I think he is right. I’ve changed a few things, and I need to let my body settle and get used to this state before I move on to the next.

Please comment on anything I have said. Thank You!

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