I have been on Lexapro for about 5 weeks. After two weeks I started feeling great, now in the last week, I am down again. Is it possible it stopped working? Or never worked? I am on 10mg.
I liked it because I had hardly no side effects from it.
Has anyone had this issue before?
Thanks
2006-11-15 22:45:59 · 7 answers · asked by Kay M 2 in Health ➔ Mental Health
weeks is a pretty short test period. You should discuss all issues with the doctor but you also have to give it plenty of time to work. Finding the correct antidepressant can be hit and miss. With some people it can mean going to 5-6 different ones before finding the one that works best for you. 10 mg is a fairly low dose. Try talking to your doc about it, tell him/her exactly what you wrote here. If things don't improve they'll probably either change your med or increase the dose.
2006-11-15 22:58:38 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lexapro is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). Essentially, the drug prevents the neurotransmitter serotonin from being naturally recycled in your brain, keeping it available for a longer period of time, making you feel less depressed. SSRI's are the most common amongst the antidepressants and they can take anywhere from 1 - 2 months to work, depending on the drug/dosage/person.
While Lexapro is known to show fast result, compared to other SSRI's, however, for any antidepressant, it's a good idea to stick with it for 1 - 2 months before you give up.
As per your question; is it possible for it to stop working? The answer is Yes. There are many different types of reuptake inhibitors available, where the class of drugs is relatively new and it's been discovered that it's not uncommon for the reuptake to stop working.
Run this information by your Dr. where you can work together to decide if you should stay on it for a little while or switch to a different medication.
I've taken Lexapro and it took about a month before I felt the effects full blast.
2006-11-16 00:45:58 · answer #2 · answered by Altruist 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your body can build up resistance against certain chemicals the more frequently you take them... No matter whether you think they're helping you originally or not, your liver will treat the chemicals as foreign substances that are interrupting the functioning of the body... and cleanse them from the system. The more you put in, the greater the chance that the liver will be getting used to it and become far more efficient at breaking it down. Eventually it will just be chewing up all the Lexapro (or whatever) that you're putting in there and destroying it the moment it gets inside you..... which would be why it isn't working.
If you lay off it for a while... switch to something else and then go back.... your body's defences toward it might have eased off a little.
Then again, I don't particularly approve of the use of anti-depressants. They're just as much a means of escaping reality as happiness is. By definition reality IS hopeless and pointless... and to escape it rather than appreciating it for that very simplicity isn't going to do you any favours in the long run.
2006-11-15 23:09:52 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
Ofcourse. That's why I stopped it.
It is easy to tolerate and works good in the first 3 weeks. But it stops working after 4 or 5 weeks. You can increase the dose when you get relapse but the same thing will happen after 5 weeks ! You can try upto 20mg, but you may get the same problem with any dose. I recommend you to switch the antidepressant. Mirtazapine and Bupropion XL are good options. They are safer than SSRIs.
Lexapro may induce mania at higher doses (>20mg)
2006-11-16 01:06:56 · answer #4 · answered by Ajeesh Kumar 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It could be time to up your dose. Often, on the new SSRIs, you must start at a relatively low level (10 mgs is low) to get used to it, then up to 20 mgs and stay there for months or years, depending on the person.
I had the same thing when I was on too low of a dose of Celexa for anxiety disorder. Upped the dose, felt good again in a week or 2.
2006-11-15 23:09:44 · answer #5 · answered by P-nuts and Hair-dos 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yeah i have this problem with most of them,now they have me on efexorn an equalizer,,for the ups and downs,,but now i cant sleep. the longer they keep changing my meds the crazier i go
2006-11-15 22:51:42 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
you havent taken the time to read your own pamphlets that come with the mediation why?
Orrrrrr heres the kicker...google it.
tada..see how easy that was aside from waiting for responses to your question. Points to temple.
2006-11-16 00:54:49 · answer #7 · answered by bolo 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋