Has anyone taken Lexapro for depression? Did it work for you? Any side effects?

Question

I'm on 20mg a day for 4-6 months.

woah, Michon- that is NOT normal. Antidepressants are supposed to stop that, not start it! Thats a side effect that can rarely show up in people under 25. You need to change your medicaiton, asap

Answer 1

Lexapro does work fairly effectively for many people. Of course, there is no anti-depressant that is 100 percent effective. Twenty mg is a low dose - if it isn't working well for you after taking for 4-6 months, it is time to talk to your doctor about re-evaluating the dose.
Side effects are: feeling tired, changes in blood pressure, headaches, dry mouth, insomnia, changes in appetite or sex drive. Some serious side effects can be: irregular heartbeat or allergic reactions - like swelling of the tongue. If so, consult your doctor.

Answer 2

I was on 10mg of Lexapro for about 5-6 weeks along with Lorazepam for my anxiety/panic attacks. The lorazepam began working right away but the Lexapro didn't do much at all. I was bumped up to 20mg of Lexapro and I began feeling better after about another 1-2 weeks. There was a major difference in my attitude and I found I only had thoughts of suicide once or twice a day (compared to every 10 minutes before) I still don't feel that it's quite enough but I plan on speaking to my doctor about it. I've been on Lexapro for almost 3 months.

I never had any side effects from the Lexapro other than nausea/diarrhea for the first three days, then again for a day or two when the dosage was raised. I have been experiencing 'dry mouth' recently but I attribute that to having just changed from lorazepam to clonazepam a few days ago.

Lexapro is only the second antidepressant I've ever taken. I was on 200mgs of Zoloft for about a year and a half and it did very little for me, almost nothing. Lexapro has been very good so far.

Answer 3

I have depression and anxiety. The anxiety is worse than the depression. When I started to take Lexapro 2 weeks ago, it helped the depression right away. Unfortunately, when you're getting used to the drug, it can increase the anxiety until you have been taking it for 2 weeks. I was put on Lorazapam for the 2 weeks to control the anxiety. The only side effect I've had is constipation. I've been upping my water intake and fiber to help it. It seems to be the right one for me.

Proof of how different a drug can be for two people, Leona mentions that Lexapro makes her sleep. It actually makes me hyper.

I was started on Effexor XR and after 2 days I was ragingly sick and couldn't stay awake.

Like people have already told you, each person is completely different. That is why there are so many different types of medicaitons out there. What's important is you mention EVERY effect you have with you doctor until you find the right one.

Answer 4

First, only 4-6 months seems like a short period of drug therapy. You generally have to be medicated for a year or longer to get sustained results. You risk relapse if you discontinue therapy too soon and once you've experienced depression, a relapse is often more severe and less receptive to drug therapy.

I have taken prozac, zoloft, remeron, giodan, effexor, wellbutrin and lexapro. Prozac makes me combative. Zoloft makes me a zombie. Remeron reduced my inhibitions to the point it was getting me into trouble. On giodan I had a psychotic break. Gastric problems with wellbutrin. Effexor is the most effective drug therapy I have tried, but it caused a significant increase in my blood pressure which was already high. Lexapro doesn't work as effectively, but at least my BP is down and I'm not a zombie, psychotic or throwing up all the time.

EVERY person responds differently to the various medications available for treating depression. If lexapro isn't particularly effective for you, talk to your doctor. There are literally hundreds of medications available and one of them should improve your symptoms and therefore improve your life.

Answer 5

I am taking this medication for depression.Yes, it's working for me. So far the only side effects I have is that I sleep most of the day. But I am glad that I am receiving some kind of help. You can look under Lexapro to see the different kinds of side effects this medicine have in general.

Answer 6

well i am taking lexapro and it works great with me i do have some of the side affects like wanting to hrut my self but then it goes away over all it works just fine for me .