Hi, Dianne here, age 46, long time sufferer of anxiety/depression.?

Question

I've upped my Lexapro from 10 mg to 15 mg. I've been on the 15mg for about 3 weeks. Still very depressed, won't go out of the house, can't go to work. Lexaporo's pamphlet says to take 10mg for severe depression. My therapist says that I might need to be on 50 mg? I am afraid of all the weight gain etc. I was on Paxil for 17 years for anxiety with great success, but it stopped working. Anyone have any suggestions.....I really don't want to be on anything. I have such bad symptoms that I can hardly function. I am in a bad marriage and I'm going through memopause. I have a clean bill of physical health????

Any suggestions......I am so afraid of weight gain. Should I give the Lexapro more time......I've been on it since Dec. Hormones are "within range" which sounds silly to me since I'm menopausal???

Answer 1

If you're afraid of weight gain, stay away from Seroquel. I gained 50 pounds in a year.

Now I take Wellbutrin 300 mg and Zoloft 200 mg for major depression, Ativan 2 mg for panic attacks and Abilify 10 mg for schizophrenia.

My meds have been working for 5 years now. You have made me aware that they don't work forever and someday I could be a real basket case.

At first I only took half the dose that I take now. I had to be repeatedly hospitalized until my doctor doubled my meds. That really worked good for me.

Maybe it's a good idea for you to increase your Lexapro. If that doesn't work, you probably need to change medications. Don't give up. It took me 5 years to find my meds.

Answer 2

Your concerns are not unwarranted. Many studies show higher effectiveness with the addition of a second anti-depressant rather then just increasing the level of a single one. This is also more efficatious if the medications are from different classes with different mechnisms of action. Lexapro's effectiveness in only linearly based up to 30mg per day. Anything higher than this would not be beneficial. I have never had anyone taking more than 20mg/day before adding another medication. The lexapro may also not be working that well for you because it belongs to the same class as Paxil.

A very good anti-depressant that works well with the SSRI class that Lexapro belongs to is Wellbutrin. Studies have shown a marked response with respect to depresive tendancies when Wellbutrin has been added to another anti-depressant. Wellbutrin is well tolerated and is not associated with many side effects. Weight gain is minimal, if any. The only side effect to worry about is if you smoke. Smoking lowers the seizure threshold. Smoking while taking Wellbutrin can predispose someone to seizures. Wellbutrin also makes an ER (extended release) formula so that it only has to be taken once a day. I have seen very good results from this combination. Talk to your therapist about this option and see what they think. If you still have questions, contact your regular doctor for more answers.

Hope this helps

Good luck!

Answer 3

If you've been on it since dec with no results, then it's time to try something else. My sister took Lexapro (or something similar) and did gain a bit of weight. This affected her greatly, as it would basically anyone.

I have very severe depression/anxiety (sister has severe depression). We've been on and off several medications and are not on the same ones. Each individual has a different chemical imbalance and will have different reactions to the medications.

I stopped wanting to get together with my friends and had no motivation to go out and get a job or join some groups for fun. (am currently in college) I stayed inside the house and slept. Only in the last month have I been able to overcome this with the help of the medications I'm on.

Currently I'm on the highest dose of effexor possible and paxil. I also am taking xanax. It's excellent in calming all your nerves and making you feel very relaxed. It can become addictive, but that's true for nearly every depression med.

I know you don't want to be on medications. (i know i don't!) But first get medications to get yourself on the right track towards recovery. Then, as you continue to work with your therapist and doctor, you might later on be able to gradually lower your dosage and maybe even stop completely.

Answer 4

Hi, Dianne. Stacia here, 44, long time suffer of depression which ultimately turned out to be bipolar. Gotta love a good misdiagnosis!

Hate to say it, but the best weight control method on ADs is the same as in regular life. Well, it's compounded by menopause, which is so unfair. Watch what you eat and try to shave a few calories off. Exercise regularly. A lot of weight gain due to ADs is actually due more to depression, not caring about food eaten, and reduced exercise/metabolism. Don't allow munchies from the beginning (that can sometimes be due to the med).

Depending how Lex treats your depression, you could also talk to your doc about adding a little Wellbutrin to the picture. The thing about Wellbutrin, though, is that it can increase anxiety for some. You might want to talk to your OB about hormone therapy IF your mood gets substantially worse. As you probably know, hormones can have an influence on mood, and it's good that you got them checked. I'm assuming that you already did the obvious checks on thyroid, sugar levels, and so forth. When those are off, mood can be effected, and of course, so can weight.

There are a lot of other ADs out there. Lex is supposed to be one with a low side effect profile, but if it doesn't work, then move on to something else.

As for weight loss, if you find a healthy short cut, publish! You'll make millions. ;-)

Answer 5

Just because you are menopausal does not mean you have no hormones. Your body has more estrogen receptors aside from the ovaries and they also create their own estrogen once you are fully into "the change".
I take a 20mg dose of Lexapro daily so 15mgs is not a scary dosage. It is not uncommon for some people to go up to 40 or 50mgs.
I would stick it out and keep with the Lexapro dosage increase. Communication with your doctor is key. If you do not have a Psychiatrist treating you, I would recommend getting one. My General Practitioner is a great regular doc but a horrible Psych doc. My Pdoc literally saved my life!

It is not within reason to stop medication completely, judging from the desperation in your Q. Once you get on the right med you will not mind taking it- believe me.

Answer 6

Hi Dianne,
I'm a 24 year old recovering bulimic with depression, anxiety and OCD. In the beginning of my recovery I was doing amazing. It wasn't until I went to a undereducated Psychiatrist that I started getting severe anxiety and depression. He put me on Lexapro then took me off for a period then put me back on. Lexapro made me feel completely helpless and emotionless. I never wanted to leave the house and at one point when I was taking a shower I thought I was a demon. It made me think incredibly dark thoughts and I became suicidal. My usual therapist sent me to a Psychiatrist because she wanted me on Adderall, not depression meds. I'm now on Adderall and doing much better. But now I suffer from anxiety because of the experience I had on Lexapro. I get scared if I have the slightest bit of foreign feelings because I think I'll have a dark spell again...the anxiety kicks in real fast. Please ask your doctor if there are any other types of meds you can take. I would never suggest Lexapro to anyone. A lot of my friends have taken it and they've all said that it too was a terrible experience.

Answer 7

Have you gained weight since december? If you have been on lexapro since december and haven't gained weight already I wouldn't worry about gaining more weight. This medication affects people in different ways and may not cause you to gain any weight ever. I would give the lexapro more time. If you still feel bad in another 2 weeks or so go to the doctor again and see if she can increase your dose again or put you on a different medication that you might respond to better. Hope you get to feeling better.

Answer 8

Hey, Dianne, could the menopause be exacerbating your depression? My understanding of menopause (and I'm only in my late 30s, so I have a few more years to go) is that your hormones go a little whacky. And you can gain weight from that, too.

If you're so bad you can't function, being on medicine that allows you a measure of normalcy is better than being incapacitated. Maybe if you find medicine that helps you enough, you can add an exercise program (even if it's just walking) to offset the weight gain.

And being in a bad marriage can also exacerbate emotional problems, too.

Answer 9

I've heard a saying that there are two kinds of drug abuse; one is where you take something you shouldn't, one is where you don't take something you SHOULD. When my now-ex was first diagnosed with bipolar disorder, she didn't like the idea of taking medicine for the rest of her life, but accepted that she was going to have to. Her example made it easier for me to accept the same thing when I was being diagnosed (one of which is chronic major depression).

First, don't worry about the weight. I doublechecked at http://www.rxlist.com (an excellent resource, BTW--it's affiliated with WebMD) and there are no weight issues connected with Lexapro. Only thing close was that 3% of the folks in the clinical trials had appetite LOSS. Wish I had gotten that side-effect. I also take Lexapro, 20 mg/day along with Wellbutrin SR, 300mg/day. Before I started on the Wellbutrin, I was on 30 mg/day of Lexapro and that was barely keeping my head above water depression-wise. When I was on 20 mg/day of Lexapro alone, I was not doing very well. It took the higher dosage to be effective.

Not being a doctor but being a well-informed patient, I'd suggest you let 'em increase your Lexapro as needed to a max of 30 mg/day before trying something else. I say 30 mg/day because according to my psychiatrist, that's the maximum approved dosage. I was surprised that your therapist suggested 50 mg/day.

Now you may find yourself in 1luv's position. In reading over her answer, I don't think her problem was the Lexapro itself but the nature of her depression. There are three brain chemicals involved in depression; serotonin, norephenipherine and dopamine. Lexapro addresses serotonin only, which for many people is exactly what they need. I take Adderall for ADHD and found that it, along with the Lexapro helped with the depression. Lexapro didn't do much w/o the Adderall. One day I told my psychologist that and he said that Adderall boosts dopamine levels. BINGO! I'd been doing some reading on my own about Wellbutrin and knew that it addresses dopamine levels. I talked with my Pdoc about it and we tried adding Wellbutrin to the mix. It worked! 1luv, your depression may be more dopamine-related than serotonin-related. That may be why Lexapro didn't help and Adderall did.

As for Lexapro being a "terrible" medicine, only thing I'll say is that I'd take Lexapro any day over Effexor XR which I took before I went on Lexapro. It wasn't so much the being ON Effexor XR as coming OFF it. I was so easily angered during downward titration that I was biting heads off left and right. The "consumers" I run with haven't had bad experiences with Lexapro to my knowledge.

Answer 10

Dianne, i think that if you get marriage counseling or if absolutely necessary get out of the marriage, it may help your anxiety and depression. i'm sure you've heard that before though. my mom is going through the same thing. even though i'm 35 years old, it stresses me out to know that my mom has to go through these things. i'm so sorry that you are going through this. maybe if you changed meds. perhaps something as old school as Prozac. i had no weight gain with that one. everybody is different though. menopause will cause weight gain so it's hard to tell if it would be from meds or menopause. you're in my prayers.