BrickT Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Hi, I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety about to weeks ago by my pdoc. He had me start on Lexapro, which graduated to 15mg in two weeks. It doesn't seem to have affected either my depression or anxiety, with some side effects, mainly fatigue. I had my second visit with the pdoc this morning and when I reported that there has not been any impact aside from side effects, he decided to reduce the dosage of Lexapro to 10mg and started me on Cymbalta (30mg/day for 7 days; 60mg/day after). I was surprised that he decided to prescribe a new med so soon. From what I've read, you're supposed to give the SSRIs at least 4-6 weeks to determine if they work. I'm hesitant to blindly follow his advice because of the side effects and withdrawal experiences with Cymbalta. I'd don't want to commit to the treatment if I haven't given the Lexapro adequate time. I definitely want to feel "normal" as soon as possible, but it just seems a bit soon to start on multiple meds. Am I being overly cautious? Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Thanks in advance for any feedback. It's much appreciated. BT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helenllama Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 I'd agree. When I was on Cipralex (lexapro) I hate to wait a month before going from 10mg to 20mg. (15mg just not done in the UK) I think something is going on a you are changing things before giving the meds fully time to work. SSRI's need the month at least to work, and the side effects at that point will have gone away. So yes things may be a bit hasty if as I believe you were only on the meds for two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancesintherain Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 You're right that standard par for the course is 6 to 8 weeks...and two weeks is incredibly short. It's also less likely to feel any good effects during the very beginning...and side effects will frequently go away after the first bit. So in short, I'd agree with you about possibly being a bit more cautious. That said, your psychiatrist is recommending otherwise, so I'd be cautious about doing something different without consulting him. Can you call and say you want to talk through this a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrickT Posted November 30, 2009 Author Share Posted November 30, 2009 I'd agree. When I was on Cipralex (lexapro) I hate to wait a month before going from 10mg to 20mg. (15mg just not done in the UK) I think something is going on a you are changing things before giving the meds fully time to work. SSRI's need the month at least to work, and the side effects at that point will have gone away. So yes things may be a bit hasty if as I believe you were only on the meds for two weeks. Thank you. Yes, it's only been two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrickT Posted November 30, 2009 Author Share Posted November 30, 2009 You're right that standard par for the course is 6 to 8 weeks...and two weeks is incredibly short. It's also less likely to feel any good effects during the very beginning...and side effects will frequently go away after the first bit. So in short, I'd agree with you about possibly being a bit more cautious. That said, your psychiatrist is recommending otherwise, so I'd be cautious about doing something different without consulting him. Can you call and say you want to talk through this a bit? That's definitely a concern. Yes, I've left a couple messages and am waiting for a call. Thanks very much for the response. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenebrae Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 i agree with everyone else, you have to give it a full 6-8 weeks, but i also know that when lexapro proved to be ineffective for me, cymbalta did do the trick. just be careful with the transition. mine was ugly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrickT Posted December 1, 2009 Author Share Posted December 1, 2009 i agree with everyone else, you have to give it a full 6-8 weeks, but i also know that when lexapro proved to be ineffective for me, cymbalta did do the trick. just be careful with the transition. mine was ugly. That's good to know. I'm going to hold off on the new med until I talk with my doctor again. Thanks for the feedback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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