Alternatives to lexapro

Afternoon y'all!

I have a question for anyone who's been on lexapro. I was on it for a month five years ago when my anxiety became unmanageable without medication. I know you have to allow 6-8 weeks to see the therapeutic effects of an SSRI, but that month on 10mg was horrendous. I slept 13+ hours ever night, fell asleep every time I sat down for longer than 10 minutes, and had a ravenous appetite with zero weight gain. As a college student then and a grad student now, that is unacceptable. I would not be safe to drive or do my job. I don't remember if it stopped my racing thoughts, but I think every time I was about to enter an anxious fugue I got a brainzap instead. The brainzaps lasted for a whole year after I weaned myself off of it. As soon as I got on, I was off that crazy ride.

I was in counseling then and I'm back in counseling now with a certified counselor (not a p-doc) and I do all of the self-help and meditation I can. However, it's not cutting it. I can see where my personality end and my chemical imbalance begin for the first time in my life but I'm afraid of lexapro, seemingly everyone's wonder-drug. My main concern is getting a handle on the crazy/obsessive/racing thoughts that I can't seem to control for the life of me. As soon as my body begins the wake up process, they start and don't stop.

Has anyone had a similar reaction to lexapro or a cousin drug? What medication did you try next?

Note: I'm currently navigating my insurance policy and health-care providers, but no one can see me until September--yikes. So I'm doing as much research as I can beforehand to get the most out of my visit.

Hi SC,

How weird. I can't believe fluvoxamine never popped up on my radar. It appears to be a generation earlier than lexapro, but approved to treat a wider variety of symptoms. I have experienced a general trend of reacting more favorably to "older" medications so this might just follow. OCD and GAD are the two birds I'd love to hit with one stone. I've been seriously down lately but I know that my mood would definitely lighten if I could just get my dang brain back on track. I will definitely bring this up in future doctor's appointments. Thank you so much!

Hi

Have you looked into the SNRI's? Such as Effexor and Cymbalta?

Prozac is a good one for OCD I am currently on 60mg and found it worked well for my OCD but i'm at the pooped out stage so looking into alternatives myself.

Keep us posted.

Hibee

Hi Hardicat

It seems to be common practice now for pdoc to prescribe a combination of meds but only after you have tried a few on their own with no success.

I have been on a cocktail of ,medications for the last couple of years and have found them to be effective. I am currently on a Prozac/Mirtazapine (Remeron)combo which as I mentioned has been really good but seems to have stopped working which I think is due to a big set back I had at the end of last year which ran into the bagging of this year.

Mirtazapine is the best AD to mix with others as it does not cause any interactions and the famous mix is Effexor with Mirtaxapine which gets nicknamed Californian Rocket Fuel do a search on the web. I would definitely recommend starting with one medication and take it from there.

Hibee

Hi SD

I have been on Prozac for 2yrs.

Hibee

I m on Lexapro and Pristiq ,but I have days I can barely function.

I wanna get rid of Ambien ,as it has serious side effects.

Substitute for Lexapro ...you can try Just Pristiq if you have insurance.

It's good for depression n anxiety.i am on both but will be on just one soon.

Ask your doc.

i understand hibee-hope you can find a combo thats effective. and chilly- i loved ambien. i couldnt have gotten well with out it.