Tuesday, July 08, 2008 Karin Petropolis asks

Q: Celexa for GAD?

For years I got dizzy out of nowhere and felt anxious at times or restless. Then a year ago I had severe stress at work and my parents got very sick and in addition I couldn't help much as they live abroad and I had a two year old very active child to take care of. I started getting all sorts of health problems, muscle spasms, dizziness, breathing problems, constant nausea, heart palputations. Every doctor told me that they couldn't find anything. I got so stressed out about my own health problems that I kept monitoring my own health the whole time and now that my father seems so ill we are believing he will go sometime this year my body is out of control. I am anxious nonstop and the doctor prescribed me Xanax for anxiety attacks. Yesterday he prescribed me Celexa and told me he suspects I have depression issues. I don't feel depressed and don't sit in a corner and cry, but I am worried and stressed and anxious all the time and my mind is going 180 miles an hour.

I believe I have an underlying General Anxiety disorder and might have a mild depression on top of that. Is Celexa the right medication. The reason why I am asking is because it didn't seem approved by the FDA for anxiety issues. My friend is taking Paxil and can't seem to stop it without severe side effects. And another one is taking Zoloft and feels spaced out all the time, so I don't want to take those. What is your opinion on that?

Answers (4)

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Richard G. Wirtz, Psy.D.

7/ 8/08 9:32pm

Hi Karin - It appears fairly clear that you have an anxiety disorder of some form and should really get a thorough assessment from a mental health professional. Although I am not a psychiatrist I work with many clients with a variety of anxiety disorders and medications are often useful to lower their anxiety symptoms enough that they can then begin to learn some cognitive behavioral approaches to manage their anxiety. Celexa is an antidepressant in the SSRI family and research has shown that this family can be helpful with anxiety as well as depression. Unfortunately, there is no specific test which identifies which of the various medications in this family will be most beneficial for any given person. Therefore, whether Celexa will work for you will only be determined by taking it, getting the dose to a therapeutic level and holding it there long enough to evaluate its effectiveness. Our bodies metabolize medications differently and so what works for one may not work for others. Paxil and Zoloft are both very effective but,again,they affect people differently.

Dr. Rick Wirtz

KRAZYKAT

7/16/08 6:23pm

Hi,

I have taken Celexa for GAD, but then through trial and error found that the Lexapro works for me much better. It is (I believe) in the same family of meds. But to me that didn't matter as long as it works. I am not groggy or sleepy or anything from this one. I like it, it has been just over a year since I started it. And I don't cry or make sooo many things such a big deal..if you know what I mean.

casey

12/ 6/08 2:43am

i am on celexa i noticed once your on it for a while it makes you feel really anxious. to fix that my doctor gave me a higher dose. when it works right its sapposed to give you energy during the day and help you sleep at night, not make you wanna pace the floors

Laura

2/12/09 7:20am

Karin,

You wrote this a while ago, but this is so close to what I experienced that I had to write. I could have written your email myself! Though instead of my parents being ill, my father-in-law died suddenly. I didn't feel depressed at all - just very anxious. My psychiatrist, a directory of research and well known psychiatrist in the field of anxiety & health anxiety, was optimistic that an SSRI would work and acted as if it was no big deal to be using an SSRI (medically, healthwise). I did, apprehensively, go on Celexa for 9 months and it helped immensely. My anxieth decreased signficantly and my physical aches and pains even went away, which I didn't expect! I weaned myself this summer to get pregnant but after a few months my anxiety came back so I'm considering going back on it (and not getting pregnant) - though this time maybe Lexapro as I think it has even fewer side effects. Note: it is important to go on and off of Celexa (or any SSRI) VERY gradually. I did so and had no problems ramping up or down. Good luck to you and anyone else reading this!

- Laura

Q: Celexa for GAD?

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