I have been taking prozac for 3 months and I am concerned about some of the side effects
It has been great and has made me feel really good. I have more energy, I started back walking every day and I have lost 22 pounds. I do feel sleepy, but I have adjusted the time I take it and I have no trouble falling asleep at night. I have also noticed increased sweating, especially in my hands and feet. However, I have frequent headaches, ringing in my ears and have a hard time concentrating at work. Sometimes it is literally hard to make myself sit still at my desk. I am a social worker and I write grants so I need to concentrate. I am 45, recently divorced (again) and have a 16 year-old daughter at home and a 19 year-old daughter in college. I take 40 mg a day. Should I be concerned? I have also noticed I have a hard time reading, but I can crochet for hours and play computer games for hours without getting tired. I take 40 mg per day. I am taking this for depression and bulimia. Help!
Hello;
My name is Jean and I have been a clinical social worker for more than 10 years, providing therapy primarily for persons expereincing debilitating mental illnesses of many types.
They symptoms of fatigue, and sweating, are sometimes side effects of an antidepressant medication. Concentration decrease, is not typically.
Here are some things you can think through and discuss with your Doctor, as they are your your specialist in this case and no advise from a lay person should be above theirs.
Due to ongoing concentration difficulties.....ask you doctor if you need to have your medication increased a bit more to help concentration or is another medication possibly better for you ?
Most of my clients have debilitating types of mental illness with complicating factors, not the least of which is Depression. What I notice in your complicating factors includes single parenthood, divorce, and bullemia.
Please be honest with your Doctor about your bullemia, if you have not yet. This will enable the Doctor to determine the need for possible lab work to determine whether nutritional needs are being met in your body. If nutrition has declined, then electrolytes get thrown off and other important body functions are typically effected as well...not the least of which is that depression is likely to increase.
Conecting with a good clinician and working through the reasons behind your bullemia (often issues of not having control in life at some time in the past or present/victimization , ect. can be the source) can be integral to effectively reducing emotional pain & achieving a positive sense of self . If you get to the reason and work openly with a knowledgable and supportive therapist you may be able to kick the Bullemia and then your Depression may be more easily treatable. Taking medication without having therapy is not as often likely to work. The two in tandem can have you feeling better much faster!
Best wishes for you.
Jean
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You are right in assuming that there is a problem. The headaches, sweating, and hypermotility can all be due to the medication. You need an adjustment. Prozac is in a family of antidepressants, and you need to switch to one of it's cousins, like Paxil. Prozac is designed to give you energy, for patients who sleep too much as a result of their depression. It's allied antidepressants do not do that. You need to see your doctor and get changed over. I am a Clinical Psychologist and a life-long depression and anxiety sufferer. I also tried Prozac, and found the increased energy aggravated my anxiety. I switcheed to another SSRI antidepressant, Paxil. rar1951
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