hands up if......

[Guest millicentbystander]

....your on prozac!

ive just been up and down the scale of citralopram and that hasnt worked ive now been perscribed 20mg of prozac and we are going to work up to 80mg (as that is the standard dose for ocd!!!!??????)

can you tell me your experiences and what doseage you are on?

from watching posts over the last few months it doesnt seem a huge amount of people are on it - my phycatrist reckons its the best but then i dont rate him very highly anyway!!!

any info would be great, thanks lots

Mills x

[Ashley]

my phycatrist reckons its the best but then i dont rate him very highly anyway!!!

Hi Mills,

Sorry to be negative, but I would fully agree with your assumption there. Anyone that suggests one medication is better than another for treating OCD either knows something other OCD doctors don't, or does not know what they're talking about.

Medication really is an individual thing Mills, what works for you, might not for someone else, and vica-versa so all I can advise is to see how you go and increase the dosage as and when you need to along with the doctors agreement.

What about CBT, are you receiving any?

Regards,

Ashley

[Guest millicentbystander]

thanks Ashley

i was just being nosey really and wanting to know other peoples experiences!

i am doing cbt but thats all gone abit pear shaped as no one seems to be communicating by that i mean my therapist, cpn, phyciatrist and gp seem incaplable of return each others phone calls. i only found out about my 6 month review through my health visitor, its nice to be invited to my own review!!!!

cbt isnt going so well and at the moment i am struggling (trying really hard tho) with this mindfullness stuff. i find it really hard but im trying to make myself better.

hopefully prozac will help me until i can manage the cbt. im not holding my breath tho!! :lol:

thanks

Mills x

[Guest NatzS]

mills, my hubbie has been on prozac 80mgs for a few months, its not working.

He is getting put on Lustral. We were told by a specialist, that he will need higher than normal doses and be on them for longer before they give up. This advice after 3years trying to find one that works! he suffers severe depression as well as severe health anxiety.

Good luck with yours. Keep pushing till you find the right one. Ive heard good things about paroxetine and OCD.

xx

[Guest millicentbystander]

i suppose the fact that not many people on here are on prozac shows that isnt necessary the "best" for ocd. perhaps i will try it and then try and get a new phyciatrist for a second opinon if it doesnt work!

Mills x

[Guest stonelizard]

Jeffery Schawtz (sorry can't spell it ) says that meds help you change your brain chemistry so you can think better and that is a two stage thing and by thinking ok you help the meds work. So the meds are like a toolbox or something to help fix your brain. Does that make sense?

[Guest Deborah]

Hi,

I'm on prozac for ocd and epilium. I take 3 of each every day. I have done so for the last 11 years since I was put on them. The epilium is for epiliespy and for contolling my mood ie. making it stable. I have this high dosage of prozac as I seem to get better results from taking a high dosage. The reason I have to take the epilium is because it counterbalances the effects of the high dosage of prozac as I was having seizures with taking the 3 prozac and only 1 epilium. Don't have many seizures now - last one was about 2 years ago. I think the prozac is working. Tried not taking my pills for three weeks and found that my ocd got a whole lot worse - ended up being really depressed and staying in bed for 3 days on end and not really eating. As soon as I started taking the meds again it took about 2 weeks before I noticed a difference but I went back to being my normal self.

The prozac helps with the chemicals in your brain as apparently ocd sufferers lack this chemical that is needed to process the logic thoughts.

If the meds are working don't stop taking them regardless of what you think.

[Guest millicentbystander]

thanks stonelizard - im not 100% sure i get it but are you saying that if i think the meds will work they will have more chance of them working??

ive already convinced myself they wont work and i havent even started taken them yet! same went with the citralopram and they didnt work??

get what i mean. sorry its all abit confusing!!

thanks mate Mills x

[Guest millicentbystander]

thanks deborah, its nice to hear that prozac is working for some! do you mind me asking what dosage you are on and also if you suffer from depression at the same time as your ocd

many thanks Mills x

[Guest kelly]

I took 60mg of Prozac throughout my CBT programme and I found it very effective in supporting me through treatment and I sufferered from no side effects. I would highly recommmend it if it works as well for you as it did for me.

Try not to look for potential problems before you give it a fair go otherwise you will find them.

[Guest Deborah]

Hi Mills,

I take 60mg as the doctor doesn't want to increase the dosage anymore as it seems to be working at this level.

The times that I really suffer from depression is when my ocd gets out of control and I can't stop the thoughts in my head and the other is when I decide to go off my meds - which usually happens at least every 18 months as I think I am getting better and have everything under control. I still haven't quite learned that I need to keep taking the meds to keep the ocd at bay - I'm my own worst enemy sometimes.

My advice is keep taking meds if prescribed them and try cbt combined with the medication.

Prozac usually takes about 2-3 weeks before you may notice some difference. Its just a matter of remembering to take the pills.

Hope this helps.

Deborah.

[Rachie]

I have taken Prozac in the past, then my doctor decided to switch me to Citalopram as he said it was milder. I think I had less side effects on Citalopram. Both helped me, but it is vastly different from one person to the next as Ash says.

Also, I have never heard of anyone taking 80mg - I thought 60mg was the maximum, but I may be wrong. xx

[Guest NatzS]

Also, I have never heard of anyone taking 80mg - I thought 60mg was the maximum, but I may be wrong. xx

80mgs was prescribed by a specialist reg - who suggested that difficult to treat OCD needs higher than average meds and longer trials...but that could just be his opinion

Edited August 2, 2008 by Guest

[Guest millicentbystander]

thanks guys for all your posts!

im going to start on 20mg tonight as i have been weaning myself off citralopram and am currently taking 10mg, was supposed to do this for a week but think 4 days is enough. it is very obvious that i need to be on some thing because i am horrible at the moment, snapping at everyone, having really bad thoughts and general losing the plot!

i will keep you informed of how it goes!

thanks once again

Mills x

[Guest Aimsley_87]

hi there, ive been on 20mg Prozac for almost 2 months now and i havent yet noticed a great affect. I also suffer from severe depression as well as OCD and my psyc wants to up my dose within the next 3 weeks. I think maybe to 40mg? I had some side affects at first such as nausea, headaches and really vivid dreams. My psyc said that Prozac is one of the only SSRI's that dont make you put on weight, they can also act as an appitite suppressent and i have definately lost my appitite and lost some weight! Which isnt a bad thing in my book!

Aims. xx

[Guest millicentbystander]

wow aims that sounds really good, even more inclined to take it now. ive put on nearly a stone since christmas which is reallt wierd as i eat almost nothing. tere may well be a positive out come even if it doesnt help with the ocd and depression :lol:

thanks lots mills x

[sufferer]

Hi there :a1_cheesygrin:

I'm on 60mg prozac (was told that was standard dose for ocd) and have found it a real help.

I did feel totally out of it at first and a bit zombified.....but now I just feel a bit more chilled about things, which I believe is how it helps you.....lets you see things a bit clearer through the fog of ocd (I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong lol)

Obviously it's different for everyone but I would have no problem in recommending prozac from personal experience...... wouldn't recommend drinking on it though..... I was told it wouldn't harm but had the worst hangover ever after my first drink on these tablets.

Hope that helps......

Sufferer xxxx