Anybody know what the most "helpful" medication is for severe OCD?

Ive had severe OCD for the past year and tried high doses of Zoloft, Celexa and Amytryptyline with little success. I know therapy is usually the best route, but are there any medications that people with OCD generally respond to at least somewhat? Daily life is getting so hard for me right now, I can barely get out of my room some days because I need to perform my rituals before I go out (if I ever can make it out at all). Any help would be greatly appreciated

I had/have SEVERE ocd and I am on clomipramine (anafranil).

I would talk to a doc immediatley. a combo of exposure work and medication is a must!

Thanks for the reply Miswimmy. Would you say the clomipramine helps at all? I know a combo fo drugs/therapy is a must, but does the clomipramine do its part?

Zoloft has worked great for me. Paxil worked pretty good, though not as well. May want to look into that one?

Hi Miswimmy, As I read here you take clomipramine (anafranil), As I too take the same meds for ocd, I was wondering how much dosage you take daily? Because, I am supposed to take 100 mgs daily, but I only take 50 mgs, cos I feel scared of taking more, (been told many times by doc and family to take 100 mgs at least!). Just so worried about side effects, like dry mouth etc.

Hope its ok, for me to ask you, Miswimmy.

Hi. hope your doctor can find you the best meds you need for ocd. I had ocd for long time, hope you know that your not alone. . Best of luck.

Yes I was almost non functional in life. It has helped a ton! I'm bak in school, swimming year round, I have friends, everything is so much better

I'm on 125, which is a lowish amount. You can go up into the 200s I think...

Just make sure you go gradually or the side effects suck! Lol

Luvox (Fluvoxamine)

Thanks for the input, I set up an appt with my PCP to discuss other medications besides the ones Ive tried

Really appreciate that susan, its good to know that we can beat this horrid disorder

This is really inspiring to hear, its comforting to think that I can make it out of this hell because some days I just don't know if I'll ever be "normal" again.

Thanks Ill ask my PCP about that as well; o far the research Ive done has suggested that clomipramine is generally popular for OCD treatment but there appears to be several meds that can help

best of luck!

For me, Luvox (Fluvoxamine) has been the best. At some point the patent expired and the brand name company wasn't making money, so they dropped it. Generics are still available, if the doctor writes it, the pharmacy will order it. This has been the best medication for me ever.

The other one that really helped me is the antipsychotic Seroquel. I have major issues with ruminations at night, so they gave it to me to sleep. When I would take it, I would get about 18 - 20 hours of relief from the ruminations.

Let us know what you ended up with!

My dr recommends Luvox for OCD. I haven't started taking it yet, but I am considering it.

Lexapro has been pretty effective for me. I'm on a high dose (20mg which I believe is the highest approved dose). I have to find a balance with something that's effective but doesn't cause me to go hypo/manic but is also effective for my OCD. I used to spend upwards of 2 hours on my rituals daily, and now I would say it's down to a half hour to hour. This came with a combo of meds and therapy though. Not just meds alone.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Prozac. Oftentimes, people try it and give up because the standard dosage is 20mg. However, that is when the drug is being used to treat depression. Scientific evidence shows that, when used to treat symptoms of OCD, 60-80mg is the lowest dose range required for Prozac to effectively alleviate symptoms. I know someone who takes 100mg. Then again, I'm not a professional so I don't want to take a chance of telling you to go higher than the customary 60-80 range.

That said, I have been on 120mg. It helped but I started to get scared that, not only were my debilitating obsessive thoughts going away, but my "normal" ones too. I wasn't on it long enough to know for sure whether that dosage could have been appropriate.

The trouble is, I don't think that medication itself is ever going to be "the answer," no matter how much it helps a person to control his/her symptoms. In the end, a combination of the right medication (sometimes that means a combination of medications, and finding the right dose of each is essential) and the right therapist/ therapy is your best bet.

Don't loose hope!!!!