[pearlys]

I have been taking lexapro since 1.5 week ago. First 4 days 5mg, hardly any side effects so i increased to 10mg. Still hardly side effects. Im so tired of being depressed, so tired of not being able to enjoy anything, so tired of being tired and without motivation all the time.
When is it going to work? 2 weeks? 3 weeks? even 4 or more?

[pinkflower17]

Lexapro did NOTHING for me. No side effects, but no good effects either. Theoretically, you're supposed to give it a full 6-8 wks at a "therapeutic" dose to see if an antidepressant is going to work for you or not, but a lot of studies they've done recently show that most of the positive effects from SSRIs and SNRIs, if they're going to occur, happen in the first week or two. If it were me, I might give it another week or two, but then I'd ask my doctor about switching to something else. 10 mg/day is kinda the low end of the spectrum, it's usually the starting dose. You can go up to 20 mg/day (obviously I'd discuss this with your doc), but maybe you're just not at a high enough dose yet.
Hope it ends up working for you.

[pearlys]

Thank you pinkflower. The 2 weeks before it works is that your personal experience? My pdoc says a minimum of 2 weeks an probable between 2 and 6 weeks. At the moment i dont feel anything at all and im on it for 10 days now, 6 days on 10mg. I used paxil in the past, is paxil a heavier med?

[pinkflower17]

Originally Posted by pearlys

Thank you pinkflower. The 2 weeks before it works is that your personal experience? My pdoc says a minimum of 2 weeks an probable between 2 and 6 weeks. At the moment i dont feel anything at all and im on it for 10 days now, 6 days on 10mg. I used paxil in the past, is paxil a heavier med?

Paxil's just a different SSRI, I wouldn't call if heavier. If you've only been on the 10mg for 6 days, I would a)ask about upping the dose, explain you're really desperate to feel better, you want to give Lexapro a fair try and it's done nothing so far and b)I'd probably give it a week or two at the higher dose if you do go up. Or at least another week at the 10 mg. I know it sucks when you're so desperate to feel better.
Yes, the two weeks for onset is both my personal and professional experience (I'm a physician). It can take up to 6 weeks to see optimal effect, but you should really see something within 2 weeks, at least in my opinion and according to a lot of studies.
If paxil worked for you in the past, you may want to discuss with your dr going back to it. If a med works once, it's much more likely to work again.
Good luck.

[pearlys]

last time on paxil i went hypomanic, and in retrospective that was not the first time. thats why we are cautious to go back on paxil. also because paxil is so hard to come off of it.

[pinkflower17]

Yeah, paxil really, really sucks to come off of. Have you talked about using one of the atypical antipsychotics (abilify, seroquel, latuda) to treat the depression, while also providing mood stabilizing effects?

[pearlys]

Originally Posted by pinkflower17

Yeah, paxil really, really sucks to come off of. Have you talked about using one of the atypical antipsychotics (abilify, seroquel, latuda) to treat the depression, while also providing mood stabilizing effects?

i was on seroquel 25 mg to sleep. but it works very short, i wake up very early. now i use 7.5mg mirtazapine for sleep and i sleep like a baby, but a bit too long. i sleep 11 hours or more. i hope the escitalopram will work soon. monday i see my pdoc again to talk about effects/sideeffects (which i hardly have)

[Chummy]

I have been on Lexapro 10mg for 5 weeks and I didn't feel any difference. Also no side effects. Since 1,5 weeks I have been on 20mg. I have some trouble with sleeping now.
I'll see my pdoc in 5 weeks. If I don't feel any difference, he'll prescribe me something different.
I feel just like you. I hoped this would work. I'm so tired of feeling this way. It still can work. I have to give it a little more time. I hope it will work. If not, I'll have to go of this medication and try another. It's all more time of feeling so depressed.

[pearlys]

Was at pdoc today. she says wait another 2 weeks. if nothing happens we increase the dose to 15 or 20mg/day.
meanwhile i should use the mirtazapine 7.5mg for sleep. might as well do sth for the depression in combination with the escitalopram