Help with Coming Out of the Tunnel (Cipramil)

Member Name: happybunny75

Product:	Cipramil
Date:	29/10/01 (12586 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Controls mood, Few side effects, Not addictive

Disadvantages: It doesn't work for everyone, Can numb heigtened feelings as well

One thing I must say straightaway. That is, there are no miracle drugs for depression. In fact there aren’t any real true miracle drugs at all. Drugs that are prescribed are done so, in the main, to alleviate symptoms or to work in conjunction with other methods of treatment.

Ciprimil has helped me to lift my mood, regain energy and to downplay my emotions.

So why do I take it?

18 months ago I was diagnosed as being clinically depressed after having taken an overdose. It’s ok; this opinion isn’t about to get morose. This simply gives you an idea of how badly I was suffering from depression at the time.

When leaving hospital I was given a prescription for Prozac (the ‘wonder drug’ from the US that was heralded as ‘the’ anti-depressant). I remained on Prozac for 3 months, but had problems with hyperactivity and insomnia. In other words the Prozac seemed to be making things more difficult for me than making me feel better. So back to my GP, who decided to put me onto Cipramil.

I initially took a 20mg dose, which was then increased a few months ago to 40mg, and I have to say that it seems to have worked both in not giving me any side effects and for helping my mood swings.


WHAT IS CIPRIMIL?

Ciprimil is essentially an anti-depressant that works to increase the serotonin levels within the brain. A lack of serotonin is thought to be the physiological cause of depression. The active ingredient within the medication is citalopram hydrobromide (which let’s face it, means very little to most of us). Ciprimil can also be used to treat anxiety attacks.


SIDE EFFECTS

Compared with many anti-depressants Ciprimil has very few known side effects. The ones listed with the medication information are: nausea, dry mouth, sweating, drowsiness or tremors.

I was very fortunate in that the only side effect I had was that my hands seemed to sh
ake for the first few weeks after starting in the medication. It wasn’t a continual shaking, but just odd occasions for no apparent reason. It didn’t really effect me though – it was actually quite amusing!


WHAT DID CIPRIMIL DO FOR ME?

It did its job. When I found the right medication for me, I began to stop thinking about the things that worried me and would have previously sent me on that journey into the abyss. I found that my moods weren’t fluctuating and that I was able to concentrate more on sorting out what I needed to do to get well again. The medication didn’t make me so relaxed that I forgot and ignored my responsibilities and problems, it just made them easier to deal with. I

So Ciprimil has essentially numbed my negative emotions and allowed me live normally.


OK, SO WHY ISN’T IT A WONDER DRUG?

As I said above, Ciprimil has numbed my negative emotions, but I believe that it’s also numbed my positive ones as well.

What I mean by positive emotions, is a sense of exhilaration and excitement. In other words, things that would have before got me ‘high’ now don’t seem to effect me in the same way. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’ probably a case of, the higher you climb the further you have to fall. So it’s balanced my emotions more. That’s one of the things I’m looking forward to when I come off Ciprimil: discovering the high elations again in life.

Ok, so it’s kept me on an even keel, but it hasn’t stopped me from sinking down sometimes.

Again, anti-depressants don’t keep you on a constant high. No matter what you take or what you do there will always be old habits that do indeed die hard. But, after a good period of positive thinking I found it easier to deal with the troughs that I’ve had in my recovery. I just make sure that when I am feeling good about mys
elf and my life, that I utilise that time and concentrate on the future and of how good I fell about the present.


Ciprimil isn’t for everybody who suffers from depression. There are a variety of anti-depressants that cater for different people. I’m not sure why certain drugs effects people in different ways, but after my experience with taking Prozac, I know that it is the case.

If you are taking an anti-depressant give it time. They normally take a few weeks to work anyway, so don’t expect instant results. But if you don’t feel comfortable with any side-effects your experiencing, or you don’t like how the medication is effecting you then go back to your GP and ask to be put onto something else, but give it chance initially.

Remember though that in most cases taking anti-depressants isn’t the solution to curing depression. It takes a lot of hard work to discover what has caused you to be depressed, and how to combat it and live with it. Unfortunately, I know from experience that I will always live with depression. I don’t mean on a day-to-day basis, but it will always be at the back of my mind that I could feel the same way as I did 18 months ago, but I’m slowly discovering ways to deal with problems that I sometimes find overwhelming and to recognise the signs. And when I do, I will be back to my GP for a course of Ciprimil, which will give me the rest-bite I need to get back to normal again.

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