![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 19:10:06
I have severe clinical depression that is genetically passed. I have been on 40 mg of Celexa for about a month. My depression is lifting. At first I had night sweats, but those have gone away. Now I am having very vivid dreams that make it difficult to get really good sleep. I have trouble waking up in the morning because of it. I had this same SE on Zoloft a couple of years ago, but didn't have it on Paxil.
I am wondering if anyone else has the same SE on Celexa? Is there anything that can be done about it? How about with Lexapro?
Thanks
Posted by utopizen on October 2, 2002, at 21:08:27
In reply to Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 19:10:06
No doctor could explain why sleep exists as a bodily function.
No doctor could explain how any antidepressant works.
You know those Zoloft ads with the cartoon that explains how Zoloft works, with "Nerve A" bouncing off "Nerve B"? Doctors have called "Nerve A" a scientific name and "Nerve B" a scientific name, and then a certain receptor that receive messages is closed off somewhat. That still doesn't explain -how- it works, it just renames Nerve A and B! : )
Certainly, vivid dreams are common among the first few weeks of antidepressant therapy. If you're lucky, they're good dreams (my first SSRI was celexa, and they were like watching movies). If you're not, they're bad dreams (which I got when I went off Celexa, and later when I started Effexor).There's really nothing you can do about them. If you don't think it's worth their effects, you can try switching to another drug... although there's nothing saying it won't happen with others as well.
Unfortunately, they are simply side effects that, if you tell your doctor, there's not a whole lot he can do about. In these side effects, he'll simply ask if you think it's worth keeping, or switching.
Oh yeah- don't get me wrong- we know sleep's important, we just don't know why- we know it does stuff, like help memory, concentration, and so forth. But we only know that (and virtually everything else about sleep!) because we've measured things like memory and concentration before and after sleep deprivation studies.
There's unfortunately nothing more hi-tech out there to measure your sleep than a simple electrogram. Certainly no dreamcatcher scanning device that'll trace what receptors are getting frizzled from Celexa so you can take a customized anti-vivid-dream pill along with Celexa ; )
Um... maybe a sleeping pill -might- sedate you long enough to get 6-8 hours of sleep, if you aren't bothered over the content of the dreams... although if it's so bad it's waking you up (I never got that ,and I had some pretty disturbing, deeply freudian vivid nightmares) maybe your unconscience is trying to tell you to not sleep through them...
and so far we know just enough to know we should probably listen to our subconscious, seeing as how it appears to know more about ourselves than we do of it.... I mean, it iterally naps 90% of itself during our waking ours, and then wakes up when we have nothing to do (while we're asleep).
oh, and if you do decide to rough it out, they're probably not going to last more than a few weeks. And unfortunately, there's that spooky feeling you get over knowing you really don't know what psychological effect nightmares have on your waking hours (how you behave, feel, etc.)
You'd think we'd find out more about dreams before we found out how ways to tinker with them, don't you? : )
Posted by Roman on October 2, 2002, at 21:13:21
In reply to Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 19:10:06
I experience the same s/e on Celexa 20mg. I have been taking calcium + magnesium late in the evening; it seems to take some of the zip out of the dreams, but it's not a remedy by any means.
Apparently, folks taking low-dose Trazodone as a sleep-aid report it eradicates sleep terrors--maybe a smidge of it would do the trick for us? I don't yet have experience with Trazodone, so I'm not speaking from experience concerning its use.
Posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 22:33:17
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by Roman on October 2, 2002, at 21:13:21
Thanks.
I will try the calcium/magnesium.
Sometimes the dreams are nice. Like movies. But they definitely have disturbed my sleep pattern. I have tried Ambien (Rx sleep aid), but the dreams still come, just a little later in my sleep.Trazadone helps my mom, but it never helped me with sleep. I don't know if it would help with the dreams. I'll ask my Pdoc. I'd rather be on as few medications as possible.
Any thoughts of switching to Lexapro?
Posted by MJC on October 2, 2002, at 22:51:37
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 22:33:17
Hi, I've been on Celexa, Paxil, Effexor XR, Clonazepam (Klonopin) and Trazadone and I've had weird dreams on all of them.Hell, just last night I dreamt that a UFO landed on my roof. I could actually feel the vibrations, hear the walls shaking, and there were flashing red and blue lights circling my room. Then I had a little pitter patter of many feet on the roof. And then, I woke up. Probably from downloading and watching that Signs movie last night.
The night before I had a dream where I was driving my car and stopped at a red light and this big dirty white guy with a blue (almost black) bandana on his head and this big scruffy beard pulled a gun up to my window and told me to get out. I ignored him and he shot me in the head. I saw red, then I woke up.
The thing is that once you get used to the dreams, which could take like 2 months or so, you'll start to enjoy them. Even the scary ones are funny after you wake up and think about them. Damn, if I was a good writer, I'd write a book on short horror stories based on my dreams. I'd probably make millions too lol...
Posted by Mystia on October 3, 2002, at 0:27:10
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by MJC on October 2, 2002, at 22:51:37
I have now been on Lexapro 10 mg/day for 3 weeks and 5 days. I occasionally have strange dreams, usually not nightmares. It's just weird situations.....like having a party in a library/restaurant, then seeing my ex (who passed away 3 yrs ago!) at the party, then going "home" (to a mansion!). There were also a lot of people I didn't know at the mansion. Supposedly, they were my family (although they were Mexican and my real family is native american!) So...weird, weird dreams! But, that only happens every once in a while.
Something else strange: I usually don't remember my dreams very well, but I can remember these for days! The dream I described above occured around 5 days ago! Although the dreams aren't upleasant, I talk and walk in my sleep (I've had that since I was YOUNG) and it seems that I talk/walk a lot more when I have these strange dreams.
Maybe it has something to do with what time Lexapro is taken (??) I usually take mine either morning or mid-day.
Posted by Roman on October 3, 2002, at 8:35:30
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 22:33:17
> Any thoughts of switching to Lexapro?I just started Celexa a few weeks ago. Lexapro wasn't out yet, so I figured I'd get settled with Celexa and make the switch after awhile. Also, it was easier to start at a low dose (5mg) Celexa than an equivalent amount of Lexapro--an advantage for me--I'm med sensitive and struck-out with both Paxil and Serzone.
I look forward to the switch--I'm too tired on Celexa.
Posted by gardener on October 3, 2002, at 10:24:09
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by Mystia on October 3, 2002, at 0:27:10
I don't think it matters what time of day you take it for the dreams.I have always thought it was better to take AD's in the morning unless they make you tired.
Good luck to you. Give it some time, be patient and as hopeful as possible. You'll feel better soon.
Posted by corrina on October 4, 2002, at 9:05:16
In reply to Re: Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by Roman on October 2, 2002, at 21:13:21
Hi,
Im on lexapro and have only been on it for 5 days now, I cant however say if it helps with sleep terrors or not but I must say that I also have been put on trazodone for a sleep aide and just to explain a little about my problems so that you can make your own choice on this matter,
I have a deep depression as well as walked in my sleep since the day my father passed away which has been since I was 13, I was sexually abused from my step father since the age of 12, when my father tried to get costody of my brother and I, that same day he passed away. that is the reason for my sleep walking and terrors. I wake up screaming as well as hurt myself in my dreams, I always have vivid nightmares of somone chaseing me and I act this out and try to get away from this person which causes me to hit walls, windows, even a person if they try to wake me up or stand in my way. I have done this almost every night since the age of 13 and now at the age of 39 I can say I finally am getting some good rest and have been having funny dreams, Im not sure if its the trazodone or the lexapro that has me not having these dreams but whatever is doing it for me im very thankful!Corrina
Posted by Dan L on November 28, 2002, at 1:12:34
In reply to Vivid dreams on Celexa or Lexapro, posted by gardener on October 2, 2002, at 19:10:06
I have been taking Celexa for over six months now. I've been getting the vivid dream SE ever since I started taking it. Recently I started taking Celexa at night rather than in the morning and I've had the side effect much more frequently. This is actually why I continue to take this medication at night. It's gota be the best side effect of any prescription drug ever :)
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.