Celexa after Adderall?

[becksboy]

I took adderall for 2.5 years abusing it along the way. I came accross this site and decided to wean myself off. My last dose was in 12/4/11.

Before that though I pretty much lost everything I had due to adderall, including my fiance, job, apartment. Now I'm stuck living with my mom and trying to get my old job back. Because of all this I'm moderately depressed and have been having occasional anxiety, which can become pretty severe at times. My doctor prescribed me Celexa and was wondering if anyone else had tried Celexa to cope with the depression and anxiety that could result from adderall withdrawal or from just having to put your life back together. Any advice will help. Thanks

Brian

[PostAdderall]

Hi Brian,

I took Celexa for 3 or 4 years. If anything, I would recommend that you take Lexapro instead of Celexa. Lexapro is the newer "brother" of Celexa - they are chemically similar, but Lexapro has a shorter half life which means there are less side effects and fewer withdrawal symptoms.

While Celexa did make me feel less depressed and less anxious, it made me feel numb and I wouldn't recommend it. After Adderall, though, I have vowed not to take any more prescription medication and I would urge you to do the same. Your brain chemistry will naturally readjust, although it may take some time. Taking any drugs will cheat yourself out of a natural recovery, and ultimately make it more difficult to feel happier naturally later on down the road. I know the idea of a pill providing a convenient and easy solution seems appealing, but life is full of challenges that we are equipped to handle on our own. We don't know the long term effects of any of these drugs - to me it seems dubious that we actually understand neurochemistry enough to be handing out prescriptions the way that doctors do.

[becksboy]

Thanks for the reply......I agree with you about vowing to not take any more prescription medication. I wanted to do that but my anxiety was just so bad that I felt like I needed something. Sometimes I feel like I just can't get out of my own way in my head you know. I tried taking Lexapro and that made me very fatigued and lethargic and Celexa does the same.

I don't if SSRI's are good for post adderall use because from what I understand they reduce dopamine and that's the main problem us users have when we stop adderall is the reduction in dopamine and trying to adjust back to normal levels.

I'm at my whits end. I've been to my family practioner, physiciatric PA, phsychologist. I've tried Celexa, Lexapro, Bupropion (which increased my anxiety), zoloft (which increased my anxiety). I take them or about a week then I stop because they either cause me anxiety, I feel really fatigued or both. I don't know what to do.

[PostAdderall]

I can definitely relate to the feeling that you can't get out of your own way in your head, or however you phrased it. I have tried most of the prescription medications you have, and found none of them to be the end-all solution. Your story sounds familiar to mine - at a pretty rockbottom place when you decide to quit in terms of other circumstances in your life. Just wait it out, things will get better. I would really recommend reading the book "The Feeling Good Handbook" by David Burns. I generally think self-help books are lousy and kind of a joke, but he outlines concrete ways to change the way you think in order to change the way that you feel. Empirically, his cognitive behavioral therapy (just reading his book, and doing the journaling he recommends) has been show to be more successful than SSRI's to treat depression. I really recommend it, at least before trying to go on other medications. It's all great to feel like you are ultimately in control of your own happiness.