Are you or a loved one suffering from depression or anxiety?
Has your doctor recommended you take Lexapro or the generic version Escitatopram?
Are you concerned about possible side effects?
If so then this is the video for you.
Keep watching to learn a little more about what to watch out for and how this medication
can be a help to you.
Welcome to Family Med, I'm Dr. Richardson and this is your home for practical and accurate
information to help your family make healthy decisions.
This is the channel that focuses on bringing better health to your home.
On today's episode we are going to be going over a common antidepressant named Escitalopram
or more commonly referred to as Lexapro.
Escitalopram is the generic version of Lexapro which was released in 2002.
Lexapro is a medication that is used most commonly to treat clinical depression and
anxiety.
It's in the class of medications that we call SSRI's or Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors.
These are a group of medications that target the hormone Serotonin and help decrease how
rapidly it is broken down in the nerves thus keeping your serotonin levels higher.
It's one of the vital chemicals or neurotransmitters that help regulate a lot of the functions
of the body like mood, social behavior, appetite and digestion, sleep, memory among other things.
It is one of the chemicals that plays a big role in depression and anxiety.
When you are suffering from depression or anxiety, in addition to things like eating
healthy and exercise, counseling and therapy and getting plenty of sleep, targeting these
chemicals in the brain has been found to be very helpful in allowing people to resume
a normal life when they are battling with these conditions.
Let's talk about who tends to benefit from taking escitalopram.
The first condition that we use it for is clinical depression.
With depression you tend to have symptoms like difficulty concentrating, remembering
things or making decisions.
You may also suffer from fatigue, feelings of guilt, worthlessness and helplessness.
You may also feel hopeless, experience sleeping problems, mood swings, have a loss of interest
in things that you once enjoyed, appetite changes, generalized pain, persistent sad
or empty feelings or even suicidal thoughts or attempts.
For those who are going through anxiety you may have symptoms such as sudden and unexplained
onset of a rapid heart rate, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, pain in your chest, fear
of dying, numbness and tingling throughout your body or just generalized feeling of anxiousness
all the time that you just can't explain.
If you are going through these symptoms you need to seek help.
You don't have to live your whole life feeling this way.
Go see your doctor so you can get an accurate diagnosis and figure out a good treatment
plan for you.
Remember depression and anxiety are as real of a medical condition as diabetes or high
blood pressure and you shouldn't feel any different about treating these conditions
than you would any other medical condition.
Ok, so you've talked to your doctor and you both have decided that for your symptoms Lexapro
is going to part of your treatment plan.
What should you expect?
Well, first of all it comes in a pill at doses of 5, 10 and 20mg.
Most people end up being on 10-20mg.
It's the kind of medication that you need to take daily if you are going to be on it.
Most people will start to notice some difference within 1-2 weeks but it typically doesn't
reach its full effect for 4-6 weeks.
So, you should be following up with your doctor within 2-4 weeks after starting on it to report
on how things are working.
If you are going to be taking it, you want to make sure that you are not missing a lot
of doses.
Doing so can really affect how well it's going to work and increase your risk of having side
effects.
Also, unless you're having some significant problems with the medication, especially after
being on it a few weeks, you don't want to stop this medication abruptly.
After being on it for a while your brain gets used to a certain level of the Serotonin and
stopping it quickly will really throw you off and make you feel bad.
Most doctors recommend that, if the medication is working well, you take it for at least
6 months before you think about stopping it.
Stopping it sooner than that, because you feel like your depression or anxiety is gone,
increases your risk for having your symptoms return.
If you feel like it is something that is making a big difference in your life and you want
to continue on it longer than the 6 months then it is safe to do so.
I have patients that have decided that they need to stay on it for years and that works
for them.
So what kind of side effects should you look out for?
Well, as with any medication you can find a big list of side effects that will be listed
in the paperwork from your pharmacist.
Sometimes these lists can be intimidating but in the case of Lexapro it is generally
well tolerated.
I rarely have patients on it that want to stop due to significant side effects.
However, any medication has the potential to having some side effects.
Some common ones that are possible would be some headaches, nausea, tiredness or difficulty
sleeping, some dry mouth, constipation or abdominal pain.
These types of symptoms tend to be short lived in most people and often times, by modifying
when you take it or by taking it with food you can improve or even avoid a lot of them.
Usually with time, they start to get better on their own.
One area that concerns a lot of people is the effect that antidepressants can have on
your intimate relations.
This can be a known problem with most antidepressants, but I haven't seen it quite as much with escitalopram
as with other antidepressants.
There are some ways that we can work with that problem if it occurs so don't stop it
and talk to your doctor if that is a concern.
Probably the most common reason I have somebody stop this or any antidepressant medication
is that they "didn't like the way it made them feel".
It may help with their depression or anxiety, so they don't feel sad anymore, but they don't
feel happy either.
That certainly isn't the goal of this kind of treatment.
Our goal is to help lift you up out of the hole you are in and help you see that life
is doable again.
If we turn you into a zombie and you are neither happy or sad we aren't doing you any favors.
We still want you to be happy when you are supposed to be happy and sad when your supposed
to be sad.
So if you are noticing things like that then talk to your doctor about other options that
are out there.
There are some rare side effects that you need to pay more close attention to though.
This is not an exhaustive list, however it's important to know that first, all antidepressant
medication including escitalopram have the risk of making your symptoms worse at first.
You may be feeling really down right now, but if all of a sudden your depression and
anxiety get worse or you start having suicidal thoughts you need to be in contact with your
doctor and get help.
I always recommend when starting these kinds of medications that you confide in somebody
you trust and tell them that you are taking it.
Let them know about these risks so they can help you recognize what is happening and assist
you in getting the help you need.
Other rare side effects can be certain heart arrythmias, electrolyte disturbances, allergic
reactions and something called Serotonin syndrome where your body gets too much serotonin.
This is very rare but can present with symptoms like agitation, confusion, rapid heart rate
and high blood pressure, dilated pupils, loss of muscle coordination, muscle rigidity, diarrhea
and heavy sweating.
If you think this is happening to you, get into your doctor or the emergency room right
away.
The worst part about discussing the side effects of medications is scaring you away from taking
them.
It's important to keep the perspective that the vast majority of people taking escitalopram
do really well with minimal to no side effects.
So, if you are deciding to not take a medication like this due to a fear of having a very rare
side effect, you can potentially be robbing yourself from an important tool in treating
this disease.
Remember it's important to keep the perspective that if you are having a problem with the
medication, you don't need to stay on it.
There are a lot of other options out there so get with your doctor and talk to them about
your concerns.
Depression and anxiety can be a very debilitating condition.
Its as real as any other medical condition out there.
When you have a true clinical depression taking something like Lexapro can be a life altering
step.
I'm always amazed at what a significant difference this medication has had in the life of my
patients.
It's certainly not for everybody and yes there are other nonmedication options out there
that may work for you.
If, however, you and your doctor feel that this is the best option for your treatment
plan you now have a good foundation of knowledge of what to expect and what kind of side effects
to watch for.
Having that information can be really powerful in your life.
This is not an all-inclusive discussion of Lexapro.
My purpose in sharing this information is to help give information that you can think
about and discuss with your own doctor.
It's not meant to give you direct medical advice in your own personal situation.
So, take this information and discuss it with your own doctor.
Overall, I hope you have found this information to be helpful especially in taking away some
of the stigma that surrounds taking medication for mental health issues.
To keep learning about other aspects of your health check out my other videos.
To learn about some simple steps in eating healthier click here.
To find out about simple ways to save a lot of money on your healthcare click here.
Go ahead and subscribe and let me know what you think in the comments below.
Until next time, this FamilyMed with Dr. Richardson and remember to take care of your body because
it's the only one you have.