Can you immediately discontinue Lexapro?

Question

I went to my very first shrink visit a few weeks ago. I've only been taking Lexapro for about 3 weeks. 2 weeks I only took 5 mg of Lexapro...half a pill. Then for a little over a week I've been taking a whole pill which is 10 mg. Can I immediately discontinue Lexapro?

Originally I had trouble sleeping for a few days....that's all. I've never had anxiety or depression on a daily basis. I just had trouble sleeping because I was nervous about an upcoming surgical procedure. I was so nervous I thought why not go see a shrink and get a medication on a regular basis. Now I feel like that is not the direction I need or want to take.

Answer 1

Like all other SSRI's Lexapro has a discontinuation syndrome.  Best to contact your doctor to work out a dosage reduction schedule.

Answer 2

it's never advisable to go cold turkey, just cut back gradually and see how you fare.  doctors often find it easier to write a prescription than to listen to us.  good for you for recognizing why you weren't sleeping and wanting to deal with it.  however, if you have a history of depression, suicidal thinking, etc, you owe it to yourself and others to treat it: meds are only a small part of the solution.  Talk therapy, daily exercise, healthy eating, cleaning up our bad habits (smoking, drinking, drugs) are the rest of it.

Answer 3

I chose to quit after 3 weeks cold turkey on 10 mg a day and the second day I had quit, I had horrible side effects. I immediately started back on the 10 mg and now i'm on 20 for panic disorder. If you want to quit, you need to ween yourself off. just do it very slowly (which should take up to atleast 2 weeks) to not have side effects. good luck.

Answer 4

Whenever I stopped taking Lexapro suddenly, I suffered from seizure symptoms, like altered equilibrium, facial twitching, twitching in general, stuttering, etc.  I really wouldn't recommend it.  You need to wean yourself off of it at a gradual pace.  Good luck.  

Answer 5

See www.theroadback.org on Lexapro. Taper off slowly, over at least several weeks, preferably more: see page Z.22 and the first 3 pages in section 2, and relevant parts of section 1, at http://www.ezy-build.net.nz/~shaneris THIS MEDICATION IS NOTORIOUSLY DIFFICULT!

Answer 6

I've been on Lexapro. Like many anti-Ds, it didnt help me.

Whether you want medication treatment or not, it isn't advisable to stop taking meds without your GP knowing. But having said that makes me sound like a hypocrite cos I have done such and well, results haven't been pleasant. But I've learned.

You havent been on it long but you still need to come off it slowly. I know it's a pain, but just stopping it is NOT a good idea. These tablets change the chemicals in your brain. If you just stop the tablet, it can do more harm than good - make you angry, irritable, depressed etc.

I recommend you see your GP/doctor/psych. Otherwise, cut your dose back down to half for about a week and then the last half for another week and stop. Or you can go from 10mg one week, 5mg 2nd week, 2.5mg 3rd week and then end it. Or alternate 5mg every second day in the second week and then end it. Basically, cut the dose back but do not cut it completely straight away, if that makes any sense. :)

See your doctor.