I recently stopped the birth control pill and my citalopram. For the past few days, I have had headaches at eye level and dizziness... Is this normal?

Question

I am in pretty good health. I don't have any known problems, but for the past few days I've had fatigue, headaches, I'm very sensitive, I cry and I have no patients... It's been about 1 week since I stopped it I was taking 20 mg yes I stopped it all of a sudden I had been taking it for almost 2 years I had the symptoms for about 4-5 days. I stopped the contraception at the beginning of January around the 10th. The symptoms are not really getting better day by day... Thank you so much! 🙏

Alexandre Chagnon · Accepted Answer

Hello, How many days have you been off these medications? Did the symptoms start as soon as you stopped the medications and have they improved since? Also, what strength of citalopram were you taking, how long have you been taking it, and did you stop it cold turkey? Hello, From what you tell me, stopping the citalopram is very possibly the cause of your symptoms. In fact, you may be experiencing what are called withdrawal symptoms related to the sudden cessation of the medication. These symptoms just happen to include dizziness, fatigue, headaches, irritability and more. Normally, when taking a medication like citalopram for more than 1 month, it is recommended to gradually decrease the dose over 2 to 4 weeks if you wish to stop the medication precisely to avoid having withdrawal symptoms. So, with the fact that you took the drug for 2 years, when you decided to stop the drug all at once, your body reacted with the symptoms you are currently experiencing. The duration of withdrawal symptoms varies from person to person. For example, it could be from 1 to 10 days. You can wait for the symptoms to pass. However, I recommend that you talk to your pharmacist about this. One option would be to take Citalopram 10 mg (1/2 20 mg tablet) for 7-14 days and then stop the medication. This would help with withdrawal symptoms. It is important to discuss this with your pharmacist (on-site or phone advice). Don't hesitate if you have more questions! Jonathan Fournier, pharmacy student, under the supervision of Alexandre Chagnon, pharmacist