Lexapro for femara depression

ohilly
ohilly Member Posts: 441
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
I have had pretty severe depression which I believe is at least partially caused by the Femara I am taking. I have now made a decision to take anti-depressants, which is a big step for me because I have read a lot about the association between hair thinning (another gift I already have from the Femara) and anti-depressants. I want to take Lexapro, which has a low risk of hair loss and seems to be pretty effective for depression and anxiety. Has anyone else taken this drug, and what side effects did you have (especially hair thinning, but also interested in what else you experienced)? Did it help you?

Please respond soon because I am seeing my onc tomorrow and plan to ask him for a prescription.

Ohilly

Comments

  • phoenixrising
    phoenixrising Member Posts: 1,508
    #2
    Sorry Ohilly, I haven't
    Sorry Ohilly, I haven't taken this drug however I do have the impression it is fairly popular. It's worth a shot anyways, if the se are uncomfortable then you can always quit and try something else. Have you tried googling the se of it? Good luck to you.

    hugs
    jan
  • Cindy54
    Cindy54 Member Posts: 452
    #3
    Lexapro
    Ohilly, I was on Lexapro for almost a year. It is a pretty safe drug that did not give me any side effects. It is a drug that builds gradually in your system...you don't take it and immediately start feeling better. You just gradually seem like your mood is not so down and you feel like your usual self. I went off it because it got to where the drug had built up in my system and made me feel flat...no great highs or lows...I just wanted to feel some excitement once in awhile. And this drug seemed to start keeping me in the gray area...no tears, but no big laughing out loud. It is a good drug for getting you over the hurdles that life throws you...and it actually helped me to sleep better. I was calmer, my appetite improved, I felt like doing things again. It is one of the newer drugs and isn't habit forming like many others. You can taper off it without any big drops in your mood too. Hope this helps. Cindy
  • lynn1950
    lynn1950 Member Posts: 2,570
    #4
    Lexapro and depression
    O'Hilly, Sorry it's taken me so long to reply to your post. For depression (and anxiety), first I tried Effexor; it didn't help me. Then I took Lexapro; it didn't help me. Now I am on Zoloft (not even a very high dose) with the lowest dose of Abilify and I am starting to feel some relief. So even if the first anti=depressant doesn't work, don't give up!

    I'm still feeling tired, but not anxious or depressed. Could it be that the hair loss problem may just be a chemo result and not connected to the Femara? That might be a good question to ask your oncologist.
  • survivorbc09
    survivorbc09 Member Posts: 4,374 Member
    #5
    lynn1950 said:

    Lexapro and depression
    O'Hilly, Sorry it's taken me so long to reply to your post. For depression (and anxiety), first I tried Effexor; it didn't help me. Then I took Lexapro; it didn't help me. Now I am on Zoloft (not even a very high dose) with the lowest dose of Abilify and I am starting to feel some relief. So even if the first anti=depressant doesn't work, don't give up!

    I'm still feeling tired, but not anxious or depressed. Could it be that the hair loss problem may just be a chemo result and not connected to the Femara? That might be a good question to ask your oncologist.

    I am so sorry Ohilly for
    I am so sorry Ohilly for your depression. Hopefully, your doctor can help you with a prescription. And, like Lynn said, there are so many out there, that surely one will help you out. We all need help from time to time and having bc is hard. Good luck!

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