Hi. Sorry to hear about this. The brain fog and cognitive issues can be devastating. I have them worse since the Lexapro crash, and it’s sent my ADHD symptoms to another level.
Prior to the Lexapro crash, a lot of those things improved over time, but never fully recovered. I cannot recommend anything specific I took or used that made things better. If you have bad anxiety and racing thoughts like I did, I would try to manage those first.
I can relate to what you’re saying about the sexual symptoms. I went multiple years without sex. I could not read, and I felt like I was dying. My genital changes or libido loss were not priorities at the time. But those things are important.
Throughout this journey, I’ve learned that stress management might be the most important piece of all. You have to avoid giving in to the constant negative loop of it all. Because life keeps turning; that’s the difficult part. You have to find calmness in the storm, or you will capsize, and it will destroy you. If you focus solely on what you’ve lost, or what could’ve been had you not been in this situation, it’s a very dangerous game. It doesn’t end well.
Yes, I did achieve my goal of finishing my degree and my career, but I lost myself and basically everything else in the process. I isolated for so long. I changed my behaviors and habits due to crippling depression, anxiety, and fear. Now, I find myself 30 years old with few friends, and very poor communication/social skills. In many ways I’m 5 years into this, and very much at square one. Even worse some days.
My advice: keep moving forward, force yourself around people, force yourself to laugh. Do not give up on your goals and use all of this to try and better yourself somehow. Just do not take another anti-androgen or antidepressant.