Worsening of PFS thanks to citalopram (SSRI)

Symptoms
#1

Hello guys,

I’ve been going through some mental/anxiety issues 1-1.5 year ago, I’ve been prescribed citalopram which is an SSRI. I’ve used this medication before in the past without any issues, that was before I had taken finasteride which caused PFS for me. Now I had anhedonia and sexual symptoms before, but my sexual symptoms worsened while taking SSRI, so I had to cease the medication. After 1 year the sexual
Symptoms still didn’t improve, I had to say that PFS already caused a lot of damage to me before, I had like maybe a 3-4% improvement in the 7-8 years that I have PFS but the SSRI destroyed the extremely small improvement which I had, which ofcourse sucks.

I am having these thoughts in my head that I now have PFS and post SSRI syndrome as well, but I want to believe it’s just a worsening of my PFS, what do you guys think? Am I overthinking this too much, and does anyone else have experience with worsening of symptoms while taking SSRI’s?

#2

I don’t know what you are going through in your life, but Citalopram is not the answer now, nor was it before. It is a help you should avoid unless totally necessary.

  • Exercise (strength mainly, but some cardio too)
  • Spend time outdoors
  • Mindfulness

And concerning the sexual symptoms, get yourself tested to see if there is a physical problem such as fibrosis, venous leakage, etc. You cannot fight what you cannot see.

#3

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate it.

I went to the doctor before but they dismissed my symptoms and said there was nothing that he could do except refer me to a psychologist. I have to say I went to the doctor before to get my thyroids checked but there were no issues with that.

I want to call the doctor again but I really don’t know how I can convince her and what kind of tests I should do.

#4

Depending on your symptoms, but if erections are an issue, an EcoDoppler with elastography is always a good beginning to assess whether there is any damage to the tissue.

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#5

every post i read just confirms that most doctors are inept, arrogant and utterly useless

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#6

Erections is the least of my problems, it is mainly no libido and lack of pleasure during orgasm and decreased penile sensitivity.

#7

Yeah this is unfortunately the case for us PFS and PSSD patients. The doctor in question even suggested that it could be all in my head and that talking to a psychologist would maybe fix some of my problems.

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