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I have had problems with fatigue and my doctor suspects it's just from not sleeping well. I tried citalopram (generic for Celexa) for awhile but that did me no apparent good. My doctor just gave me some samples of Wellbutrin to try for a few weeks. Supposedly it is supposed to give you more energy, but insomnia can be aside effect; if so they recommend you take it in the morning. I've only been on it for a couple of days so we'll see.
Helen, I also recently was put on Citalopram (Celexa); it's been two months now at 10mg and so far I've noticed no difference. I'm going to talk to my doctor about doubling the dosage and see what happens. I also have grappled for years over the link between depression and insomnia; there have definitely been times when I wake up continuing to feel as or more tired than the day before and I definitely feel more depressed as result. I have still not figured out if my problem is actua insomnia or some other underlying thing that is causing me to feel fatigued all the time, regardless of the amount of sleep I have had; or whether such fatigue maybe results from depression? It is all jumbled together. I've dtried cognitive behavioral therapy but as I said my fatigue seems to stay whether or not I've been managing to sleep well. So we'll see if the Citalopram helps. But I've also read that most of the effect of anti-depressants is due to the placebo effect (60 Minutes had a story on this a few weeks ago)… So who knows?
I actually am beginning to wonder if I should be tested for apnea again. I was tested for it about 20 years ago (when I first started complaining about fatigue) and it was negative. But Jacobs said you can develop it over time and that my symptoms sound like apnea; since I am groggy and fatigued even on nights when I get a full night's sleep, and even if I have gotten my 5 to 5 1/2 hours of “core” sleep (which I actually do get most of the time). So I'm thinking about that and wondering whether my problem now actually is “insomnia” or some other underlying issue that is causing my constant fatigue.
I realize this thread is old and no one is probably reading anymore, but I just got around to reading your post and coincidentally, I had just pulled out the sheet that my sleep doctor (who also works in a clinic that is primarily pulmonary based but he also does CBT), and I noticed that it says on there that you should do something relaxing for 10 to 60 minutes before bed, and be sure to turn off the TV or computer I think it was a half hour beforehand because that can cause you to stay awake. Just thought I'd throw that in there. Good luck!
Jay
Sorry .. I thought I had posted this last week but turns out I wasn't logged in …
I have been seeing a sleep specialist at UCSF for about a year; I see him every four months or so. I've had recurring fatigue issues over the years and have difficulty sleeping more than 6 hours, usually less, and I'm always feeling groggy and foggy headed; sometimes more than others. The first time I saw the sleep specialist, I was having severe insomnia, many nights not sleeping at all, other times waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to fall back to sleep. Coincidentally I had started reading Jacobs' book on CBT for insomnia around the same time. The specialist told me to finish reading it, keep track of my sleep patterns, start a sleep restriction regimen, and take walks at night. It did seem to work; either because my anxiety from the new job lessened somewhat or because of the routine, I started sleeping through the night. However, I still could not sleep more than 6 hours max generally, often much less, waking up very early on work nights. (On weekends, with the help of a sleeping pill, I usually manage to sleep later.) But I am still very groggy and tired all the time. Now he has proposed putting me on Celexa to see if my problem is in part caused by depression and whether that might help improve my sleep and energy levels. I haven't actually started it yet; still thinking about it.
Update: This week I had a phone session with Gregg Jacobs, the leading CBT authority, and he urged me to go back to the prescriptions outlined in the book, most of which I haven't been following since I went through the six-week course and worked with the sleep doctor about a year ago. I've gone back to my old habits and have been spending too much time in bed when I wasn't sleeping. So I'm back on the CBT program for the next several weeks and we'll see how that goes. Going to forego the Celexa for now.
Hi Amy! Welcome! That wasn't such a “strange” introduction. One of the nice things about a board like this is that you meet people you'd otherwise never meet, and you get an idea of the types of issues others are struggling with. I sympathize with you on the loss of your friend; I and my partner have moved around a lot, and my circle of friends has dwindled over the years. I'm 53 and still can't believe it, and my two closest friends died in the last couple years. And my partner lost both his older brothers. I don't have PTSD but chronic low level depression; whether that causes or results from my insomnia (I can't sleep more than 6 hours max, usually less) is unclear.
Anyway welcome!
Jay
Thanks Nicole. I'll give it a try. In the past I always thought I was depressed because I was tired all the time, but now I'm not 100% sure of the cause and effect.
I'll let you know how it turns out!
Jay
I have been seeing a sleep specialist for the past year, who generally has been working with me on CBT approaches. I have had sleep/fatigue issues all my life, mainly involving waking up too early and never feeling refreshed, but they got a lot worse last year when I switched to a new job and was having a lot of stress and having sleepless nights, or waking up at 2 or 3 and not falling back to sleep. Generally these issues have gotten better, now I am generally able to sleep till at least 5 after going to be around 10, though frequently I still find myself waking up at 4:30. Anyway, I am constantly feeling tired and fatigued even when sleeping longer during the weekends (I know, CBT says to wake up at the same time every day, but I take the opportunity to sleep an extra hour or two on weekends; my problem is not that I have trouble falling asleep, just staying asleep). So now I have been prescribed Citalopram (Celexa), which I'm going to try for six weeks. It's an antidepressant but the thought is maybe it will help improve my mood and energy level, decrease anxiety and maybe either allow me to sleep a little more or feel better. I'm a little leery as one of the side effects is insomnia! When I tried Trazadone, that just kept me awake all night with weird dreams, I was falling asleep and then waking up all through the night.
Anyone have any experience with Citalopram/Celesta? Thanks!
I am in the thick of thinking about this issue right now. I graduated from law school in 1992, thought it would be a good thing to do to make a decent salary. I hadn't been getting very far in the journalism arena. When I got out of law school I was 33 years old. I have been pretty miserable ever since. I ended up specializing in a very limited field that very few firms do. Last year, after being at the same job for 8 years and somewhat bored with it, this partner at a big firm who I had worked with many years ago at another firm made me an offer to come work with him and some other refugees from that firm that I liked. I then went to work for this monstously large law firm, and the work that he had turned out to be almost menial compared to what I had been doing, I'm working on very small files that are hard to bill so I'm not making my billable hours, and I'm getting washed out. Now I'm 53 and I'm trying to figure out — what do I REALLY want to be doing? But I'm at this stupid job 12 hours a day (between the time I leave home and the time I come back), and I don't have the time or the luxury to really investigate it. I've been starting to look around elsewhere in the time that I have but it's hard. Luckily I do have some savings so we will be able to continue paying the mortgage for awhile if I end up jobless. We'll see!
Thanks.. I'd like to see them. Did the book come with cassettes or CDs? I'd be curious to hear them too.
Thanks Annie – my main issue is waking up too early. I had been having bouts of not falling asleep at all or waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to fall back to sleep, but now things have settled down some in my life and I'm back to my usual waking up too early. I am getting around 6 hours fairly regularly (sometimes less) but I'd like to break through that barrier as it's not enough and I feel groggy all the time… Haven't decided whether to give the Lexapro yet but I'll let you know… Thanks!
J
