The Surprising Health Benefits of Taking Citalopram at Night

By - Dr. Rimita Farid

When you take any medicine, it is better to have some knowledge about it. In this way, you can know about its side effects and visit the healthcare provider if it causes you any. 

Do you want to know the benefits of taking Citalopram at night?

You are at the right place. Here we will tell you the essential information that you should have about Citalopram. If you want to know that, keep reading the article. But before we start with anything else, we will tell you what Citalopram is? And it is used for which conditions? Many people have a question: can Citalopram help you sleep? Yes, it can. 

What is Citalopram?

Citalopram, sold by the brand name Celexa, is an antidepressant medication that belongs to the class of drugs selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. When you are depressed, your serotonin levels fall below normal. Therefore, citalopram is prescribed to get your serotonin levels back to normal. It helps in restoring its normal levels and helps boost your feeling of well-being. 

Serotonin is the neurotransmitter that helps elevate your mood and make you feel happy. If it gets lowered down, you may get depressed. Citalopram can help normalize the levels of neurotransmitters. Hence it helps in getting out of depression. Along with medications, you should try everything else, such as psychotherapy and mental rehabilitation. They can help you cope and get out of depression. Citalopram for depression is also an effective treatment. 

What Are The Uses of Citalopram?

Citalopram is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor. Its most common use is depression. But it is also used in other conditions, such as,

Your healthcare provider may combine it with other drugs to provide relief from a health condition. You may need to take other medications too with it. 

How Does Citalopram Work in The Body?

Citalopram is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor which means it works by stopping the reuptake of serotonin- a neurotransmitter in your brain. In this way, it helps increase the levels of serotonin in your brain, which helps you feel well and elevates your mood. 

Benefits of Taking Citalopram at Night

Many people have a question: when to take Citalopram, morning or night? Since, Citalopram causes sleepiness, the best time to take it is at night.  

Citalopram is a commonly prescribed antidepressant. It helps relieve the symptoms of anxiety and calms you down. With citalopram, you experience fewer panic attacks and anxiety, which helps you relax. 

You may be wondering, can Citalopram help you sleep? So the answer is yes, Citalopram helps induce sleep, which makes it beneficial when you take it at night. Like other SSRI drugs, it can help reduce the time you take in falling asleep and reduce the number of times you wake up at night.

Not being able to sleep when you want to can be very frustrating, and it leaves you tired. It exhausts you mentally and has a direct effect on your quality of life. That is when antidepressant medications like Citalopram help you. They can help you sleep for long hours, which improves your quality of life. 

There are benefits of taking Citalopram at night, but always make sure to take the medicine as prescribed. Do not increase the dose by yourself to get more sleep as you can experience dangerous side effects. Always consult your doctor before changing the dose of your medication. 

Best Time of Day to Take Citalopram

You can take Citalopram any time of the day. Try to take it at the same time every day. When to take your antidepressant depends upon what side effects you experience, and you can adjust the time accordingly. Discuss with your doctor to decide what time is best for you to take Citalopram.

You can take it with or without food, so you don’t have to attach this medicine with lunch or dinner. It can be taken on an empty stomach, which gives you the liberty to take it whenever you want even if you are not feeling full. 

Take the medicine as prescribed by your doctor, and do not change the dose by yourself. The medicine can take some weeks to show its full effect, so be patient. You may be thinking that it is not effective because you are not taking it at the right time or in the right way. But that’s not the case.

All drugs from this class take time to show their effect.

How Does Citalopram Make You Feel?

Citalopram increases the level of a chemical called serotonin in your brain. It is an antidepressant medication. It will increase your energy levels and make you feel good. Citalopram helps alleviate anxiety and makes you feel calm and relaxed. But, it takes time to show effect. So you have to be very patient. 

Initially, Citalopram may show undesired side effects when you start taking it. It can make you feel drowsy and low. You may lose weight when you start taking it. 

Citalopram takes around two weeks to help you with depression, and to reduce anxiety, it may take approximately four weeks. 

When you start taking citalopram, you may experience some side effects like:

These citalopram side effects gradually diminish on their own. Consult your doctor if some side effects are bothering you very much, and you want to change the medication.

Another thing to keep in mind is that Citalopram can cause sexual side effects too. Citalopram can:

Citalopram can also decrease sperm count. 

Who Should Not Take Citalopram?

Citalopram is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, and increases the levels of serotonin in your brain. It is helpful in the treatment of depression. But sometimes, a certain drug can be harmful to some other conditions. If it helps treat one condition, it may not be suitable for the other.

Therefore we will tell you here the conditions in which you should not take Citalopram. This means, if you have any of these conditions, you should not take Celexa or citalopram. 

To prevent any mishap, make sure to give a complete disease and medication history to your healthcare provider. Before prescribing any new drug, your doctor will ask you some questions regarding your medical history. Make sure that you are mentally alert in it and tell all things accurately.

Sometimes not giving a proper disease and medication history can lead to life-threatening consequences. Therefore make sure to be open and 100% honest with your physician. They will not prescribe you Citalopram if you have any of the following health conditions;

Heart Rhythm Abnormalities

If you have a complaint of arrhythmias, you should avoid the use of Citalopram as it can also cause abnormal heart rhythm. It can cause QT interval prolongation or Torsades pointes which is a serious life-threatening condition. Therefore if you have a previous history of abnormal heart rhythm, your healthcare provider will not prescribe selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.

Do Not Take Citalopram With Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors

Citalopram, when taken with any monoamine oxidase inhibitor, such as Phenelzine or Selegiline, can cause interaction. Therefore you should avoid their concomitant use. Do not take any monoamine oxidase inhibitor within 2 weeks of stopping citalopram. 

If you take citalopram and a monoamine oxidase inhibitor at the same time, it can lead to a condition called serotonin syndrome. It is a life-threatening condition in which serotonin levels increase more than normal. The symptoms of serotonin syndrome include stiff muscles, uncontrolled spasms of the muscles, high-grade fever, changes in the heart rhythm and heart rate, changes in blood pressure, loss of consciousness, confusion, and tremors.

Do Not Take Citalopram with Pimozide

Taking pimozide and Citalopram together can cause serious heart problems. Therefore if you take any one of them, avoid the use of another. 

Do Not Stop it Abruptly

Many people tend to stop taking Citalopram abruptly because of its side effects. But never do that. If you stop taking Citalopram abruptly, it can cause even worse anxiety and its related symptoms. The technique to stop taking any selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor is to taper it off. Each day lower the dose when you take citalopram, and in this way, you can stop taking it. 

Stopping it without the consent of your healthcare provider can cause your depression to become worse. Always consult with your healthcare provider beforehand if you feel the need to stop Citalopram. They may prescribe you another medication that can help keep the symptoms of depression at the bay.

FAQs

Question- What is the best time to take Citalopram?

Answer- The best time to take Citalopram is at night before you go to bed.

Question- For what condition is Citalopram prescribed?

Answer- Citalopram is most commonly prescribed for depression. However, it can also be prescribed for other conditions such as social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and panic disorder.

Question- Can Citalopram cause sexual dysfunction?

Answer- Yes! Citalopram can cause sexual dysfunction. If you have the same complaint, you should consult with your healthcare provider. They may prescribe a substitute for it.

Conclusion

We have concluded the benefits of taking Citalopram at night. If you take it, the best time is to do that at night. However, if you can tolerate its side effects, you must consult with a healthcare provider before stopping its use. Do not stop it abruptly.