# Lexapro - Extremely Tired



## chris87 (Jul 13, 2008)

I have been taking Lexapro since November 13. I am extremely exhausted, and I am wondering if this has to do with REM sleep. I have read that SSRIs disrupt REM sleep by about 40%. I do usually wake up once at night, but I am able to go back to sleep. Is this tiredness possibly from not getting REM sleep? Is there any solution besides a sleeping pill? Thanks!


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

A new mattress? lol


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## chris87 (Jul 13, 2008)

Noca said:


> A new mattress? lol


Haha I have a new mattress. I never had a problem until I started taking Lexapro. I slept 10 hours last night, and I'm exhausted right now. I feel like I could sleep for an entire day, and I would still wake up tired.


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## gordonjohnson008 (Nov 2, 2008)

You're right, SSRI's can reduce the amount of REM sleep by 40-85%, I've also read a study on that. It's a good question. Taking psychoactive drugs in the morning is less likely to have them interfere with your sleep - making you less likely to wake up during the night.

To be honest, I don't know the function of REM sleep, and I'm unsure if there really is a concensus on its purpose in mammals and especially humans.

I've taken Paxil & Lexapro, and Lexapro made me noticably more tired than Paxil ever did. Plus, I started to shed lots of hair on Lexapro and it made me nervous that this would continue. Since quitting Lexapro, I no longer notice lots of shed hairs on my pillow every morning when I wake up.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

gordonjohnson008 said:


> You're right, SSRI's can reduce the amount of REM sleep by 40-85%, I've also read a study on that. It's a good question. Taking psychoactive drugs in the morning is less likely to have them interfere with your sleep - making you less likely to wake up during the night.
> 
> To be honest, I don't know the function of REM sleep, and I'm unsure if there really is a concensus on its purpose in mammals and especially humans.
> 
> I've taken Paxil & Lexapro, and Lexapro made me noticably more tired than Paxil ever did. Plus, I started to shed lots of hair on Lexapro and it made me nervous that this would continue. Since quitting Lexapro, I no longer notice lots of shed hairs on my pillow every morning when I wake up.


Yeah I shed hair on Lexapro too. Didn't have that problem with other drugs.


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## chris87 (Jul 13, 2008)

Is there a sleeping pill that anyone would recommend? I hate to take something like that, but I really need to get some energy. I can't stand the waking up at night and not feeling refreshed.


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## gordonjohnson008 (Nov 2, 2008)

Noca said:


> Yeah I shed hair on Lexapro too. Didn't have that problem with other drugs.


Yeah, it's really weird right? I've tried a buncha drugs and from different categories, and Lexapro is the only one that gave me hair loss. At age 22 with NO family history of balding. Also it's good to note that the shedding stopped completely by about 2 weeks or so after I quit Lexapro.

By reading over testamonials from this med, hair loss seemed uncomfortably common for both men and women. Fatigue also seemed extremely common.

If fatigue is a huge issue, I seriously recommend trying a less sedating SSRI. I found Paxil to give me the right amount of energy. Zoloft and Prozac might even give more.


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## muhamur (Jan 16, 2009)

chris87 said:


> I have been taking Lexapro since November 13. I am extremely exhausted, and I am wondering if this has to do with REM sleep.


i have the exact same problem, and have been on lexapro for @6 years. provigil has helped, as has reboxetine (a european version of strattera), but the former loses its effectiveness and the latter causes anxiety. i don't know how much lexapro tiredness is related to disrupted REM sleep. it's my understanding that all antidepressants, inc. ssris, snris, maois etc. substantially decrease rem sleep. yet a number of them tend to be energizing rather than fatigue inducing. maybe this is correlated with their tendency to supress rem? don't know. any advice or other experiences on dealing with lexapro/ssris and fatigue?


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## Jimminy_Billy_Bob (Nov 26, 2008)

never had that problem on lexapro, did make me more depressed however. Pretty much all AD's I have tried tho make me wake up every half an hour intervals every night. Nardil does this but I do get a fairly refreshing sleep and wake up feeling good.


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## UltraShy (Nov 8, 2003)

gordonjohnson008 said:


> If fatigue is a huge issue, I seriously recommend trying a less sedating SSRI. *I found Paxil* to give me the right amount of energy. Zoloft and Prozac might even give more.


Proof that everyone is different when it comes to meds. Paxil is generally deemed the most sedating of the SSRIs & Prozac the most stimulating -- though they both felt the same to me, which is totally neutral in terms of stimulation vs sedation.

My brother, on the other hand, couldn't stand the sedation of Paxil, even though I, as close a genetic relative as possible, found Paxil to produce zero sedation.


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## kev (Jan 28, 2005)

That's interesting about the REM sleep. I have had similar problems with antidepressants and fatigue, including lexapro and also wellbutrin. Which doesn't actually make much sense since wellbutrin is supposed to be energizing and lexapro is supposed to be closer to neutral. But all that medication must have been causing some sort of permanent brain fog or something, I don't know. It was like my eyes were tired all the time and I was tired but I just couldn't sleep. Who knows. 

I tried one sleep aid, rozerem, but it made me so tired, it wasn't worth it. Provigil has helped me some as has stopping the wellbutrin and lexapro. It's still leaving my system but I feel much better already, much less brain fog, much less fatigue. Who knows. 

I wouldn't necessarily recommend adding a sleep aid (the less medications the better) although I can see why you would want one if the lexapro is helping your mood. Eh, I don't know, if you ask your doctor, I'm sure he will be happy to prescribe one, lol, that is what they do.


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## kev (Jan 28, 2005)

Oh, I have to backtrack a little. I woke up feeling terrible today. One thing that lexapro does well is prevent panic attacks that occur at night which can cause you to wake up feeling uncomfortable and in pain (I'm just assuming it's the anxiety, since lexapro helps). I almost forgot about that.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

Ritalin wakes me up from Paxil's lethargy


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## subdued (Jun 17, 2009)

Very interesting about Lexapro affecting REM sleep. 

I feel like I get a deep sleep with Lexapro. I also seem to be dreaming more. So I didn't realize that I could be getting less REM sleep. 

However, I have been sleeping more hours, and I seem to have a lot less energy. 

Initially, I thought my lack of energy was due to getting a Colitis flareup, loosing massive amounts of blood, and becoming anemic. However, I've been in remission for six and a half months now, my color is back, and I'm still tired. 

Perhaps, I am not getting much REM sleep after all. I could be dreaming during other sleep states. I read that other sleep states also produce dreams. Usually, these dreams are fuzzier, more sedate dreams. But occasionally, vivid dreams are reported in non-REM sleep, most commonly at the end of a long sleep indulgence. That's what seems to be happening to me. I'm sleeping in, and dreaming almost the whole time during this sleep stage. Perhaps, I'm trying to make up for the lack of REM sleep.


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## MissMay1977 (Oct 25, 2008)

My mom just started taking this.


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## Delbert (Sep 26, 2010)

*delbert*

I have tried 3 Anti depressent drugs for anxiety and all made me very tired and I gave them all a chance to work - even started on the lowest doses ... I did finally find a med that work GREAT for me .. it is designed for anxiety, which many people will find out that is all they need - not the depression portion. Sometimes DR's will just automatically just start prescribing AD's and not realize the person just needs an anxiety med. I discovered a med that also make you sleep very well and not give you a sleep hangover (when you get the right dose figured out) >> which is easy. Generally .5 to 1.0 MG at night will make you sleep great and not have the REM sleep issue either. The drug is Klonapin ... I heard about this through a phycologist and later learned of some friends who have taken this for several years. They love it and have stayed on the same dosage for years --- It is surprising tome to see how AD's are just dished out for anyone who might just need to solve an anxiety issue and sleeping issue. The side effects were ZERO for me
Hope this helps some of you


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## Elissa1 (Sep 27, 2010)

First I would consult your Doctor on this. He/she may recommend you to a sleep lab, where they will have you sleep over the night in their bed, wired up for sound! They will put wires everywhere and monitor you all night long.
They can tell you, how many times you stop breathing, if your leg twitches or anything else you do, which may prevent you from sleeping.


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## JWP (Feb 22, 2011)

*Need Suggestions for non-fatigue causing Anti-Anxiety Drug*

I have been taking Lexapro for about 9 years now, and about a year and half ago I began feeling tired all day every day. After several negative tests for other conditions, my Doctor has narrowed it down to this antidepressant, so I need to switch to another anti-anxiety drug that works. Does anyone have any suggestions of a drug that works for anxiety and causes little to no fatigue?


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## jim_morrison (Aug 17, 2008)

chris87 said:


> Is there a sleeping pill that anyone would recommend? I hate to take something like that, but I really need to get some energy. I can't stand the waking up at night and not feeling refreshed.


Try Trazodone, it should reverse any REM stage, and Slow-wave sleep stage disruption brought on by an SSRI.


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## mikoy (Aug 12, 2010)

But trazodone can make him more tired.


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## jim_morrison (Aug 17, 2008)

mikoy said:


> But trazodone can make him more tired.


It's possible, but he's trying to specifically target the problem of SSRI-induced reduced sleep quality, so a 5HT2A antagonist like trazodone is necessary to restore sleep architecture to normal.


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## mikoy (Aug 12, 2010)

Why SSRI in long term use, dont downregulate 5-ht2a/c receptors to level when this sleep side effect go away?


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