Citalopram and the dream

[iranair777]

I've been on Citalopram for about 3 weeks now and while I'm 18 now, was wondering if it will stop me or restrict me from becoming a commercial airline pilot in the future? I don't consider myself as having very serious depression and have no intentions of bringing any problems with me to the flight deck. As a matter of fact about 3 months ago I had my first flying lesson and felt I was another person completely and not the depressed one on the ground.

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

I too am on Citalopram, for about 2 months. But I am 65 and have major reasons for my depression and drugs are a "last resort". For me it works fairly well but you only have to read some of the forums about anti-depressants to realise how powerful they are.

I wonder what on earth causes a young person to be so depressed as to need drugs? Have you not tried counselling? I had a major anxiety problem many years ago and my AME fixed up, via my GP, to have Cognitive Behaviuor Counselling and it worked like a miracle.

Good luck... but I don't think you'll get a medical certificate whilst you are taking them.

[iranair777]

I would get counseling, but only problem is money. Counseling is quite expensive and I don't really have the financial means to fund it

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Counselling costs nothing on the NHS. I'm surprised that your GP did not recommend it rather than prescribing drugs...?

[iranair777]

Yeah, I found that a bit odd as well. Can I train while on it? I think I'll stop after about 6 months anyway as its not major

[gingernut]

I wonder what on earth causes a young person to be so depressed as to need drugs?

Well, there isnt always an obvious cause, and remember young males are at high risk of this unfortunate condition.

Iranair, previous posts on here would suggest that gaining medical certification whilst on this class of drug is difficult, although future certification is possible.Your prescriber shouldnt have commenced treatment lightly, and Im assuming he s considered other options. It may be worth discussing the implications of treatment with him though. Don t suddenly stop your medication, you ll need weaning off this particular drug. Most treatment regimes last at least 6 months.


Good luck.

[Phalconphixer]

At the risk of starting an argument about ethics, a couple of points emerge from this.

How many times did you see your doc before he prescribed anti-depressants?
There is more than enough evidence 'out there' to suggest that SSRI's are being prescribed far too quickly when counselling is a more appropriate solution.

However, in the UK, NHS counselling, although free, is carried out by the Mental Health Department and you, as a patient are put on the Mental Health Register as a matter of course. This action alone makes prospective employers very nervous.

Citalopram is a bitch to get off of and you are the best judge of whether you need this medication. Google 'Citralopram' and check out the side effects...it can actually make matters far worse. I speak as one who has 'been there' as a carer for my partner while she was on this medication.

All SSRI's are of themselves inherently dangerous; your doc should be monitoring your progress closely; I suspect that he/she isn't if you can make the statement that you expect to come off them in six months. If you are still on this medication after six months you may well need Prozac, yet another SSRI to get off the Citralopram then something else to get you off Prozac; its a long and very slippery slope. My only advice would be get off it, while you can, if you can.

At the risk of being mercenary, most GP practices in the UK are under severe financial pressure from government and sales pressure from the Pharmaceutical companies. SSRI's are a cash cow for the pharmaceutical companies and a cheap solution for GP's; and whilst there is sometimes a marked change in depressive behaviour following initial treatment with these drugs, patients become dependent upon them and as with all patient dependent drugs, patients need to keep up the dosage. As I said getting off SSRI's is a problem, because your brain chemistry is altered by exposure to them particularly continued exposure. My partner experienced severe headaches, nausea and hallucinations whilst trying to come off Citalopram, one such episode requiring an emergency visit to her GP for a morphine shot to relieve the pain in her head.

You also need to know that being on SSRI's can have implication if you have an accident requiring anaesthesia and surgery. Operations these days invariably include a shot of Warfarin or Heparin to prevent blood clotting. The presence of SSRI's can lead to difficulties such as making blood clotting impossible. My partne for had to have an operation whilst on SSRI's and the combination of these and Heparin led to a haemorrhagic incident which damn near killed her.

I for one would think it virtually impossible to proceed with your chosen career if you continue to be exposed to SSRI's in any way shape or form. As I said previously, if it is at all possible for you to do so, get off them now…

[BoeingMEL]

My wife was prescribed those drugs and yes.. Citalopram did become difficult to wean off. The Tramadol caused hysteria and nightmares tho..it was the most distressing thing to witness.

I advise anyone about to take subscription drugs to carefully read the notes which come with the drug AND do a comprehensive Google search.

I hpe your career turns out to be as grand as your Pprune name Iranair777!

[Pace]

My ex was also on those awful drugs for ages with nasty effects too.

Drug companies make $billions dishing out drugs for conditions (not just depression but many other medical conditions too ) which are not understood and the drugs create more damage than they rectify.

There is an arguement that stress is the culprit and depression a normal body defense to quieten things down which can go over the top.

Ok for those who cannot cope extreme reactions need extreme measures but dump those awful drugs and sort out the real problems as I am sure your not one of the extreme I cannot cope types?

For my ex cog therapy was the best tool

[Panther]

My advice to anyone till my dying breath will always be...........steer clear.

As my Nan used to say......Don't go and bark your shin on a stool you can walk round.

These drugs DO have awful implications and frankly a lot of GP's should hang their heads with shame.......they are over prescribed, and the discontinuation syndrome associated with them are truly horrific.

I have posted on the subject before and there are some links I've posted which are compelling reading. May I suggest you read them before submitting yourself to this "therapy"...........

Best of luck
:ok:

[dunnock]

I took Citalopram for a year following the breakdown of my marriage. I started learning to fly after I'd been off them for about 4 months. As my training was relatively slow, I delayed going for my class 2 medical until I had been off them for nearly a year. I had to obtain a letter from my GP explaining why I'd taken them, for how long, how long I'd been off them and that I was fine now. It helped that I could pin it down to a specific trigger, I think. This evidence then went to the CAA and after several weeks I was given the all clear, with the provisio that I'd ground myself if I ever suffered a recurrence.

For the record though, not everyone experiences unpleasant discontinuation symptons. I reduced my dose very gradually and had no symptons at all. Could I have got by without the drugs? Probably, but the NHS therapist I had seemed to know less about therapy than I did and my private one was too expensive. And the point is that by the time you get to being prescribed AD's you're generally desperate enough to try anything. In my particular situation it was the best result.

[james192]

HEATHROW DIRECTOR, any chance of a pm?

many thanks

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Email me at [email protected]

[marioair]

Interesting thread as I started a similar one last week on UK medical flight tests for medicals whilst on escitalopram.

I've had both therapy and tablets at a various stages. My personal experience is that for mild depression/anxiety it's always worth trying therapy first. I'd even go as far as to say NHS may be best as its in their interest to discharge you successfully whereas perhaps not so if going privately. For moderate/severe depression, you sometimes need tablets to give you the "headspace" to deal with therapy so actually doing both is a good approach. Doing just medication is a bad idea in my view as it won't give you tools to deal with life when you come off them. At the end of the day only your GP can and should advise you however.

From a flying perspective, as of last year the UK CAA published a new protocol (google CAA DEPRESSION) to allow class 1 and 2 medicals whilst on certain SSRI. I have been trying to find out if anyone has been successful with this and what the CAA doctor is looking for from GP/AME reports to allow them to give a thumbs up.

However getting a medical and passing your PPL etc may be easier and very different to aviation/employers views on hiring you; sad as it is I believe the industry is still based on stigma that is out dated. So I would make sure you have a good feel for employment prospects before making too many financial commitments.

[Ulster]

From a flying perspective, as of last year the UK CAA published a new protocol to allow class 1 and 2 medicals whilst on certain SSRI

That's quite true, but it's still dubious whether this is what most ordinary passengers want. I remember reading a survey three or four years ago on how passengers would feel if told that the two gents "up at the front" were both taking psycho-active medication. Not surprisingly a large majority responded that they would not be at all happy. Many clearly imagined a situation of "taking drugs", and, for some people, that would not be a million miles from being intoxicated !
The CAA may be ready to reconsider the use of antidepressants, but it might be a bit too early for companies and/or passengers to accept them just yet.

[marioair]

Agree with last post hence advice to differentiate the ability to get a medical with ability to get a job.

However I think all passengers should care about is the ability of the crew to do the job. I would far rather have someone that has a valid medical, is happy and under the care of CAA whilst on meds, than a pilot who feels pressure to not take medication or is doing so without professional help.

Statistically 1 in 3 people have psychological issues at one point and (most) pilots are people.

[Oldfield89]

I am a highly experienced UK 'driver' with 25 years experience. I have been taking SSRIs since January for OCD type symptoms. They have (thus far) transformed my life and enjoyment of my career with no adverse side-effects.

Every time I visit the simulator, I get ticks in the 'Exemplary' box...my last visit out there (3 day trip) was highly enjoyable (including an MFT).

My paxs are in very safe hands, I can assure you ;)