1 year since three 10mg doses of Lexapro and other unfortunate medical news

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

I've got a long one for you, but it's not your typical story.

I took a few months off from posting, but I've been reading most of

the posts. As far as my progress and health goes, this past July I

have discovered what is believed to be a pre-existing condition that

may solely or in conjunction with PSSD contribute to my sexual

dysfunction. Before I get into that though, I'll first recap my story.

As some of you may remember, I am a rare case even amongst this

discussion group. Some of you have even expressed skepticism about

whether or not my symptoms are from a real PSSD condition.

To reiterate my experience, almost one year ago I was given a free

" Patient Starter Kit " of Lexapro ( " Power to Enjoy Life " ) as treatment

for depression. Before taking the Lexapro I read the warnings in the

booklet which included...

" The most common adverse events with Lexapro versus placebo

[approximately 5% or greater and approximately 2x placebo] were

nausea, insomnia, ejaculation disorder, somnolence, increased

sweating, fatigue, decreased libido, and anorgasmia. "

.... I'm reading the warning as I typed it just now. I suppose Forest

Pharmaceuticals could say " approximately 0.001% or greater " and still

be legally protected with the warning statement. In other news:

Nitrous oxide has approximately a 5% or greater chance to get you high

when substituted for air.

Anyway, I didn't think much of these warnings at the time since my PCP

made no mention of the adverse sexual effects, and neither he nor the

booklet mentioned any longterm side effects. So, I began taking one

10mg dose of Lexapro per day, as instructed by the trial pack. On the

third day I noticed I could no longer pleasure myself. No arousal, no

orgasm, no pleasurable sensation at all! This never happened before

(except to a lesser degree when I was completely wasted on alcohol). I

stopped taking Lexapro immediately but didn't recover from the side

effects over the course of a few days. So, I began some research on

SSRIs and sex which ultimately led me here.

It has now been a year since that awful moment and I am still no where

near as functional as I was on the days before taking Lexapro.

Spontaneous and visually aroused erections haven't occured since

before Lexapro. Libido and sensitivity have improved only marginally

after a few months (I'd say no more than 20% of what it used to be)

and I am able to achieve an anhedonic orgasm after a lot of hard work

by myself or with my girlfriend (and only while doing it dog-style)

but that is it for progress so far.

I should also say that since May I have taken 20mg of Adderall per day

for ADD/I. The Adderall helps with short-term memory, communication,

organization and motivation problems but has no noticeable affect on

my SD.

One might ask, " How can a 3 day exposure to an SSRI cause more than a

year's worth of sexual side-effects? " Hell if I know the answer, but I

can tell you that I either have PSSD or those 3 doses of Lexapro

coincided with an otherwise inexplicable pivotal point in my life when

the volume was instantly turned way down, almost to mute, on my sexual

performance/satisfaction and daily emotional responses in general.

Now, what makes my situation differ from the rest of yours (hopefully)

is that I have learned, after seeing a neurologist and having 2

MRI's, that I have a low-grade encapsulated brain tumor and an

adjacent cluster of much smaller tumors the size of a blueberry,

collectively, in the middle of my brain. It's located at eye level on

the right-most side of the left lobe, directly behind a major blood

vessel, and not very far from hormonal glands and the brain stem. The

tumor(s) is believed to be benign, in that it shouldn't pose an

immediate threat to my life, but my neuro-oncologist recognizes the

possibility, given its location, it could play a role in sexual

dysfunction, depression, and ADD/I-like memory and mental focus

conditions. She also said the tumor has probably been there for years,

and I believe that is the case.

For years I have been, what I'll now call, mildly anorgasmic. My

libido was always great, I only experienced ED and anhedonia after

hours of drinking, but at any given time I could basically have sex

without orgasm indefinitely with any girl unless I concentrated hard

both mentally and physically. Sometimes I'd become physically

exhausted before ever reaching orgasm and often my girlfriend would

get sore before I could finish. Quite the opposite behavior from what

I've heard from other people. So, I'm under the impression that this

brain tumor has directly or indirectly, through hormone imbalance,

caused this sexual effect over the years. Don't get me wrong though,

the pre-SSRI anorgasmia was a drop in the bucket compared to the SD I

have now.

My oncologist mentioned 3 options for treatment; treat the symptoms

only, radiation, or surgery - in that order of preference for now. The

tumor(s) will be monitored for growth periodically via MRI. I have not

consulted with a neuro-surgeon, but the oncologist said radiation

therapy could destroy important, near-by sections of brain. Surgery

would likely require the removal of some of my left major lobe to

access the tumor and since it's located behind a major blood vessel,

there is the risk of stroke during surgery. Surgery seems to be a last

resort.

The course of action for me is to keep an eye on the tumors' size and

see an endocrinologist to make sure it's not affecting hormones.

That's my update. If anyone has any thoughts, suggestions, I'm all ears.

If the doctors conclude that this tumor plays a role in SD or PSSD or,

Vornan, if you think it's beneficial info anyway, I can share my MRI

image and other info with the group.

Take care for now,

-

[Guest guest]

Hi Vornan,

The neuro-oncologist suspects a hormonal imbalance due to the brain

tumor, so she recommended having thorough blood tests and potential

follow-up treatment from an endocrinologist. When I mentioned treating

the symptoms, I meant with supplements or hormone therapy. As long as

the tumor is benign I will leave it alone unless there arises a less

risky way to treat it, or if it begins to swell or cause inflammation

which could lead to serious problems like seizures, coma, or death. I

think the tumor may play a role in my SD, but I strongly believe a

reaction to Lexapro is the root cause of 90% of my problems.

The oncologist did acknowledged that long-term usage of SSRIs can

cause post-usage sexual side effects, but she is reluctant to

acknowledge that my brief exposure to Lexapro has anything to do with

my SD.

I'll be seeing the endocrinologist this Thursday and I want to have

everything related to SD checked. Is there a specific list of lab

tests I should be sure to ask for? So far I'm thinking prolactin,

testosterone, estrogen, and I'm not sure what else yet. I'm sure the

doc will know what else to look for but I don't want to leave any

stone unturned, especially since I reached the out of pocket maximum

on my health insurance for the year.

Thanks for the good wishes and as always thanks for moderating this

discussion and helping us all cope and learn about our affliction.

-

> >

> > Hi all,

> >

> > I've got a long one for you, but it's not your typical story.

> >

> > I took a few months off from posting, but I've been reading most of

> > the posts. As far as my progress and health goes, this past July I

> > have discovered what is believed to be a pre-existing condition that

> > may solely or in conjunction with PSSD contribute to my sexual

> > dysfunction. Before I get into that though, I'll first recap my

> story.

> >

> > As some of you may remember, I am a rare case even amongst this

> > discussion group. Some of you have even expressed skepticism about

> > whether or not my symptoms are from a real PSSD condition.

> >

> > To reiterate my experience, almost one year ago I was given a free

> > " Patient Starter Kit " of Lexapro ( " Power to Enjoy Life " ) as

> treatment

> > for depression. Before taking the Lexapro I read the warnings in the

> > booklet which included...

> >

> > " The most common adverse events with Lexapro versus placebo

> > [approximately 5% or greater and approximately 2x placebo] were

> > nausea, insomnia, ejaculation disorder, somnolence, increased

> > sweating, fatigue, decreased libido, and anorgasmia. "

> >

> > ... I'm reading the warning as I typed it just now. I suppose Forest

> > Pharmaceuticals could say " approximately 0.001% or greater " and

> still

> > be legally protected with the warning statement. In other news:

> > Nitrous oxide has approximately a 5% or greater chance to get you

> high

> > when substituted for air.

> >

> > Anyway, I didn't think much of these warnings at the time since my

> PCP

> > made no mention of the adverse sexual effects, and neither he nor

> the

> > booklet mentioned any longterm side effects. So, I began taking one

> > 10mg dose of Lexapro per day, as instructed by the trial pack. On

> the

> > third day I noticed I could no longer pleasure myself. No arousal,

> no

> > orgasm, no pleasurable sensation at all! This never happened before

> > (except to a lesser degree when I was completely wasted on

> alcohol). I

> > stopped taking Lexapro immediately but didn't recover from the side

> > effects over the course of a few days. So, I began some research on

> > SSRIs and sex which ultimately led me here.

> >

> > It has now been a year since that awful moment and I am still no

> where

> > near as functional as I was on the days before taking Lexapro.

> > Spontaneous and visually aroused erections haven't occured since

> > before Lexapro. Libido and sensitivity have improved only marginally

> > after a few months (I'd say no more than 20% of what it used to be)

> > and I am able to achieve an anhedonic orgasm after a lot of hard

> work

> > by myself or with my girlfriend (and only while doing it dog-style)

> > but that is it for progress so far.

> >

> > I should also say that since May I have taken 20mg of Adderall per

> day

> > for ADD/I. The Adderall helps with short-term memory, communication,

> > organization and motivation problems but has no noticeable affect on

> > my SD.

> >

> > One might ask, " How can a 3 day exposure to an SSRI cause more than

> a

> > year's worth of sexual side-effects? " Hell if I know the answer,

> but I

> > can tell you that I either have PSSD or those 3 doses of Lexapro

> > coincided with an otherwise inexplicable pivotal point in my life

> when

> > the volume was instantly turned way down, almost to mute, on my

> sexual

> > performance/satisfaction and daily emotional responses in general.

> >

> > Now, what makes my situation differ from the rest of yours

> (hopefully)

> > is that I have learned, after seeing a neurologist and having 2

> > MRI's, that I have a low-grade encapsulated brain tumor and an

> > adjacent cluster of much smaller tumors the size of a blueberry,

> > collectively, in the middle of my brain. It's located at eye level

> on

> > the right-most side of the left lobe, directly behind a major blood

> > vessel, and not very far from hormonal glands and the brain stem.

> The

> > tumor(s) is believed to be benign, in that it shouldn't pose an

> > immediate threat to my life, but my neuro-oncologist recognizes the

> > possibility, given its location, it could play a role in sexual

> > dysfunction, depression, and ADD/I-like memory and mental focus

> > conditions. She also said the tumor has probably been there for

> years,

> > and I believe that is the case.

> >

> > For years I have been, what I'll now call, mildly anorgasmic. My

> > libido was always great, I only experienced ED and anhedonia after

> > hours of drinking, but at any given time I could basically have sex

> > without orgasm indefinitely with any girl unless I concentrated hard

> > both mentally and physically. Sometimes I'd become physically

> > exhausted before ever reaching orgasm and often my girlfriend would

> > get sore before I could finish. Quite the opposite behavior from

> what

> > I've heard from other people. So, I'm under the impression that this

> > brain tumor has directly or indirectly, through hormone imbalance,

> > caused this sexual effect over the years. Don't get me wrong though,

> > the pre-SSRI anorgasmia was a drop in the bucket compared to the SD

> I

> > have now.

> >

> > My oncologist mentioned 3 options for treatment; treat the symptoms

> > only, radiation, or surgery - in that order of preference for now.

> The

> > tumor(s) will be monitored for growth periodically via MRI. I have

> not

> > consulted with a neuro-surgeon, but the oncologist said radiation

> > therapy could destroy important, near-by sections of brain. Surgery

> > would likely require the removal of some of my left major lobe to

> > access the tumor and since it's located behind a major blood vessel,

> > there is the risk of stroke during surgery. Surgery seems to be a

> last

> > resort.

> >

> > The course of action for me is to keep an eye on the tumors' size

> and

> > see an endocrinologist to make sure it's not affecting hormones.

> >

> > That's my update. If anyone has any thoughts, suggestions, I'm all

> ears.

> >

> > If the doctors conclude that this tumor plays a role in SD or PSSD

> or,

> > Vornan, if you think it's beneficial info anyway, I can share my MRI

> > image and other info with the group.

> >

> > Take care for now,

> >

> > -

> >

>