You may think of alcohol as something to lift your mood, but mixing it and Lexapro may actually do the opposite: Alcohol can make your depression worse. You may not want to risk feeling even more depressed or anxious than you were before you took an antidepressant.
The combination of alcohol and Lexapro can cause dehydration that may lead to hangover-like symptoms. You might have headaches, fatigue, or nausea following drinking when on Lexapro. This can occur even after drinking just a small amount of alcohol.
People who drink alcohol while taking Lexapro may feel more depressed or anxious, and these symptoms may then become more challenging to treat. This worsening scenario is potentially dangerous as it can lead to some people having an increase in suicidal thoughts.
The combination of antidepressants and alcohol will affect your judgment, coordination, motor skills and reaction time more than alcohol alone. Some combinations may make you sleepy. This can impair your ability to drive or do other tasks that require focus and attention. You may become sedated or feel drowsy.
However, since many patients are not willing to give up alcohol completely, it is important to combine alcohol and antidepressants in the safest way possible. Some physicians allow moderate drinking for their patients. This means 1 drink per day for women and 2 drinks per day for men.
You may not want to skip having a drink just because you take an antidepressant. But if you want to raise a glass once in a while, you need to do it safely. And don't stop taking your medication just so you can drink.
Lexapro may cause weight gain because it blocks the serotonin transporter, which increases levels of serotonin in the brain, but also increases appetite and decreases metabolism. Research has shown approximately 40% of people taking antidepressants such as Lexapro will gain 7% or more of their starting body weight.
If you're prescribed an antidepressant, it's best to avoid drinking alcohol while you're using your medication. Not only can alcohol increase your risk of experiencing side effects, but it may also make your depression worse. In some cases, it can even cause dangerous interactions.
Most types of antidepressants are not likely to cause life-threatening side effects, so doctors may tell patients they can limit themselves to very moderate drinking, if necessary. A drink a day for women or two drinks per day for men is unlikely to cause serious side effects when mixed with antidepressants.
Do not use escitalopram with buspirone (Buspar®), fentanyl (Abstral®, Duragesic®), lithium (Eskalith®, Lithobid®), tryptophan, St. John's wort, amphetamines, or some pain or migraine medicines (eg, rizatriptan, sumatriptan, tramadol, Frova®, Imitrex®, Maxalt®, Relpax®, Ultram®, Zomig®).
No interactions were found between caffeine and Lexapro.
Although thought to be generally safe and with minimal drug-drug interactions, clinicians should be aware of the possibility of escitalopram-induced liver injury when initiating depressed patients on antidepressant treatment. This requires extra vigilance as most patients may remain asymptomatic.
You can have a Lexapro 40 mg overdose, while others have a Lexapro overdose 100 mg. In clinical trials, some patients got an overdose after taking 600mg of Lexapro dosage.
Symptoms include agitation, insomnia, confusion, rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, loss of muscle coordination, and more. Also, keep in mind that Lexapro overdose is more likely to occur when the drug is mixed with other substances, such as alcohol or other medications.
A moderate overdose (30 times the daily dose) leaves no or minor symptoms. At 50-75 times the daily dose, there can be symptoms like drowsiness, tremor, nausea, and vomiting. At higher doses, serious adverse effects like ECG changes, decreased level of consciousness, and seizures may occur.
Generally, drinking alcohol while taking antidepressants is not advised. Alcohol can make depression worse, and also increase the severity of antidepressant side effects. It's generally recommended that people on antidepressants abstain from alcohol, especially if they will be driving or operating heavy machinery.
There are no antidepressants that are completely safe when taken with alcohol. Some providers may say that light to moderate drinking is OK while taking certain antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) like sertraline (Zoloft), fluoxetine (Prozac), and escitalopram (Lexapro).
Research has found that antidepressants can intensify the effects of alcohol, or can lead individuals to increase their alcohol consumption and become heavily dependent on alcohol. SSRIs induced alcoholism is likely to be relatively common but reported as being rare.
It's not uncommon for people to experience weight gain while taking Lexapro. The good news is that this side effect often might go away once the body adjusts to the drug and your metabolism returns to normal.
Medical experts are not exactly sure why taking certain antidepressants, including Lexapro, leads to weight gain, but most believe that this type of medication may alter metabolism or appetite.
The combination of Lexapro and alcohol should be avoided due to potentially dangerous side effects. Even a small amount of alcohol can lead to a large amount of unpleasant effects. Mixing these two substances may actually lead to heightened symptoms of depression and anxiety.
If You Do Have to Take Antidepressants Forever, You Will Be OK. Some recent studies suggest long-term antidepressant use may come with side effects previously unknown to scientists. “These risks include an increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially for SSRI users,” Dr.
But what many people don't know is that mixing Prozac and alcohol can lead to unwanted results. Put simply, it can lower the effectiveness of your medication while also making its side effects more extreme. And in the longer term, mixing Prozac and alcohol could actually worsen symptoms of your depression.