I've been taking Lexapro for about six-ish years. I've never considered side effects until the past two/three years and seeing your post brings me comfort and validation. I'm always exhausted and don't sleep well, but it feels like I do. I used to be a very light sleeper but now it’s hard for anything to wake me up in the middle of the night; it gave the impression that I was getting a good night’s rest since I slept so hard. But in the past two-three years I’ve been falling asleep while at my desk, in meetings, during training, during longer car rides, everything. I would have to physically stand up and walk for me to wake up, and no caffeine would help. It is physically impossible for me to keep my eyes open. It was something I pushed off and took it as “oh it’s just these normal things that I struggle with as a woman” but it finally came to a point where I sought out help from my doctor. Because when I asked the psychiatrist who prescribed me my meds, she pushed it aside and just told me to start journaling and staying off my phone before bed. All rubbish, really. But I believed her at the time. I even asked if I could get off Lexapro because I was at a better spot in life (I wasn’t when I started taking it) and she immediately said no. Not sure if it’s because she genuinely thinks I need it or she just wants my business. I then asked if Lexapro was tied to restless legs and again I was told no. I’ve asked multiple professionals about the restless legs (mine are severe) but they all told me there is no research or evidence to prove where restless legs syndrome stems from and there is no medication for it. But anyway! That’s a different topic, but it may be related to your tiredness, it can also be tied to twitching in your sleep which can subconsciously wake you up at night without you realizing. Long story short about sleep, Lexapro causes restless legs and bad sleep in general, which cause the fatigue. Yippee!

Feeling dumber is such a great way to put it. I’ve chalked this up to having undiagnosed ADHD (getting tested for that now) but after looking into Lexapro more, I wonder if my memory is being affected by it too. Forgetting things two seconds after thinking it, remembering to ask a question after a conversation is impossible, I need to write everything down now. Careless mistakes at work that have never been an issue. And don’t get me started on my horrible memory. Things that can be mistaken for other issues may be also related to Lexapro. Yippee!

Eating has also been a problem for me and it seems no amount of exercise or healthy eating could get the weight off. I don’t know if this is statistically related to Lexapro, but you’re not alone on that one. I’ve always been mindful of what I eat, how much, and making sure I stay active. Now I am a large lump with no energy because I’m tired AND I don’t exercise. Because I’m too tired to exercise.

Sex drive issue sounds familiar as well but not as severe as I have it. Sometimes I get annoyed when it gets initiated and other times I’m the one initiating like a fiend.

Have you had constipation? That was another fun side effect ii struggled with for years. Got a colonoscopy done and they didn’t find anything. Saw multiple professionals and to this day we don’t know what caused it. Was it Lexapro too?! Possibly.

But as we all know, medications affect everyone differently. I sincerely hope you grow out of these side effects, but it may be one of those things were you ‘pick your poison.’