Ireland
A 51-year-old male asked:
How long does it take for prozac (fluoxetine) to leave your system completely after discontinued?
2 doctor answers • 5 doctors weighed in
Dr. Imad Khreimanswered
Psychiatry 41 years experience
Apprx. 20 days: Prozac (fluoxetine) is a long acting medicine , between the original compound and the active metabolite the half life is around 96 hrs , so it takes approximately five times that for the level to drop to negligible.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.4k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Dr. Tariq Halimanswered
Psychiatry 16 years experience
Long Half-life: Usually around 21-35 days if you take into consideration prozac's metabolite (norfluoxetine).
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.4k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
Similar questions
CA
A 37-year-old member asked:
How long will it take for Prozac (fluoxetine) to leave my system?
1 doctor answer • 1 doctor weighed in
Dr. Donald Hazlettanswered
Psychiatry 56 years experience
Quite a while: Prozac (fluoxetine) taken over a period of three or more months, then stopped, can show the presence of fluoxetine for five or more weeks. Prozac has both a right and left isomer (like looking at yourself in the mirror and raising your hand and watching your raised r hand appear to be your l hand). Breakdown of fluoxetine yields nor-fluoxetine which lasts 2 x as long in the body as fluoxetine.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 45-year-old member asked:
How long does it take for Prozac (fluoxetine) to become effective?
1 doctor answer • 8 doctors weighed in
Dr. Steven Reidbordanswered
Psychiatry 38 years experience
3 weeks or more: Most ssris start to show effectiveness against depression about 2 weeks after starting them. Prozac (fluoxetine) is about 1 week slower due to its long half-life (it takes longer to reach a steady blood level). So a good estimate is about 3 weeks. But everybody's different; some people feel better faster, others need to wait longer. Also, improvement is gradual, it doesn't become "effective" all at once.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
6k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Last updated May 7, 2016
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