Been talking with my GP about going on Anti-depressants; it's a last resort really, as I've been stuck in a rut for years.
SSRI's to be exact.
Anyone got any advice, info, opinions, personal experiences, ETC
I think I remember hearing in passing that at least a few here have strong opinions on them, so, thoughts?
I've had some experience here, both good and bad. Anti-depressants are a good tool to use, but never depend on them as a crutch. Every type of mood-altering drug also has different effects on each individual, so don't think that what worked for someone else will necessarily work for you. Start out slow and don't expect them to work right away. They take time to build up (sometimes over a month). And if they start to have negative effects, bring it up with your doctor immediately.
I wouldn't be afraid of using them, but definitely make sure you are using them right. You said you had a GP talking you through this, so that's good. If you aren't already, I'd recommend coupling any anti-depressant use with regular therapy sessions. Using both together is the most effective way to help yourself.
I've got a long history with SSRIs for anxiety and depression issues. I'm currently on Effexor XR, but I've used Celexa, Paxil, and Cymbalta in the past. For me, the sexual side effects are the biggest problem. It totally kills my libido, and can interfere with normal ejaculation. Don't be afraid to share your concerns, and thoroughly report side effects to your doctor. It may take a little time, and some trial and error to find the right one for you, but it's worth it. Good luck, and feel free to PM me if you have any other related questions.
First, you have to understand that not all anti depressants work.
Secondly, if you are new to taking such drugs, you have to understand that dosage and type need to be adjusted if you have side effects from taking them.
Third, it could take a month or two for you to get adjusted to them, once the right type and dosage is found for you. Or, as in my case, they were kicking in the next day.
Anti depressants are not a "cure", they are a temporary stop-gap measure to subside your state of mind and emotions, long enough for you to see a little more clearly, what is going on in your life and how to deal with it, fix it, or cut it out from your life altogether. Pills are a helpful as long as you are working on the problems themselves.
Once you understand the problems and how to beat them, then you can stop taking them.
Only people who are truly psychotic and could be a danger to themselves and others, take anti depressants as a normal routine of medical treatment. Truly psychotic people have chemical imbalances, and not all drugs of this nature can help with chemical imbalances, thats why they take them as a regular medical treatment.
If you are just depressed or stressed about "normal" people issues and life, then anti depressants are not going to solve anything unless you are also working on the problems. Don't expect the pills to be any kind of cure.
A few family members of mine take them... I would say my advice is to combine them with therapy, and not to stop them abruptly. Also, do not be afraid to switch to another medication if the side effects are too extreme - like extreme tiredness or even making your depression worse.
I was misdiagnosed as 'chronic depression' in 1994. The Psychiatrist spent 15 minutes with me, diagnosed me and slapped with a prescription for antidepressants. Which was fine if I was actually chronically depressed, the reality is (and I would discover later once I got a therapist) was that I have SAD (Seasonal Affected Disorder) which does not respond to antidepressants.
Of course I didn't start seeing a therapist until after I killed myself which I went from merely depressed to suicidal because of the antidepressant I was on.... Then I got the right diagnoses a plan to actually do something that worked for that and got mostly better.....
This is not a rare thing. Today there are plenty of Doctors who warn of possible self-murder as a side effect of taking these drugs: https://www.google.com/#q=antidepressant...tendencies plenty of sites to read up on the subject.
Since that time I have warned people away from just doing drugs alone. I think a therapist needs to be consulted, have several session with him/her to get a baseline of what you are like, then if they say 'yeah sure, drugs along with therapy would be a good idea' then get a script for whatever.
Further, since you will be seeing the therapist weekly, s/he can monitor your condition more effectively than some MD who might spend 10 minutes with you during your monthly follow-ups. Trust me, one can go from 'sad' to suicidal in a very short time - less than a month.
20/20 hindsight being what it is, I also realize that those pills really mucked with my head to where I wasn't seeing the warning signs that were there leading up to my self murder. No doubt a therapist will note changes in behavior and mood which is not going to end well well before the patient will notice them.
A General Practitioner is a jack of all trades - great for ruling out common conditions, but not so great for treating specific issues. I would further suggest you ask for a referral to a psychiatrist - a doctor who deals primarily in brain altering drugs. Now that doesn't mean you pass up on seeing a psychologist - psychiatrist ain't god and they are busy people and cannot spend the amount of time you actually will need.
You will become careless on these drugs. That's what they are meant to do. Make you careless about your worries. But along with that you become careless about others. Sometimes family members, or even your own life. You will start doing things to put yourself in danger because u just won't "care" and you won't get that anxiety feeling that "something is wrong u shouldn't do this". These drugs are very dangerous. If you monitor yourself correctly as well as your doctor you hold be fine. You will get sequel side effects.
Also if you have a bf right now you will think you are falling out of live with them. But don't be alarmed at first your not. Ssri's block dopamine receptors. The chemical responsible for love. That is why secular side effects occur also. Dopamine is responsible for arousal/pleasure. Just know that you won't get as much joy out of things depending how it affects you. You will just be a more careless person. It will make personality changes also. You will he more outgoing. Just be aware. Things can really get out of hand and put yourself in danger.
I'm off mine. Been a few days. Side effects weren't worth it for me. I'd rather be depressed and anxious than not being able to feel much. Besides it wasn't helping my ocd at all. Only the small things. But my ocd is too strong for it to affect that.
Anyways, seek therapy please. I'm in the right kind of therapy now and it is helping me. I feel like I have power now.
These things make actual chemical changes I. The brain. They alter your mind.
They block off dopamine receptors, they build new receptors for the serotonin.
Do not go C/T. With drawl effects for this are HORRIBLE. you will feel worst than ever before. Make sure to wean off very very slowly when your done. Suggest to your doctor you want to wean off for about 3 months length.
Well, I just talked to my doctor today about getting off of them because I am getting really disillusioned by the whole drug company business and just think that people want to pump you full of drugs so that you can keep paying the checks to their ever-growing business. Also, some of the side effects (headaches, drowsiness, total numbness, lack of creativity, DRY mouth, to the point where I sometimes can't even vocalize my words) have not been fun.
However, I'm a little bit nuts, so keep that in mind. Anti-depressants have never been the total solution to my problems, but they have sometimes provided the kick I've needed in order to get into a head space that could do the "dirty work" of therapy and figuring out my shit.
You will become careless on these drugs. That's what they are meant to do. Make you careless about your worries. But along with that you become careless about others. Sometimes family members, or even your own life. You will start doing things to put yourself in danger because u just won't "care" and you won't get that anxiety feeling that "something is wrong u shouldn't do this". These drugs are very dangerous. If you monitor yourself correctly as well as your doctor you hold be fine. You will get sequel side effects.
Also if you have a bf right now you will think you are falling out of live with them. But don't be alarmed at first your not. Ssri's block dopamine receptors. The chemical responsible for love. That is why secular side effects occur also. Dopamine is responsible for arousal/pleasure. Just know that you won't get as much joy out of things depending how it affects you. You will just be a more careless person. It will make personality changes also. You will he more outgoing. Just be aware. Things can really get out of hand and put yourself in danger.
I'm off mine. Been a few days. Side effects weren't worth it for me. I'd rather be depressed and anxious than not being able to feel much. Besides it wasn't helping my ocd at all. Only the small things. But my ocd is too strong for it to affect that.
Anyways, seek therapy please. I'm in the right kind of therapy now and it is helping me. I feel like I have power now.
These things make actual chemical changes I. The brain. They alter your mind.
They block off dopamine receptors, they build new receptors for the serotonin.
Do not go C/T. With drawl effects for this are HORRIBLE. you will feel worst than ever before. Make sure to wean off very very slowly when your done. Suggest to your doctor you want to wean off for about 3 months length.
A project I did, for uni, a year ago was about anti-depressants and their mechanism. I understand it and can explain it to you. I did so in another post, somewhere, on these boards already.
It's this:
Even if the video is rather clunky.. that's what happens.
According to wikipedia the SSRIs have a weak affinity for noradrenaline and dopamine transporter. I only did a bit of reading about these, for the purpose of answering this thread to the best of my ability, and I can't seem to find any source that says anything about SSRIs having a bad effect on dopamine or noradrenaline levels.
From what I understood, after the quick read I just did, it could (with low affinity, thus not as often at low concentrations) disable the DAT (dopamine active transporter) which throws the dopamine back into the cells and thereby ends the signal transmission. Assuming I've understood this correctly, disabling these should increase the signals (happy love feelings), not lower them.
But the primary target is Serotonine Reuptake Proteins, which it binds to with the highest affinity. Affinity describes the likelyhood at which a molecule will interact with a protein, which basically means that, provided you're not overdosing horribly, the dopamine active transporter should be mostly unaffected.
Cuddly Wrote:A project I did, for uni, a year ago was about anti-depressants and their mechanism. I understand it and can explain it to you. I did so in another post, somewhere, on these boards already.
It's this:
Even if the video is rather clunky.. that's what happens.
According to wikipedia the SSRIs have a weak affinity for noradrenaline and dopamine transporter. I only did a bit of reading about these, for the purpose of answering this thread to the best of my ability, and I can't seem to find any source that says anything about SSRIs having a bad effect on dopamine or noradrenaline levels.
From what I understood, after the quick read I just did, it could (with low affinity, thus not as often at low concentrations) disable the DAT (dopamine active transporter) which throws the dopamine back into the cells and thereby ends the signal transmission. Assuming I've understood this correctly, disabling these should increase the signals (happy love feelings), not lower them.
But the primary target is Serotonine Reuptake Proteins, which it binds to with the highest affinity. Affinity describes the likelyhood at which a molecule will interact with a protein, which basically means that, provided you're not overdosing horribly, the dopamine active transporter should be mostly unaffected.
I'm sorry this isn't true at all. I've experienced them first hand. Researchers will tell u it does all this amazing stuff until you see it happen first hand to you. I honestly became a careless person and more irritable. They sell this drug to millions. Why would they ever wanna bash it and tell you all the negative effects it has? They don't wanna do that. So you keep buying there product and money is mad. Do you know that each new AD that comes out is given the same test. And no other tests are run for other possible side effects? The whole reason your sex drive is diminished is because dopamine receptors are being blocked. There is so much serotonin in your brain, that you dopamine receptors start giving and receiving serotonin, which is where dopamine cannot come through anymore. Why do u think ppl kill themselves on these drugs. My family knows 7 people have have committed suicide while taking AD. As well as my uncle attempting too.
Anti-depressants: Opinions, Experiences, ETC.
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