Education Antidepressants

Hi Guys,

I know this may be a personal subject for some to discuss and others may take offense to it, so I apologize before hand..

From today I will start a course of antidepressants, I'm not sure what dosage and which ones etc but I am slightly worried. I have spoken to my Doctor and to members of the Crisis Team, what I'm worried about is I can't wrap my head round how they work, what do they do?

Now I know coming to a technology forums maybe the wrong place to ask this, but you guys have always answered personal questions like this so well before.

I'd just like to know if anyone has dealt with antidepressants first hand before, or have seen the effects in someone they know.

Google has thrown up many searches and answered some of my questions, but they're a lot of scare mongers on there too, preaching hate for all these drugs.

Hope you guys can help..

Thanks,

 

I have been on fluoxetine 40mg for nearly 2 years now. No major side effects for me, other than an issue in the bedroom (common side effect is difficulty climaxing). Great for your partner I guess!

I have tried to come off them a few times and it has been a terrible experiance each time, as I just couldn't function normally. I think I would need to be locked up in rehab in order to come off them!

 

My GF's been on them for the past few years for various reasons.

The main thing is that the ones you first take may not work, don't just give up on them it just takes a little while to find the dosage and the correct anti-depressant that works for you.

Also don't expect an immediate change it takes a few weeks for the medication to get fully in your system.

Just remember to take them and that they aren''t a cure by themselves but that they will help you help yourself.

 

I can't comment on how they work as I have never been on them (looking back on things, I should have been taking something for a while years ago...) but the main experience of them is that a very dear friend of mine had to start taking them and the change was like night and day, I got my old friend back, she got her marriage back, and I have no doubt that they saved her life. Up until then I was of the staunch opinion that pills were not the answer and everything could be sorted with pulling oneself together and toughing through it, that nearly ended me.

In time, she went onto lower and lower dosages and weaker medication until she was off them completely and, fingers crossed, things have been fine ever since.

 

Some, hopefully, useful information:

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Antidepressant-drugs/Pages/Introduction.aspx

http://www.mind.org.uk/information-...ts/about-antidepressants/?o=7247#.VYvMC6TSF-4

People's experiences of being on antidepressants can vary widely, they work well for some and not so well for others. I was on then for a few years, tried several types. Eventually my GP decided they really weren't for me, side effects but, no real benefits. Started to come off them then, unexpectedly had the opportunity to move to a council bungalow in a really nice location. Had to go back on a higher dose as the stress really did for me, my partner found getting me do things very, very hard going.

After a few months my new GP started me on withdrawing again, over several months. It is, if drugs don't work for you, well worth persevering with the withdrawal symptoms, they do go away eventually. On the drugs I had monstrous, frequent headaches, which often lasted for days and my partner said I was like a zombie or, like someone else playing the part of me.

Remember though, that is just my experience. for many people drugs do work well. My GP, before moving, said they tend to work well for people who are suffering short-term depression, eg. following a bereavement or other life event but, not so well for people with long term problems. Mine go back to childhood, around 50 years.

Post script: The three things that have helped me most are my partner (a thoroughly wonderful woman), getting a dog and ending all contact with my mother. I have no mother.

 

I can answer how they work, but I need to know which one you're on (or just the broad type, such as a MAOI, SNRI, SSRI, TCA etc).

The others are absolutely right in that you may need to try several to get the needed effect, and that withdrawing can be difficult. I'd also point out that with many antidepressants it can take 4-6 weeks to fully take effect.

Source: I'm a medical doctor. However this is not medical advice.

 

I'm on them for my Anxiety.
Took about 3 weeks to kick in and notice them making a difference.
Feel terrible when I've been off them for a few days and it takes another week to get back into it again.

Other than shivers and headaches and the already mentioned bedroom issue it's been fine.

 

Was on them for 2 years, I took myself off them slowly but surely. Probably was not recommended. They do help but took 6-8weeks to really notice the benefits for myself.

And they do cause some side effects, You may feel shivery on even hot days, They can cause you to feel tired and have headaches. People who knew me well said I was a very different person on them some days. You might become very withdrawn on the tablets depending on why you need them. ( I basically did not leave the house much when I first went on them) They also will affect bedroom stuff.

I did not drive much during my time on them because of the above. It does say on most of them to not drive whilst taking them.

Mine was caused by having 2 emergency operations and then 1 extra OP to fix the rest. Theres still days when I probably should be taking them still but glad to be off them.

 

Tricyclics like Amitriptyline are a bit sedative, so good for depression with anxiety. Best taken at night. Also may work with neuralgia. An oldie but goodie, its side-effects are well understood.

SSRI's like Fluoxetine are more energising: best taken in the morning. In people with frontal lobe brain injury their effect can be unpredictable and a few people can go a bit manic. Generally they work on 60% of people --and there they really do work. But if they make you feel ill stop and consult the prescribing doctor.

MAOIs are a pain to take: you have to avoid all sorts of foods. Nobody prescribes them anymore.

Antidepressants take at least three weeks to kick in. They also have withdrawal effects so you cannot abruptly stop them without medical advice. Even coming off them gradually you may feel a bit rough for a while; many patients misinterpret this to mean that they depend on them.

They are not a substitute for therapy, but can be a good adjunct to it.

 

Jake123456

Please remember, whatever you read in this thread, however well meant, is no substitute for talking to your GP.

 

I have used Amitriptyline before. I've had two courses and they are to be taken at night and do help you sleep. The downside is when you first start taking them you struggle to stay awake for a couple days, at least that was my reaction to them. I basically slept for a weekend after starting them. I did tend to feel a bit more tired in general whilst on them but they did work after about two weeks. That's just my experience.

 

This is true. Google is also no substitute.

 

From my experience I would recommend the tried and trusted natural ways of picking yourself up whilst you are on the meds. I have had a few friends take them and those who had the worst withdrawal didn't really change their lifesytle while on them whereas those who started to do a bit of exercise, eat better and join a few social societies didn't really have so much of a problem.

I know this is anecdotal evidence but as I say this is my experience. The meds help (sometimes a lot) but try to use the new position to take things under-control for yourself too if you are not doing some of the thing I mentioned.

Hope this helps.

 

I've been on both Citalopram (Celexia) and Sertraline (Zoloft). I imagine your GP will give you Citalopram as this seems to be most GPs first port of call (I believe it's newer and a little cheaper than others).

It can be a little rough at times but it can certainly help. I actually remember I felt a little better as soon as I had them in my hand, but it was just a feeling of relief from the possibility of feeling better.

They take a while to take effect (a good few weeks) and I found they helped with anxiety too which I never anticipated (I could start a conversation with a stranger on a train - something I'd never have done). About an hour or so after taking them, for around 20 seconds, you get the feeling that you've taking an illicit substance (MDMA), but that doesn't last too long and dissipates over time.

I was working really long hours when I first started taking them and I could easily zone out into the my work groove where very little distracted me. I wouldn't say they were energizing - I would be yawning and tired all day (and they can make your jaw ache a little). Both drugs also gave me night sweats - I'd wake up absolutely drenched a few times a night, some nights, but not all (might want to start keeping a towel by your bed because it is very unpleasant). There are many more 'quirks', but it's been a few years and my memory is quite bad (another quirk incidentally).

They've got me through a few rough patches, but I don't think I'd go back to them unless I was absolutely desperate (but that's what they are there and probably why you've gone this route). Coming off of them (my call, not my GPs) was a very miserable few months (pretty horrendous!). That said, I wouldn't let this dissuade you - they provided a window of relief, but not something I'd like to take for anymore than a year at a time.

As Alpha has said above - do really try to exercise, be social and do something confidence building. This is really important long-term! Also your GP will probably refer you to some CBT if you haven't already done it but the waiting list is generally long (several months). This massively helped my bipolar brother-in-law but I wasn't too fussed - it arms you with some tools to try and alter negative thought patterns.

My GP was excellent but there is only so much they can do (you could tell the poor guy felt helpless really apart from the power to medicate). Keep him/her up to date with everything.

Don't worry, you'll get there - just keep plodding on until you can find the strength to fight. There is no magic cure; it's just learning to deal with it.

 

AlphaAngel is correct: antidepressants are a tool that help you make changes to your life so you stop being depressed. They are not the cure.

There are many forms of therapy. CBT works really well for literate people with a rational mind set who can reflect on, name and articulate their thoughts and feelings, but it may not be the best fit for everyone. There are other approaches that are equally helpful but a better fit to people who may be less articulate, may find it harder to name their feelings or identify their thinking, or who function more intuitively or socially. Some people are primarily thinkers, some are doers or feelers. Find your fit.

 

I found it was patronising.

 

But Google will provide far more information on side effects both possible and probable than a doctor will or the blurb that comes with the drug will also tell you.

 

I agree and I hated it it was usually dominated by one or two people who really liked the sound of there voices and the less vocal struggled to get themselves heard, but this was the fault of the person in charge who believed rightly or wrongly not to interfere in the whole process. I personally did not find it helped me in any way.
But this was some 40 years ago and I suspect that the way this type of therapy is conducted have changed.

 

It was a one on one session but everything I was told was already a conclusion I had already made on my own. I guess it can be helpful to some people (and indeed it is) but for people who have already analysed their situation to death it was like being taught how to suck eggs.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not against it at all and appreciate that they offer/teach people these kind of coping tools.

 

Oops yes sorry I was confusing my therapies. But I do remember this CBT and to be honest I thought it to be pseudo psycho babble.