antidepressant side effects

LegacyUser

hi iv been on 10mg lexapro for 3 months now and i felt it was helping me and had no real bad side effects untill the last few days iv been having vertigo,light-headedness, nausea, and night sweats.
now of course ill contact my docter tommorow but im thinking ill probably have to come off the med
so im wondering if anyone has had similar experiances on this type of medication and how long did it take for the effects to subside after stopping?

tribble

the last few days iv been having vertigo,light-headedness, nausea, and night sweats.

I had that a few days ago (although i've never been on anti-dep') - turns out I was the precursor to a nasty flu...

I feel like crap now, but thats probably less useful to you.

tribble

Oriel

10mg is quite low for an antidepressant dosage as far as I know. What age you by the way?

I presume you're not taking alcohol at the same time?

star gazer

how long did it take for the effects to subside after stopping?
unreg

it's unsually not a good idea to stop medication until after you talk to the Doctor. It depends on the medication for 10mg to be small. Each has different potency/density.

Are you eating okay?
poor diet can be a factor in some of those symptoms.

i don't know the specific medication you mention.

LegacyUser

ya i know i havnt stopped taking it yet
lexapro is fairly new 10mg of lexapro = about 40 mg of other ssri's
i would be too scared to drink while im on them so i havnt gone near alcohol
i also suffer from anxiety and that can cause some of the symptoms i have but iv never had vertigo like this before and thats what worries me sometimes it feels like the room is spinning
and as i said of course ill be contacting my docter i was just interested in hearing if anyone else has had this problem with anti depressants

motorbass

go back to your doc.

side effects like you mention are common with SSRIs but your doc will have a better overall view of your health and will take everything into account. It may be the meds, it may be stress, it may be something else.

have you tried regular excercise and therapy / councelling aswell?

hipchick

Have you ever thought of trying a herbalist or some flower essence remedies? They work quite well for depression..


There a quite a few good herbalists and homeopathists around now it shouldn't be that hard to find one.

Its worth a try.

Silent Grape

i was on 40mg Cipramil for about two months. it was ridiculous, i talked to the doctor for less than 7 mins, with no follow up appt, nothing.

ANYWAY i got hand shakes, nausea, sleeplessness and severe mood swings. so i forgot about the retarted UCD doc and went back to psychiatrist i know. she gave me 20mgs instead of 40, and i feel fine now.

moral of the story, go see a psych, not a doctor, they know WAAAAAAAAAAY more about anti d's than ur average doctor wud.

hipchick, how are drugs not good for you if they level out ur mood swings and take the bite of having depression? lots and lots and lots of mental illnessess are about chemicals in the brain and all that, which is a psysical thing and mightend have anything much to do with life experience/ personality etc etc

but, no, i agree with u 100%, illegal drugs are so much better than the legal ones !!

LegacyUser

i'm a regular poster but...you know.

anyway, when do you know you need drugs for the old depression? maybe i could benifit, but i just dont know.

LegacyUser

well the effects i was having are gone now so i guess it was something else

personaly i dont like medication and i only went on it as a last resort
i was feeling down,anxiet, crying for no aparent reason sometimes not sleeping for days at a time
i have tried going to counselors and a psychologist first and when that didnt work or uncover any real problems i figured it might be a chemical inbalence in the brain
anti depressants are no miracle cure but they have made life more bearable

so unknown poster id advise you to look into what might be causing your depression first before considering anti - depressants
you could talk to your gp about it but as Silent Grape said most of them are so busy they dont have the time to deal with a depressed person properly and can can be too egar to just pescribe and do nothing else
luckly i found a gp that im happy with and does spend alot of time with me , i go for regular checkups to see how im doing

sceptre

Originally posted by Unreg2257
i have tried going to counselors and a psychologist first and when that didnt work or uncover any real problems

How long did you try going for?

I think therapy can be overrated a bit myself (in other words, it's useful only as a tool and not a panacea to all life's problems) as some people tend to use it as a permanent crutch but it can be rather useful given a reasonable amount of time and an attitude of openness from the person going.

star gazer

Medication and therapy seem to be a mixed bag for people. There doesn't appear to be any dependable guide as to what the best thing for certain depression symptoms is. Medicaton works for some, therapy for others, some even combine both. Each person is an individual and figuring out what works for oneself as well as figuring out ones self is part of the process. Patience in the midst of great pain in depression is important. Inform yourself, read what you can listen to the professionals and make your own mind up. Building confidence in yourself is the best way to allow you to deal effectively with depression in the long run.

GuanYin

Originally posted by Unreg2257
hi iv been on 10mg lexapro for 3 months now and i felt it was helping me and had no real bad side effects untill the last few days iv been having vertigo,light-headedness, nausea, and night sweats.
now of course ill contact my docter tommorow but im thinking ill probably have to come off the med
so im wondering if anyone has had similar experiances on this type of medication and how long did it take for the effects to subside after stopping?

10mg is a low dose and if you were experiencing side effects you would have started them alot sooner than now.

I would imagine you have a flu thats going around now unless you are on another medication you haven't mentioned. Consult your doctor to be sure.3 months is probably far to soon to be considered for dosage re-evaluation in any case.

hipchick

I know that the drugs they give to you in cases of depression do balance up the chemicals in your brain but what else are they doing? A friends da has been in hospital for a number of years now receiving treatment for a mental disorder.....they treat the highs with downers and the lows with uppers, for long term treatment how is your body able to process so much chemicals along with everyday chemical ...the air we breath and the foods we eat.. We should be kinder to our body, after all it gets us around..

I also believe that you can receive a much higher quality of treatment from a naturalist ie herbalism....most herbalists are qualified to council most problems...

I went through a really rough time a couple of years ago and went to my GP to see what he would offer me.....true to form i was given anti-depressants and told to come back in a few weeks if the symptoms were still present....so i took myself home and flushed the pills down the loo.
I have a friend who does Auravedic medicine he's a councillor and a herbalist. I went for a chat that lasted about hour and half so he could get a lot of info from me in how i was thinking and not just what symptoms i had...
He then gave me some nutritional advice on what foods would help to maintain a healthy outlook e.g. banana (the best happy buzz going), he also gave me a blend of herbs to take three times a day (it didn't taste nice but did work). I took these for about 3 months and have been a happy bunny every since (not saying that i don't get down as everyone does at times, but i was more in able to deal with life and all its ups and downs). It cost me €40 all inclusive.

Big Chief

having vertigo,light-headedness, nausea, and night sweats

im on my 15th day now of 30mg cipramil and ive had these side effects plus a good few more for about 6 days going now, add in diahorea, trembling, pins & needles, the feeling of wanting to pass out when i walk around and in work etc and the feeling of permanent exhaustion, and the feeling like my head is constantly up and down like a yoyo and you might get where i am at the moment.

my family has suffered from these though and they have all got through it, my mum assures me that the side effects go away (atleast the majority) after a few days but some gradually go away in time. The nausea is awful and that constant seedy feeling to, the lightheadedness im almost at my brink with as i can be walking down the main streets and suddenly feel totally spaced out for ages at a time and its almost unbearable. The sad thing is you have to battle through it.

10mg isnt a high dosage atall, i got told i was suffering from mild derpression and im on 30 (well added in with the anxiety/panic attacks ive been taking for the past 2 months though).

I like you also didnt want the medication, but after a month and a half of trying to cope with it alone and not realising what was wrong i came to the end of my tether and i lost control of my own head (and what felt like my body) more times that i could remember (i.e i would look at my feet walking and just couldnt comprehend what i was doing or where i was going)...

but i must say the medication has been helping slowly but surely, although i was whacked on some other stuff at the start to stop the panic attacks happening which are a little more mild now that they have took me off that and just left me with one prescription instead of 3.

If all else fails i've found just talking to people has helped, although only people that have been through what im going through as if i try to tell people that haven't they give that look as if im going nuts.

Anyway i hope you get over it, but by the sounds of things that dosent sound like a side effect as the side effects only happen when the drugs are working into your system. That's why they take so long to take effect (2-3 weeks) is because your immune system fights them at the start thinking they are bad as far as im aware, least thats the way i was told and came to understand it so i would say there was more just a chance that you were just ill. It's a tough thing to go through so try to keep the head up and remember millions of people through out the world have this problem, its why its a recognised illness..

anyway, take care eh

Big Chief

Originally posted by Silent Grape

ANYWAY i got hand shakes, nausea, sleeplessness and severe mood swings.

do these mood swings that you speak of include some really wacked out crazy thoughts that you would never have gotten in your life of sundays like i got?

i worry about those alot and am scared sometimes at the fact i had them, i thought i was going totally nuts at the time but apparently they go away when the cipramil kicks in, those are one of the things i worry about most is the fact i had some of those thoughts and could cause dramatic mood swings where i just wasnt myself (or in control as ive said previously).

That and the anxiety/panic attacks, ive almost got myself killed while having these from crossing roads in the city centre without thinking while panicking (people who have suffered from these will understand what i mean when i say your not in a good mind frame to think rationally..)

edit - sorry for almost taking over the post with my own problems sorry

edit #2 - i meant to ask, did alot of you who have went through this suffer from really bad memory loss at the start? i can put things down one second and forget what ive done the next etc.. my memory has never been great but to say its a shambles recently would be over estimating it?

Emboss

I woulkd talk to your doctor about cipramil a meduim dosage maybe start on 10 or 20mg this drug has a very high success rate especialy in younger paitients and most of the side effects only seen in large dosages 30-40mg

remember that meds are only a small part of helping with depression....nothing helps more than helping your self....

eating the right foods exercising....going out...doing the things you did before you were depressed sometimes it's hard in that state of mind but you have to push yourself......


good luck

hipchick

I think the level of side effects that big chief is experiencing is far to high to be good for your body....what happens when you body gives up from to much toxic build up ....

JUST SAY NO.......try a different approach please

As emboss said try some things you used to do...change your diet a little ...eat more veg and fruit and less fatty foods, a long walk in a park (hugging trees and all that...nature is a very good cure), try some vitamin suppliments....when all other avenues have failed then you go on the hard stuff...

I know its easy for me to say sitting here in my position but i have been there, just try to change a couple of things and you may be surprised at the results.

Do a serach for alternative medicine and see what comes up ....there are lots of really good practitioners out there that will gladly help you at a fraction (overall) of the cost of doctors fees and pills...

Good luck...

LegacyUser

Hipchick,
Please don't tout herbal medicines as an ultimate solution. Just post about your experiences and what helped for you, but don't give people false hopes.

In my experience they haven't helped at all. Tried all the solutions you mentioned, but when things are more severe it might not have the same effect. People should try them of course, but it doesn't always help, in which case there is medication.

Different things help for different people. Herbal remedies don't fix everything.

Big Chief

Originally posted by hipchick

I know its easy for me to say sitting here in my position but i have been there, just try to change a couple of things and you may be surprised at the results.

for that month and a half i was going it alone i was trying everything, multi vitamins, st johns wort, healthier eating and drinking almost water only and cutting out the fizzy juice etc.. also stopped drinking aswell to see if that could have been the cause of it

also took back up swimming again and even started to go out running and trying to get fitter and making myself good nutriotinal meals and my i gradually got worse as the days went on where i would wake up just feeling like "i cant go on" or "whats today got to offer me" or waking up in a state of almost unparalled fear and cold sweats (besides the fact i was waking up atleast 4+ times a night.

The medication was a last resort and all the stuff they put me on has saved my life practically, dont get me wrong im not saying im better as im still battling through day to day and getting alot of the side effects as it is still getting into my system but even the people around close to me have said they can spot the small differences. Pshychiatrists as someone else said are also alot more useful than doctors and i didnt pay a thing to see one and ive even found that some pharmacists were alot more insightful than the doctor was and what all the effects i was going through was due to the different prescriptions i was on. 25mg ledactol / .5mg xanax / 20mg cipramil (although now been put upto 30 as of 3 days ago and cut out the other 2 after seeing the pshychiatrist for the first time).

Basically what im saying is sometimes its the medication what you need, although your advise of exhausting all avenues beforehand is a good one as some people can cope without the medication, others (probably like myself) can't.

Positive mindframe is also a major part in it ive found, which isn't easy when ive lived the last 21 years of my life as a 'the glass is half empty' kinda person! and also learning how to relax, getting a few candles for the house and maybe playing some light music, anything which helps really. Although through all the medication i dont think i could have got through this without the support that my family (or more rather my mam) has given me.

Victor

Originally posted by hipchick
Have you ever thought of trying a herbalist or some flower essence remedies? They work quite well for depression..

Tell your GP / psychiatrist about everything that you are taking. Even routine medications can interfere with you prescribed drugs. This especially includes alcohol and cannabis, both depressants.

I don't know anything about Lexapro, but people shouldn't say "10mg is a low dose" if they don't know they drug. 75(?)mg/day is the max for Valium 750(?)mg/day is the max for Efexor. It varies from drug to drug.

I've been on a bunch of drugs over a period (I thought i was a tram recently!, but luckily was hallucinating in bed) and side effects can take 1-14 days to take effect and 12 hours to 30 days to wear off completely. Dosages are usually reduced gradually to minimise withdrawl symptoms.

[/quote]i'm a regular poster but...you know. anyway, when do you know you need drugs for the old depression? maybe i could benifit, but i just dont know.[/quote] If you feel you are losing you edge. Staying in bed unnecessarily, weight gain, skipping work and appointments, excessively emotional, becoming dysfunctional, etc. for more than 2 weeks. You should see your GP and say you think you might have a problem, explain the details.

They might give you a referral to a psychitrist (drugs doctor) or a psychologist (talk doctor) or a psychotherapist (lower level psychologist, no medical qualification, but usually degree + psych diploma).

Sometimes we just need a break.

star gazer

The whole Mental Health field seems to be a bit haphazard. There is no one drug or herb or method of councilling that works for all people with depression. It's important to keep an open mind in order to find what works for you. Professionals in the business will understandably say their way is best and people who have succeeded in getting better under certain treatments are going to advocate what worked for them. Everybody is an individual and no persons depression seems to be the exact same as another person's. When it comes to side effects, the prescribing doctor sould be kept appraised of the situation. The individual needs to be quick to stand up for their rights and demand top class treatment by mental health professionals. With side-effects that can outweigh the original complaint or at least making things worse people should be aware of what's going on.

hipchick

Cherrypiez
"Please don't tout herbal medicines as an ultimate solution. Just post about your experiences and what helped for you, but don't give people false hopes."

The reason that this thread was posted was for help and maybe some advise, other peoples experiences with different methods of treatment. I feel very strongly about legal drugs as i have seen quite a few people become completely dependant on them, i do believe that if you have tried all the alternatives and nothing is working for you then go to you GP.

Emboss

i think hipchick has a valid point....

As alot of these anti depresants are very addicitive and can cause so many side effects that it is in your own intrest to try every alternative method before going down this road...

Victor

Originally posted by Emboss
As alot of these anti depresants are very addicitive

As can herbal and other remedies and illegal drugs. And while withdrawal can be harsh in some cases, that is not always the case and precautions are taken (like gradually reducing dosage). At least with a psychiatrist you are getting an experienced opinion, not the advice of a minimum wage shop clerk.

Fundamentally, the difference is between controlled and uncontrolled medication.

And while conventional medicine has accepted the potential value of complimentary treatments, especially aromatherapy and massage (I don't think they will accept channelling spirits for a while yet), alternative medicine practitioners can be slow to return the “compliment” which renders them one level above (sometimes below) quacks.

Emboss

Originally posted by Victor
As can herbal and other remedies and illegal drugs. And while withdrawal can be harsh in some cases, that is not always the case and precautions are taken (like gradually reducing dosage). At least with a psychiatrist you are getting an experienced opinion, not the advice of a minimum wage shop clerk.

Fundamentally, the difference is between controlled and uncontrolled medication.

And while conventional medicine has accepted the potential value of complimentary treatments, especially aromatherapy and massage (I don't think they will accept channelling spirits for a while yet), alternative medicine practitioners can be slow to return the “compliment” which renders them one level above (sometimes below) quacks.

Sorry about that victor i should have been a bit more clear

I'm more talking about life changes looking at your own life yourself...what do you not like can it be changed...change it...try a career change (if possible) jump out of a plane....you know the little things lol

i mean try *everything* before you go down any drug route beit herbal or otherwise

sorry for the confusion

Victor

Originally posted by Emboss
i mean try *everything* before you go down any drug route beit herbal or otherwise

I understand your point that pharmaceuticals shouldn't be the first reaction, but they shouldn't necessarily be the last either. I went through hell because I resisted the idea of pharmaceuticals for too long.

Emboss

Originally posted by Victor
I understand your point that pharmaceuticals shouldn't be the first reaction, but they shouldn't necessarily be the last either. I went through hell because I resisted the idea of pharmaceuticals for too long.

Oh yes I understand, it's not an easy one to call everyones different everyone has their own way of dealing with these things i'm just thrown out a few ideas...but the end decision must come down to the person themselves and do what they feel is best for them...

echomadman

Having seen the destruction that anti-depressants can wreak when prescribed after a cursory examination by a overworked GP, at first hand.

I'd advised anyone to look at all the angles before commiting themselves to a course of meds.

As for homeopathy et al, "modern" medicine is not really all that far from quackery and barber surgeon style treatment imo.
People dismiss it out of hand, despite the fact that in areas like depression a holistic approach that takes lifestyle etc. into account rather than merely tweaking your hormone levels chemically can have better results.
Of the people i know (family and friewnds) who suffer from depression, the ones who fared best were the ones that looked at "medicinal" treatment as well as natural remedys, as opposed to people who did one to the exclusion of the other

Silent Grape

big chief, i thought i was at my own funeral once, it was nuts. im really interested in what u were saying about panicking and losing control.
i was out the other night and loads of people were giving me a hard time. then i had a HUGE fight with my bf on the street and i just lost it. completely.

i ran away down the road, i had no idea where i was going or what i was doing.i was mumbling away to myself about how my hair was straight earlier in the night, but now it wasnt stright cus of the rain! just rambling to myself about things that wernt serious and had nothing to do with the arguments id had that night.
i also kept repeating 'he;s going to leave me' over and over. then i just wandered across a street and nearly got killed. my boyfriend came after me and was shouting at me about the argument we had but i was in no state for logical thinking.

in the back of my head i think i was hoping that he'd call my counseller and take me to john of gods. i was absolutely terrified the whole time. i felt highly paranoid and scared of everyone. in the end i curled up on the ground and passed out.

i still have no idea what happend. i cant talk to my bf about it. i think i just completely lost the plot

ANYWAY im so sorry for hyjacking the thread. its not even about anti depressants, sorry

liz2000

i have been on seroxat for 5 years and cant come off it for similar reasons, nausea, vertigo ( the worst effect), cramps, brain shocks, it is crap that no-one warns you of such withdrawal effects before u start takin them, i never get these symptoms when on them but if i go at least 3 days without then i am totally screwed, so the side effects mentioned in the post seem to be quiet common of ssri's

star gazer

'panicking and losing control'
It's important in this life to be good to yourself even if people tell you to be selfless. When depression and related disorders are a factor, take them into account. Make the decision not to put yourself into the situation where you feel trapped and out of control. Sometimes that means not going out sometimes it does. Aelf-awareness is key to preventing the situation where you are most liely to panic. It also helps in early catching of a bad reaction to medication. Knowing the difference between a symptom of depression and a side-effect of medication makes it simpler to communicate information to doctors and get the best out of them.

LegacyUser

"....if i go at least 3 days without then i am totally screwed"

Liz 2000 - You can't just stop taking Seroxat cold turkey. You have to gradually reduce the dose over a period of months. Whoever prescribed them for you should know this.

ka

http://www.medicines.org.uk/

They have a searchable directory of all prescription drugs, their Patient Information Leaflets (PIL) and Pharmacy ones.

Quatre Mains

Hi
another thign to bear in mind is that different antidepressants have different effects on you both physically and mentally. I started taking meds early last year, the doctor put me on Efexor.
Towards xmas I stopped taking them as I felt they weren't right for me(emotionally detached would be one way to describe it), and that the GP was happy to pick up his 40 euro every 3 months. I'll skip the craziness of what happened afterwards but eventually I went toanother doctor (while in the US), explained the Efexor situation and he advised Wellbutrin for my demands, which has had a totally different and more positive effect on me (its called Zyban over here).

|I can't condone the same change for everyone, but I will say that if you feel you're just keeping the wolves at the door and not making any progress after 6 months or so on one med it might be an idea to speak with a specialist of some kind (lets face it GP's are crap) and explore the idea.

The other thing that I found really made a difference was exercise. Again I'll try and skip the boring details but if your problem is self-estem related it can be a help once you get into it, it has for me anyway.



Cheers
Neil

trilo

I am on anti depressants now for the last three yeaars... and i do find them very useful...

if however i forget to take one in the morning i can feel very ill about five hours later so do take them on time..

if you are thinking of going off them do come off them gradually.

Is1ldur

Originally posted by liz2000
i have been on seroxat for 5 years and cant come off it for similar reasons, nausea, vertigo ( the worst effect), cramps, brain shocks, it is crap that no-one warns you of such withdrawal effects before u start takin them, i never get these symptoms when on them but if i go at least 3 days without then i am totally screwed, so the side effects mentioned in the post seem to be quiet common of ssri's

Just to give you some hope Liz. I was on a similar drug to you, Lustral, actually, and I too suffered the withdrawal symptoms you speak of. I found the worst to be the brain shocks, however they do go away. I can't remember how long it took for them to leave me, but think it was in the region of 3-5 weeks. The brain shocks kida got less frequent, etc. I am not saying it is easy, and I was on Lustral for a shorter period. I came off it probably too quickly, eased off over a a week or so then stopped. If you could cut it down over a longer period, I believe it may be easier. Provided it is okay to stop, by the way, and as usual, talk to your GP before you do, as I know I had some not very nice thoughts over the period.

liz2000

i have been considerin comin off seroxat, and definetly will before i plan my next baby, i had to stay on it during my last pregancny as withdrawal would have caused me to miscarry, its hard comin off as i have already said and i am terrified of another breakdown, i have already had 2 breakdowns and couldnt face another, ( i actually wouldnt have time to have one, being a full time mum!!)> meaning i couldnt be hospitialised and leave m y daughter, scary thought, anyway thats my biggerst fear, my doc said it could happen agian if i came off, they say that it may be a life long thing, i have had psychotic epidosodes during the past in the midst of breakdown, very scary and really dont want to go there ever again, very stable at the mo, life good, so not sure to come off at all now that i think about it, thanks for advise though count, nice to be able to talk to thsoe who know whats it like.:)

Big Chief

Originally posted by Silent Grape
big chief, i thought i was at my own funeral once, it was nuts. im really interested in what u were saying about panicking and losing control.
i was out the other night and loads of people were giving me a hard time. then i had a HUGE fight with my bf on the street and i just lost it. completely.

i ran away down the road, i had no idea where i was going or what i was doing.i was mumbling away to myself about how my hair was straight earlier in the night, but now it wasnt stright cus of the rain! just rambling to myself about things that wernt serious and had nothing to do with the arguments id had that night.
i also kept repeating 'he;s going to leave me' over and over. then i just wandered across a street and nearly got killed. my boyfriend came after me and was shouting at me about the argument we had but i was in no state for logical thinking.

in the back of my head i think i was hoping that he'd call my counseller and take me to john of gods. i was absolutely terrified the whole time. i felt highly paranoid and scared of everyone. in the end i curled up on the ground and passed out.

i still have no idea what happend. i cant talk to my bf about it. i think i just completely lost the plot

ANYWAY im so sorry for hyjacking the thread. its not even about anti depressants, sorry

yep thats what i was getting, its good to know that others are going through what im experiencing (well not that im glad but you know what i mean hopefully) as sometimes i think i am going completely nuts and wanting to do things completely out of random for no reason what so ever

and sorry for lengthy reply time im currently in australia at the moment..

i hope you get better as i hope i do myself, its the hardest time ive ever had to go through in my life and everyday can just seem like a very uphill struggle and a battle at times and getting through these can be the worst.

Not gonna hijack the thread anymore anyway, if you feel like talking then feel free to pm me as it is always good to talk about it, especially with people who are/have going through what you have went through as talking to people who have no idea about it just think you are a raving lunatic.

take care anyway and as i say feel free to pm me if you want as i know that sometimes just talking about it helps me through it some/alot of days.

SheroN

Jaysus I didn't realise there are so many boardsters taking regular medication.

I'm not too happy where this thread is going to be honest, please be careful when giving recomendations regarding other peoples percribed medications. I'm keeping a close eye on this!

Victor

Originally posted by SheroN
Jaysus I didn't realise there are so many boardsters taking regular medication.

20% of people suffer from depression (not sure if thats at any one time or over their lifetimes).

SheroN

Yea i knew the figures were high, but i didn't think it was 20% taking meds, I always figured most people suffering from it were undiagnosed.

star gazer

300,000 people at any one time taking anti depressant medication, around about 7%. Might be still lots of people undiagnosed. There are roughly 400 suicides a year and about 8,000 attempted suicides a year. Four to one men die (young men highest risk) and two to one women attempt. The stigma against depression does tend to keep people from talking openly about whether they take medication/suffer from depression.

Typedef

I don't think medication is the appropiate response to depression.

Rather chaning your life such that you feel happier.

Regards
Beths.

Victor

Originally posted by Typedef
I don't think medication is the appropiate response to depression. Rather chaning your life such that you feel happier.

An over-simplistic view of a complicated problem. No offence, but it is for the doctor and patient to decide on medication, not your "opinion".

Originally posted by Typedef
Regards Beths.

???

De Rebel

Originally posted by Typedef
I don't think medication is the appropiate response to depression.

It may not be the ultimate cure, but it may be the appropriate response, and part of the solution.

The one and only time I suffered depression, and it was pretty severe, my GP correctly diagnosed it as reactive depression. And he was quite blunt about it.... "I can give you pills, which will buy you time and enable you to cope. But I cannot cure you. You and I both know that your depression is reactive, and that the only way to cure it it to move your self away from the cause (I was subject to extreme bullying by the guy I worked for)" He was right. I took the pills to buy me time. A few months later I walked out of the job, distancing myself from the cause and thereby ending the depression and shortly afterwards the pill taking.

His response was correct. Medication was appropriate at the time, but was not the ultimate solution. And he had the wit and the communications skills to explain the difference to me. I owe him my life.

Squeeks

I'm on Lexapro my self atm, I started off on a 25mg dose and moved up to a 50mg dose and have never suffered from any side affects, unless I have a few drinks, then I can become unbalanced and paranoid.

The first anti-depressants I took however made me very sleepy all the time with drastic mood swings. Maybe Lexapro does not suit you, go back to your doctor and see if you can try a new one. It can be touch and go you'll just have to find a medication that works for you.

seanybiker

i heard of lexapro i heard there good. im in a group in waterford called W.A.V.E its the best thing ever better than tabs. im on xanax and paradox meself and never had to bad side effects just nausea

Victor

Originally posted by seanybiker
im on xanax and paradox

Paradox?

seanybiker

woops silly me not paradox its parox (seroxat). my bad.

Victor

Originally posted by seanybiker
woops silly me not paradox its parox (seroxat). my bad.

Be careful Seroxat can have odd side effects and while treating one part of depression, it may not treat stress / anxiety / etc., I presume this is what the Xanax is for (no need to answer that).