A question about anti-depressants?
I visited my doctor today and when he asked how things were going and I told him about it he said that I should up my prescription to 2 tablets a day. Im just worried about getting totally dependant on these things if i start taking that many. Any advice??
Answer:
First of all, you are not stating which antidepressant you are using. There are different classes. The most commonly used nowadays belong to a class of the SSRI's. These include Prozac, Paxil, Effexor, Lexapro and so on and so forth.
In general, antidepressant medications do not produce physical dependency like a benzodiazepine or a narcotic (read Valium or morphine). The problem is that the SSRI's are prescribed for a reason and the abrupt discontinuation is not a good idea. At this point, you MUST trust your physician, not a forum of lay people such as this one. You are paying good money to someone highly trained and qualified to make these decisions and whose job is to see to it that you are treated in a safe manner. Having had a total of 11 years of training to become a specialist, I'd be offended and flabbergasted to see that you'd follow the advice of people that do not have any kind of medical or pharmaceutical training. That would be just plain dumb.
Bottom line: do what your therapist and your physician say. It will be OK.
I dont think u will, my mother was on these for a long time and eventually the doc wheened her off them by cutting the dose.
I wouldnt worryabout getting hooked as Im sure a certain percentage of depression tablet therapy is in the head..you know u think youre taking them so u feel better
Antidepressants are not addictive :-) You just have to go off of them gradually and carefully, and not cold-turkey. Ask your doctor how to stop if you ever want to.
Good luck!! :-)
I take them and if I miss a dose then I go crazy. Don't take them unless you really need them.
I am not a doctor, but have been told that my anti-depressant is not habit forming (I am on Cymbalta and was on Paxil before that...) Best of luck!
i dont think youll become totally dependant-anti depressants are far better than they used to be- if it helps i took them for ten years then went on holiday and forgot to pack them so couldnt take them-on my return i didnt bother and apart from the first 2 nights when i had disturbed sleep nothing happened-good luck x
I think you have to open up old wounds so to speak before you can get over them. Uping your dose will help you through this and once you have sorted out your problem your doctor should guide you through a slow process of coming off your pills. Don't go cold turkey! You must do it slowly so your brain has time to adjust and produce it's own seratonin.
Hope things work out. Be strong, continue with your counselling and your meds.
Can t you control your emotions?! that you have to take pills ... Pills are for people that cant be help.
I suggest you get off of them find a hobbie, be more active , eat better , change friends, re arrange your home furniture, make your house look great, and you ll get over this. You want to be happy , then change your surrounding , starting w/ your home.
If the idea of helping you (the dr), why the hell would he/she recommend you to go back to the problem... he isnt helping you , but helping himself and his drug buddies. By having you swallowing more drugs that will harm you more and more and stronger for the rest of your living days.
Everything thats man made, can be fixed (mechanical) and comes w/ consequences (drugs). keep that in mind & get off those drugs !!
Ten years ago, I suffered a life threatening bout of depression. Since that time I have taken low dose anti depressants. At my worst, I was taking 3 tablets a day and I weaned myself to a lower dose over a period of 2 years. Certainly, the medication is a crutch but it allows me to hold down a demanding and fulfilling job and live a largely positive life. Avoidance is a classic symptom of depression, the ubiquitous "fight or flight." Good luck and I wish you well.
I understand your concern about being addicted or overly reliant on the pills and i have read the postings above.
I have to say that in this particular case, i think you should trust Dr H's advice above.
some people on this forum may or may not have experienced the things that have happened to you or understand the depression.
You are doing well, have found a sympathetic GP and a good counsellor. You need to trust them and their advice for now. the counsellor has opened a 'tricky box' in your head. the box needs opening, so you can sort it out. But in opening it, you are also letting out some feelings too. Trust the doctor, take the extra pills if you need them at this point in time. There is no shame in this. With the help of the counsellor, the GP and the tablets you can work through the problems.
Once the problems are sorted..THEN you can think about weaning off the tablets. Look at the whole process as a series of stages. You know what the goal is that you want - to sort out this problem, to come out of depression and ultimately to get off the pills too. This is achieveable. and you are on your way. But you need to let the pills and the professionals help you at this tricky time.
its to early to stop taking them - I took them for 10 years after my marriage ended, you will be feeling so low and cant cope and the councillor is helping but if you feel you dont want to go where he asked then dont go - after around a year i would think of coming of them but although they suppress the symptoms the dont help in the long run, that is up to you to make yourself better. good luck.
i was addicted to benzo"s , wow, i stopped taking them suddenly and within 24 hrs i had a fit . Obviously i had to start taking them again but this time with a counsellor and a proper reduction , 2mg every 2 wks . With the help of my counsellor i am now non dependant , so what i would say is stay on them for shorter time as poss , and stick with your counsellor , best of luck ..
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