Scared to take meds

[NiceCupOfTea]

I've tried a ton of antidepressants. Most doctors here prescribe them like candy, because antidepressants are not seen as 'addictive', unlike sleeping pills and benzos. My last psychiatrist told me that antidepressants wouldn't work for me (when I complained to him that nothing had worked) because of my autism. He said the causes of my depression were different and that antidepressants wouldn't help with those. Maybe in general it's bollocks, but for me I felt it applied.

That said, I haven't come to any harm that I know of from my various dabblings with antidepressants. I've been on a few for months at a time, others I've stopped after one dose, the reaction was so extreme. If short term side-effects scare you, then do make sure you start on the lowest dose possible and perhaps even cut those tablets in half. Titrating up to a higher dose as tolerated really does help, as I also found with 6MP (Crohn's drug).

Long story short: it probably won't help (I'm just being realistic), but you can never be 100% certain it won't unless you try. This doesn't seem to be much known about, but antidepressants can give you a real buzz in the first few days. I've had that a few times and it's great when it happens. Sadly it wears off, but it may still be enough to jumpstart you out of your current depression for a while.

Long story ever shorter: You may end up having to learn how to live without chemical assistance if the drugs don't work. (Note: Don't turn to alcohol. Really just don't.) Unless you have schizophrenia or a psychotic breakdown, or whatever, it's doable. You need to be able to keep in touch with reality to go med-free.

 

[Robby]

You're probably right. It's ridiculous that my former psychiatrist tried to put me on so many powerful antipsychotics, and then of all things Lithium, which I was dumb enough to take because I trusted him. It really messed me up bad. Only when I switched doctors and did testing that I finally learned that I in fact don't have a mood disorder, but simply am autistic with depression and anxiety. Lithium sent me to the hospital for nearly a week I had such a bad reaction to it. Now I am scared of these anti-depressants. Once, I tried Paxil for a couple days, it gave me severe hot flashes and nausea so I stopped taking it. Then I took Trazodone for sleep. It made me very sick and caused me to get a high fever. So I'm afraid of trying any more. I haven't tried Lexapro or Zoloft, I just don't want to go through any more bad side effects. If a medication has such severe side effects, why do they prescribe them? When I took Trazodone I got so sick I felt like I had the flu and couldn't stop shaking from cold.

 

[Robby]

I'm prescribed lexapro. A so-called friend asked me how I was the other day and i told him I was struggling with depression, but he never spoke to me again. That's not a real friend.

 

[BIMOG]

I haven't tried Lexapro or Zoloft, I just don't want to go through any more bad side effects. If a medication has such severe side effects, why do they prescribe them?

You don't know for sure that those medications will have severe side effects because you haven't yet tried them. Try the medication that your doctor has prescribed. If it doesn't improve your symptoms or if it provokes unpleasant side effects stop taking it. However it just might work and help to relieve your problems, what other real alternatives do you have?

 

[Aspieistj]

Please talk to your doctor and ask him to start with whatever antidepressant he thinks is the most gentle. I have been close to suicide for at least 35 years and over that time I have been on 3 different meds. The most long term is fluoxetine (Prozac) and without it I would have certainly killed myself or ended up in a mental hospital. There is no life for me without the help of medication. I am a retired Master's prepared RN and I have always been interested in the medical treatment of depression. The one medication that I absolutely can't take is Bupropion (Welbutrin). I was first given it for weight control and quit almost immediately. I was also encouraged to try I for depression and again, I couldn't tolerate the side effects. However, other people can tolerate it so I am not saying it won't help you. Medications may affect various people differently. I have tried to very slowly decrease the Prozac until I no longer need it but sooner or later I crash with depression. Depression is caused by an imbalance of chemicals in the brain and not because we are weak emotionally. Please try to work with you doctor to find a medication you can tolerate that also works for you. When you get on the right one the world will be a lot more friendly. You do have to get your doctor to listen to you and accept that previously tried meds, at the doses prescribed, haven't been tolerated by you but you would like to try again with a mild medication and start with a very low dose. Good luck and please keep trying to find help.

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

ithium sent me to the hospital for nearly a week I had such a bad reaction to it. Now I am scared of these anti-depressants. Once, I tried Paxil for a couple days, it gave me severe hot flashes and nausea so I stopped taking it. Then I took Trazodone for sleep. It made me very sick and caused me to get a high fever. So I'm afraid of trying any more. I haven't tried Lexapro or Zoloft, I just don't want to go through any more bad side effects. If a medication has such severe side effects, why do they prescribe them? When I took Trazodone I got so sick I felt like I had the flu and couldn't stop shaking from cold.

Some people just are physically sensitive to meds. The reaction that you had to Trazadone sounds similar to my reaction to mesalazine (another Crohn's drug) and some of the SSRIs: I got a bad fever, chills, diarrhoea (had that already, but this was much worse), etc. Years later, I found out that about 3% of people have a mesalazine intolerance and that mine was simply a severe intolerance reaction. I'm less sure about the SSRIs, as when I had my worst reactions I was pretty ill with Crohn's at the time and I can't remember any of my starting doses (i.e. they might have been too high). I've also subsequently managed to go on a couple of SSRIs without any serious side-effects. I do remember trying Trazadone for sleep though, and not liking it: it made me feel horribly groggy for hours the next day.

Obviously not everyone gets these severe side-effects, 'cos most people wouldn't continue if they did. I have to say, I personally wouldn't touch antipsychotics with a bargepole, though I'd consider trying an antidepressant again - wellbutrin, maybe.

I'm prescribed lexapro. A so-called friend asked me how I was the other day and i told him I was struggling with depression, but he never spoke to me again. That's not a real friend.

Well, the "other day" doesn't sound longer than a few days ago. Give him a bit more time.

 

[Robby]

I think they told me to start with it at 5mg and then maybe work up to 10mg. I go through this doubt all the time. I know I need help getting my depression and anxiety under control, but then I talk myself out of it. I am struggling with severe PTSD too. It's just so hard to take that step and actually take the pill it feels like I'm signing my life away or something. Not sure why I feel that way with anti depressants. They just unnerve me. The scary part is that I have a history of hurting myself and lately I'm tempted to do that again because I can't take the pain any more

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

The one medication that I absolutely can't take is Bupropion (Welbutrin). I was first given it for weight control and quit almost immediately. I was also encouraged to try I for depression and again, I couldn't tolerate the side effects.

What were the side effects?

Also, the "chemical imbalance" theory of depression is not proven. It's not been proven that depressed people actually have a lack of serotonin in the brain, for example, or whether antidepressants actually correct that imbalance if they do.

 

[Robby]

Is constantly crying and feeling totally hopeless and worthless depression? I can't stop crying the last 3 days

 

[Robby]

Some people just are physically sensitive to meds. The reaction that you had to Trazadone sounds similar to my reaction to mesalazine (another Crohn's drug) and some of the SSRIs: I got a bad fever, chills, diarrhoea (had that already, but this was much worse), etc. Years later, I found out that about 3% of people have a mesalazine intolerance and that mine was simply a severe intolerance reaction. I'm less sure about the SSRIs, as when I had my worst reactions I was pretty ill with Crohn's at the time and I can't remember any of my starting doses (i.e. they might have been too high). I've also subsequently managed to go on a couple of SSRIs without any serious side-effects. I do remember trying Trazadone for sleep though, and not liking it: it made me feel horribly groggy for hours the next day.

Obviously not everyone gets these severe side-effects, 'cos most people wouldn't continue if they did. I have to say, I personally wouldn't touch antipsychotics with a bargepole, though I'd consider trying an antidepressant again - wellbutrin, maybe.




Well, the "other day" doesn't sound longer than a few days ago. Give him a bit more time.

Interesting never heard of that but it would explain why I had such a bad reaction to Trazodone. When I took Paxil, after just one dose, I remember I had no anxiety but I felt hazy, foggy and very weird. I felt hot all over my body, and itchy. It was like I was in a fog. Very strange, not that pleasant. Trazodone was much much worse. I took 50 mg for sleep, and the next day I was FREEZING cold. I shook uncontrollably, couldnt get warm, and it made me feel extremely ill. Like I had a bad fever. What would explain that?

Could I possibly be allergic to seratonin? Or have a seratonin sensitivity? If so, will any anti depressant work for me?

 

[wyverary]

Is constantly crying and feeling totally hopeless and worthless depression? I can't stop crying the last 3 days

Yes. Which is exactly why you need to be open-minded about therapy and medications.

If you're afraid about taking meds...be totally honest with your psychiatrist. They actually like when you are open about them and call them immediately if you are having a bad reaction! Otherwise there's not much they can do to help you...and they CAN help you.

Meds are tough. They take an enormous amount of patience...which is hard for us who do struggle with mental illness. I must have gone through two dozen different meds before finding ones that helped. And I know they've helped because I've seen myself when I'm not on them.

I am of the opinion that if you find the right medication, and the right therapy, it doesn't change who you are...it makes you more able to be yourself. If you give up too quickly, you might be missing out.

just my two cents.

wyv

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

Is constantly crying and feeling totally hopeless and worthless depression? I can't stop crying the last 3 days

Well, it's not happiness...

Yeah, that sounds like depression to me. I wish I knew what to say to help you, but if I could help other people I could probably help myself. All I can say is, in my experience all moods pass eventually - everything passes eventually, only for me happiness passes in about 5 seconds and depression in about 5 years. (I'm exaggerating, but you get the gist I hope.) Just.. I dunno... cry it out in the meantime :-/

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

Meds are tough. They take an enormous amount of patience...which is hard for us who do struggle with mental illness. I must have gone through two dozen different meds before finding ones that helped. And I know they've helped because I've seen myself when I'm not on them.

I'll just continue with my gut instinct that meds don't work for my particular type of depression, because while I might try another med eventually, there's absolutely no way I'm prepared to go through that kind of experimentation. Especially as there aren't that many different types of antidepressants.

 

[Robby]

Is there such a thing as a seratonin allergy? Or intolerance to seratonin? I have tried two anti depressants in the past and both times I got severe chills and felt very ill on them. Trazodone made me so sick I had to wrap in two blankets to stop shaking. Paxil gave me such severe hot flashes that I felt like I'd claw my eyes out and ran the AC in November. What could explain this?

 

[wyverary]

I'll just continue with my gut instinct that meds don't work for my particular type of depression, because while I might try another med eventually, there's absolutely no way I'm prepared to go through that kind of experimentation. Especially as there aren't that many different types of antidepressants.

And that is totally fine IMO. If you think you can cope without meds, if you can find another way to keep it at bay, then I would say that's preferable to going directly to a psychiatrist. Watching your diet, exercise... I'm a big believer in talk therapy, both as a starting-off point and as "ongoing maintenance" (which is why I still see one despite feeling pretty well). But if a therapist recommends someone to a psychiatrist, then they should do so. Again, just my two cents.

 

[Robby]

Is there such a thing as a seratonin allergy? Or intolerance to seratonin? I have tried two anti depressants in the past and both times I got severe chills and felt very ill on them. Trazodone made me so sick I had to wrap in two blankets to stop shaking. Paxil gave me such severe hot flashes that I felt like I'd claw my eyes out and ran the AC in November. What could explain this?

So this is why I am partly scared to try another anti depressant.

 

[wyverary]

Is there such a thing as a seratonin allergy? Or intolerance to seratonin? I have tried two anti depressants in the past and both times I got severe chills and felt very ill on them. Trazodone made me so sick I had to wrap in two blankets to stop shaking. Paxil gave me such severe hot flashes that I felt like I'd claw my eyes out and ran the AC in November. What could explain this?

That is a good question. Did your doctor have anything to say about it?

 

[wyverary]

So this is why I am partly scared to try another anti depressant.

Maybe you could try something else? A mood stabilizer like Lamictal or Depakote can also be very good at treating depression, and even some antipsychotics (don't be scared of the word!) are now used to treat depression and bipolar disorder.

 

[Robby]

Actually the thought of an allergy to seratonin never crossed my mind until just now. I just put down my reactions to Paxil and Trazodone as just typical (although pretty nasty) initial reactions that can occur with starting an anti-depressant. Never really considered maybe an allergy. I'll have to ask him about it. I've never tried Lamictal or Depakote, but leery of them because I had a pretty bad reaction to Lithium when I was misdiagnosed bipolar. Mainly it gave me pretty severe palpitations. But isn't Lamictal an anti-seizure med? I'd be a bit scared of that. How about Seroquel, I hear good things about it.

 

[NiceCupOfTea]

Is there such a thing as a seratonin allergy? Or intolerance to seratonin? I have tried two anti depressants in the past and both times I got severe chills and felt very ill on them. Trazodone made me so sick I had to wrap in two blankets to stop shaking. Paxil gave me such severe hot flashes that I felt like I'd claw my eyes out and ran the AC in November. What could explain this?

Serotonin syndrome possibly could, but it's fairly unlikely.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/serotonin-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20028946

That's why I recommend starting at the lowest possible dose, though. I was on venlafaxine (Effexor) for a while, and if I'd started that at, say, 150mg, I'd have been seriously ill. Doubt I could have tolerated the side-effects. Instead, I started at 37.5mg and gradually worked my way up to 150mg. Even at 37.5mg I had some nausea and vomiting for about a week, but it was bearable. And it was easier going from 37.5mg to 75mg than from nothing at all to 37.5mg.

And that is totally fine IMO. If you think you can cope without meds, if you can find another way to keep it at bay, then I would say that's preferable to going directly to a psychiatrist. Watching your diet, exercise... I'm a big believer in talk therapy, both as a starting-off point and as "ongoing maintenance" (which is why I still see one despite feeling pretty well). But if a therapist recommends someone to a psychiatrist, then they should do so. Again, just my two cents.

Yeah, I'm in favour of talk therapy as well. I don't much like talking about myself, but I usually find I feel better for it afterwards. #notsurewhatelsettosay

I think I'm starting to burn out now... :-/