Anti-Depressants
 

Recently (within the last two days) I've started taking anti-depressants. I'm taking generic zoloft, and I know I won't feel the actual effects of not being depressed for another month or so and I've only had two pills so far, but it kinda makes me feel sluggish when I take it.

The first day, I took it around 5pm, and it made me waaaay too drowsy to drive, so yesterday I took it around 11pm when I went to bed, now I'm up (10am) and I feel sluggish, like I do the morning after I take nyquil.

I guess I was just wondering if anyone else in cellarland is taking any anti-depressants and had any advice about them for me. I haven't told my family (only my SO) because I don't want them worrying about me any more than they already are.

Quite a few. I'm not on Zoloft, so I'll back out and let people with relevant experience talk first. Then I'll probably share my experience for the record. Just one tip though - the first two weeks are the ones in which any side effects will be worst. Try to stick it out. After that, go back to your Doctor for a review. And if you really feel that they are not right for you within those two weeks, go back and speak to your doctor. That's what they're there for. I managed about 6 days on Prozac and had to have it changed.

Yeah, lots of us.

It'll take patience to get to a good level. Symptoms you feel now may be temporary as you get used to the new chemistry. The thing you have to remember is that help is on its way. It may take time to find the right dosage for you, as this is different for everybody, but there'll come a time, in a month or at most a month and a half, when you suddenly realize there are birds singing, and you see colors in the sky. That place is called "normal".

sky: I just started therapy as well, I've delt with depression my whole life, and don't use medication. Recently though it's begun to have too much of an effect: i.e. I'm not even doing the things that I like to do, or taking care of myself nearly as well as I should be and I've been missing work and time with my family because of it, so medication is necessary.

Also, self-medicating with alcohol if you're already depressed is very bad adivice, lol.

SG: I highly value your opinion, so I'd like to hear what you have to say, even if you're not using the same medication :)

UT: Thanks, that's comforting. I'm just nervous about the whole thing.

If you get jittery or anxious, this is probably temporary.

Consider this family of drugs is a great improvement from the side effects and difficulties caused by the *previous* families of drugs to treat depression. On MAO inhibitors, you couldn't eat cheese, drink wine or take decongestants because it could elevate your blood pressure until you had a stroke!

Millions of people take this family and have seen benefit from it. I know I have. (Wow, I get to play out in a band! I didn't get to do that so much before, I was too socially anxious.)

The docs can help, but you don't get much time with them; once you get past the first three months, it will be up to you to notice how you are, and to find the right level for you. It gets a lot easier.

Another thing to consider...perhaps...once you get accustomed to the prescription and start to feel a little more alive, you might want to consider you diet and activity level....they both have a serious effect on your brain chemistry. Do some reading up on nutrition and maybe start going out for short walks. If you can manage the walks, you will soon discover that they become a form of meditation for you...they are a great tress-reliever.

I'm not in therapy not even self therapy with alcohol.( which was a joke)
Maybe I shoudn't have deleted my prior posts but I am sure I made it clear who is was about.
I didn't think the person I was talking about would want to find that post so I deleted it.

I do think CBT is a good thing however but maybe it dosn't relate to depression?

lol good luck to you

sorry sky, like I said, I'm groggy from the meds so I didn't mean to come off as if I'm attacking you...(I figured you were kidding about the booze.)
Also, I didn't see your second post before it was deleted...and I left my response to you up because you brought up a valid point that I left out of my original post: the fact that I'm also in counseling, and that I also don't want to depend on the meds forever. (Also, didn't really want to get on them in the first place, but I think they're necessary at this point.)

Can you imagine a diabetic saying "I don't want to depend on the meds forever...?"

If this is something you've fought your entire life, then you have a chronic situation. The drugs are awesome.

When I asked my doc about going off, he said "OK, what did you experience when you were off the drugs?" "Panic, anxiety, social phobia." "And you want to return to that why?"

I can speak from the other side of the coin: I went through a course of almost every anxiety and depression medication around in the late 90s and early 2000s. None of them helped. Some of them made things worse. Others did nothing at all.

What ended up working for me was a diet and exercise regimen (along with therapy). A serious one. I've kept it up non-stop for 5-6 years and have been doing great.

Good to hear Perry! Some depression is due to poor diet, exercise, and/or circumstance.

My best friend always tells me that she is depressed and thinks she needs meds. Then I have to point out recent major occurrences in her life that would make her that way. Circumstantial is all. When she keeps up with counseling, I don't get those calls or messages from her.

When she is busy taking care of herself it's totally different. Of course I am convinced that it isn't organic. Just circumstantial. When everything is going ok, she's exercising, and eating right, she seems quite happy.

The last time she mentioned her depression her grandma just died, I'm like, and? Your grandma just died!! Yea. You're depressed, why wouldn't you be? That's normal psychology. Grief and circumstantial depression are sometimes confused for chronic disorders. That's why when I get depressed I let it happen, and don't over-react. It does go away. All that pain means I need to be making some choices about me, my lifestyle, love-life, career, or vices.

It's hard to tell your friends, hey, you're depressed because your life is screwed up right now for this or that reason, and a pill is not going to fix it, you are. She isn't always depressed, just depressed when things have to change. I think depression is a natural human condition, and neccessary.

Now I'm not talking about you guys, which is why this is off topic. But I'm glad Perry is taking the baby-steps approach.

Yeah, I did CBT in conjunction with antidepressants.

You may need to experiment to find the right time of day to take it.

I honestly feel that too many doctors and too many patients are too willing to turn to the drugs. Some things to consider are that
A)that the brain function/chemisty isn't fully understood and that using these drugs might cause further problems we can't forsee

B) That this is a guess and check method with the meds, I just don't trust the doctors to not mess me up since they can't really understand the consequences of these medications, especially long-term.

C) That exercise and diet are a big factor for many people in depression, and since that is already a healthy way to live, why not try that safer route?
Anom, I was on zoloft for a bit as well and had the same prob w/ grogginess. I took it long enough for that to go away (1mo I think) but didn't stay on it for much longer. I've recently been talked into a low dosage of lexapro to help me with fatigue, but have quit recently because it wasn't helping and quite frankly, these medications scare me. I actually felt crazier on them, even to a point that I thought I was goin to have to commit myself. A very good friend talked me out of it, and out of the meds. We made a pact, I stay off my crutch, he stays off his.
That being said, you have to make the decision that is best for you. Even if you want to give the meds a good trial, do the exercise, diet (not the "lose weight type of diet" although weight is a contributing factor to depression), and see a counselor. I think stopping the counselor was my biggest mistake, especially since mine didn't want me on the meds. If I were you I would try to work myself off of the drugs, I think they should only be short-term usage. :2cents:

UT some diabeties can be controlled w/o meds. Trying not to be critical though, I think you're comparing apples and oranges. The drugs are not awesome, they can have serious consequences and like I've stated before, are not fully understood. When you were off the drugs, and while you were on them, what else did you do to alleviate your problem? This is probably rude to say, and I think you're awesome no matter what, but your photos show that you are overweight. Do you exercise and diet? Have you tried methods like meditation, yoga, or regular counseling? If you're not willing to share more I understand, I'm just trying to get the full picture.

I had the problem when I was skinny too.
Had it when I was young
Had it when I was in College and played soccer and was in awesome shape
Had it when I moved out to my own place
It was partially caused by exercise in my mid-20s. What a loop that one would be.
Had it after reading many books about how not to have it and trying them
Had it when I got married
Had it when I was miserable
Had it when I was transitioning to middle-age
Found the drugs
Didn't have it again until I went down to 10mg cos I thought maybe I would get off them
Haven't had it since I went to 15mg

Without the drugs I was crawling up into a little foetal ball on my bed instead of going out with friends to concerts.

Without them I was convinced I was dying or permanently disabled.

On them about a decade now, if there is a long-term effect I think it is a normal life.

I think the important thing to bear in mind here, is that everybody is different. Depression is a highly individual experience and needs dealing with accodingly.

From what anon says, this has not been a swift jump to medication, but rather something arrived at after years of trying other things.

I've had bad experiences of anti-depressants, but I wasn't very good at taking them as prescribed. I have a similar orientation to prescription drugs as a solution to some here. I'm afraid I am very much like the diabetic UT imagines. I have a chronic condition (actually two) but when I am unwell (as I currently am) it can be months before i actually go and see my doctor. I resent the routines and management involved and often fall off the programme.

Keep an eye on how you're doing with the medication, Anon, and you'll likely find they stop making you drowsy or leaving you muggy in the mornings after a few weeks. UT's right about it being a bit of a trial and error routine finding the right dosage etc; but the other advice regarding diet and exericise is really important as well. Like UT, I have had depression on and off thourghout my life, regardless of weight, general happiness, success or otherwise and I have found that diet plays a part in that. That may just be because at the point I start eating well, it usually represents me going back into an upswing and 'taking control'.

Please don't view taking anti-depressants as some kind of personal defeat. They are over-prescribed it is true, but that doesn't mean they aren't sometimes the most appropriate way to deal with what is a very debilitating condition. It's not a matter of 'character', or will-power. It's not a sign of weakness or dependency. It is medication for a medical condition. If you've tried everything else, and are not labouring under unhappy or desperate conditions, which might otherwise explain how you feel, then it's very possible you are one of that minority of people for whom these drugs are prescribed, that actually needs them.

Usually a fair indicator is how successful the treatment is. UT to me sounds like someone for whom the drugs were appropriate and necessary. Most aren't, but that still leaves a fuck of a lot of people who are.

Good luck with it, Anon. Keep popping back in to let us know how you are getting on. Remember that you still have absolute control and are not sliding into something you can't handle. It's just medication, if you aren't happy with it you can always choose not to continue (though I'd advise with the Doctor's involvement). If you try it for a few months you may find that it helps.

I have struggled with depression my entire life. Like UT, it didn't matter what was happening to me externally. I got promoted - I was depressed. My writing got published - I was depressed. Depression is always there, lurking in the background for me. I am currently on lexapro, and its not working. This may because I am dealing with a pretty tragic situation right now, but its also because depression is a constant for me. I needed to read the other posters' advice about exercise and diet. I have been neglecting these things. Looking back, I was at my best when I was taking prozac, eating well, and walking for an hour each day. Don't feel upset over being on an anti-depressant, anon. It may be just the ticket. Give the zoloft a proper chance. If it doesn't work after a month or so, you might get your doctor to give you a trial on some other anti-depressant. Best of luck to you!

Godd for you UT - glad they are working and you are "living"!

Wow, thanks for the support and advice to everyone! I definitely plan to continue with the medication, I still feel groggy with it in the morning, but it does seem to be lessening a bit day by day, so hopefully it will dissipate entirely.

My diet and exercise routines are nearly non-existent, and I know that can be a huge factor with depression. However, I really don't have time for either at the moment with everything that's going on. When I *do* manage to get the time...I'm like UT, I just want to curl up in a ball on my bed and sleep until something else I need to do comes up, which is why I decided to get the medication for now.

Normally I manage without it because although I feel like crap a lot of the time, it doesn't inhibit me from doing the things that I like to do, and the things I need to do. But lately it's begun to interfere with my life, in a big way, and I need to have it looked at from a medical perspective. I plan to keep on this and see my doctor as she asks me to (I just got a new doctor as well, who I like and trust very much) and I also plan to keep up with my counseling appointments.

(PS: The reasons MTP gave for not liking anti-depressants, are the same reasons that I have for not wanting to be on them long-term if I don't have to be.)

Thanks for the encouragement, and I'm glad the cellar is so open and helpful, even to us anonymouses. ;)

anti depressants saved my life. I no longer feel like I want to put an axe in my head. I was born with it, it's genetic and exercise won't help a broken serotonin level no matter how much I want to believe in it. It does HELP to exercise once you find you can get your face off the mattress. it's a process. if your regimen works, stick with it. I've gone off my meds before and paid a heavy price for it. Not worth it.

I've been on Lexapro for five or six years now. Makes a world of difference in my ability to control anger issues. I've never really been "depressed" in the classic sense. I can't really even tell I'm taking it, but I can sure tell when I'm *not*.

WOW E, that is a long time to be on AD's. Most of them are designed as bridge medicaitons, not a perm solution. But I am glad to hear you are doing ok on them

merc, I've been on prozac since they invented the stuff. It was like seeing the world thru a new, better pair of glasses. I no longer loathed myself. why would I want to go back to that way of life?

My mom has a coworker/friend who has been on Prozac for at least 12 years now. The funny thing was, he took it for a few months and then said he wanted to go off it, not because there were bad side effects, but because he felt it had done absolutely nothing for him at all. He was even convinced for awhile that the pharmacy was giving him placebos.

My mother and all the other employees staged an intervention to inform him that no, he must not stop taking it, he may not be aware of it but he was a thousand times more bearable when he was on the drugs. It was still a few months after that before he acknowledged they might be right.

I guess what works, works. Don't take off your glasses.

To hear medication advice from someone who hasn't suffered from chronic depression (I'm not talking "I got some blues" or those who have suffered tragedy and understandably may need temporary help) is akin to a man telling me that menstrual symptoms aren't so bad. ;)

At one point if I could have found a cliff in Ohio I would have driven off it.

I'm still the same Shawnee, with a myriad of emotions, faults, and assets... I'm just a Shawnee who can finally see through the mud that felt like my life.

Shawnee, I'm glad you've finally reached the point where you can open up to your feelings for Radar.

*watches Shawnee jump in car and speed off, looking for that cliff* :)

lmao!

I've got me a little glass cutter, and a lot of time. I'm going to create a Shawnee shaped hole in this third floor window and jump. I swear I will. Don't look at me like I won't jump!

The Shawnee-shaped hole in the window is not a good idea. You might cut yourself on the way out.