Have you ever been put on antidepressants?

[kaz]

Sorry on the same note as the last poll............ just wondering how many of us have been on or are still on Anti Depressants because of the stress of having a AS Child/ Partner

[kaz]

mmmmmmm ok that come out wrong the last one was ment to be on two lines as two seperate answers and i am not sure how to change it.

 

Sorry

 

Thats what i get for multi tasking.

[kaz]

my vote would be for the last one if anyone can work out how to change the poll.

 

Used to be on Anti Depressants but are not on any right now.

[lil_me]

I use Bach's Rescue Remedy a lot, used it first on my driving test and I find it helps, and I take certain vitamin and mineral supplements to keep me going. The rest I get from coffee

[sharron]

l was on antidepressants once but l would sooner try and work through things on my own l don't like taking tablets.

 

 

 

sharron

[Flora]

I'm on prozac and have been on and off for past 3 years. My GP today also put me on temazepam because I'm not sleeping properly (some nights I'm kept awake by DS1 and on the nights he sleeps I'm pacing the house. Sometimes wonder if it's me who should be claiming DLA However, my partner got me to go out for a walk tonight and we picked sloes to make some sloe gin. I felt better from doing that than any chemical that the doctor can prescribe. Roll on better times. I'm even going to try to stop smoking .

 

Bad day yesterday re my youngest son, on top of all the stress with DS1. Thank god for this forum where I can pore this out and not be judged as a neurotic lunatic

 

Best wishes to you all

 

 

Lauren X

[Elanor]

I was for about 6 months - really helped me through a rough patch, whilst I set about accepting the difficulties we were having, and started to sort my life out.

 

I've also used St John's Wort (mustn't be taken whilst actually on anti-depressants) - it is really good stuff for mild depression, and I would happily take it again if things were getting hard to live with.

[UltraMum]

Back on again for the last year - had to give up work though.

[meemo38]

I had them for a week, but refused to let it get me down and stopped taking them, husband has been on them for 2 years, came off for a few months, but has had to go back on them, its his son, my stepson who has aspergers, he lives with us fulltime.

Michelle

[CarerQuie]

I used to be on anti-d's but am not on them now.xx

[Kathryn]

At the beginning of August after our LEA did the dirty on us I went to the GP (who is wonderful) and got a prescription for Tamazepam. I had no intention of taking them, just wanted it on record that I was suffering a large amount of stress. I have been able to mention in a letter to the LEA, quite truthfully, that I have been prescribed medication as a direct result of the stress they have put me under.

 

Don't like the idea of medication for myself and have never fancied smoking but I'm afraid I drink rather too much at times. (Not before 5 pm though. )

[annie]

I was given a months supply back in March when everything came to a head. I only took them for a week though. In that week we had the 'big' meeting and I haven't taken any since.

 

Apart from the fact that I needed something to get through a bad patch, I wanted it on record like you Kathryn.

 

I'm still on the fags though

 

Annie

X

[MelowMeldrew]

I don't smoke or take any tablets of any kind, having said that, I went crackers years ago, so probably in a world of my own now, pass me that giraffe

Edited October 6, 2005 by MelowMeldrew

[bid]

Red wine and chocolate for me!

 

Bid

 

I was given anti-d's after a traumatic labour and delivery with my last baby. I only took them for 3 days as I was breastfeeding and they did seem to affect my son. It was weird, because they made me feel 'normal' again, and it was as though I thought 'Oh, yes, that's how I should be feeling!' So they did seem to jolt me back to normalish.

 

Otherwise I tend just to plod on with the above, and take it easy with myself when I have very bad days...

[mc31]

I am on escitalopram, it works for me, but then life is a whole heap of stress, getting up at 6am to take other half to work so i can have the car, full time mum during the day, then i go to work from 6pm till 11pm and every other weekend 8am till 9pm, no wonder im shattered!

mc

[Tez]

Last Christmas I was forced to go to the Doctor because I had all sorts of physical health problems. He decided that they were all stress related and gave me Citalapram,an SSRI similar to Prozac. I did not feel unhappy, I did not feel that I couldn't cope but my body was just telling me to stop.

 

The antidepressants did correct the many physical problems that I was having so the Doctor must have been right. I am no longer taking them but wouldn't hesitate to take them again if the need arose.

[rainbow queen]

hi guys im on anti depressants cipramil, 18 months back was also put on a mood stabler[have myself been dx as having rapid cycling mood disorder and obession compulsion disorder] i am under a phychatrist- but she agrees that alot of this has been triggered off or developed worse because of the way my son is[i mainly talk about my son when i go see her] always had bad nerves but coping with 2 boys on me own eldest is just 4 [hes the one have probs with] and nearly 3 year old has really put a strain on me-mentally and emotionally,plus physically. To make matters worse my youngest son is copying my eldest behaviour as he thinks its normal,so its hard trying to stop that happening too. i am hoping when i get a dx i will feel alot better about everything as at moment its driving me nuts trying to tell everyone that i belive my son has aspergers,at times it feels you know more than the ###### professionals,surely they can see giving a dx would help everyone involved,cause at the mo its like no mans land xxx

[linss]

hi ,i went on antidepessants recently after going to my lovely doctor who's known my son since he was a baby.i'm a really upbeat positive gal but recently i've been sinking under the weight of it all, and couldn't pull myself together anymore. What's hard in this situation is that there's no break, you have to be supportive mummy going to meetings ,making endless phone calls , listening patiently to teacher every day while she tells me about her hard day! and most especially being there for my son - so i suppose somethings got to give!!!

Couldn't carry on without a good cup of tea though

[bevalee]

I was on anti-depressants for a year when R was first diagnosed and whilst fighting the LEA. I can't knock them because they helped me through a really rough period. Stopped them in April and have managed quite well since.

 

Now trying to shift the weight that i've put on because of them lost 10lbs just 16lbs to go!

[call me jaded]

Caffeine is my drug of choice.

[Tez]

Bevalee:

Now trying to shift the weight that i've put on because of them lost 10lbs just 16lbs to go! 

 

This was the one down side I found to taking the anti-ds and the main reason I stopped taking them.

 

I was putting on so much weight and looked really bloated. I was eating very little and only drinking water, took to exercising on a stepper for half an hour a day and still the weight piled on - 2 stone in 8 months. Stopped the tablets end August and the weight gain just ended. Still have to lose the weight though.

[Carol]

I was put on citilopram about 8 weeks ago & they are helping me through a difficult patch at the moment- the doc reckons that maybe I will need them for about 6 months as even if we do finally get Andrew in the residential school - if social work, education & the SORG can agree & when there becomes a place free - the doc feels ( rightly so) that it is going to be an awful wrench for me to see my lad going away every Monday to Friday - on top of all the other stresses and situations in my life at the moment too.

 

I have actually found that they are acting as an appetite suppresant and have lost a bit of weight on them - so happy side effect for me - although the loss of sleep over the first 6 or so weeks played havoc with my immune system and I am now trying to recover from a dual viral infection & nasty chest infection - so swings n roundabouts lol.

 

Carol

[clair]

haha I ve been doing that alot lately. I have been on them for the last few week, two years before that and again two years before that. I have had so many different ones but these ones are great. They are called Venlafaxine. (everything just floaties over my head haha) no stress anymore . They havent put on weight which I am pleased about however I was on one called zispin and I put on three stone (big mama) and I have never really shifted it since, not for the want of trying, allthough it worked at the time and I will not put it down in any other way as it saved my life.

[bevalee]

I was on Venaflaxin too! They really helped me out.

[Kathryn]

Can you drink when you're on antidepressants? I assume you can't.

[Tez]

Kathryn,

 

With SSRIs you are advised not to drink. I asked why and was told because it interacts with the tablet and increases its effect but otherwise it was perfectly safe.

[Kathryn]

Just wondering what antidepressants do that a couple of glasses of wine can't .

[Tez]

Kathryn,

 

I think it depends upon what your symptoms of depression are. Mine were very physical, I had periods that would continue for over 3 weeks, my body would act independently of my brain, I suppose in a way very similar to tics but slightly more complicated(my husband and son used to place bets on whether their dinner would end up on the table or the floor - they took to imitating my actions as I threw the plates in the air and my reactions as they landed on the floor), I was extremely uncoordinated and was burning or cutting myself whilst cooking practically every day, I get cluster headaches and the frequency of these had increased, (infact I had had a contunuous severe, headache for over 2 months without a days break), my allergies had worsened and there was hardly a day when my face didn't swell in response to an irritant.

 

I had tried every self help method I could think of before I eventually admitted defeat and went to the Doctors but Christmas defeated me and I knew I just couldn't continue without help. My Doctor is brilliant. He knows that the problems I face are not only confined to A's problems, but to my husband's depression which has been ongoing for the past 10 years, my stepson's suicidal tendencies and physical ill health and caring for an elderly relative with cancer all without support and he spent over an hour talking to me, examining me and satisfying himself that it was all stress related before he prescribed antidepressants.

 

For me, they worked like a bit of a miracle. Within a month most of the physical symptoms I had put up with for so long disappeared and I was able to think clearly and function again. I wouldn't hesitate to take them again if I needed them despite the wight gain and despite the fact that for the last few months I was taking them they caused me to feel extremely hot and sweat profusely.

 

Sorry, this has turned into something of an essay but I feel very strongly that antidepressants get such a bad press that some people who really need then refuse to try them. I think that in certain circumstances, when all other things have failed, and when they are not continued indefinitely without reason, they can be used to great effect.

Edited October 9, 2005 by Tez

[MelowMeldrew]

I was always of the view that once you resort to medication it's a slippery slope, whenever you feel stressed you would reach for it. America cannot function without prozac, we should be addressing the cause not just treating the effects, we're stressed because we don't get support for us or our kids, a tablet doesn't increase the chance of that support coming. It's no good moralising, I know a lot of us are under considerable pressures at times, I've just never felt a pill is the answer, for me, or mine. I can't even remember when I last took a paracetemol for a headache, must be years.... I found an avenue for expression so I guess that helped.

[Tez]

MM,

 

I agree with you, you do have to treat the cause. But as many of us know the cause is sometimes an immovable object, what do you do then. I'm really pleased that you feel able to deal with your headaches without a tablet and can cope without antidepressants unfortunately that isn't the case for everyone.

 

I don't take headache tablets either, simply because they donot work but I don't function whilst I've got one either, I can't see properly, I can't think, I sit and rock in an effort to get rid of the pain(my eye feels as though it's beingpushed out of the socket whilst at the same time being pierced with a needle, my speech is slurred, one of my eyes waters profusely. You can't continue like that indefinitely. Depression symptoms can be equally as debilitating, if you can't resolve the cause, you've tried other self help methods and they haven't worked,what do you suggest that people do to enable themselves to function if not take an antidepressant.

 

For me taking an antidepressant enabled me to continue fighting to resolve the problem that was causing my depression.

Edited October 9, 2005 by Tez

[Elanor]

Hi

 

I think I shared the view that depression should not be dealt with by medication - until I suffered from depression!

 

It is a serious and debilitating illness, that has pervasive and damaging effects in all areas of your life. Depression is much more than feeling sad, worried or (for want of a better word) depressed. I had been suffering for months before I went to a doctor, partly because I felt anti-medication. It was a big mistake to wait so long - the suicidal thoughts and the constant breaking down into tears at work, whilst driving, at home, were big clues that I simply was ill.

 

I took medication for over 6 months, spent the time doing some serious sorting out of my life - something I was totally unable to do before treating my depression. I gave up work, took up meditation and exercised more, paid more attention to my diet. Then I came off the drug quickly, and would go back on them without a second thought if I was ill again.

 

Mine was a mild depression. I was lucky it didn't get worse.

 

Elanor

Edited October 9, 2005 by Elanor

[Kathryn]

I feel very strongly that antidepressants get such a bad press that some people who really need then refuse to try them. I think that in certain circumstances, when all other things have failed, and when they are not continued indefinitely without reason,� they can be used to great effect.

I agree with you Tez, and I hope I haven't implied that I am critical of antidepressants in general or those who choose to take them. My own daughter is on them and at one stage earlier this year they may have saved her life.

 

For me, I don't think they are right at the moment - that's not to say that I wouldn't ever choose to take them in the future if the need was there.

 

I agree with Melow Meldrew too though, - it makes me angry that so many people have to resort to medication to cope with something which is not an illness but a legitimate reaction to external circumstances.

Edited October 9, 2005 by Kathryn

[loulou]

Hi everyone,

 

I've been reading this thread with interest over the last week. I was on anti-depressants last year, while i was coping (or not coping) with Kai being off school and waiting for the statementing/diagnosing process.

 

What they did for me was to prevent me from totally cracking up and being unable to look after Kai or myself.

 

I always used to think that depression was "in the mind" and that you just had to "get on with it" ..... until it happened to me.

 

I came off them after 4 months because i thought i was better. I think it helped as it was summer and it always lifts my spirits.

 

Anyway, Kai started at his new special school last month and the dreaded anxiety/depression came back, totally unexpected.

 

For the first week, i willed it to go away, but it doesn't work like that. Like Tez, i had physical sympoms, mainly severe stomach pain. My co-ordination was all over the place. I kept dropping things and had two nasty falls (i still have the bruises ). I was bursting into tears at anything (or nothing!) and having panic attacks.

 

My Dad persuaded me to go back to my GP and she gave me antidepressants again. I kept them for a week before deciding to take them. I've been signed off work for a month, so hopefully i get myself back on track.

 

<'> <'> <'> to everyone.

 

Loulou x

[Kathryn]

Hi Loulou -

 

I hope things get better for you soon. <'> You've had a lot to deal with recently.

 

Tez - after reading about the multiple problems you've had to deal with I'm amazed you can even get out of bed in the mornings. In fact the resilience of all the people on this forum - with or without support - never ceases to amaze me.

 

I have days when I just cry all the time and don't want to leave the house or talk to anyone. Then I have days between which are better and I try to do everthing I have to do on those days. At the moment I'm just about able to deal with it, but if it ever gets to the point where the ordinary distractions don't work, then I'll know it's time for medication. Ask me how I feel at Christmas.

 

The weight gain issue does bother me - I think that in itself would make me depressed - especially if it was not something that could be controlled What exactly causes it with some antidepressants?

[Tez]

Kathryn,

 

The reason for weight gain with antidepressants is not fully understood and there are many theories floating around. I found this article which gives some insight:-

 

In the weight gain arena, all antidepressants without exception have the potential to cause weight gain. Many people are not even aware that weight gain is one of the most common side effects associated with Lexapro until it is too late. Ironically, this common side effect of Lexapro is counterproductive to depression since unexpected weight gain can further aggravating mood instability and low self-esteem.

 

Weight gain caused by Lexapro and other antidepressants is a major reason for people stopping drug treatment. Even Wellbutrin, which is touted as the antidepressant lest likely to cause weight gain, causes weight gain in some people.

 

All antidepressants slow the metabolism and inhibit specific enzymes in the liver that allow the metabolism to function correctly. Many antidepressants also also increase appetite and carbohydrate cravings. Antidepressants like Lexapro are also shown to cause hormonal changes, which can further add to weight gain.

 

Deprex is a complex of natural "antidepressants" that supplies the precursors to key mood-controlling neurotransmitters. Deprex raises circulating serotonin levels, restores the appropriate production of serotonin and norepinephrine and regulates cortisol release ? without weight gain side effects or other side effects commonly associated with Lexapro and other antidepressants.

 

Studies showed an average weight gain of 15 to 20 pounds with Zoloft, Prozac and Celexa. Paxil appear to have the most significant impact on weight gain of all of the SSRIs and causes weight gains in excess of 20 pounds for the average person taking this antidepressant. Effexor weight gain is not as severe as the weight gain reported with Paxil, Prozac, Celexa and Zoloft. Lexapro appears to have the least weight gain problems of all SSRIs.

 

With Lexapro weight gain, it is not the amount of food eaten, but the body?s crippled metabolism. If you have already cut your food intake, have eliminated fatty foods, exercise on a regular basis and you still are gaining weight, your metabolism is to blame. If you are taking Lexapro, chances are Lexapro is contributing to the sluggish metabolism. The only true solution to Lexapro weight gain is not to take Lexapro.

 

Most people slowly return to their pre-Lexapro weight after discontinuing Lexapro use, but the emphasis is on the word �slowly.�

 

Weight gain with SSRIs is tricky because SSRIs give an appetite suppressant feeling and some weight loss in the beginning. It isn?t until after a few months that the weight gain appears.

 

SSRIs were originally thought to reduce appetite and promote weight loss. Many people will experience weight loss in the first months of taking antidepressants but that side effect is short-lived. It is now known that long-term use of SSRIs like Lexapro are associated with weight gain. It is common for people to report weight gains of 20, 30 and even 60 pounds several months into treatment.

 

Antidepressants outside the SSRI family have also been shown to cause weight gain to varying degrees. The greatest tricyclic antidepressant weight gain has been observed with those using Elavil, Tofranil and Remeron. Wellbutrin causes the least amount of weight gain but is not shown to be as effective at reducing anxiety as other antidepressants. Desyrel appears to cause less weight gain than Elavil but more than Wellbutrin. Again, the only substantial means of combating weight gain from these types of antidepressants are to discontinue use.

 

 

Apparently, a specific gene has now been identified in those people who do experience weight gain whilst taking antidepressants and it may in future be possible to test for this prior to starting treatment.

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

Incidently, if you need antidepressants you may be unaware of it but I'm sure your family would be aware and would urge you to seek help.

[ceecee]

Hi

I was prescribed anti depressants after my daughter went autistic for 6 months after her mmr booster.I couldn't sleep, couldnt' eat and kept bursting into tears all the time.I couldn't think straight either it was like being in a fog.I came off them once she got better but then fell pregnant with my son and the depression came back with a vengence but I wouldn't take them whilst pregnant.I was advised within hours of his birth to go straight back on them which I did so obviously wasn't able to breast feed,I came off them when he was about a year old, but probably should have still taken them for a bit longer.Today I am fine but I dont think there is any shame in taking them if you need to.For me they blocked my mind from wandering back and going over and over things.I was told my depression ws depression with a known cause e.g. daughter's illness.Hopefully I'll never suffer from depression again but who knows.If I do I will take them again if need be.

[Elanor]

Tez

 

That was an amazingly well-informed post - I'll just add that many people don't realise that most anti-depressants can take up to 3 weeks to have an effect, and that during that period there can be unpleasant side-effects. One of these is nausea - which in my case led to weight loss (which was sadly strictly temporary).

[Kathryn]

Wow, thanks Tez. I doubt whether people are given this much info by their doctor before deciding whether to take pills. I'll keep this info for future reference.

 

Still not convinced they are for me. I'd try absolutely everything else first. I think part of my resistance is that I don't really enjoy the thought of being controlled by a doctor.

[Tez]

Kathryn,

 

I think part of my resistance is that I don't really enjoy the thought of being controlled by a doctor.

 

I absolutely agree. I have this absolute fear of anyone having control of my life or my family's. It's one of the things I hate about LEAs and the other professionals advising on my son, and also one of the reasons I stopped taking the antidepressants when I felt ready without returning to the Doctors as I had been told to do.

 

I think your approach is absolutely the correct one. Hope you feel better soon.

Edited October 10, 2005 by Tez

[Kathryn]

Thanks Tez

 

Coincidentally as I was posting on this thread earlier - my "ex boss" phoned to offer me some more work - days and hours to suit. At least part of my low mood was the feeling of being trapped at home all day every day. (I haven't been working the last two weeks as my contract had finished). I feel a lot happier as a result - just the feeling of being wanted and valued for myself is important to me. So the anti D's can stay on the shelf for a little while longer.

 

K

Edited October 10, 2005 by Kathryn