Antidepressants?: Hi everyone, I am new... - Mental Health Sup...

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Antidepressants?

lariet004 profile image
5 Replies

Hi everyone, I am new to this service. I found it as I was looking for call number for my GP to find help with my "depression". I havent been diagnosed yet and its very difficult for me to only admit that I have mental problems as I am nurse and love working with other people and helping them to find their way. For last couple of months I feel very down, demotivated and slow in everything I do. I dont even remember day when I was happy, smiling and simply enjoying my life. I feel like I am closed in box with no exit ways. Its affecting my personal and professional life and I am very scared of my future. Feeling so isolated with no family support-living in different country. I done few tests with results of severe depression where I need antidepresants but I am scared of sides effects, I know that some of them can slow you down even more. Does anyone here using any kind of antidepresants??

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lariet004
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5 Replies

Hi I have been on anti depressants for 8 years, they do help but they are not a cure. What has caused your depression? Do you feel you have a purpose in life and if so what is that purpose? Many of us are walking around and feel we have no meaning or purpose in life and this can lead to depression.

europunter profile image
europunter

Hi Lariet,

It's good that you recognise you may have a mental health issue and need professional help. Mental health problems can affect any person so there is no need to feel ashamed. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) depression is currently the fourth biggest, costliest and most debilitating disease in the world. By 2020 it will be second biggest illness in the world behind cardiovascular disease.

It's always best to first contact your doctor/GP and discuss how you are feeling mentally. Modern prescription medicine can be truly helpful with assisting a person cope through a difficult psychological time. It's only natural that you have concern about possible side effects with anti-depressants but your GP will be able to allay any fears you may have. So do ask. Your GP will also be able to advise you on non drug interventions such as counselling and cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) to deal with depression.

Do visit the National Health Service website at nhs.uk where you'll find helpful information on mental health issues there.

The world renowned medical institution Mayo Clinic in America is also a good source for health information. You can sign up to receive an e-news letter on depression from them. Click on mayoclinic.org

Lariet, I wish you well and do visit your GP.

Kind regards,

Europunter

secondhandrose2 profile image
secondhandrose2

Hi

Welcome to the site and I am sorry you are feeling low, it's always hard coming to terms with realising we need help but depression isn't uncommon in health care professionals and you have done well to acknowledge your feelings as that is half the battle. Also of course being in touch with your feelings will help your work more in the long term so you are doing your future patients a favour by seeking help yourself :) Seriously though, there is no shame in acknowledging your own depression. I worked as a psychotherapist in the NHS but am no more sorted than some of my patients.

As for medication, each person responds differently to meds and it all depends what kind of depression you experience, how supportive your GP is, which particular meds he prescribes and specifically how they affect you.

I have gone through a lot of therapy which I think is the most helpful way to shift depression, or at least reduce it, long term, but along the way I have been on several kinds of meds and each has had a different effect and different side effects. I found Prozac incredibly helpful many years ago as I was teaching but felt low and weepy and that particular med simply enabled me to feel better - colleagues thought I was a little bit high but I felt the most comfortable in myself that I had ever felt. Then later, after more therapy, I tried the same med and found it did nothing at all for me apart from give me headaches and make me feel anxious. I then had a period of taking Citalopram and found it eased me mood such that I could choose when to allow myself to feel low and weepy, sort of control it between those times. In time I came off that, had more therapy, felt a bit low and went back onto the same med but found the side effects awful. So what I am trying to say is that there is no simple answer as whatever anyone may tell you medication affects us each differently at different times.

In your position I would think about what the depression might be about, whether you feel it has always been there for a long time and you have been suppressing or controlling your mood in order to avoid it, or whether you feel it relates to anything specific in your life now, or perhaps you have no idea why you are depressed. Your own thoughts about those questions may determine whether meds are likely to need to be the main treatment or just a way of enabling you to cope while you perhaps undergo one of the talking therapies in order to treat the underlying causes. If you would prefer to use meds on their own then you might ask your GP to prescribe one of the mood stabilizers initially at a very low dose where the side effects will be minimal and you can choose to increase after you have adjusted to being on the meds. Doing your own research and deciding which meds YOU think might be best for you is probably a good move as Expert Patients who understand their own health issue and the way it is best treated are likely to have the best outcomes - and as a psychologist I think that especially true for emotional difficulties.

Good luck and keep using the site as we are a really supportive group,

Suex

WantToChange profile image
WantToChange

Hi lariet004, you seem like a good person who wants to help others and it's horrible when good people like yourself have to struggle in life.

I have been on Citalopram for a year now and have found that it has helped me a lot. I have a realised that a chang in my mental health can be attributed to a few things - such as my daily life changing to something I can actual cope with (before I was expecting myself to do something I really couldn't), I stopped chasing guys coz at the end of the day they were only making me unhappy, and most importantly I was diagnosed with a disability and learning this about myself has made a huge difference to my life. But I do believe that the anti-depressants helped and they still do! I'm definitely not ready to come off them.

In terms of side-effects, everyone is different. I was worried and my parents kept a close eye on me. But the only side-effects really was tiredness to begin with. I couldn't stop yawning (I forget what they call this). But I didn't have any worse depression. But I'm maybe not the best person to provide advice about side-effects as I was given ADs primarily for anxiety. I had associated depression, but my anxiety has lessened now and so has the depression.

The only was you will know is if you try them, and get a close friend or family-member to keep an eye on you. I would recommend trying them if you feel you are needing help. But obviously speak to your GP as he/she will provide the best advise on what to take.

Take care x

LaceyTiel profile image
LaceyTiel

I am sorry you are feeling this way. You must have a loving and kind heart to devote your career to nursing. Many years ago I told my doctor I could not take antidepressants because if anyone found out they would like I was crazy or pathetic. And my doctor said - once you find the right antidepressants for you, you'll feel so much better you won't even care what people say.

Turns out he was right- although only my partner knows I am on medication. It is a trail and error process to find the right medications for you. Some will give you side effects that won't give me side effects- and vice versa. Paxil worked for my mother but not for me. Zoloft didn't work for me. Then came Wellbutrin. I had mixes in with Trazadone, Ellxfor and presently Evvial. I had some tremors in my hands at first with some but it stopped within a month. Dry mouth is a common one that came and when but nothing a sip of apple juice didn't fix. Vivid dreams with some. And ironically even very depressed thoughts with other medications that clearly were not the medications for me. But you know before you take the medications what you might be up against so as along as you keep an open mind about things- those types of thoughts can be told to your doctor and nothing bad will come of them. It is all about what is best for you. I hope you feel better soon.

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