Useful tips for depression

[cecilia13]

No exctly a newcomer . Just want o share (also further discuss with others) some info from my own experience and many readings and years of depression .

1. antidepressants (SSRI,s) may be ineffective for most people because they do not easily cross the BRAIN blood barrier . End up being digested and flushed out .

2. if you blame (or think) your family/parents for your depression, better not go to them for support. You will only be going round & round in maddening circles , getting more depressed . Better turn to a self help group (preferably regular meetings ) . Problem is the are rather th on the ground or just not specifically focused enough . Create your own ! ( one of my big dreams! )

3. experiment & persevere when 1st taking antidepressants despite all kinds of horrible sideeffects for at leas 4 weeks (unless you are very lucky) Easier said than done, I know . Took me years to educate & help myself & be brave enough to go through the nightmare . Felt rotten , highly emotional and suicidal for a long while . It indeed does get much much worse before it gets better !

4. people (incl. professionals) who claim you can' t get addicted to antidepressants must not be blindly believed . Remember we are all different . Found out to my dear cost though doing it gradually over several weeks ( was on brink of hysteria and suicide) .

[MAS_Nurse]

Hi Cecelia, Thank you for sharing from your personal experience, you have obviously had a difficult time with mixed benefits from medication and HCP advice. I've read both of your posts. I am concerned though that some of your advice could be confusing and unhelpful to other members of this forum, especially newbies to this community and those in the early stages of managing their mental health conditions. I am particularly concerned regarding your advice about antidepressants that 'they may be ineffective for most people' and about 'experimenting'. I appreciate that maybe for you they have not been effective, but generalisations are unhelpful, and evidence does show that in many cases they are helpful, especially when coupled with psychological therapies. I agree, there's no 'one-size-fits-all' with medications, that yes, everyone is different and we respond differently, but there many different medications that may well help, and yes when starting new antidepressant it is important to persevere, it takes 4 -6 weeks for them to kick in. It really is important to have a dialogue with our GP and medical professional about treatment options and therapies. Yes, agreed there are side effects to taking antidepressants, but these vary from drug to drug. I disagree, anti-depressants are not addictive in the sense that,' you don't need to keep increasing the dose to get the same effect;

you won't find yourself craving them if you stop taking them...but you can experience withdrawal symptoms when coming off them ..'(See link below rcpsych).

You may find this information helpful from the Royal College of Psychiatrist rcpsych.ac.uk/healthadvice/...

You are important and valuable, and what you have to say is important. I am sorry you feel so lonely and isolated. I hope you will find folks here are very supportive and understanding and will reach out to you. Keep our Crisis helpline numbers handy, if you live in the UK:

The Samaritans Tel: 116 123 [24 hours line]

NHS: 999 [Emergencies]

NHS 111 [Non-Emergencies]

MIND Helpline Tel:[phone]

Stay safe. Keep in touch.

Best wishes

[cecilia13 in reply to MAS_Nurse]

thanks for getting in touch . never claimed I know it all . did stress that was my own experience & people I know .

know all too well variuos phone numbers you mentioned having been depressed for countless years . didn't find thes organisations vwery helpful . you just get passed around . you either keep swimming or give up and sink . it's an illusion to think anybody really cares , or maybe briefly (if you are lucky) .