General Chat

hi nyneve you still get your low days with them and pmt but not as bad 20mg is ususally the rda they can increase them but they kike you to wait a few months for it to take real affect they say agout six months for full affect lorraine xx

I finally decided to give them a proper go Lorraine after several years of reisting them. Is it ok to PM you some time today ? Carolxxxxxxxxx

of course it is i wont be around tea time ,any other time lorraine xx

have sent you my email xxxx

It's been really interesting - and helpful - to come back and read further replies on this thread. I had awful problems with Seroxat and wouldn't touch them again if you paid me, but I've been on Citalopram for a few years now and like someone else said, they do help if you suffer from anxiety/panic as well. I'm usually on 20mg a day but go up to 40mg a day during the winter months. I agree with the suggestion of counselling; a doctor told me that a combination of medication and counselling works best, rather than just the medication alone. I also try to have coping strategies in place, combined with my limitations due to the ME. Fresh air, exercise, hobbies etc, all help. I read a lot of light fiction and do a lot of family history, both things interest me as well as taking my mind off things. Wishing you well Carol (you're welcome to PM me anytime too, but I'm not around often at the moment due to my Mum being unwell), Love Mandy :) x

I was on FLOUXATINE but have recently been weaned off them, for 'other' reasons. I may have to go back on them later. They are PROZAC and I found them absolutely wonderful. They worked for me immediately, I think they are great, and if you need them please... take them. You will feel the benefit. Deanna X

I was given them after my Father died, I have to say I hated the feeling,I decided to stop taking them. Everyones different. Roxanne x

There are several different types of anti-depressants. You are likely to be offered one of the following types: SSRI – (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors), the most known household brand name being Prozac (fluoxetine) but now include a whole stable of closely related medicines Tricyclic antidepressants MAOI (monoamine oxidase inhibitors) Moclobemide Different people respond better to different drugs, and different categories of depression respond better to different drugs to, so there may be a degree of trial and error before you find the right one for you. There is no universal wonder drug, and what worked for your friend may not be beneficial to you. Before you go to your GP, you may like to make a list of lifestyle considerations to discuss the most suitable medication. For example, if you lead a busy life, or drive for a living, a drug which makes you drowsy may not suit, where if you have problems sleeping at night it may be beneficial. There are several sites on the internet which explain in detail each type of medication, and their possible side effects. Anti-depressants are not addictive. However, you may suffer withdrawal symptoms if you stop taking them suddenly. Any withdrawal should be gradual and under medical supervision. hope this helps you .....bryan.

Carol Take Kalms evening primrose, anything herbal give a go.......

Can I just say to be VERY careful taking herbal remedies while you are taking AD's. They can react very badly with each other. Check with your pharmacist please!! Claire xx

and dont take St J Wort and the contraceptive pill either or you will lose your protection. Jenx

Carol My advice would be to see a homeopath, who will be able to help with the PMT and coping with the stress. I have been seeing one for about a year and she has been marvellous. I had PTSD as a result of past experiences and there is such an improvement. Am taking no medication but have not had a panic attack for about 5 months, which is probably the longest time ever since I was 17 (now 50) On the other hand my ex started taking Seroxat 12 years ago when his father died. He's still on them, the side affects have been horrendous and he is now effectively addicted. He ended up being taken to hospital in a police car when he tried to come off them himself and GP won't risk it. Is he still depressed, nobody knows! If you can get an improvement in the PMT you will automatically feel better and be able to cope better with whatever is giving you the stress. I would strongly advise you to consider other options before you take the chemical route, Good luck Sheila

I agree with you sheila but what a shame its so expensive its such a pity that we cant access these remedies as easily as we can get chemicals on the nhs. I'm not slagging the nhs nor am i saying that the homeopaths, as long as they are registered arent worth it - its just that the cost put me off Jenx

Some years ago 2001 to be precise, I had just lost my father and mother in difficult circumstances over a period of seven weeks. I felt very low and confused and went to the doctor who prescribed Prozac. I took them for about 10 days and felt that I was was living in another world, viewing everything from a distance, I didn't feel engage with reality. I gave up taking Prozac and after another six months the depression went quite naturally and I felt great. I would really question the amount of antidepressants which are prescribed by the medical profession, the body and mind has a natural self-healing ability, depression is a natural reaction to trauma but the psyche will heal itself.

My mum suffered dreadfully with depression, weighloss etc after the death of my grandmother and 19 year old brother. She received councelling but refused point blank medication (due to circumstances) . 8 years later hospitalised with medical condition , consultant prescribed prozac as well, Mum started to lift and put weight on. She is still on Prozac 8 years on and although will never truly get over her grief is coping much better and laughs again. suex

I was prescribed low dose citalopram 18 months ago for severe stress and panic attacks. Took one tablet - within 4 hours suffered hallucinations (pteradactyls flying round my house!), felt like I had been plunged in boiling oil every few minutes for several hours after that and by the next morning I had forgotten how to put one foot in front of another in order to walk. Never took another one and my medical notes were marked to say I should never have SSRIs of any kind. Just goes to show its horses for courses. That scary experience helped me to find the strength to recover the hard way, a day at a time. Angela

i lost my dad 4 years ago and my eldest son died from cot d eath.i was in a terrible state,suffering severe clinical depression i was given venlaflaxine. iwas on them for 2 years,without them i dont know what would have happened.they truely saved me.i have been off them now for 2 years and my life now is great and i feel blessed for being given a second chance. i know they dont always work for every body deb.

I have had depression for years on and off and have tried various antidepressants, some of which worked better than others. For a long time I was without a/ds, using kava kava drops but these were withdrawn because some silly person in Scandanavia I think, used far too much and so a scare was started. They may be available again now. They helped me stay on an even keel. I now suffer with fibromyalgia and Chronic fatigue syndrome. I was given amitryptiline to help me relax at night, and sleep better but after a while I gave them up as they were not working. I also suffer with ocd and was given Citalopram - through our ocd self help group I am in touch with the pharmacist at the local mental health hospital. He came to give us a talk at our group about how these things work and it was very interesting. I have altered my dosage through his guidance on the phone, but even with a high dose, my problems were not easing and I was beginning to feel very 'out of it' so have stopped taking them now. I did go 'cold turkey' which isn't advisable but I missed two pills in a row, and decided to leave them off altogether. I felt very odd for the first week and was also using the detox foot pads, but am much better now, and am thinking of going for a homeopathic consultation at a centre where they train homeopathics ( In Norwich) - it is about half the price and you get 4 or 5 students talking to you, under supervision, and then they go away and sort out a plan for you. I have recommended in the past drops made from ativa (Oats) and passiflora - these are available from health stores, and work very well at keeping the edge off anxiety. The urge to cry at the least little thing was much less strong when I took these drops. Something else that can help depression is 5htp (google it) but again, it is imperative that you do not take it with any medication without prior consultation with your doctor. 5 htp is a natural way to help yourself. Take care everyone, use your pills sensibly and always give them time to kick in, ask your doctor or pharmacist to be sure of the time it takes, don't give up straight away. Sometimes you have to feel worse before you feel better. Liz

I got caught in a pill trap twenty years ago i was told i had a type of Epilepys put on Anti Convultions ,they made me depressed so put on Anti Depresssants, six years ago diagnosed as having Parkinsons,then told that they had decided eighteen years before it wasnt Epilepsy but i had been discharged from the hospital to be under GP care before being told,they never informed my GP. I had to stop taking both tablets before comencing Parkinsons treatment,Anti Convultion tablets quite easy but the A/D took a year.and it was a year of hell,i was on six tablets a day so one every two months for a year the last one being the worse. Since then i have read some articals about my A/D and they bloke the Dopemine in the brain ,which is a cause of Parkinsons, So pleas dont tale any Anti Depressants long term like i have,now i have an incurible disease,

Nyeneve I think your thread has been really interesting and helpful - thankyou. My query to peeps is what is depression?? - I know exactly how it feels and i can understand some of the triggers but i keep coming back to the 'why'. 18months ago our family lost 10 beloved family and friends - it was a nightmare - one day we lost 2 people on the same day and i thought life couldnt get any more unbearable then 3 weeks later we lost 3 people over 2 days. We went from one funeral to the next and eventually i fell apart inside whilst trying to be the rock for my kids. Yet hubby breezed thru it all in his own way - dont get me wrong he was upset but it didnt affect him in the same way. I feel that if i could bottle whatever it is that protects him from depression I would have a cure! And whats the difference between grief and depression? And why didnt anyone warn us grief could be so unbearable? Thanks for letting me offload guys! Gotta go but will return later Jenx