# Anti-depressants **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 4, 2003, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985 "2003-12-04T18:22:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/1 "2003-12-04T18:22:53Z")
I am looking to go on an anti-depressant that will not cause negative sexual side effects. Paxil, Celexa, and Zoloft have all been negative for me. I know that Wellbutrin is recommended, but I want to know if there are any others. How about Effexor? What are your experiences? ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/2 "2003-12-04T19:11:52Z")
I take Wellbutrin. I haven’t noticed any strong side effects like I did on Paxil or Prozac. It is commonly recommended for people that don’t want the sexual side-effects of SSRI’s like Paxil, Zoloft, and Prozac. It seems to work fairly well for depression. I think that Wellbutrin is the one you should go for if your doctor recommends it. ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/3 "2003-12-04T19:20:57Z")
I’ve heard good things about Welbutrin. I take Celexa myself, and I haven’t noticed any side effects … although, I don’t have much sex, hence the depression. 🙂 Prozac is the devil as far as I’m concerned, but I’ve never even heard of Effexor, so I can’t help you there. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/4 "2003-12-04T19:38:30Z")
I tried Wellbutrin SR. It caused me to be prone to anger easily, which is a known but somewhat infrequent side-effect. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/5 "2003-12-04T19:58:27Z")
Mrs Z takes Effexor. For it is an anit-anxiety pill not anti-D. (I think it’s Effexor) Anyway it works great and she is much better. But she definetly had decreased sexual desire. (There is not a smiley sad to express my woe over that) ---
**Author:** ![hlanelee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3bc359/32.png) [@hlanelee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hlanelee)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/6 "2003-12-04T20:07:39Z")
I’ve taken Effexor since 1995. I haven’t noticed any bad side effects. I like it much better than Paxil or Zoloft and I won’t even talk about Elavil. Get a blood pressure monitor if y0ou take it. E-mail me sometime. ---
**Author:** ![XJETGIRLX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9fc29f/32.png) [@XJETGIRLX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XJETGIRLX)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/7 "2003-12-04T20:49:19Z")
I take Effexor XR for anxiety, and have had no side effects, although it is also prescribed for depression. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2003, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/8 "2003-12-04T21:03:28Z")
I take a combo of Wellbutrin and Lexapro. I have noticed a decrease in libido since the addition of the Lexapro, but when I was on Wellbutrin alone, I was still a horndog. Also, some people say that the Lexapro (especially at a lower dose, like 10 mgs) is much less prone to the sexual side effects than the other SSRIs. I didn’t start noticing them until I was up to 20 mgs. However, I will note that I was severely depressed and the Wellbutrin was not adequate on its own for the depression. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/9 "2003-12-05T08:19:58Z")
No way of predicting which will have bad side effects for any one person - overall, they all average out similar to each other. So it’s just a matter of carrying on ‘experimenting’, I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![scott\_evil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@scott\_evil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scott_evil)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/10 "2003-12-05T11:19:17Z")
[All you ever wanted to know about Wellbutrin and libido.](http://bupropion.com/wonderwell/) I first took it to reverse sexual side-effects of Paxil, but found going on weekend “Paxil holidays” more effective. However, Wellbutrin seemed to work well for me in combination with an SSRI. It helps me be more assertive and less socially phobic. I went off Wellbutrin for a stupid reason a few years ago, and switched to Celexa (an SSRI). Interestingly, while Prozac and Paxil (both SSRIs) caused me those nasty sexual side-effects, Celexa didn’t - so YMMV applies. Earlier this year, I had my doctor add Wellbutrin back into the mix. It gives me energy, since it has a distinct stimulant effect; I also find it helps me be more assertive and virtually eliminated the often overwhelming fear of people that I had. The weird thing about me is that I also have a rather nasty anxiety disorder that SSRIs have been ineffective in treating, so I had to go back on clonazepam (Klonopin). It might seem contradictory that I take one med to give me more energy and another to slow the ping-pong balls in my brain, but the Celexa/Wellbutrin/Klonopin combo works extremely well for me, and I haven’t felt this good in years. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Serpentine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3be4f8/32.png) [@Silver\_Serpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Serpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/11 "2003-12-05T11:49:16Z")
I was on Welbutrin for a short time, as well as Zoloft (at different times). Welbutrin was for a combo mild OCD/anxiety/depression/ADD. Good times, there. It’s great for treating more than one thing, and it actually boosted my sex drive (known side effect?), but the taste was so incredibly horrendous that I couldn’t take it anymore (the taste lingered in my throat/back of my tongue for a good half hour after I took the pill, no matter what I did. Twice a dat. I wanted to vomit). Zoloft gave me wicked dry mouth (I had to have a water bottle at all times at work), but I didn’t notice any sexual side-effects. `Course, my sex drive had plumetted anyway. Stopped taking it due to financial reasons (no insurance = $80 a month. Yeesh). Which would I reccomend? Wll, if you have a mess o’ problems like I do, definatly Wellbutrin. Good for the sex drive. So, I figure that puts good old Welbutrin 1st. Aside from the taste. Ug. Just thinking about it, I can taste it. That was 3 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/12 "2003-12-05T13:36:03Z")
I take Welbutrin and Trazadone. I just switched from two a day 150mg Welbutrins to one a day 300mg XL–it seems to be working okay. If not for the Trazadone, I wouldn’t sleep at all. As to libido, hell, I’m an old guy—how would I know if its the medicine or Mother Nature? ---
**Author:** ![shannablu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8baadc/32.png) [@shannablu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shannablu)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/13 "2003-12-05T22:52:00Z")
My doctor recently put me on Effexor and I have not noticed any side effects, although I am due to increase my dosage here soon, so I can’t say what effect that will have. I have been on Prozac and it didn’t seem to do a whole for me, so I changed. So far, I have had good results with Effexor. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/14 "2003-12-05T23:00:35Z")
I noticed a decreased libido with Effexor, which corrected itself when I went off of it. ---
**Author:** ![Sionach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Sionach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sionach)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/15 "2003-12-05T23:10:20Z")
A family member of mine recently had a seizure as a result of about a year of Wellbutrin use. There was no prior history of seizure, but apparently taking Wellbutrin longer than 6 months can drastically increase your risk of seizure. Not to say you shouldn’t take it at all, but definitely check with your doctor about that particular side effect if you go with Wellbutrin. ---
**Author:** ![Nvme77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Nvme77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nvme77)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2003, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anti-depressants/216985/16 "2003-12-06T03:24:16Z")
Paxil has worked like a miracle for helping me with anxiety and ocd- saving my family life-however- my sex life has disappeared. bitchy nympho or sedate nun/ hard to choose.