I took Paxil for a few months and then quit. A few years later I tried Lexapro for a few months and quit. The effects of the two drugs where indistinguishable to me. At the time I was convinced I had depression and anxiety problems (my current thinking is that I’m a fairly normal human being who worries about the future and gets sad when his life sucks, but that’s another thread).
They do work. More for depression than anxiety though. I’d say that my mood improved about 25% and my anxiety improved about 15%. I got the impression that antidepressants don’t target anxiety or depression directly – they are more like general purpose emotional dampeners. You won’t get as sad about things but you probably won’t get as happy either. If you’re consumed with depression this can be a godsend, but I think if you’re just experiencing normal ups and downs you may not appreciate the drug.
I also seemed to sleep a little better, and I was able to wake up quickly without feeling groggy. This may have been related to a general reduction in anxiety though. I definitely put on a little weight during these periods, but I don’t really know why – I don’t think I ate any more than normal.
The main reason I quit both times is that the drugs utterly destroyed my sex drive. Not only was I unable to get an erection, but I lost all interest in sex. With anybody. Ever. It was like chemical castration. My reaction was probably not typical since most people seem to retain their sex drives with anti-depressants despite some moderate mechanical difficulties. Luckily I returned to normal a week or two after I discontinued the treatment.
Paxil for OCD. It made me sleepy at first, but that was easily remedied by taking it before bed. It works, and I don’t really notice any side effects, even today.
(You cannot quit cold turkey, though. It’s not addictive, but the way it interacts with your body makes withdrawal rather unpleasant.)
On a cocktail of drugs, working in the right way, but not yet reached a stable point.
Previously, I’ve been through a long period with one SSRI after another, from doctors who were too inexperienced, or simply not knowledgeable enough, to make a diagnosis which enabled them to do anything else. All I got was various side-effects, from the mundane to the annoying (the sexual ones are the worst, and some doctors just shrug it off. Hate to think what they’re like with someone with an actual problem relating to sex.)
The diagnosis I’ve had since has ruled out SSRIs entirely, which is why it’s so frustrating that the first port of call is often someone who knows little else.
Wellbutrin SR. This drug literally made me do a 180 (in a good way). Within a week my physical symptoms had resolved, and by the end of week 2-3, I was mentally stable again.
Also tried celexa for my social anxiety. Didn’t work. Actually made me MORE anxious.
Wellbutrin was probably the best of the ones I was on (and yes, I was on them for major depression not necessarily caused by external influences). Man, my hormones were back to college level, which is to say I had a really, really happy husband.
I started out with Paxil about 8 years ago and remained on it for about 5 years. It was a godsend to me. I felt like I had my life back. Well, everything except my sex life. I had zero desire, like a switch had been turned off. Frankly, for me, that was a small sacrifice to pay for the emotional help that the drug gave me.
I “accidentally” took myself off of Paxil after the first year. The Rx ran out and I didn’t remember the doc telling me that I should return for a checkup. After about 2 weeks of hellish withdrawal, including crying, hyper anxiety and depression along with no sleep and odd muscle jerks and tics, I realized that I needed to get back to the doc post haste.
Then about 3 years ago, I found myself in a situation that was just too much to handle (hub deployed to Afghanistan and a boss trying to find a way to fire me). I was hospitalized and the doc changed my Rx to Effexor. It’s my understanding that the Effexor is in the same family as Paxil and I’m up to 300 mg now.
Most of the time it works as prescribed. Some times, like now, I have severe depressive swings with crying for no reason. It usually only lasts a few days and then I’m back to normal.
I’ve had friends ask if anti-D’s are for them and I can only say that you know when Rx therapy is the right thing to do. Everyone is supposed to feel anxiety and depression every once in a while. Just like upthread someone mentioned that s/he was feeling depressed and anxious during their divorce. Perfectly normal thinking. It’s when the anxiety and/or depression begins to interfere with your daily livelihood is when you may have to look at alternatives.
I believe that the meds work best in conjunction with talk therapy. I’ve tried both individually and have had the best success when I’m taking the meds AND going to therapy.
Celexa has brought my thoughts and emotions into a more productive and optimistic pattern, but has really been sapping my energy and libido lately. A few weeks ago, I had my dosage reduced; I still feel fine, and my drive is returning.
I went to the doctor with extreme fatigue and ended up on anti-depressants. They didn’t help.
I’m still just as tired as ever. Constant mind-numbing fatigue.
Did this happen to anyone else? I went and said, “Doc, I’m really tired.” They ran tests, didn’t find anything, and said “Maybe it’s depression!” and then I was on drugs.
In any case, Paxil and Lexapro both made me fall asleep. Whoopee, I was even more tired than before.
I’ve heard tales of antidepressants being used to combat Irritable Bowel Syndrome (which I suppose often comes bundled with depression and anxiety anyway). Anyone here have any experience with or knowledge about the efficacy of such treatment?
Paxil: Did nothing for my anxiety. All it did was make me tired and fat.
Wellbutrin: This made the anxiety worse and gave me frantic, crazy energy and wretched insomnia. Some people say they get vivid dreams with Wellbutrin. I wouldn’t know. Even sleeping pills couldn’t get me to sleep. At least I lost the weight. No wonder–I was running around like a rabbit on crack!
Then I went to an actual psychiatrist instead of getting psych meds prescribed by my primary care physician.
Celexa: Worked great with my anxiety. No sexual side effects. In fact, the only side effects I noticed were some tiredness after taking it (easily remedied by taking before bedtime) and awful dry mouth (easily remedied by chewing a lot of gum).
Lexapro: A very similar drug to Celexa. I switched over when my insurance changed (initially, it didn’t cover Lexapro but did cover Celexa). Works great for me, and I can handle a much lower dose than with Celexa.
Wellbutrin gave me one of the best years of my life, followed by a damn good year and then it was meh. After a 6 month holiday it still only works for a month or 2.
Tried a couple of SSRI’s, I’m the guy they put the suicide warning label on those for.
Almost happened that way before. I went to the doctor and complained of fatigue, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty waking, general malaise, and an overall feeling of “blah”.
He made me take a little test for depression, gave me happy pills, and kicked me out of the office.
He skipped the whole blood testing part.
Fast forward two years and another doctor and I complained again about feeling “blah” all the time. He ran blood tests. Turns out I had the testosterone levels of a 2 year old girl - I’m not making any of my own anymore. It’s called hypogonadism and it seems it’s just one of those things that can happen to men and boys of nearly any age and without warning. Low testosterone has been linked to depression in men, too.
Amazing what a couple ounces of blood can say about your body.
