Anti-depressants

Re: Anti-Depressants... Quick answers please! not much time!
Asked by MistyDawn

Question:
 

I have an Appt. to Change my prescription. My youngest is 5 months and just before I had her, the Doc's put me on Wellbutrin, and it... well, to say the least it didnt work, It made it worse and to the point of all I could think about was suicide. they told me it might make me a bit worse at first but after that innital kick, it would help, So I took it for a month adn a half and the whole time I was miserable and, as I said before, wanted nothing more than to kill myself, So I took myself off of it. the depression is not that bad anymore since I stoped taking it, but it is slowly getting there without any help with any drugs. 

I have made the appt to get on something new adn I wanted to know who else is on anti depressions and what you are on... and how it works for you.  I know they all work diffrently for diffrent  people, but I jsut want a general Idea from Personal views... not just research from the internet....

Thanks

My Advice:

Hi Misty Dawn.
 

If you have a tendency to depression & have ever had suicidal thoughts, it is vitally important, especially as a mother, that your depression be managed. If stable enough & sufficiently well-financed, you could get into intensive psychotherapy. This is outrageously expensive tho, so most of us regular folks need to take anti-depressants & attend the occaissional support group or have patches of seeing a freebe counsellor.

Fortunately the modern antidepressants (SSRIs) are not the zombie-drugs that were used in the 80s. They are not, however, universally appropriate. So far I've had 4 different drugs. Effexor worked well for me for the 9 months I took it. I then decided to come off it (slowly, under medical supervision). This was a good choice at the time as I was in an abusive relationship & reconnecting with the intensity of my emotions helped me to leave. The next time I went on anti-d was because I was having some really heavy chemo-type treatment that commonly causes depression. I tried the Effexor again & it didn't work. So Cipramil (aka Citalopram etc) was suggested as its better for those with liver problems (which I had at the time). It worked well for a number of years. Then my life took a nasty turn & they seemed not to be working any more. The government-funded (rotational) phychiatrist I saw put me on one whose name I can't recall at present (begins with an "M"). It was disastrous; it didn't work as an antidepressant at all; did seem to be a chemical sledgehammer & caused severe gastric reflux that burnt my vocal chords so I was unable to speak for 3 weeks (I stopped those after the first week). Further enquiries & discussion put me on Faverin (Fluvovimine etc). These have been working well for about a year. Now that menopause has started throwing its worst at me, my Dr has just restarted me on Effexor (apparrently its good for menopausal symptoms). So I'll get back to you on the latest...

I have been to a few support groups so I now have a selection of friends who suffer depression as well. Most of us have found different SSRIs to be most useful. Tho I do have one friend who is on Effexor & one who is on Cipramil (he has problems with his liver). A drug that works great for one person will be useless for another. A drug that has no noticeable side-effects on one person will have devastating side-effects on another. A drug that works great for awhile may stop working because of a change in health or life-circumstances. It really isn't a one-size-fits-all science.

The best tactic is to have a good relationship with an intelligent & aware doctor. She/he has your records, knows your issues, listens to what you have to say. If a drug doesn't suit, go back & chat about it; ask for another. Also... if you are an aussie, you may like to know that there is a medicare-funded system now that gives you access to adffordable psychology (12 appointments a year, I think). Just in case you are one of the unfortunate souls (I know 2) who don't respond well to any drugs stronger than asprin. The gals I know who are like this haven't tried naturopathy, but I did meet someone awhile back who takes a naturopath-prescribed regime of herbs & supplements & finds it very effective. Its interesting to note that some health funds now cover naturopathic visits under their extras schemes.

So yes! See your Doctor & have a rave about it. Those of us who live with depression often don't take it as seriously as we ought to. It is a life-threatening condition & the risks of not treating it is even worse when we are resposible for the care of children. Hold your head up high; its nothing to be ashamed of; latest studies suggest at least 33% of us need help with depression at some point in our lives.

hugs

Rosalinda