Suicide Warning

These medications can help prevent suicidal thoughts/attempts and provide other important benefits. However, studies have shown that a small number of people (especially people younger than 25) who take antidepressants for any condition may experience worsening depression, other mental/mood symptoms, or suicidal thoughts/attempts. Therefore, it is very important to talk with the doctor about the risks and benefits of antidepressant medication (especially for people younger than 25), even if treatment is not for a mental/mood condition.

they do get benefits from drug companies for this type of thing.

Oh yeah? You sure about that?

The amount of ignorance and BS in this thread is horrifying. People seem to pretty much believe anything they want to believe.

Unfortunately many people seek out information that bolsters whatever fear they've decided to have, while avoiding information that would show that the fear is either completely invalid or disproportionate to the situation. Sigh.

Drug reps leave gifts, buy meals for Dr offices, and all kinds of things just so the doctor will prescribe their brand of pharmaceuticals. That's for all their products, not just the latest and greatest. Even if the product has gone generic, the company that created the formula gets a portion of the sales for all generics for up to 7 years after the generic has been authorized. This is a pretty common practice with the medical community and Big Pharma.

Thank you for illustrating my point. Free meal = doctors in thrall to a drug company. Yup. That's completely reasonable. :laugh:

Well if someone selling anything bought you lunch, wouldn't you be more inclined to recommend their product to your friends, family members, and co-workers. Same difference.

No. That is just silly. I can't imagine a rational person being so easily influenced. The only way that would work would be if the product in question was the food itself.

Many drugs have different uses. The best thing to do is talk to your doctor about your concerns surrounding the medicine and request that she try a Rx sleep aide instead.

But, as I said, many drugs are primarily used for one ailment but then have been found to remedy others as well. For example, I struggled with daily migraines for three months. Pain killers wouldn't help, migraine Rx's wouldn't help, a shot of Toridol in my *kitten* wasn't effective either.
I had an MRI done, a CT scan, a spinal tap: results were A OK.
Then, my neurologist prescribed me Topamax. It was an anti convulsant, primarily, but was found to be effective in treating chronic migraines.

A side story: that med DID work. My migraines were practically gone once I was at 50mg in the morning/100mg at night. But, at the highest dose, I was having terrible mood swings and dealing with an all-out hormonal imbalance (it had been progressing for some time, as the doses kept rising, so did the severity of it all). I was a wreck.
I also had constant bloodshoot eyes and a red line going horizontally across each eye. It wouldn't go away for the most part.
I ended up weaning off of those meds and am now mood swing free and, 75% of the time, also migraine free.
Despite my side effects, the medicine did help and, imo, seemed to have fixed something in my brain. Or else I'd again be having those daily migraines.

First I agree and know that anti-depressants in small doses can have multiples uses. The Op is over reacting and should talk to her doctor directly.

Not that I'm aware of.

I've been having trouble sleeping lately and called inquiring about whether the dosage for my thyroid could be off, causing me to wake after a few hours of sleep. I spoke with the nurse, who in turn spoke with the doctor, and she thought a sleep aid might help. So I figured I'd try it or at least have it for weeks where I just can't sleep. I'm definitely not taking it now.

Are you on Synthroid or natural Armour thyroxine? You should visit the thyroid forum---there are some VERY knowledgeable ladies there who can give you guidance. A much more natural sleep aid is melatonin (it is a hormone that your body produces under the influence of low light and it prepares one for sleep). My husband takes it and sleeps like a baby now--in spite of chronic sciatic pain. But I'm not sure that hypothyroid folk can/should take it. Ask over on the thyroid forum---there's bound to be someone there who knows about it. Another thought is to lower the lights an hour before bedtime (and you should stay off the computer and television as well). The bright light into the eye, stimulates the pineal gland and diminishes your own natural supply of melatonin.

The reason why your doc prescribed an antidepressant is likely because, waking after a few hours of sleep and being unable to get back to sleep is a "symptom of depression". He's (and even female docs often believe this) been trained in medical school that most women are depressed most of the time. If what you have been prescribed is an SSRI, you should know that there are actual structural changes that occur in the brain after a few weeks (that is why it takes up to six weeks for them to begin "working"). I wouldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole. In the counseling I have done with people who are on them (both before and after they went on them), I have discovered that it affects thought processes. No one really talks about this "side-effect" but I'm convinced that it does something to disturb normal thinking. It isn't well-known (and it is hushed up in the corporate media) but most of the homicidal shooters have a long history of being on psychoactive drugs of some sort--but particularly SSRIs. The drug companies have known for a long time that about 5% of the people who are on them "long-term", will have a "psychotic break" at some point. Not everyone becomes homicidal when they have a psychotic break---I knew one lady who ended up in E.R. claiming she was the reincarnated Queen of Sheba.

What makes you think it's that the antidepressants caused their break? It seems more likely that they had an underlying mental illness that caused them to need antidepressants and to eventually have a psychotic break. Maybe I'm missing something?

There is no proof that the antidepressants "caused" their break, but in clinical trials, the drug companies themselves uncovered the link to psychotic breaks. It stands to reason that anything powerful enough to cause structural changes in the brain are strong enough to disturb normal cognition. Pretty much all of the homicidal mass shootings have occurred since the invention and widespread use of SSRIs in 1987. There are MANY now in the psychiatric profession who are growing very uncomfortable with the level of psychiatric drugs that are part of their profession. "Talk therapy" is a thing of the past. I'll post some links later to some websites where psychiatrists themselves are speaking out.

Since 1900
July 1914: Simone Pianetti took his rifle and shot and killed 7 people. Upon his attempt to be captured by the Carabinieri he ran off into the mountains and was never seen again and a body was never found.

May 18, 1927: The Bath School disaster is the name given to three bombings set off by Andrew Kehoe; in Bath Township, Michigan. A total of 38 students and 7 adults were killed; with at least 58 people were injured. The incident still stands as the deadliest mass murder in a school in U.S. history.

May.1938: In a rural village close to Tsuyama City in Okayama, Japan the Tsuyama Massacre took place. The massacre resulted in the deaths of 30 people and the serious injury of three. The event was conducted by a man known as Mutsuo Toi.

Sept. 1949: Howard Unruh left his house for a twelve minute walk around his Camden, New Jersey neighborhood, shooting people at random and killing 13.

Jan. 1958: Charlie Starkweather & Caril Ann Fugate went on a gunning spree after killing Caril's parents and sister. The two of them traveled through Nebraska and were captured in Wyoming ultimately killing eleven people.

July 1966: Charles Whitman barricaded himself in the University of Texas clock tower and began shooting at students below. The shoot off lasted 90 minutes and ultimately killed 18 people and wounded 30 others.

Dec: 1972: Mark James Robert Essex hid down the street from a police station and target police with a .44 magnum killing 10 people and wounding 13 others in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Mar. 1975: James Ruppert shot and killed his mother, brother, sister-in-law and eight nieces and nephews at an Easter Sunday dinner in Hamilton, Ohio. The 11 victims were shot a total of 35 times.

July 1976: Edward Charles opened fired with a .22 caliber rifle in the basement library of the California State University in Fullerton. He killed seven people and injured two.

March 1978: Dalal Mughrabi and her Palestinian Fedayeen unit of eleven members captured a bus and after being chased by the local military shot, killed and ultimately blew up the bus killing an estimated thirty five civilians and six Palestinian guerillas and left seventy-one civilians wounded.

1982: Carl Brown shot and killed 8 people at a Miami machine shop where he just recently had his lawn mower worked on. He was then caught trying to escape and ran over by civilians chasing him.

April 1982: A police officer gathered weapons from the local armory and used his police status to enter homes and kill those who were there. He either shot them or killed them with grenades. The officer continued this for eight hours.

Sept 1982: George Banks went on a shooting spree and killed 13 people with an AR-15 high-powered rifle in Wilkes-Barre City and Jenkins Township.

July 1984: James Oliver Huberty dressed in camouflage and went to McDonalds in San Ysidro. At McDonalds he opened fire and killed 21 people before a sniper shot ended his life.

Aug. 1986: Pat Sherrill, a postal worker, killed 14 people and wounded six others with a .45 caliber semiautomatic pistol in Edmond, Oklahoma post office.

Aug. 1987: Michael Ryan in Hungerford, England killed 16 people and wounded 14 others then shot himself.

You were very specific about mass shootings and not just mass murders. These are just a few I found in 30 seconds from 1900-1987. I'm pretty sure I could find quite a few more in just as little time. Then there is the list here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rampage_killers (and may god have mercy on my soul for citing wikipedia but you know, just for a quick reference). Anyway, nowhere near "pretty much all homicidal shootings" have been perpetrated since 1987.

@ OP - You were prescribed what you were because of what you reported as being the cause of the disruption of your sleep. If you told your doc that you can't sleep because you keep thinking about all the problems that you having in life, the doc is going to assume that its related to anxiety and depression and prescribe you a medicinal sleep aid.

If it really is that you don't go to sleep at a consistent bed time, then your sleep patterns just may be out of whack and came be adjusted with melatonin. It really depends on what your sleep disorder is. Do some research, call your doctor, and reevaluate the situation before you decide what to do.

Opinions from armchair internet "doctors" aren't going to be especially helpful.

This is a good post.

The best advice for the OP is to ignore absolutely everyone in this thread, and ask the doctor why he prescribed that medication.

Many drugs have different uses. The best thing to do is talk to your doctor about your concerns surrounding the medicine and request that she try a Rx sleep aide instead.

But, as I said, many drugs are primarily used for one ailment but then have been found to remedy others as well. For example, I struggled with daily migraines for three months. Pain killers wouldn't help, migraine Rx's wouldn't help, a shot of Toridol in my *kitten* wasn't effective either.
I had an MRI done, a CT scan, a spinal tap: results were A OK.
Then, my neurologist prescribed me Topamax. It was an anti convulsant, primarily, but was found to be effective in treating chronic migraines.

A side story: that med DID work. My migraines were practically gone once I was at 50mg in the morning/100mg at night. But, at the highest dose, I was having terrible mood swings and dealing with an all-out hormonal imbalance (it had been progressing for some time, as the doses kept rising, so did the severity of it all). I was a wreck.
I also had constant bloodshoot eyes and a red line going horizontally across each eye. It wouldn't go away for the most part.
I ended up weaning off of those meds and am now mood swing free and, 75% of the time, also migraine free.
Despite my side effects, the medicine did help and, imo, seemed to have fixed something in my brain. Or else I'd again be having those daily migraines.

I have had severe bouts of migraines too, nothing helped. Laid in urgent care for hours with all the different migraine treatments given. Nasal Imitrex I found to be my best fix. I have used nothing but peppermint oil on my temples and taking a few deep breaths of it with my migraines for many years now. I suggest getting a bottle of peppermint essential oil and keeping it on hand if you get another migraine, works for headaches too.

they do get benefits from drug companies for this type of thing.

Oh yeah? You sure about that?

The amount of ignorance and BS in this thread is horrifying. People seem to pretty much believe anything they want to believe.

Unfortunately many people seek out information that bolsters whatever fear they've decided to have, while avoiding information that would show that the fear is either completely invalid or disproportionate to the situation. Sigh.

Drug reps leave gifts, buy meals for Dr offices, and all kinds of things just so the doctor will prescribe their brand of pharmaceuticals. That's for all their products, not just the latest and greatest. Even if the product has gone generic, the company that created the formula gets a portion of the sales for all generics for up to 7 years after the generic has been authorized. This is a pretty common practice with the medical community and Big Pharma.

Thank you for illustrating my point. Free meal = doctors in thrall to a drug company. Yup. That's completely reasonable. :laugh:

Well if someone selling anything bought you lunch, wouldn't you be more inclined to recommend their product to your friends, family members, and co-workers. Same difference.

No. That is just silly. I can't imagine a rational person being so easily influenced. The only way that would work would be if the product in question was the food itself.

Okay... well not everyone in the world is just like you. It must be nice to see the world with rose-colored glasses, but the fact of the matter is that doctors are human. And humans develop biases even if they don't realize it. Sales reps go out of their way to build relationships with doctors so that doctors will be more inclined to prescribe their product over a competitors. That is how the industry works. Sure, it sounds a bit malignant, but that is how its always been.

After my evening workout . . . I enjoy a glass or two of wine. It helps me sleep great every single time.

they do get benefits from drug companies for this type of thing.

Oh yeah? You sure about that?

The amount of ignorance and BS in this thread is horrifying. People seem to pretty much believe anything they want to believe.

Unfortunately many people seek out information that bolsters whatever fear they've decided to have, while avoiding information that would show that the fear is either completely invalid or disproportionate to the situation. Sigh.

Drug reps leave gifts, buy meals for Dr offices, and all kinds of things just so the doctor will prescribe their brand of pharmaceuticals. That's for all their products, not just the latest and greatest. Even if the product has gone generic, the company that created the formula gets a portion of the sales for all generics for up to 7 years after the generic has been authorized. This is a pretty common practice with the medical community and Big Pharma.

Thank you for illustrating my point. Free meal = doctors in thrall to a drug company. Yup. That's completely reasonable. :laugh:

Well if someone selling anything bought you lunch, wouldn't you be more inclined to recommend their product to your friends, family members, and co-workers. Same difference.

No. That is just silly. I can't imagine a rational person being so easily influenced. The only way that would work would be if the product in question was the food itself.

Okay... well not everyone in the world is just like you. It must be nice to see the world with rose-colored glasses, but the fact of the matter is that doctors are human. And humans develop biases even if they don't realize it. Sales reps go out of their way to build relationships with doctors so that doctors will be more inclined to prescribe their product over a competitors. That is how the industry works. Sure, it sounds a bit malignant, but that is how its always been.

Rationality and logic are the polar opposite of rose-colored glasses. The use of meals and gifts of cake or the like is meant to get the drug rep's foot in the door. The value of these gifts is severely limited, specifically to limit undue influence. The drug rep gets the prescriber's ear long enough to pitch the new drug. The doc gets free samples to hand out to patients. The doc then will usually try them out on a patient who has failed to get sufficient relief from other established drugs for the condition. If that patient reports back that the new drug worked the doc will prescribe it for that patient, as well as keeping it in mind for future patients. That is how it works. If the drug cannot stand on its own merits the doc is NOT going to prescribe it just because they got a free meal.

they do get benefits from drug companies for this type of thing.

Oh yeah? You sure about that?

The amount of ignorance and BS in this thread is horrifying. People seem to pretty much believe anything they want to believe.

Unfortunately many people seek out information that bolsters whatever fear they've decided to have, while avoiding information that would show that the fear is either completely invalid or disproportionate to the situation. Sigh.

Drug reps leave gifts, buy meals for Dr offices, and all kinds of things just so the doctor will prescribe their brand of pharmaceuticals. That's for all their products, not just the latest and greatest. Even if the product has gone generic, the company that created the formula gets a portion of the sales for all generics for up to 7 years after the generic has been authorized. This is a pretty common practice with the medical community and Big Pharma.

Thank you for illustrating my point. Free meal = doctors in thrall to a drug company. Yup. That's completely reasonable. :laugh:

Well if someone selling anything bought you lunch, wouldn't you be more inclined to recommend their product to your friends, family members, and co-workers. Same difference.

No. That is just silly. I can't imagine a rational person being so easily influenced. The only way that would work would be if the product in question was the food itself.

Okay... well not everyone in the world is just like you. It must be nice to see the world with rose-colored glasses, but the fact of the matter is that doctors are human. And humans develop biases even if they don't realize it. Sales reps go out of their way to build relationships with doctors so that doctors will be more inclined to prescribe their product over a competitors. That is how the industry works. Sure, it sounds a bit malignant, but that is how its always been.

Rationality and logic are the polar opposite of rose-colored glasses. The use of meals and gifts of cake or the like is meant to get the drug rep's foot in the door. The value of these gifts is severely limited, specifically to limit undue influence. The drug rep gets the prescriber's ear long enough to pitch the new drug. The doc gets free samples to hand out to patients. The doc then will usually try them out on a patient who has failed to get sufficient relief from other established drugs for the condition. If that patient reports back that the new drug worked the doc will prescribe it for that patient, as well as keeping it in mind for future patients. That is how it works. If the drug cannot stand on its own merits the doc is NOT going to prescribe it just because they got a free meal.

Okay... but doctors build relationships with the sales reps over the course of years. Most drugs that are presented by the sales rep have already been thoroughly vetted to prove their merits. Sure, the doc is going to take feedback from his patients, but if all things are equal, then the doc is going to prescribe the drugs of the sales rep he likes best first. Then, if his patients don't like it, he will offer them the other guy's drug.

Bias is usually not a concious decision. You know that, right?

I see you ascribing bias an undue amount of influence in the process.