Best Antidepressants?
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exercise! witch produces endorfine the happy hormone! and sex does too same hormone btw.0
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All these drugs and illegal drugs?
I drink my problems away. It works. bourbon, gin or good beer.
no Dr visit needed.0 -
I've been on Celexa, Prozac, and Xanax and have never gained weight as a side effect. Honestly, I think those kind of things just happen to some people, so as sucky as it is, there probably isn't an SSRI AD that won't cause that to happen to you. You might be able to try a different class of AD's (like tetracyclics). I'm now on Paxil and haven't gained weight with that one either, so you might give it a try. I'm really sorry you're dealing with this, it sucks to need something that you know makes you feel crappy in another way. I'm on Lithium as well and I haven't gained weight but it has made it a lot harder to lose weight. Best of luck to you . . . definitely talk to your doctor about the problem.0
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I was recommended to take fish oil. I like what it does for me. and staying busy and productive. no time to "get stuck on stupid" with so much to do!
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I love how people seem to think things like sex & a walk or massage will 'fix' depression.
No kidding. I didn't have the energy to exercise (or eat clean or care about sex) until my clinical depression was treated with medications designed for... wait for it... clinical depression. Then I began to take care of myself and discovered the endorphin boosting effects of exercise. And only then was I able to wean off of the medications.
There are new medications on the market that are combos of anti-depressants and appetite controllers. You might want to talk to your doctor about those options.
Best of luck to anyone suffering with depression issues.0 -
I'm trying to determine if the majority of folks in this thread figure you can also mend a broken arm by rubbing some dirt on it and getting back to chin-ups, or if they just don't think that the brain is a part of the human body that can sustain damage.I love how people seem to think things like sex & a walk or massage will 'fix' depression.
No... it MAY fix a bad mood.... but not diagnosed depression.
Being in a bad mood or a slum is totally different.
OP asked about ANTI DEPRESSANTS.... not how can I get out of a mood.
Have you ever actually tried being consistent with the things everyone is suggesting and see if it helps in the long run? Why can't they be antidepressants too? Thinking outside of the box is a good thing sometimes you know...I just feel really sad that you assume that only pills can solve problems (at least that's what I'm assuming that you're assuming.)
Antidepressants don't cure depression, just like taking cough medicine doesn't cure you from having a cold - it only masks the symptoms. If you're using medication to help with depression but don't attempt to make any lifestyle changes a long with it, once you go off of the medication (if you ever can - it seems like many people I know that are on it are too afraid to try and function off of it, and I don't know about you, but I don't want to be medicated for the rest of my life just to be able to deal with, well, life) many of those same triggers that influenced the depression in the first place will still be there. And then what happens? The depression comes back. Suprise surprise.
I'm with what everyone else has been saying. I used Cipralex for less than a year and it helped quite a lot, but you know what helped even more? Dumping that boyfriend that was triggering the stress and depression the most, getting a new job to get out of a toxic work environment, being active and getting outside in the sun instead of sitting on the couch and eating my feelings, and changing my diet to include more fruits and vegetables, whole foods, and meals made from scratch rather than eating everything from a box or drive-thru. Also taking the time to learn to love myself and all my imperfections and to embrace change instead of letting all those little things in life bring me down.
Positive lifestyle changes. They make the best antidepressant I've found so far.
ETA: I hope I'm not offending anyone here with what I've said. I've dealth with anxiety and depression problems literally since I can remember, and have attempted suicide more than once. I started counselling to deal with the issues when I was less than 10 years old, and gave medication a try because I didn't think the counselling what helping as much as it had previously. The lifestyle changes I made had the biggest difference. I'm aware that some people have extremely sever depression, and may need to be medicated in order to function, but I strongly believe that doing the things that myself and many others here have listed will help you so much more mentally and physically in the long run.0 -
Mary Jane.
...and that^.
+1
Happiness is wonderful side effect, and it eliminates anxiety for most people.
Bad idea.
Marijuana can cause feelings of anxiety and paranoia among other undesirable side-effects:
http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/marijuana-abuse/how-does-marijuana-use-affect-school-work-social-life
i prefer to work full time, work out every day, and talk to people--rather than stay on public assistance, crippled by chronic pain and social anxiety, suicidal. me and my 'bad ideas' are gonna keep on keepin' on. :smokin:
edited for punctuation0 -
The only one i've ever been on was Celexa. It did cause me to gain weight, but not very much. And I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I was totally apathetic and tired all the time. Never wanted to do ANYTHING. I don't know how much it helped with my anxiety.
Not to mention, Celexa is a very, VERY difficult drug to get off of. At least it was for me. No matter how much I titrated with the help of my doctor, I took me a very long time to get past the "brain zaps", the dizziness, the random rage, and the nausea. Took me almost a month before the withdrawal effects went away. Because of that, I HATE that stuff. Hopefully you won't have to go through any of that and it really is helping you 0 -
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Wow, just wow.
I'm bipolar type II and I suffer severe depression. I would recommend you see a psychiatrist and get tested to find out how severe your depression is before just randomly trying anti-depressants. You may very well need something completely different. I know I gained 60lbs in two months right after my diagnosis but that was because I was severely depressed and did not leave my couch for those two months. And ate like crap.
Once you find the right medications then adding in a proper diet, things like magnesium and vitamin D, and exercise will help in addition to therapy. It's a combination of things that will help, there is not one magic pill that will fix everything. It takes a lot of hard work on your part and the doctor's part.
I (knock on wood) have been fully functional for almost two years now with only a couple of small setbacks. It took two years to get the right combination of meds and it takes me constant reminders to stay compliant in taking them. I've accepted who I am and I'm not ashamed of it. It's a severe chemical imbalance in my brain that all the exercise, sex, Mary Jane, herbs, etc. will not fix.
I also have a service dog, and he is a life saver, literally. He brings me out of panic attacks and helps me with my anxiety.
You have a lot of options. Hang in there. My prayers will go out to you.0 -
Wow, just wow.
I'm bipolar type II and I suffer severe depression. I would recommend you see a psychiatrist and get tested to find out how severe your depression is before just randomly trying anti-depressants. You may very well need something completely different. I know I gained 60lbs in two months right after my diagnosis but that was because I was severely depressed and did not leave my couch for those two months. And ate like crap.
Once you find the right medications then adding in a proper diet, things like magnesium and vitamin D, and exercise will help in addition to therapy. It's a combination of things that will help, there is not one magic pill that will fix everything. It takes a lot of hard work on your part and the doctor's part.
I (knock on wood) have been fully functional for almost two years now with only a couple of small setbacks. It took two years to get the right combination of meds and it takes me constant reminders to stay compliant in taking them. I've accepted who I am and I'm not ashamed of it. It's a severe chemical imbalance in my brain that all the exercise, sex, Mary Jane, herbs, etc. will not fix.
I also have a service dog, and he is a life saver, literally. He brings me out of panic attacks and helps me with my anxiety.
You have a lot of options. Hang in there. My prayers will go out to you.
Is that him (service dog) in the pic? He's adorable :P0 -
Pristiq...my doctor switched me onto it because in clinical studies it was shown not to cause weight gain....that being said, the studies were only for 8-12 week periods, so the long term effect are still unknown0
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New studies have just come out showing Tumeric supplements can have the same effect as an AD for mild to moderate depression. I was on 20mg of celexa...started taking tumeric. Am now down to 10mg and still feeling good....and the weight is finally starting to move.0
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The only one i've ever been on was Celexa. It did cause me to gain weight, but not very much. And I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I was totally apathetic and tired all the time. Never wanted to do ANYTHING. I don't know how much it helped with my anxiety.
Not to mention, Celexa is a very, VERY difficult drug to get off of. At least it was for me. No matter how much I titrated with the help of my doctor, I took me a very long time to get past the "brain zaps", the dizziness, the random rage, and the nausea. Took me almost a month before the withdrawal effects went away. Because of that, I HATE that stuff. Hopefully you won't have to go through any of that and it really is helping you
I know your pain, i am coming off celexa right now, even with the help of another anti-depressant, i have had dizzness for the last week and a 5 day long headache.....0 -
Paxil worked, but I did gain 38 lb while taking it (hence why I am using MFP). And weaning myself off it was a horrible process with brain zaps, headaches, vomiting and generally feeling blah.
Also, I think there are a lot of people commenting in this thread who have never experienced real depression. When I was clinically depressed it was a struggle to get up, get dressed, go to work and come home, let alone consider having sex or going to the gym. I agree that medications should be used in combination with other methods, but for some people their depression is so bad they need the medication first before anything else can be considered.0 -
Walking away from a 24 year career worked for me. I was lucky that my depression had an external cause.0
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The only one i've ever been on was Celexa. It did cause me to gain weight, but not very much. And I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I was totally apathetic and tired all the time. Never wanted to do ANYTHING. I don't know how much it helped with my anxiety.
Not to mention, Celexa is a very, VERY difficult drug to get off of. At least it was for me. No matter how much I titrated with the help of my doctor, I took me a very long time to get past the "brain zaps", the dizziness, the random rage, and the nausea. Took me almost a month before the withdrawal effects went away. Because of that, I HATE that stuff. Hopefully you won't have to go through any of that and it really is helping you
I know your pain, i am coming off celexa right now, even with the help of another anti-depressant, i have had dizzness for the last week and a 5 day long headache.....
Ugh, so sorry to hear that. That stuff is awful. The only advice I can give you (not that you asked lol) is to just keep going. It doesn't last forever. Plenty of rest, stay hydrated, and try to take care of yourself. I had to take a few days off work, and the days I was there, I wasn't really THERE. I was snapping at all my coworkers, couldn't concentrate, and in a daze for the majority of the day. Just keep pushing through it. It will get better. But in the meantine, it's sucks.0 -
Paxil worked, but I did gain 38 lb while taking it (hence why I am using MFP). And weaning myself off it was a horrible process with brain zaps, headaches, vomiting and generally feeling blah.
Also, I think there are a lot of people commenting in this thread who have never experienced real depression. When I was clinically depressed it was a struggle to get up, get dressed, go to work and come home, let alone consider having sex or going to the gym. I agree that medications should be used in combination with other methods, but for some people their depression is so bad they need the medication first before anything else can be considered.
You know youre right. That's great if life style interventions work, but if someone has clinical depression there should be NO stigma attached to getting help and getting on the right medications. We wouldnt tell an insulin dependent diabetic to just eat right and not use insulin anymore, nor would we criticize someone with seizure disorder for taking medications. A disease is a disease this just happens to affect the brain.0 -
well exercise does work........I love how people seem to think things like sex & a walk or massage will 'fix' depression.
No kidding. I didn't have the energy to exercise (or eat clean or care about sex) until my clinical depression was treated with medications designed for... wait for it... clinical depression. Then I began to take care of myself and discovered the endorphin boosting effects of exercise. And only then was I able to wean off of the medications.
There are new medications on the market that are combos of anti-depressants and appetite controllers. You might want to talk to your doctor about those options.
Best of luck to anyone suffering with depression issues.
this is my area of research.....chemical makeup and what we have naturally compared to the ones we create.
Medication is just a dependent factor......some need it...however, if u can get on a forum and ask then u really arent that bad off......let's talk to the people in bed wearing week old clothes.
OP's original post is brief and vague.
She does not give us any further details regarding her diagnosis, i.e.- situational vs. clinical depression, how many doctors she has seen, if she has had counseling or therapy, if she exercises etc.
She has not responded to any of the posts.
So, we can only surmise and speculate at this point...
However, I think it is important to say that ingesting a pill does not cause weight gain.
It may increase appetite.
Then a choice must be made whether to eat more calories than your body needs or not.0 -
well exercise does work........I love how people seem to think things like sex & a walk or massage will 'fix' depression.
No kidding. I didn't have the energy to exercise (or eat clean or care about sex) until my clinical depression was treated with medications designed for... wait for it... clinical depression. Then I began to take care of myself and discovered the endorphin boosting effects of exercise. And only then was I able to wean off of the medications.
There are new medications on the market that are combos of anti-depressants and appetite controllers. You might want to talk to your doctor about those options.
Best of luck to anyone suffering with depression issues.
this is my area of research.....chemical makeup and what we have naturally compared to the ones we create.
Medication is just a dependent factor......some need it...however, if u can get on a forum and ask then u really arent that bad off......let's talk to the people in bed wearing week old clothes.
If you can get on a forum & ask you are not that bad off? Seriously? So being on a forum asking what medications people have found best works for them means that you are not that bad off & should just go do some exercise? I'm guessing you have never been there in that place where getting off your *kitten* & exercising is the last thing you want to do? Where being perhaps online in a forum is your ONLY means of communication with other people who suffer like you do?
:noway:0 -
...Also, I think there are a lot of people commenting in this thread who have never experienced real depression...I agree that medications should be used in combination with other methods, but for some people their depression is so bad they need the medication first before anything else can be considered.
For reals, people. :drinker:0 -
Paxil works well for my anxiety and ocd0
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i find copius amounts of booze work for me0
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St Johns Wort.
Borderline manic depressant here & it's the only one that has worked for me.Want to explain that to my mother who despite all of that 'therapy' she was still schizophrenic, or to me where I am borderline manic.
So, which is it?
"Borderline manic depressant" that's mild enough to be treated with St.Johns Wort? (Which by the way, would not be effective with true Bipolar disorder).
Or, "borderline manic" which is so severe that therapy is ineffective? (See my post about DSM-IV codes)0 -
Vitamin D
Magnesium
Exercise
Vegetables
Not being funny, Ive taken many on your list, above is what works for me now.
It may sound like I'm not taking question seriously but I truly believe this. I have battled depression for most of my life. I have tried meds, but I (and my family) hated how they made me feel, so I stopped taking them and avoided doctors. (my poor husband)
In June I saw a picture of myself, and that sent me into a spiral until I decided to do something about it. June 30th I bought myself a fitbit and I joined mfp. Taking control over my life, and watching the weight come off has been the BEST form of depression therapy that I have ever found! I also take a Multi-Vitamin, Magnesium, Omega 3's, Vitamin D & B12.
This summer I have went through some very stressful situations that would have normally had me in bed for WEEKS, but focusing on my health, eating right, exercising gave me something to control in a world that I found out of my control. I no longer could beat myself up for being a failure at something when I am ROCKING the weight loss (I am VERY proud of myself) My husband is amazed at the difference. This isn't to say that all is perfect, I have my moments, but they are few and far between and last for a VERY short time. I hope this helps.0 -
Vitamin D
Magnesium
Exercise
Vegetables
Not being funny, Ive taken many on your list, above is what works for me now.
It may sound like I'm not taking question seriously but I truly believe this. I have battled depression for most of my life. I have tried meds, but I (and my family) hated how they made me feel, so I stopped taking them and avoided doctors. (my poor husband)
In June I saw a picture of myself, and that sent me into a spiral until I decided to do something about it. June 30th I bought myself a fitbit and I joined mfp. Taking control over my life, and watching the weight come off has been the BEST form of depression therapy that I have ever found! I also take a Multi-Vitamin, Magnesium, Omega 3's, Vitamin D & B12.
This summer I have went through some very stressful situations that would have normally had me in bed for WEEKS, but focusing on my health, eating right, exercising gave me something to control in a world that I found out of my control. I no longer could beat myself up for being a failure at something when I am ROCKING the weight loss (I am VERY proud of myself) My husband is amazed at the difference. This isn't to say that all is perfect, I have my moments, but they are few and far between and last for a VERY short time. I hope this helps.
Nice!
Thanks for sharing :flowerforyou:0 -
Vitamin D
Magnesium
Exercise
Vegetables
Not being funny, Ive taken many on your list, above is what works for me now.
This, and I would also add a super B vitamin to this. Works best. I haven't been on meds for YEARS thanks to the above combination.0 -
Sex, or good ol' mary jane! I kicked my anti-depressants years ago! I have felt better since!!!!!0
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St Johns Wort.
Borderline manic depressant here & it's the only one that has worked for me.Want to explain that to my mother who despite all of that 'therapy' she was still schizophrenic, or to me where I am borderline manic.
So, which is it?
"Borderline manic depressant" that's mild enough to be treated with St.Johns Wort? (Which by the way, would not be effective with true Bipolar disorder).
Or, "borderline manic" which is so severe that therapy is ineffective? (See my post about DSM-IV codes)
Therapy does not work for everyone, just like some medications do not work for everyone. Therapy has never worked for me yet something as simple as St Johns Wort has. Just like with my back injury...medications & therapy that has helped many people does nothing for me, yet walking all day does; something that others in my situation would not be able to do.0 -
Paxil made me emotionless. Can't recall what the next thing my doctor tried was but it murdered my libido but neither affected my weight.
Severe depression only really went away when I stopped taking those meds and opted for exercise, vegan diet, daily meditation, got a dog. Which is not to say that's the right solution for everybody. I hope you find what works for you both physically and mentally.
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