Need some advice and personal experience about antidepressants?

I've been on two antidepressants so far and both have made me sick. I am on them for anxiety and panic attacks. I am tired of taking the medicine because I feel awful all the time. I think I would be able to function better without the medicine, but some people say that I need them. I've only had this anxiety for three months, but am now doing intensive exercise for about 2 1/2 hours per day, which I wasn't doing when the anxiety started. I think this might help. I'm thinking about asking my doctor if she thinks I could give no medicine a try, of course wean off of it first (I'm on 25mg of Zoloft) but about to start Effexor which I am skeptical about. Has anyone been successful going of medication after only being on it for about 1 1/2 months. Personal experience would be great. Thanks!Need some advice and personal experience about antidepressants?
First off, good for you on the exercise. That's the absolute BEST thing you can do for your mental health.





As for meds, if the meds are making you sick after a couple of days, call the doctor right away and insist that you do not want to take them. If your doctor doesn't listen, get a new doctor.





People often try several drugs before they arrive at the right one. Paxil, for instance, made me so sick I had to stop it after 3 days. Celexa, the next med I took, never caused a single side effect. Change around, keep your doctor informed, assert yourself. Only you can know if you're ready to walk away from the meds, but be SURE to do it under your doctor's supervision.





I take Effexor. I don't like it nearly as well as the last med I was on, but I don't have any side effects. It also helps with physical pain, but is not particularly effective in the treatment of anxiety.Need some advice and personal experience about antidepressants?
I have had to take antidepressants for post partum depression with both my kids. I hate being on them, but I know it is only for 6 months or so untill I am better. Keep in mind that antidepressants take 6-8 weeks to truly kick in. I just switched to Efexxor a couple of weeks ago and I am feeling a lot better then I was on celexa. Exercise will make you feel better for sure, but if you doctor thinks you should take the meds give them a fair chance. Every medication is different to it is a matter of finding one that works well for you. Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.
I have taken antidepressants on and off for about 11 years. I am now 27. I currently take 50mg of Zoloft (called Lustral in UK where I live) for depression, anxiety and OCD-type problems. When I first started taking Zoloft it made me feel very sick too. I found that if I take it at night before bed I can cope with how sick it makes me feel because I am just laying down and sleeping, and by morning the sickness seems to have worn off. The sickness I experienced lasted only about 2 weeks and then I stopped noticing it so much. I'd say it was maybe 4 weeks until it went away altogether. I now have no sickness with it whatsoever.





You must persevere with this type of medication as it can take a while for side effects to subside and longer for any antidepressant effect to become apparent. It takes even longer for antidepressants to work on OCD and anxiety (I was told up to 3 months). If you really cannot cope with the sickness and you feel that it is not going away after taking the tablets for a couple of weeks then you obviously need to change medication.





Different people need different medications. I took Prozac for 4 weeks and it made me feel dopey and stoned all the time so I stopped it. I then took Citalopram (Celexa) for 2 days and it knocked me out at 4pm both days! So I stopped that. Seroxat (Paxil) was fine for me, but there have been safety concerns about that here in the UK. I have also taken an old-style antidepressant called Lofepramide, which was also fine, bar a few side effects.





So, you see, you really have to take your time finding the right meds and dosage for you and persevere with side-effects for a couple of weeks as sometimes they do go away. Zoloft is the right medication for me, but it STILL had horrible side-effects at first. So even the right meds for you might seem wrong to begin with.





However, you do sound as though you do not want to take ANY medication. No one else should ever make you take this type of medication if you do not want to. You and you alone know how you feel and how you are functioning day to day. Taking a tablet that is designed to make you fuction better, but actually makes you function less-well is pointless. However, you MUST stay under the supervision of your doctor and inform them of any changes you are making in terms of your meds so that they can continue to give you the best care: there are other treatments they can offer you besides drugs!





You seem like a sensible person who is looking around for the best way to treat their anxiety issues. If you do come off medication and you think exercise is a good solution for you then that's great, but if you find the anxiety is getting worse then you simply go back to your doctor and ask to try the medication. The only thing you will have lost is a bit of time in working out what's best for you. Have you been offered any kind of therapy for your anxiety? Medications will take away your symptoms, but they cannot permanently mend an anxiety disorder, only Cognitive Behavioural Therapy can do this. I would suggest you ask your doctor about this type of treatment next time you go as it really is more important than medication. Good luck and stay strong. Trust your own mind about what's best for you.
I've gone off of my medicines before and my moods and feelings change almost immediately.





I take Celexa and I started having anxiety, and the dr. put me on Wellbutrin SR...you may want to talk to your doc about that.
A lot of people who have not done research will criticize my answer, but I can tell you through experience that this works. I tried several drugs myself for the same things, and had awful side effects. Then I tried smoking marijuana, and it worked wonderfully. My anxiety level is way down now, and I've had NO panic attacks ever since. Check out the facts, and be aware that the government tells nothing but lies about this fantastic plant. Best of luck:)
Hi there, Unfortunately, for me, I have had a heap of experience with antidepressants. I suffered with major depression. I was first prescribed Zoloft, which did not agree with me at all, I was then given EfexorXR which, I must admit, made me feel much happier within myself but again side effects got the better of me. I was on each of these medications for a period of at least 12 months. I then decided to wean myself off them %26amp; did so for about another 12 months until my mother eventually passed away at a young age, I then became even more depressed and started having anxiety attacks. I was then prescribed Edronax together with valium for the anxiety attacks %26amp; depression. However, I felt like a walking zombie. I went back to the doctor and asked him to give me the same medication that my mum had once been on, to see if this agreed with me, luckily for me, it did, I now take Aropax 40mg daily. However, I don't believe this is the medication for you, it sounds like you may need a milder antidepressant, there is one called Lexapro, which is one of the newer ones, I tried this also but it was not strong enough. All medications will take time for your body to adjust to, the first week being the hardest, you will suffer, headaches, nausea, insomnia etc. but after the first week all symptoms disappear. However, it takes approx. a good 3 months for the body to realise what the medication is trying to do for it. So, in answer, to your question re: being successful for a period of 1 - 1.5 months, the answer is a resounding NO. Give the Lexapro a go %26amp; try to go the full distance, you will be amazed at the calmness you will feel after a few months. None of these are addictive, the only reason we have to wean ourselves off is only because of the dizziness %26amp; headaches that occur when suddenly stopping a medication. If I can be of any further assistance or you want to know anything more, don't hesitate to let me know. Good Luck with it. I know exactly how you are feeling.
I was going through depression and took Zoloft, but it made me physically sick, especially when I didn't eat... I couldn't get out of bed, not because of depression, but because I thought I was going to throw up!!!





Anyway, unless you are seriously sick, I think medication is seriously overrated in this country. You should know best for yourself though.





Have you seen the movie ';What the @#%%26amp;* do we know anyway?';