Posted by SLS on September 28, 2006, at 23:33:33
In reply to Re: Long Term Antidepressant Withdrawal Success, posted by Philip N. on September 28, 2006, at 19:16:59
Depression sometimes gets worse over time, regardless of the type of drug intervention or whether there is any intervention at all. This is particularly true of cases that follow a recurrent course. Before the age of the SSRIs, these things were observed. Of course, you will never know the natural course your depression would have taken. But that is a silly thing to hold out for. Plenty of people who have not taken medication or have taken medication intermittently have been followed historically to know the variety of courses depressive illness can take - including rapid cyclicity.
> I have looked all over the web trying to understand my situation and most everything I see on the sites about SSRIs is negative concerning long term dependence and repeat depression.
Long term dependence = dysinformation
Long term remission = desired outcome
> Some are saying that it could involve the rest of one's life.
Of course. Currently, people with diabetes must take insulin for the rest of their lives. So what is the leap in logic to be made here?
> Many can't get past the initial discontinuation.
Let's not worry about others. I have no idea what the weaknesses are in others' taper strategies. We have a Withdrawal board for that. You open up capsules, bite off pieces of tablets, use flexible-dosing, take benadryl, cross-over to Prozac, etc. It is do-able.
> My doc is pushing for me to return to medication and I'm getting to the point now where I don't think that I can maintain this road without them.
What makes you feel that way? What are you experiencing?
> I never really looked into the literature on AD therapy before now and I'm shocked at what I deem is mostly negative regarding side effects, duration, switching, discontinuation, etc..
I am unclear as to what you mean by this. What do you find negative about these things? Even more important, what applies to you personally?
> My fear now is that I'm in a double jeopardy.
What do you mean here?
> I know I can't fulfill my role as a father, husband and friend in my current shape and I feel my self dwindling like I've never felt before. Most on these sites seem to want off the meds.
Ok. Maybe it is time for you to look for a variety of themes in websites to develop a more balanced understanding of the disease and its treatment rather than continuing to dwell on "these sites". If you can't find any, try Google:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=major+depressive+disorder
I haven't reviewed the results, so you can report back to us what you find.
I doubt you have agoraphobia. It is more likely that you are experiencing more generalized anxiety. For now, just assume that it is part of the Major Depressive Disorder that you are likely diagnosed with, and that it will disappear along with the depression. You don't have to have a separate anxiety disorder.
What family history is there of mental illness, if any?
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:689687
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060927/msgs/690092.html