Be careful with these things if anyone ever suggests them to you, guys. I was prescribed citalopram back when I was a depressed teenager to try and get me out of the rut I was in, and they DID work in a certain sense. They kept the intrusive negative thoughts out of my mind for long enough for me to focus on personal improvement, and that naturally helped me get out of the rut I was in.
The doctors will tell you that they are not addictive and there is no danger in taking them long term, however that has not been my experience. I am married now and have a successful career, and my day to day mood is much better than it was back then. Over time I have managed to wean myself off of the pills, but if I don't take at least one a week, I have these awful head rushes that make it hard to concentrate. Perhaps when work dies down a bit I will make the effort to push through the withdrawal symptoms and finally rid myself of them.
Overall takeaway with SSRIs: They CAN help SOME people, but they can also get you hooked if you're not careful (despite what the doctors will say). They are definitely way overprescribed.
I appreciate the thoughts. With how little these drugs are understood, it's no wonder that they help some people and do nothing (or make the situation worse) for others.
Nobody wants to be lectured to when they're in a dark place in life, so I won't tell you what you should do, but for me, the takeaway from that whole experience was that circumstances change, often in ways you can't expect. If somebody had told me back then 'Just hold on, things WILL get better.', I never would have believed them. It's so difficult to see things EVER changing when you're in that kind of situation, but life changes whether you want it to or not, and sometimes it will throw you into new situations that will alter your perspective.
Stick around and I can guarantee you things WILL change for you, not necessarily for the better at first, but sometimes you need to hit rock bottom before you start making your way back up. That's certainly what happened with me.
Be careful with these things if anyone ever suggests them to you, guys. I was prescribed citalopram back when I was a depressed teenager to try and get me out of the rut I was in, and they DID work in a certain sense. They kept the intrusive negative thoughts out of my mind for long enough for me to focus on personal improvement, and that naturally helped me get out of the rut I was in.
The doctors will tell you that they are not addictive and there is no danger in taking them long term, however that has not been my experience. I am married now and have a successful career, and my day to day mood is much better than it was back then. Over time I have managed to wean myself off of the pills, but if I don't take at least one a week, I have these awful head rushes that make it hard to concentrate. Perhaps when work dies down a bit I will make the effort to push through the withdrawal symptoms and finally rid myself of them.
Overall takeaway with SSRIs: They CAN help SOME people, but they can also get you hooked if you're not careful (despite what the doctors will say). They are definitely way overprescribed.
I really hope you can get through, and off, that!
Yeah, I don’t feel any better on it. I honestly don’t feel that it has helped…
I managed without the drugs at all for several weeks at a time, recently, so I guess I’m not addicted yet…
As you point out, it comes down to life situation, in the end. I guess it always does…
Hopefully I can “improve” my life enough for it to become manageable, but, failing that…
I don’t see myself becoming a long-term prescriber, put it that way…
But hell, I’m glad your life worked out, in the end! Unfortunately I just… Don’t see mine heading anywhere much good, anymore. 😔
I appreciate the thoughts. With how little these drugs are understood, it's no wonder that they help some people and do nothing (or make the situation worse) for others.
Nobody wants to be lectured to when they're in a dark place in life, so I won't tell you what you should do, but for me, the takeaway from that whole experience was that circumstances change, often in ways you can't expect. If somebody had told me back then 'Just hold on, things WILL get better.', I never would have believed them. It's so difficult to see things EVER changing when you're in that kind of situation, but life changes whether you want it to or not, and sometimes it will throw you into new situations that will alter your perspective.
Stick around and I can guarantee you things WILL change for you, not necessarily for the better at first, but sometimes you need to hit rock bottom before you start making your way back up. That's certainly what happened with me.
I'll pray for you in the meantime, friend.