anguila_anguila
Member
- Feb 27, 2023
- 50
*** Not official medical advice - just some information that you can use to look into these things and discuss with your medical professional ***
I noticed that a lot of people on here mention that they take SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) as an antidepressant prescribed by their doctor or therapist.
One of the major problems with the field is that doctors are too in love with prescribing SSRIs - normally if you don't respond to one, then they simply switch to another one of the same type, and there are a lot of different drugs that fall under the SSRI class.There is a large body of research showing that these just do not work in all cases of depression, particularly major depressive disorder.
A lot of sufferers do not know that there are several different classes of drugs that can be used to treat depression: MAOIs (monoamine oxidase inhibitors), TCA (tricylic antidepressants), SNRI (selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors), direct agonists of things like dopamine, and others. A good doctor would know about all of these, and their relative effectiveness / safety, and be able to change drugs according to how you respond.
In fact, one of the older antidepressants, selegiline, which is an MAOI has been fairly recently made into a patch which you wear on your skin (called Emsam). The MAOIs were phased out because you need to avoid foods containing tyramine when on them, you also cannot take other antidepressant medication. By using a patch it is possible to deliver the drug to the brain whilst mostly bypassing the liver and also using a small dose, both of which helps to alleviate the issues of problem foods.
The point is, if you find that SSRI drugs are not working for you, or the side effects (e.g. sexual side effects) are intolerable, then speak to your medical professional and get them to consider other types. Some doctors might even prescribe two antidepressants where one counters the side effects of the other.
I noticed that a lot of people on here mention that they take SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) as an antidepressant prescribed by their doctor or therapist.
One of the major problems with the field is that doctors are too in love with prescribing SSRIs - normally if you don't respond to one, then they simply switch to another one of the same type, and there are a lot of different drugs that fall under the SSRI class.There is a large body of research showing that these just do not work in all cases of depression, particularly major depressive disorder.
A lot of sufferers do not know that there are several different classes of drugs that can be used to treat depression: MAOIs (monoamine oxidase inhibitors), TCA (tricylic antidepressants), SNRI (selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors), direct agonists of things like dopamine, and others. A good doctor would know about all of these, and their relative effectiveness / safety, and be able to change drugs according to how you respond.
In fact, one of the older antidepressants, selegiline, which is an MAOI has been fairly recently made into a patch which you wear on your skin (called Emsam). The MAOIs were phased out because you need to avoid foods containing tyramine when on them, you also cannot take other antidepressant medication. By using a patch it is possible to deliver the drug to the brain whilst mostly bypassing the liver and also using a small dose, both of which helps to alleviate the issues of problem foods.
The point is, if you find that SSRI drugs are not working for you, or the side effects (e.g. sexual side effects) are intolerable, then speak to your medical professional and get them to consider other types. Some doctors might even prescribe two antidepressants where one counters the side effects of the other.
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