what antidepressants increass risk of suicide?

[dune7263]

I have heard antidepressants increase risk of suicide but which ones specifically

 

[Darkover]

it's variable depending on the person it's something that's not consistent and can change significantly from one individual to another

 

[Regen]

Sometimes SSRI for example.

 

[onthefence]

For me Lamictal made me feel like it was a perfectly reasonable option to CTB. Was wanting to go before but after a week of Lamictal I woke up and thought "should I go to work or CTB" and CTB sounded normal. Had to reach out and tell my prescriber and therapist what was going on. Took a few days after stopping but it got better. A bit sad I threw it all out in the "great Christmas Eve purge" as it would have made it so much easier. As well as all the other things I tossed that night.

 

[Corvette90]

Under 25 year olds should be aware that taking antidepressants can actually increase suicide ideation especially once first taking them. So you are correct. Like others have said it varies person to person. I have only been on SSRI's plus an anti psychotic when I was younger. I had bad side effects on Fluoxetine back when I was 19 and have hopped on and off different ones over the years. Funnily enough I'm back on Fluoxetine (now 34) "hooray". It's helping better this time around (well i have stopped crying all day). Not enjoying the night sweats I have been having lately though; not sure if it's a coincidence.

 

[Forveleth]

Antidepressants do not make you magically suicidal. The reason they say that is because there is a sort of grey area where you are depressed but now you have energy. Many extremely depressed people can not even get out of bed let alone set up and commit suicide. If they start taking an antidepressant, they now have enough energy to get out of bed and do things, but they are also still very depressed. Now their risk of suicide is higher than if they had not taken anything.

There are some SSRIs/SNRIs that make people think about death more often and/or have extreme intrusive thoughts but which one and how much is unique to each person. Strangely enough, some antihistamines will also do this as histamine is a neurotransmitter just like serotonin.

 

[milkteacrown]

It depends on the person, as everyone else here has said. Unfortunately, it can take a long time to find the correct antidepressant for your unique brain chemistry. We don't fully understand the physiological profile of clinical depression, so "guess and check" is the standard treatment plan.

I believe it would be in your best interests to start a diary where you write 1-3 sentences about how you feel and the degree of your symptoms on a 1-10 scale every single day. This way, you can tell when subtle changes in your thinking patterns take place.

Symptoms you should rate at least once daily, but ideally once in the morning and once in the evening:
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Suicidality
• Desire to self-harm
• Any other symptom you notice is recurring

 

[Forveleth]

I had bad side effects on Fluoxetine back when I was 19 and have hopped on and off different ones over the years. Funnily enough I'm back on Fluoxetine (now 34) "hooray". It's helping better this time around (well i have stopped crying all day).

I have heard that sometimes the second time around you react differently to the same SSRI and side effects can be less/better.

 

[SVEN]

Mainly SSRIs as far as one of my CPNs told me. I was also advised when I moved from Fluoxetine to Citalopram that my mental state would be monitored more closely as some users responded unpredictably to this med.
I did have enhanced colour and sound experiences when on as low a dosage of Citalopram as 20 mgs daily.

 

[RoyalBengalAutistic]

Yes

 

[maniac116]

Any antidepressant can increase suicidality.
In general people don't kill themselves in the midst of a depressive episode, but rather, when they're coming out of an episode (when they have more energy to carry out the act).
Since antidepressants can bring us out of an episode, its when they begin to take effect that we have the energy to actually carry out the act.
I hope this makes sense to you.

 

[inverse-weibull]

To add on to what others have said, suddenly stopping antidepressants increases suicidality significantly for pretty much all of them. I ran out of Wellbutrin for 2 weeks and it was probably the most miserable I've ever been, ended up trying a stupid rushed ctb attempt. I've heard similar stories from a friend who stopped taking their ssri's suddenly

 

[sancta-simplicitas]

Antidepressants do not make you magically suicidal. The reason they say that is because there is a sort of grey area where you are depressed but now you have energy. Many extremely depressed people can not even get out of bed let alone set up and commit suicide. If they start taking an antidepressant, they now have enough energy to get out of bed and do things, but they are also still very depressed. Now their risk of suicide is higher than if they had not taken anything.

There are some SSRIs/SNRIs that make people think about death more often and/or have extreme intrusive thoughts but which one and how much is unique to each person. Strangely enough, some antihistamines will also do this as histamine is a neurotransmitter just like serotonin.

Afaik that is just a hypothesis that has no evidence. There doesn't seem to be a scientifically valid conclusion of why antidepressants makes some people suicidal.

 

[The_Hunter]

Any antidepressant can increase suicidality.
In general people don't kill themselves in the midst of a depressive episode, but rather, when they're coming out of an episode (when they have more energy to carry out the act).
Since antidepressants can bring us out of an episode, its when they begin to take effect that we have the energy to actually carry out the act.
I hope this makes sense to you.

Reminds me of how many people who die from opioid overdoses often happen as such after relapsing after a long period of sobriety—where their desire far exceeds their new tolerance after having been off the substance for so long; which can unfortunately result in them taking too much, and overdosing.

It depends on the person, as everyone else here has said. Unfortunately, it can take a long time to find the correct antidepressant for your unique brain chemistry. We don't fully understand the physiological profile of clinical depression, so "guess and check" is the standard treatment plan.

I believe it would be in your best interests to start a diary where you write 1-3 sentences about how you feel and the degree of your symptoms on a 1-10 scale every single day. This way, you can tell when subtle changes in your thinking patterns take place.

Symptoms you should rate at least once daily, but ideally once in the morning and once in the evening:
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Suicidality
• Desire to self-harm
• Any other symptom you notice is recurring

This seems like an extremely helpful course of advice! Thank you so much for sharing this; I am sure it will have seriously helped someone out there.
I'm curious to know how you came into contact with this piece of advice! Just out of curiosity. Take care!