Did anyone else get worse on antidepressants? (2 questions)?

Question

hyperactivity, insomnia, irritability, impulsivity, worsening of depression, suicidal thinking and actions, headaches, heart burn, anxiety and generally feeling disconnected or bombarded by the world around them.

When I share my experience on Prozac, I always get a friggin' thumbs down! Even my psychiatrist didn't believe me and upped my friggin' dosage to make it worse!! I believe he was out to drive me crazy like it was fun for him or maybe he'd get more money if I ended up hospitalized, thank god I was too smart for that. THe money grubbin' idiot.

Is faith in SSRI's superseding genuine negative reactions to the medication?

I think that 6 months is a long enough trial period.

Well no **** it's all individual. Did I say that it wasn't? No, I was just giving my personal experience. Don't be a ****.

Answer 1

i have been on many anti-depressents including prozac. i'd say my absolute worst experience was with paxil. i was only in forth grade, and was already a very distrubed suicidal girl. i never had these problems until i started on the medication. after a while i switched to prozac which was great at first, but than things turned ary. i started getting night sweats, and i have the worst anxiety every. i even began cutting, not out of self hatred but as a way to get out of my skin. now, i am weaning off of my prozac, and i already feel much better.

what you're feeling is real, and if you're phyciatrist doesn't believe you, than you absolutely need a new one.

Answer 2

yep, all that you mention except the heart burn on everything i've tried except (ironically) tricyclics. probably because i am bipolar and anti depressants can be very bad for some people with bipolar. in the beginning, i was put solely on antidepressants even after that when i was on mood stabilisers as well, it continued happening. they were so worried about what i would do when feeling like this that (once i was diagnosed with bipolar) everytime they experimented with a new anti d-in the hope that it would be different, i was hospitalised as a precaution.
In the beggining drs didnt believe me and wouldnt take me off the one i was on at the time (luvox) they only paid attention and did something when i got completely overwhelmed by all i was feeling, lost the plot and broke a bone in my hand and did lots of soft tissue damage by repeatedly bashing it into a brick wall. that got me off it quick smart :)
If your a teenager, impulsivity, worsening of depression and suicidal thinking and actions are actually quite common- probably because their brain chemistry and other stuff is a bit different. It is a known side effect in adults too but less common. pharmaceutical companies tend to try and gloss over it so many doctors are not fully informed/ aware.
personally i think you were wise to follow your intuition about what was wrong and do something about it. :)

Answer 3

Just because some people have a negative reaction to some anti-depressants doesn't make them bad. You reacted badly to Prozac, but there are thousands of people who it helps every day. Often, side effects will subside after a while on the med, that's probably what your doctor was waiting for. I was on Effexor for three months with no appetite, constant trembling and spaciness to the point where I'd almost get lost driving home. Then we tried something else. I'm on Wellbutrin now, with absolutely no side effects. The first drug I tried was Lexapro and it made my anxiety so bad I couldn't leave my dorm room, which also increased the SI. Zoloft did nothing, positive or negative.

The moral of this rant: what works for one person doesn't always work for another, but that also means, what doesn't work for one person will work wonders for many others.

Answer 4

When I was a teenager, my doctor tried me on Paxil. That worked for me, plus I didn't notice any bad side effects. Then later in life I took Prozac, which also helped, and again, I didn't notice any bad side effects. Those I think are the ones with the least side effects. But talk to your doctor. She'll be able to give her advice as well, especially because some new medications have come out in the years since I took them.

Answer 5

Antidepressants as in all drug medications carry with them side effects. It is too bad that your pyschiatrist did not treat you seriously. Maybe it's time you change to another.

Answer 6

It does happen sometimes, especially in the first few weeks of treatment. What happens is the meds treat depression in steps. The first few weeks, they generally give back a person their energy, drive, and motivation before treating the depression completely. This can be a dangerous combination. For example, if a person is depressed and suicidal, but motivated, they might have the motivation to do something harmful to themself.
You might have to experiment with different medications and give each one a longer trial period to find one that really works.

Answer 7

yes and they didnt tell me i would gain weight and i did and now i am having a hard time trying to lose it.my doctor had me on zoloft for over 5 and a half years.i think it caused my severe acid reflux,constipation,worse depression and weight gain and a feeling of detachment which enabled certain people to take advatage of me and to lie to me for years and keep secrets.i had my doctor change my medication he put me on effexor that was awful! i could not sleep! i felt weird! i felt like my skin was crawling and i could not take it after 1 week i flushed them down the toilet! i will not take that crap again! i think the people who sell that trash only care about making money its bad and better to not take it! thats my experience and personal opinion.good luck.

Answer 8

My best friend started taking Prozac and is now in a mental hospital. :\ She seemed to only get more depressed after she started taking them.