After getting off antidepressants does your brain learn to produce antidepressant chemicals on its own?

Question

I have been on and off a bunch of different kinds of antidepressants for the past 2 yrs. I have tried getting off them several times, and was not successful. A few days ago, I stopped taking them again. I weened off them slowly. I went from taking 50 mg of Luvox and 75mg of Effexor, to taking 25mg of Luvox and 37.5mg of Effexor for 2 wks, then stopped completely a few days ago.

I hate being on medication. I am always tired, I feel as if I am living some unnatural life, and I have noticed that my memory has even become worse! Today, I feel like crap. I am very nervous because I really want to finally be successful at getting off meds. Should I fight this crappy feeling because in time, my brain will learn to produce antidepressant chemicals on its own?

Or should I just notice that if I am not feeling well, I just need to get back on the meds?

Will I ever be okay without medication? Will my brain ever learn to produce these chemicals on its own? :(

I used to go to a therapist- it didn't really help. There is just something inside that can't be healed with talking.

My psychiatrist actually told me a while ago that many times people can get off meds because there brain gets trained by the meds to produce the good chemicals. That is why I am asking, I want to know what you think of this.

Answer 1

Ohh dear I understand how you feel. I was on medicines for years and just weened myself off them this past summer. I honestly dont know if your body will learn to produce the natural chemicals in your body or not, I know they didnt for me. I got tired of the stupid side effects just as you and I looked more in natural remedies. I just researched off the net until I came up with my own diagnosis. I have been on natural supplements for about 3 mths now and they are so much better than any drug plus they are safer and I dont have to deal with stupid side effects. There are many websites that sell various supplements that help with various conditions. As a matter of fact after guinea piggen myself I just took my daughter off Concerta becasue the poor thing at 10 was being diagnosed by her Psychiatrist as almost being anorexia..thats sad that a drug can do that to a 10 yr old but I got fed up and now she is on supplements and she is doing awesome....just got her report card.....honor roll. With her bing "ADHD" I have her on St. Johns wort and adrenal formula....by the way I went to a natural doctor who advised me on giving her this....I dont want peope out there to think I dont care about my daughters mental health....I do and I am tired of the meds getting recalled left and right to find out they are actually worst than better as stated when they first came in market.

I am not all into the health conscious or natural remedies....I am learning this stuff myself but it doesnt hurt to check into them.

Answer 2

The answer to your question is not a simple yes or no.

You are in withdrawal. Give your body time to recover from all of those unhealthy drugs it was subjected to for two years. Cigarette smokers feel like crap for a few months after they quit and the body recovers. I've had to withdraw from cigarettes, antidepressents, alcohol, bad men, you name it, at some point in my lifetime. Help it along as much as possible by getting adequate sleep, exercising, and eating right. You will soon feel so much better naturally than you ever did on drugs.

You are aware that depression is not a medical disease, right? It is a feeling, a mood, that is part of the complex interaction between mind, body, and environment. Look up any definition of depressive disorder and it will tell you. Therefore, it cannot be compared to a medical disorder for which medicine is a requirement for repair. It is complex and you need to carefully manage what works for you and the health ramifications of whatever treatment you choose - the treatment being nothing more or less than feeling better. You could go on an antidepressent, St Johns Wort, get a massage, buy a pet, fall in love, find an exciting hobby, smoke pot, shoot a speedball, or take a bath in candlelight. All of these things work, but some work for some people better than others. Some are healthier than others.

You must take charge of your feelings and treatments. It's your complex body and you know it better than anyone else. A doctor may know more about your spleen or eyeball than you do, but mood and feeling disorders are not medical. Biological treatments can and do work as the mind/body connection exists. But so does the mind/mind connection and the mind/environment connection.

Your goal is the healthiest thing that works the best. It's a journey. I would try the healthy stuff first. And moods and feelings come and go, some more so than others, so you don't want something that you can't stop during the good times or that will put you into withdrawal.

Give St Johns Wort and healthy living a two week trial. It's just two weeks (take it hour by hour if necessary) and you may be able to leave unhealthy chemicals behind forever!

P.S. Please understand that health care is not what it once was. The Hippocratic oath is being replaced by the profit motive. Please do not put blind faith in doctors, especially for non-medical disorders. Research everything. Just like with auto mechanics, you must be very careful in money-driven and profit-driven industries.

Good luck again!

Answer 3

There are so many stupid and ignorant answers on here, it makes me sick. So many people are so uneducated. All of these idiots telling people to stay on the drugs etc, and saying "Your dr. knows best, do what he says" is rubbish.

Antidepressants are over-prescribed. 95% of the people taking them, DON'T NEED THEM! They are for basket cases only and shouldn't be given out for anything BUT MAJOR DEPRESSION! Not for chest pains, anxiety, etc.

The dr's throw pills at patients now days and don't even TRY cognitive therapy anymore. They don't WANT to work, they charge you an hour's worth of time and they knew before you walked in the door they were going to give you xxx drug. DO SOME RESEARCH PEOPLE!! JESUS it's the new century, get with the times and GOOGLE THAT SHlT AND FIND OUT SOME FACTS!

There are major doctors right now trying to bring all this to light and educate people but Big Pharma and so many folks that are on the AD high are defending all the AD usage. They don't even know what all the drugs do in the brain and they tell you that too! Why take it?

Listen, when people stop taking AD's, even if they taper properly, they can have withdrawal or even protracted withdrawal that makes people think "ohh you're depressed and your problems are back"... NOOOOOOO it's not! It's the brain healing from the meds... morons.

EDUCATE YOURSELVES... PLEASE!

Answer 4

What you are currently experiencing is probably withdrawl. The truth of the matter is, you were probably on too many meds. in the beginning, but if you were prescribed that much, odds are that you probably need to be on something. I, like you, have been on meds. a bunch of different times and then went off them again a bunch of different times for various reasons. However, I've gotten to the point now that I recognize that the nervousness and anxiety I experience when not medicated is way out of control, and really makes my life alot harder. Unfortunately, your body will never "learn" to produce antidepressant chemicals on it's own--if you need antidepressants, and truly have "depression" or "anxiety" (and aren't just feeling some short-term sadness from something occuring in your life), you will need those medications for a lifetime.
Good luck!!!!!

Answer 5

Your brain can't "learn" to produce anti-depressant agents - it either does or it doesn't.

You should not discontinue medications without your doctor's supervision. What you're experiencing may be "rebound" effects. If the meds you were on didn't work for you and you feel bad without meds, you need to keep working with your doctor to find the right medication for you. If this was a generalist [family doc, internist, etc] he/she may not be very experienced with some of the newer medications. A psychiatrist would have more experience with how different medications and combinations of medications affect your emotional state.

There's nothing wrong with being on medication, if that's what your body needs. Would you want to avoid meds for infections, diabetes, high blood pressure? Same thing, just a different part of your body.

Good luck to you.

Answer 6

I think you should just be determined to stay off them for a certain time period (say 6 months or something) and just see what happens. Do stuff that mentally balanced people do like socialize and exercise. If in 6 months you still have issues, then go on the meds for one year and come off again and try again. Some times medication takes a couple tries to actually work.

Answer 7

You have required medication to moderate your depression. Two years on medication is not particularly long. I agree with you that some of the medications can leave you feeling 'divorced' from reality, sort of feeling disconnected from your emotions, but that means that you need to try different medications which may have fewer side effects, not cut them out all together.
There are two theories at work in regards to mental illness. The neurochemical theory is that depression and other mental illness are caused by neurochemical imbalances, and that you need to take medication to help regulate that for the rest of your life. Like a diabetic taking insulin, it's necessary for your survival because you can't make or keep the right neurochemical balance yourself. I would say this is especially true for schizophrenics and bipolar people and others with a delusional aspect to their mental illness.
That said, I too was diagnosed with depression and disthymic disorder. I was on medication for many years, BUT, I also had cognitive and talk therapy for several years. Eventually, I was able to wean myself off all medication, and have been without it for five years, living a normal life. Part of that process was examing the reasons why I was depressed and looking hard at the parts of my life I needed to change. I also need to stress that my depression was never severe enough to require hospitalization or to render me unable to function in daily life. I think by 'training' my brain to break the cycle of negative thinking which spiraled me deeper into depression, I was able to alter those chemical pathways which made such negative thoughts worse.
If your depression is mild enough that you didn't require hospitalization, that you made no actual suicidal attempts, then the answer is yes, with therapy, and cognitive training, you may be able to stay off medications forever.
However, for now, I think that you were too premature, and you should consult your doctor and therapist about whether it's appropriate for you to stop taking your meds. There are many different medications out there, and there should be a combination which works best for you.

Answer 8

I have been on every antidepressant under the sun. You name it. Somtimes three kinds at one time. I have pretty bad depression. But now I have Tardive tourettism from all the drugs. Its uncontrollabe tics that never go away and probably never will. Not everyone develops these symptoms but its more common that the doctors or drug companies let on. Its miserable. If you can stay off of them try. Of course if you ever feel hopeless or suicidal that changes things. I can't say my depression is gone or ever will but I refuse to stay on these damn drugs.

Answer 9

The brain feels the depression chemicals twice as bad after stopping meds. It takes time to be normal again. The natural anti-depression chemicals are called endorphins and the sex endorphin is the strongest. Best to get rid of bad expectations so the brain wont make the bad chemicals again.

Answer 10

When I was weaned off of Effexor, I felt lousy for a couple of days, just off, if you know what I mean. I feel great today, so give your body some time to adjust to being free of drugs. I heard fish oil capsules can boost your mood. They're also good for the heart. You might want to try them.

My son gets periods of depression and he can't handle the anti-depressants. He sees a therapist from time to time and he feels it really helps. So you might look into talking to a professional when your mood gets low.