Headaches on every antidepressant!

[shfer]

Hello all,

I have been taking antidepressants on and off but mostly on for about 10 years. Then suddenly last year i started getting Headaches that would not go away. First i had no idea what they could be but they would never go away then i figured it was from my AD. I have to be honest i was not taking them every day as i should have! I was taking them every 3/4 days and i have done that for about 1 year and then the headaches started to show up! Now 11 months later i still get them and they don't seem to disappear! Its incredibly frustrating and they affect my mood big time! I have tried many things to elevate them and only thing that does is if I take a benzo! Then it will clear it!

I think i must have messed up something on the neurotransmitters or so by not taking them regularly or maybe it just started on its own I have no idea but I know that its insane and its driving me crazy and don’t know what to do! Please if anyone has any experience or have any idea what to do I would so appreciate it as I don't know how much more i can take and i do t wanna be dependent on Benzos.

Everyone I know including my 2 sisters are taking ADs and none of them have any trouble while i have insane headaches and even sound sensitivity , its like my head cant tolarate much of outside stimuli.

As I said for 10 years i never had this it started one year ago and it only stop if i do not take the meds! I was off them for 4 months and never had even one headache!

Please please help if someone has any clue!

Thank you!

[Here_I_am]

Hi shfer,

Headaches suck big time!

I get about three a week, but they don't hang around like the ones that you're describing. They are intense, in the temple region, and they feel like a giant hand is squeezing my head for an hour or so.

Funnily enough, I have found that if I change my glasses (1) helps if you wear glasses, and 2) helps if you have more than one pair!)) they go away pretty quickly. In my experience, it may be a confounding contributor (AD), but general stress on the senses and over stimulation may also be a contributing factor.

Is their any other aspect of your health that may be possibly contributing here? How's your nutrition, water intake, general stress level, etc? Could an eye exam be of value?

I know I'm probably going off in a direction that doesn't seem helpful, but it is worth exploring other factors as AD's ought to not affect us so consistently.

Neurotransmitters are bouncy things! They'll adapt to environmental factors so it's important to be consistent with any medication - otherwise they'll over compensate (make too much of something) or under supply (not give you enough of something) whilst they sit and wait to see what on earth you're going to do. Think of them like storepersons checking inventory. If there's not enough of something, they'll order more. Too much, they'll cancel the order. The issue becomes complex when they 'order more of something' and then you take your meds that day. The next day, they cancel the order but you don't take the meds... eventually they go on stress leave for a week, but they'll come back. They need the job! 🙂

[shfer]

Hello,

thank you for your reply! I have done eye check up and the left eye is more blurry than the right eye but dr said pressure was not bad so I did not bother going more! I don't ware glasses as my vision is fine in general. And its not like i get headaches sometimes. As soon as i wake up it starts slowly and becomes more intense as the day goes on. Then when it reaches about 22:00-23:00 I'm almost headache free because its been about 24 hours that i last took my ADs! In the past when i was on ssris the headaches started about 1-2 hours after i took them. Now with the other class i assume because of their hypnotic properties they don't give me headache right away but start when i wake up!

I know for sure it is because of the ADs cus every time I have stoped them they completely disappear like nothing!

thanks for your explanation regarding NT, and it makes totally sense but the question is how long am i going to suffer until they function well and balance themselves? It is so crazy and it is so hard to even do my job when this strange pressure or headache , sometimes even feels like tingling and very unpleasant feeling is around and will not go away!

I have noticed if I am hungry it is worse and i do try to be eating well all day and drink a lot of water but nonetheless it is not like it is going away completely ever!

Are you saying also its bad if i introduce once in a few days a benzo is bad for the neurotransmitters? Cus im doing that just cus i dont wanna be depentant on them, mind you not that i do not need them cus they do completely fix the pain! If it was not for them being addictive etc i would get a small dose every day cus that is all it takes for the pain to go away 😞

thanks

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi shfer,

Thanks for your post. Here I am has given you some great advice.

Can I just ask, are you on antidepressants now, and are you taking them as prescribed? Not taking medication as prescribed can quite simply be the answer to your headaches. Part of taking them regularly is allowing them to get into your bloodstream and having a consistent level - if you're taking them somewhat randomly, they'll always be inconsistent.

With benzos, you do not need to take them everyday to start to become dependant on them. Depending on the individual, people can become dependent on them even if they take them more than once a week. This doesn't necessarily mean that what you are doing is dangerous - but if you are taking them as regularly as you are, you may soon find the current dose you are on isn't 'sufficient enough' to help with the pain.

Perhaps this is something you can bring up with your GP?

RT

[shfer]

Hello,

thanks for your reply and the advice!

I am taking them regularly now yes , it had been currently about more than 4 weeks that I am taking this one regularly.

In fact a year ago when the headaches started i then asked my dr and he said i should take them regularly and i did for about 4 months and i had headaches everyday. Then i paused for about 4 months no ADs and no headaches. Now almost 5 weeks and headaches everyday 😞

I just don't know what to do anymore because I cannot manage without the medication on the other hand living with them is crazy . I just hope it will ever clear as it is sometimes unbearable.

I hope someone has some reassurance!

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi shfer,

Good to hear back from you! I'm really glad that you're now taking them as prescribed!

I wonder if it might be worth trying to get a referral to see a psychiatrist? I'm thinking that they're going to have more education and experience on the use of AD's and the impact of misuse (i.e what happens to the brain when it's taken every 72 hours instead of 24) - something your GP is probably not aware of. That way, they can help you find a regime that fits you but also helps to counter these terrible headaches!

RT

[White_Rose]

Hello Shfer

I have read your thread with great interest. I have to agree with Romantic about the medication. I have always had side effect problems with SSRIs. If you are going to go off ADs you need to decrease your current medication very slowly under supervision. Taking it when you remember or feel like it will produce these headaches and other effects. You do need to take meds as prescribed to be the most effective and cause the least problems.

I also second Romantic's suggestion to see a psychiatrist. They are the experts in medication for mental illness. You need to decide to take the AD as prescribed or not at all. If the latter then you must wean off the meds slowly, especially if you have been on them for a long time. Withdrawal can be very hard on the body if not done properly. I found this out the hard way. Thought I was going nuts. Taking other pills to reduce headaches or any other symptom is not the recommended way to go. The benzo may appear to help but I rather suspect you will still have problems, though not necessarily those you have now.

Once you have started to see a psychiatrist you can discuss the possibility of taking a different medication. I don't mean another SSRI but something from a different group of ADs. I had horrible experiences on SSRIs including interactions with other medication that no one thought to check. My psych could never give me what he called a therapeutic dose as I could not tolerate it. In the end I stopped taking SSRIs with the intention of never taking an AD again. My GP persuaded me to take something from the TCA group of meds. Brilliant. She slowly introduced them to my system and I have had no problems except a bit of a dry mouth in the morning.

Why did no one suggest this 10-15 years ago? I think it's because doctors etc believe the new stuff is always better because of the research etc. But it's not true. A colleague of mine took the same meds as me and never missed a beat. Horses for courses. Out with the old and in with the new whether it works or not.

Please consider these options very carefully, especially seeing a psychiatrist. Let us know how you go.

Mary

[shfer]

Hello all,

i have actually seen many psychiatrists and they all know about my case very well. I was actually at my current one yesterday and he decreased my current dose of the other class we are trying now. Ive been on this for over a month now. Its of the Tetracyclic class!

Strange thing is that i have explained to about 5 psych about skipping doses that i have done and all of their answers were identically the same! They said that after 3-4 weeks all would come to normal and you could not have damaged anything on neurotransmitters level!

I just do not get it! How can they all agree in that but in the same time i am almost convinced its that cus why would it be me that i have these issues that i have a problem like this? Could it be a coincidence and this is just more anxiety than the ADs can cover? Or some newer anxiety that ADs cant fix! I do not really get it! If u go completely out of ADs then the pressure feeling in my head disappears every single time and if i just take a benzo the pain clears in no time!

Thank you all!

[Here_I_am]

Hi shfer,

It is interesting to read that the benzos help with the pain, as they are not a medically supported treatment for pain excepting for chronic cases where nothing else has worked. For what it's worth, I would strongly encourage a frank discussion with a GP around pain management, as benzos are statistically an ineffective option for pain management; it's much more likely they are doing way more in your biochemistry that just alleviating your headache. Plus, benzos have a very long half-life. They take an awfully long time to leave your system; the more you take, the more you need, and they have a 'ceiling effect' meaning you can take three or four and only effectively benefit from 1.5 dose, yet you will psychologically need three or four.

I'm hearing you say that benzos are the only thing that works for you, and that may be true in your experience. However, the last thing I want to read about in six months is that you're now also trying to battle a benzodiazepine dependency AND chronic headaches AND anxiety. 🙂

[shfer]

Hi there,

Thank you for your reply! I am not taking benzos regularly! I have been just trying to see if they clear it. I have not taken them more than one a week and in a very small dose and only one pill.

For me also the last thing I want to be is depenant on benzos.

The “headache” is not really a headache as like classic pain, it feels like a pressure sometimes even like a tingling sensation and it moves! Sometimes its like tingly on the roof of my mouth, sometimes around the cheekbones and sometimes even my eyes feel like they hurt. It is not the same all the time and it is more like you feel when you have not slept much it is that kind of feeling more than an actual pain.

I figured the more I have to concentrate or if I am hungry it becomes stronger. Maybe that is why benzos clear it and not a painkiller or something else. On the other hand I also have some chronic sinus issues and I have them operated 10 years ago. I think it could be if i am lucky that those are also a factor! I would rather operate them again then my neurotransmitters being broken or something and I am really worried if that is the issue, it is not reversible!

Thanks for all the support with all of your inputs!