Antidepressants

[Rupes79]

Hi All,

As a last resort I’ve gone back into my antidepressant which has helped in the past but unfortunately sometimes the side effects become overwhelming.

I’m pleased to report that this time the effects are quite minimal and I have noticed a change in mood.

For the first time in months I don’t feel depressed but strangely I don’t feel myself either. What I mean is that the depression and low mood has lifted but I don’t necessarily feel a happy person. I’m just not a depressed person.

I definitely see this as a net positive but was wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences?

Thanks

[HappyHelper88]

Hey thanks for sharing

im glad that you have taken that step, I struggle changing my doses and I get unwell.
Great to hear the effects are minimal this time.

Do you feel numb and mellow? because antidepressants also make me numb not happy, not sad but other things in my life bring me joy and make me happy

I hope this helps

I definitely see this as a net positive but was wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences?
Thanks

[Sophia16]

Hi,

I am so glad that you feel better. All medications have side effects. So how you are feeling is completely normal.

How are you feeling now? Any good changes?

Stay safe and I am here to chat if you need me.

[Rupes79]

Hi All,

Thanks for the responses, it’s appreciated.

Yes numb is a good way to describe it. I don’t feel “happy” but I don’t feel depressed and after months of suffering it’s a welcome relief.

The side effects continue unfortunately but I’ve decided for the moment the cure is better than the disease and I need a break from the cycle of negative thoughts and low mood.

I find it much harder to work on my mental health when I am in a bad place. Still a big struggle though and I find it takes a lot of effort to move the dial just a small amount.

Maybe it is a lot of effort to start with for more reward later? I’ve been working hard on it all of 2021. Some progress has been made for sure but I’m not feeling the effort is adequately rewarded.

Thanks again.

[Ramblify]

Hi Rupes,

good question!

I have experience with this. I’ve been on Antidepressant medication for over 20 years now. At first I had the same experiences as you have described. It took about 3 or 4 tries to find something that wasn’t overwhelming.

I also remember feeling I wasn’t ‘me’ and speaking to my Psychiatrist about. He quickly responded with something along the lines of ‘of course you are ‘yourself’.

my main concerns were not feeling creatively spontaneous and a little more uninspired than before at times. I must have talked a bit about this with different professionals; because I remember being asked to think about the trade off - would I rather have an overall good quality of life or be up and down and depressed.
I opted for the chance to feel like I could make some progress in my life (take the antidepressants), it took a good while before I felt comfortable with it (12-18 months).

I think much much later on I realised that antidepressants are also ‘mood stabilisers’ and that takes away the edge of feeling inspired is the word that comes to mind - you might have your own word that describes it better for you? I would also now (21 years later), say I definitely still get inspired by things! And I also feel in control of my creativity.

I hope this helped you a bit.

I found it gets easier with time.

[Rupes79]

Hi Ramblify

Thanks for your words of encouragement. I’ve had quite a bit of experience over the years with antidepressants - mostly bad due to adverse side effects.

I think this time I was so depressed just even feeling “numb” was good enough to be able to deal with the side effects.

I don’t want to be on them long term and my psychologist has already cautioned about coming off them when I can but they have somewhat “saved” my Xmas this year which I am thankful for.