Antidepressant?

Hi all,

I’m struggling very much w my life and where I am at mentally.

I’m seriously considering an antidepressant as I keep struggling w suicide ideation.

I’m a year out... also 20 months off Effexor.

Thoughts?

It looks like you were on SSRIs and SNRIs before--did they help?  If you are having suicidal ideation now, the concern will be starting the drug and then updosing to therapeutic levels.  During these times, depression/anxiety (and suicidal ideation) can actually increase

before leveling out. 

I was and they did help. But they made me sick after a while. I’ve been struggling and am getting weaker to fight it off.

I’m worried about that increase when starting... I am so tired and don’t know what to do

Hi Sleepless,

 

I'm sorry you are still struggling, a year out. Those are still early days, even though it feels like it's been a long road already.

 

There are different views with regards to ADs as you know... it is so hard to tell what a "med" will or will not do to an individual, even if you have already been on it - your CNS is still hyper sensitive and has been trying to fix the "imbalance" created by taking drugs for years already.

 

As Gogogaba says, one of the big risks is that an AD may actually worsen the SI and even disinhibit you into taking action that way... I won't lie, I am mostly against taking any other drug to help with symptoms, but that, to me, takes risks to a whole different new level...

 

It may not feel like it, but those past 12 months, you have been recovering, Sleepless... and beginning to see some signs of healing will be inevitable at some point - which I dearly hope comes soon.

 

Keep going, every day is another day you won't have to go through ever again, closer to feeling better.

You are not alone 

Julz xx

Hold on for as long as you can, if you get to a point where you can't, go to a good Psychiatrist. What made me give in was a book called "Worried Sick?" It opened my eyes to the damage I've been doing by avoiding meds, I was truly in a bad state and did get a bit of relief from Remeron, never like a benzo but it brought it down from 120% to about 80%. I still get overwhelmed but not as bad as I was.

have you tried something natural like a low dose of 5HTP - and when i say low - i'm talking 25-50mg tops - not the 100-200mg that are often used.  The body is so super sensitive in the first year or two following something like this.  I would really avoid any CNS meds unless it becomes critical.  I became suicidal several times in the first few months and i took a few doses of 5 HTP each time and it got me back on course quickly and easily

Hold on for as long as you can, if you get to a point where you can't, go to a good Psychiatrist. What made me give in was a book called "Worried Sick?" It opened my eyes to the damage I've been doing by avoiding meds, I was truly in a bad state and did get a bit of relief from Remeron, never like a benzo but it brought it down from 120% to about 80%. I still get overwhelmed but not as bad as I was.

 

I also take remeron 15 mg, and have for two years. The start up was I think the opposite of what most people have with typical SSRIs. It was just fatigue. But the sleep was phenomenal in the beginning (not as consistently great now), which may help lift depression if you have insomnia. If insomnia is playing a role in your depression, taking a low dose of remeron 3.25 or 7.5 mg might help you, even if it is only a few days a week.

 

Please seek help if you need it. There are many good resources out there to assist with suicidal thoughts.

Also look into SAM-E

Sleepless,

 

Only you know when your suicidal ideation hits a critical head.  Nobody else on this forum is walking in your shoes.

 

1.  Suicidal ideation is a symptom.  It is only one of 322 reported withdrawal symptoms.  If you ever come close to acting on this impulse, do something.  Your only job now is to SURVIVE.

 

2.  Keep in mind that, when you take other meds, you are forcing your body/nerves/brain to have to deal with a dangerous chemical.  It altered your brain to accommodate the meds before.  Now it has to do it again.  If you can possibly grit your teeth and get through this without other meds, do it.  Only you know your own limits.

 

3.  You got off the ADs before.  You stopped them because you were feeling unwell.  If you restart them now with a raw sensitive CNS, most likely you will not have the positive experience you had before when you took the ADs with a healthy CNS.  It could go south on you, like it has for many others.

 

Whatever you decide to do, please use other meds as a last resort to ensure your survival.  If you don’t get relief from restarting the AD, or you feel worse, stop taking it.

 

Sofa

I just started Pristiq yesterday and it already seems to be better than the Lexapro I started (first antidepressant ever) I switched because of suicidal ideations I believe was coming from the Lexapro. I could not possibly imagine adding an AD withdrawal in top of what I am going through already (if I am indeed feeling this way due to the Ativan useage) so my only option was to switch and hope I feel better and then wean myself off the AD down the road.

I will be totally honest and say if I could rewind time I never would have agreed to start the Lexapro! But I didn't know why I was having a breakdown at the time and was desperate for answers. Doc said it was anxiety and depression and I believed.

Now I am in a little bit of a pickle but doing the best I can to get through.

Therapy also helps. So do distractions. Talking in the phone. Anything. I truly wish I could just quit the AD cold turkey and be done with it but we all know what could happen then.

In the beginning of withdrawal I learned how to cope with intrusive thoughts, they were my worst symptom and my best one now; I simply internalized that if a thought makes you scared of it, it will never happen and you will never do it. People who act upon them are the ones who think it's a good idea. It's the same thing with SI, for me at my worse it scared the crap out of me, realizing it's the same as intrusive thoughts helped me get over it. If you ever start thinking it's a good idea get professional help, remember that we are a support board, not to replace a doctor in a time of need, more so for us, a Psychiatrist.

Hi: I am sorry for your struggles. I hear by many that one year is still early, even two? It is mind blowing to me how benzos can damage the CNS system so much. I am a little over six months from my jump and I am having a horrible wave right now from adding omeprazole last week. I was doing fine last week to the point that my hubby noticed the difference and told that I was acting more like my 'normal' self again. I truly felt so good, so I thought...until my GI issues got worse and decided to seek help and try a ppi thinking that my CNS would be strong enough. Boy, was I wrong! When I increased the dose to 40mg it gave me a headche almost immediately and haven't been able to sleep since then. I feel your pain. I ave stopped it. My pdoc wants me to push through without adding another drug; however, this sleep deprivation is very hard. I know I can sleep on my own because I had been doing it, so I hope by quitting the omeprazole my sleep will return...will see.

 

Enough about me, I truly would not want to give any medical advice as I am not walking in your shoes. However, if the SI is so bad, please seek help! Adding another drug might make it worse or not...but ultimately it is your choice...and there is no judgement. We are here to support no matter what you decide. You might want to try the 5htp; however, there are some guidelines how to take this. I believe you have to take it with vit 6 or something like that. I would do it for myself, but my stomach is not heal enough to withstand an amino acid. You may want to check into taking a 'stress' supplement. Solaray is a good brand and they have one with all the vitamins b's, folate, magnesium, etc...Depression is usually due to low levels of serotonin; but there could be other reasons in the neuro pathways that may affect the production of serotonin. The gut is our second brain and we produce serotonin there; this is why the omeprazole has messed me up I believe. I took a neurotransmitter test about two months ago, and my serotonin levels were high; so adding this drug into my still fragile CNS had to be the culprit. It could be that omeprazole, for example, could also be a serotonin agonist. Keeping a healthy gut is crucial during our withdrawal, so my diet has changed drastically. I recommend a low histamine diet and somatic therapy, cranio sacral or cbt.

 

Hugs,

 

 

Hi: I am sorry for your struggles. I hear by many that one year is still early, even two? It is mind blowing to me how benzos can damage the CNS system so much. I am a little over six months from my jump and I am having a horrible wave right now from adding omeprazole last week. I was doing fine last week to the point that my hubby noticed the difference and told that I was acting more like my 'normal' self again. I truly felt so good, so I thought...until my GI issues got worse and decided to seek help and try a ppi thinking that my CNS would be strong enough. Boy, was I wrong! When I increased the dose to 40mg it gave me a headche almost immediately and haven't been able to sleep since then. I feel your pain. I ave stopped it. My pdoc wants me to push through without adding another drug; however, this sleep deprivation is very hard. I know I can sleep on my own because I had been doing it, so I hope by quitting the omeprazole my sleep will return...will see.

 

Enough about me, I truly would not want to give any medical advice as I am not walking in your shoes. However, if the SI is so bad, please seek help! Adding another drug might make it worse or not...but ultimately it is your choice...and there is no judgement. We are here to support no matter what you decide. You might want to try the 5htp; however, there are some guidelines how to take this. I believe you have to take it with vit 6 or something like that. I would do it for myself, but my stomach is not heal enough to withstand an amino acid. You may want to check into taking a 'stress' supplement. Solaray is a good brand and they have one with all the vitamins b's, folate, magnesium, etc...Depression is usually due to low levels of serotonin; but there could be other reasons in the neuro pathways that may affect the production of serotonin. The gut is our second brain and we produce serotonin there; this is why the omeprazole has messed me up I believe. I took a neurotransmitter test about two months ago, and my serotonin levels were high; so adding this drug into my still fragile CNS had to be the culprit. It could be that omeprazole, for example, could also be a serotonin agonist. Keeping a healthy gut is crucial during our withdrawal, so my diet has changed drastically. I recommend a low histamine diet and somatic therapy, cranio sacral or cbt.

Hugs,

 

I've had two sessions of craniosacral therapy and I believe it's truly helped. Especially with sleep.

I highly recommend it.