/hb/ - Health & Beauty

Glad you began this thread, OP. I'm coming off of full-dose of Effexor XR (cold-turkeying from 75mg to 37.5mg because it's all I have) at the moment and my anger levels fluctuate to higher extremes. At the same time, my years of therapy have just started to make a bigger effect on my ability to handle both normal events and difficult situations. I've been on 6 or so antidepressants over 10 years now, so it's interesting. I only had dizziness/vertigo/etc. the first 2~3 days. I wonder what I'm like without antidepressants.

It's important to note that it's tied into my hormones/PCOS(?)/PMDD. Without the only one that works in any way that is worth the side effects, of, again, 6 or so hormonal contraceptives (oral birth control pills), I either get a lot closer to suicide than any rational version of myself ever does, or the physical effects were effecting my ability to live my life, sleep, or work. Also The IUD fucked. me. up. For a couple of months, and I only had it in for two weeks. Actually, my cervix will never feel the same, just from the "installation." And I'm not sexually or vaginally sensitive like at all anymore (it's getting slightly better as I'm coming off Effexor), I didn't flinch getting transvaginal US or anything like that.

Oh, and benzos are awful. Just get buspar for anxiety.

I'm on Lexapro for depression. I gained around 30 pounds, but a lot of that was my fault for suddenly not feeling suicidal and feeling good about myself for the first time in years (my consent self-criticism disappeared, so I stopped caring). Now I'm on a diet and lost 1/2 the weight. Even then, I don't beat myself up anymore. Like, I just think "Oh, I need to lose some weight" rather than, "You are so fucking fat and gross Holy Shit!".

I can only say positive things about Lexapro. It's not a "happy pill" and you don't actively feel anything when you take it…buuuut I am no longer suicidal and feel more hopeful for the future. After going on antidepressants I was better able to think (no more brain fog) and have been able to come up with plans to pull my life together. Before, I felt so hopeless, I just let life drag on. I've been on them for nearly 1.5 years and bounce between 5mg and 15mg because, again, I don't noticeably feel anything so have a difficult time judging which amount to take.

I know a few other people who went on Lexapro and it helped them too (one had terrible OCD, and is nearly cured now). It's awesome, non-addictive (although you don't want to stop cold turkey), and doesn't make you feel any kind of high or change in personality. I can still feel sadness, but my self-criticism is nearly non-existent, I am no longer depressed, the brain fog is gone, and my anger issues have disappeared.

1000/10 recommend.

>>17954
I am off psych meds at the moment, but I took Lexapro (different name in my country) for quite at a while and I think it helped me to save my own life. Seriously, it worked really well in my system. I know that I'm still moderately depressed and it may follow me forever, but fuck, I got out of the dark hole where I was back then.

I also took Clonazepam regularly for a few months (only take it every once in a while now when I feel like I really have to calm the fuck down) and lithium. Lithium was definitely the worst thing I've ever tried… It gave me constant stomachaches and diarrhea. Two other people I know have mentioned the same side effects, but maybe it works fine for some people.

I have an appointment soon to take my dosage down again of fluoxetine (Prozac). I'm convinced it might make me able to hold a conversation better and be less "out of it" feeling.

I'm scared incase it sends me into a pit of black death though. Does anyone have any experience with this? I just want to be attentive again but I also don't want to feel like throwing myself off a cliff.

I was on & off Lexapro for 3 years. It really got me out of a really low point in my life and got me to start talking to people and treating myself better. It's weird, it's like I had less negative thoughts all the time. I slowly became more confidant. I was on a pretty low does and it worked for me. The negative side effects I had were:
>having really vivid insane dream/nightmares.
>Getting muscle cramps in my legs, and so being sore a lot. I would also clench my jaw a lot and flex my ankle/toes a lot. I felt like a tweaker.

But I think the benefits outweighed the negatives at the time. Unfortunately one day Lexapro stopped working for me. I started to have an intense feeling of panic and faster heartbeat every time I took my dose. It's like it was causing me mild panic attacks. So I stopped taking it. I've gone off Lexapro a handful of times, and I definitely noticed withdrawl. I would always get head rushes that felt very pleasant, like "highs". It feels pretty nice, but only lasts about a week then back to normal. I mean I had maybe 3 good years on this drug, so I would recommend trying it.

Oh & yes, once I stopped taking an SSRI I went back into my deep depression and miserable anxiety filled slump after about a month or two.

Prozac
After a year of isolating myself and being miserable af I decided I needed to be medicated again before I end up killing myself. This time I got prescribed Prozac. I started out on a low dose, I didn't notice much of a change, but I did feel slightly less anxious. We decided to double my dose & this is when the trouble started.
>bad stomach pains, and acid reflux
>zero appetite. I never had any desire to eat.
>feeling dizzy & motion sick. I had to stop taking to bus and walk everywhere.
>racing hyperactive thoughts. My mind became so distracted.
>that tweaker feeling again, just like the last drug. My legs were so restless, I was constantly moving and flexing them (especially in bed).
>only a slight positive change in mood.

So I just stopped taking them cold turkey because I was feeling crazy and the stomach issues were horrible. I had no withdrawal effects at all. I feel a lot better now that I'm off.

I might try another antidepressant soon. I'm not sure what to try next.

I am currently on 15 mg Mirtazapine, have been for a few months now, took a few weeks to get used to it but it helped me get through a really shitty time. It helped my stubborn depressed ass see that things are not that bad.

It would be a 10/10 drug if it weren't for the constantly worsening sleepiness. Gotten to the point where I sleep 10+ hours every day just because I can't wake up during mornings. It's borderline debilitating at times but then again it could be much worse. Other than this and random spikes in anger, I don't really have other side effects.

I'm thinking about seeing a psychiatrist soon but I'm still having major second thoughts.

I've been seeing my therapist for a year, she has avoided giving me a formal diagnosis because my insurance doesn't require it so there's no real need for it, but she's mentioned that if she had to she'd have diagnosed me with depression and probably anxiety.

Personally it's hard for me to pin down what I believe I'm experiencing, although it's been helpful to me to stop worrying so much about what my exact diagnosis might be and instead focus on managing my specific symptoms.

My friends have been suggesting I try it out for a long time, my therapist has suggested that I could see a psychiatrist if I wanted to several times, when I saw a GI specialist for my nausea he brought it up too, and when I told my dad my nausea was likely anxiety related he immediately suggested I get a referral to a psychiatrist.

At the same time, I still really feel like this is something that I can overcome without meds: I've been working on CBT techniques to change my day to day behavior and over the past few months of doing that I've actually felt a significant increase in mood. My anxiety is already way less disruptive (though definitely still there) and my depression is virtually 0 recently, save for pinpoints here and there. I feel like if so many people are saying I should see a psychiatrist then maybe I should at least see what the psych says, but I'm afraid that they'll prescribe me medication I don't really need or that will only serve to disrupt the solid path of progress I've built for myself over the past few months.

>>17959
Anon, you can always go see a psychiatrist, just remember that you don't have to take the medicine they might prescribe, or they might prescribe something for you to take as needed to get through the rough spots.

I would recommend seeing one but remember you don't ever have to do something you're uncomfortable with and if you feel like getting a second opinion from another doctor, go for it.

>>17952
I'm on Prozac for Panic Disorder/Depression and Adderall for ADHD. When I first started Prozac, it made me worse before any better. I was always crying more often and felt like I was under water(? if that makes sense). I felt odd, but after a few weeks it started working. I didn't gain weight from the medication, just awful eating habits haha.

The Adderall makes me calm/sleepy but concentrated, and works well with the Prozac. Both are 20mg, been on them for 2 years now. I used to be on Zoloft, and that made me feel like a fucking zombie.

I'm on Lexapro for chronic depression and GAD and got on Bromazepam lately after a suicide attempt. Ambien for sleeps and/or abuse. I'm about to try Adderall, wish me luck!

I think Lexapro sort of provided me with a safety net that keeps my lows from dropping too low, but since it didn't help with overall improvement, I started neglecting to take it after a year and ended up with on and off withdrawals. Missing one dose gives me heart palpitation, brain 'zaps' and nightmares. I'm better at taking them now.

I think the Bromazepam is helping me be more motivated and I'm not spending my entire day in bed anymore for the first time in years, but many of my living conditions changed since a week before I started taking it.

I also take other drugs for my AID and to fight the side effects caused by some of them (Pantoprazole, Prednisolone, Mometasone, Hydrocortisone, Zyrtec and Ciclosporin) so all in all it's hard to tell what helps what.

Who else is bad at taking their drugs regularly? As you can tell, I throw them in by the handful and it's easy to fuck up. I have a planner/alarm on my phone but it doesn't work too well for me because I get side tracked immediately and it's a hassle to remember to bring all my stuff wherever I go. Do any of you use pill organizers or cases? I like the round vintage-y ones you can get with many different prints like pic related but they're too small and open up and spill everything in my purse all the time.

i was just prescribed effexor xr (generic, so venlafaxine) three days ago. i was untreated for depression, anxiety and agoraphobia for about 5 years. i've taken this med before but didn't give it enough time to take full effect.

if any anons have any experience with this med, how was it for you? is it effective for high anxiety? did it give you more energy and motivation? i wanted something for anxiety to go along with the antidepressant, but my doctor wanted to get me in with a psychiatrist before adding anything.

so far i've had side effects (nausea, dry mouth, shakiness, restlessness) and a slight lift in mood but i'm unsure if that's a placebo effect. i'm just happy to finally be getting started on treated my illness.

I take sertraline hcl (Zoloft) and it's saved my life. I was very suicidal and now I'm just very sleepy. I'm still down sometimes, but not dangerously depressed as I was before. When I was deep in depression I was sleeping a lot, so I have a lot more of my life back now. I just also now have a severe caffeine addiction and take afternoon naps, but that's not so bad.

The worst side effect was severe vertigo when my body was acclimating to the medicine. I'd wake up and feel like I was on an incline, with my head facing downhill, and that I would fall down if I stood up. I also had some issues with not always being able to walk straight without concentrating very hard. I don't think these feelings lasted past 2 weeks, but whenever my dosage changed they'd come back for a bit.

When I was younger, I had a very bad reaction to lexapro. It made me feel worse than I had before and I became a shut in for awhile. My current doctor said that sometimes young bodies react differently to SSRIs and while it may work for me now, we'd give sertraline a shot first. One of my friends started taking lexapro within the past year and he's doing very well in it, but he had awful nightmares when he missed a dose.

Overall, I'm very glad I tried medication. Every body is different and it's good to work with a trusted physician and try to keep negative side effects in mind when you're trying a new medication. If one doesn't work well for you, another might.

>>17956
How are you doing, anon?

>>17962
I don't know how big your pills are, but I use a plastic pocket pill case to carry ibuprofen and it can carry over 30 pills. I bought a 2-pack at Walmart for less than $2 and it's been doing well for me for months. I find the plastic cases stay closed better than the cute metal cases.

I was on fluoxetine (prozac) for a year or so, and it made me really fatigued, plus it killed my libido. I think it helped with the general symptoms of depression, but recently I switched to sertraline (zoloft) and I've found that the latter helps me more with my overall depression and anxiety. One major drawback is that I've lost the ability to orgasm lmao. thanks, ssris.

It's not like the symptoms have disappeared completely, but that's probably because I haven't been in therapy for a year and you're supposed to combine both medication and therapy for proper results.

I've been on at least 3 different anti-depressants. Prozac, Celexa and the third I can't remember since it was such a long time ago. They're fucking horrible and every single one of them completely killed my sex drive. The annoying thing was that I have always struggled more with anxiety and emotional instability than clear-cut depression, but doctors rarely gave me the option for anything else until I started doing my own research and insisted otherwise.

I'm not on any meds now, and thankfully my mental health is mostly under control via a combination of getting away from my abusive mother, breaking up with my shitty ex-boyfriend, eating a relatively balanced diet, exercising and trauma counseling.

I was on Wellbutrin XL (Buproprion) for awhile along with two other medications, one of which was Abilify, for awhile. The last two were meant to stabilize my mood which did help quite a bit, but the antidepressant didn't give me any noticeable side effects, positive or negative. That gave me a very neutral mood, which didn't help with regaining motivation, but I suppose I'm still in a better place emotionally than how I was.

SSRIs aren't a meme, but you shouldn't just jump into them without trying other solutions first, either. Best to only really look into them if your issues are severe enough that nothing else helped. It might take a while to find one that works for you and doesn't fuck you up with side effects. They can help you, but you have to be careful and take it slow, probably slower than you think you'll need.
(None of this is at OP, just anyone who's considering SSRIs or other drugs.)

I've been on escitalopram (Lexapro) for a while (months, I forget exactly how long) and it's really helped me. I'm less suicidal and the future feels less bleak. I'm not crying over nothing every day, my moods don't crash nearly as far, my OCD symptoms improved a lot. Only side effects I've noted are a lower libido, but it's not all that bad. I got mine in liquid form so I could titrate up slowly, would recommend this when possible.
Also take clonazepam, but only occasionally because I'm paranoid about getting dependent. Work well, but starts slowly (half an hour to 45 mins in my experience), so doesn't work so well for something like a panic attack.

On the flip side: I tried fluoxetine (Prozac) for a few months and it gave me awful side effects. I had random episodes of tremors and cold/hot spells that sort of felt like my blood sugar crashing, nausea and diarrhea. This happened multiple times a day. When I tried going off the meds (too quickly, as it turned out), those effects got so bad I couldn't sleep or eat or drink, and I ended up getting sedatives at the hospital. It took over six months for the tremor spells to finally subside after stopping prozac. I don't know if some of it was anxiety or what, but it was the worst time of my life (thus far), I felt awful every day.

Drugs are tricky like that.

Anyone tried Mitazapine here? I've got an appt with the Doc to ask about going on this for my SAD this year. I'm not falling for the SSRI meme again.

I take Prozac for bulimia and depression. It seems to help with my depression, but my urge to binge is still there. I'm still transitioning back into taking them, though, because I foolishly thought I could stop taking them for a couple months.

I seem to be one of the only people I've encountered online who has had success with fluoxetine, though.

Can anyone weigh in re: buspar or any other anti-anxiety med/treatment that is not a benzo?

>>17969
Took it at night to sleep because Effexor wired me up too much. It was very midly effective and made me gain some weight.

>>17972
Thanks for the reply, anon. Oh fuck, was the weight gain through having more of an appetite? I'm in treatment for anorexia atm, I'm trying to gain weight but I still like feeling in control of my eating.

>>17971
okay, i'm gonna start with every drug is different for every person. but i hated buspar. i didn't take it long though, i couldn't. it made me really sick. i started it with wellbutrin since it's not too helpful for anxiety. 15mg once a day. i would take it and 30 mins later i'd get pulsating dizziness when i moved my eyes, had to lie down and let it pass. 30 mins later, the nausea would start. and it was so bad i couldn't move for hours. after that subsided, i'd have a headache for the rest of the day. i went two weeks like this, hoping the side effects would die down. they didn't so i started taking it right before bed. didn't bother me, but didn't help since it has a short half life and it takes weeks to start working. saw my primary doc, he told me to take lower doses throughout the day. 5mg made me sick, even. even after over a month of taking it. so i stopped taking it. currently on no meds for anxiety but i'm seeing my psych next week to hopefully start something else.

buspar seems to be very hit or miss. i read a lot of reviews and some people swear it works great. i just wasn't so lucky i guess

I've been on and off psych meds for a few years, but this is the ffirst time ever that I mix them with alcohol. I've been drinking the whole day. And I'm actually still drinking while typing this. Will I be fine? Anyone knows?
I take lithium and escitalopram in the morning. And should take Clonazepam later tonight. Not sure if I will, but I technically should I guess. If I never get back I'm dead

>>17975
No, so, if you DO read this and haven’t taken the Clonazepam yet, don’t take it all. Benzodiazepines and booze “stack”, they’re a recipe for blackouts.

>>17974
i'm this anon. i mentioned going to see my psych for anxiety meds. honestly i do want benzos, they seem to be the best for managing panic attacks. i know all the risks and yada yada, but my psych reeeeally doesn't want to prescribe them. i'm a bit frustrated but i understand his reasoning.

anyway, he started me on vistaril. looked it up when i got home and i read it's basically prescription benadryl? read it mostly knocks people out. has anyone had any experience with this med?

>>17976
ty, kind anon. I didn't take it, I just crashed in bed. I feel really awful today

My doctor today started me on Latuda and I'm kind of scared about it. He gave me a bunch of samples for the month, I've had bad reactions on AP drugs before so I'm not holding my breath but I looked up the prices for it to see if there was any generic (there's not) and HOOOOLY shit. It's ~$1700 without insurance and with insurance it will still be in the hundreds and I'm unemployed right now. I'm taking it as I'm supposed to but is it messed up that I'm almost hoping it doesn't work? Because the thought of trying to afford it is giving me massive anxiety.

I almost feel like the fear alone might cure my depression. Well ok not really but you feel me?

>>17978
Glad you checked back in, Anon! Yeah, that can be one hell of a combo. If you know you’re going to have a couple drinks in advance, keep a 24-to-36 hour skip (depending on dosage/frequency) in mind for the Clonazepam next time. I hope you feel better soon. <3

How did you guys know that you needed to take pills? I feel like something is wrong with me, but I don't know if it's that severe or if I'm exaggerating.

I feel an extreme lack of motivation and have pretty bad social anxiety, to the point where I don't want or have friends. I wasn't like this in grade school, but when high school started I became a lot more reclusive. I used to do all my assignments a week before they were due, but now I can barely finish 30 minutes ahead. But I assume lots of people do this too.

Talking to someone new makes my heart race and I constantly think about dropping out of college because this year is heavy with presentations and public speaking. Every time something hard happens, I think if I fail I'll just kill myself. But everyone has intrusive thoughts, right? I find it hard to study or do anything due to my lack of motivation, but that might just be because I'm a lazy piece of shit. Not due to depression or anything.

I think pretty negatively about myself and I don't think I'm capable of much. I always assume everyone else is more capable than me. I have pretty low self-confidence/self esteem. I feel like I'm always wrong about everything or do everything wrong (which I do), but it's because I overthink everything. I'll be given the smallest responsibility or project and I'll think about it for constantly rather than actually work towards finishing it. I'll just sit there and stress about it until my heart races again and I start crying. How do you know when you really need help and when it's just your personality or something?

also, fuck I deleted and reposted this 3 times because I over thought about it too.

>>17981
shoutout to snot girlll

I was on antidepressants as a teenager for four years and never felt a difference on or off them even when they kept upping the dosage and trying different brands. I quit cold turkey when I got a boyfriend because that was the whole reason I was depressed in the first place and never even experienced any side effects from suddenly stopping them.

>>17979
There's a bit of hope yet! I did a cursory search because I thought I remembered them from when I worked in a pharmacy, but google "latuda coupon." The company itself seems to be offering one. Goodrx is another valid coupon site, but usually you have to run that coupon solo, not alongside insurance. I can't guarantee that any of these will work for you (because of the small print, etc etc), but it's worth a shot, especially if you've managed to find a med that works for you!!

This goes for all brand name meds, btw!! Always check for a manufacturer coupon!

I was diagnosed with depression when I was a teen, it's been almost a decade living with that and it's the only super official diagnosis I have but I definitely also have social and general anxiety that has steadily increased over the years and comes and goes in shit waves depending on my level of depression and stress. Rounding out my mental issues are SEVERE body dysmorphia and an on and off eating disorder also for about a decade, like 90% bulimia unfortunately. I was on Zoloft 50-100mg for a good 7 years, weaned off of it with Prozac and went without meds for a while, had the WORST mental breakdown/ identity crisis of my entire life and am now accepting that my chemical imbalance makes living without meds not an option for me personally; I've been on Wellbutrin 300mg for the last few months and HOLY SHIT I have never been more grateful for medication in my life.

being on the right medication for you really makes a difference in bettering the quality of living a life with a mental illness. and i really wish I had known that earlier and not settled for being on an SSRI so long-term and thinking that its side effects were just part of my personality or things I had to accept. Like, on zoloft, I was already a lethargic, downer person to begin with, and instead of helping me with motivation it only stagnated me, made me feel like "well, I don't really wanna do anything, but I also don't want to kill myself so I guess that's good enough". it fucked my metabolism, made me gain and lose and gain and lose in college, made my eating disorder a million times worse because i binge to fill an emotional void and all I felt on that pill was an endless void. I obviously can't blame everything on zoloft, but I also really want to warn against meds of this nature for people who it wouldn't be a good fit for. don't settle for something you feel isn't working for you, especially something that gives you INTENSE crippling head rush/ brain zaps/ vertigo if god forbid you try to wean off of it or forget to take it for more than one day. and be careful with using SSRIs long-term.

to contrast that, I've only been on wellbutrin recently and am already feeling exponentially better. they say it helps to know if you have other mentally ill family members that have meds that worked for them, and wellbutrin also worked for my mom who has had virtually the exact same set of disorders as me. the breakdowns and self-hatred fueled panic attacks still happen, but I'm more likely to come out of them okay, faster, and feeling like i can overcome the obstacle. I've already lost weight and feel a more suppressed appetite/ have literally no desire to binge anymore so this might be the thing that helps to stop my ED for good. I ACTUALLY feel motivated and can push my feelings of inferiority at school/ the future to the side in a way where they don't absolutely destroy me like they used to. i don't oversleep, my sex drive has finally come back, i have a normal person's energy levels again, and i'm a little more aware of what's just in my head versus how other people see things. meds are not a cure-all, but the right med/ dosage will actually do its job when you finally find it.

>>17981 I'm a LOT like you anon! lack of motivation and social anxiety are really tiring to deal with every day, when you wish you could better yourself but hate yourself so deeply and for so many reasons that you feel it isn't even worth it to start because you're 'already so behind everyone'. same with that weird procrastination where it isn't even a FUN kind of slacking off, it's just an uncontrollable, unmovable sitting there not doing the thing and worrying about it not getting done until you only have enough time to rush and barely finish it. i'm about to graduate college relatively soon, with nothing to show for my years of slacking my way through, nothing of worth to add to my portfolio. only recently have I had the strength to really try and feel motivated to better myself and to graduate feeling that I did as much as I could handle doing with a year of catching up. I'm trying to be easier on myself and look at growing from the perspective that everyone succeeds at things and learns things at a different pace, doing it slowly (and especially because of mental illnesses we didn't ask for!) does not invalidate it as long as you're still going at all. also what helped me the most were a combination of the right medication for me, semi-regular therapy, finding new friends (even just one good one!), and realizing how much my boyfriend, family and friends really DO care about me and that i'm worthy and valid as a person to do what I want and need to do in my life. keep going, you'll find a way! I wish the best for you, and for all of us in this thread. depression is fucking hard, and as corny and cringe as this may come off as, just the fact that we are all still here and living our lives with it/ despite it shows strength and resilience. keep goin :-)

is gin tonic an antidepressant?

>>17986
No. Please don't poison yourself, anon.

>>17986
Alcohol is a depressant.

I tried to use it to fix my problems, was an alcoholic, and ruined my and others' lives.

I quit cold turkey two weeks ago and feel so much better, even though it's really hard to face all the problems I've made sober.

Do yourself a favor and don't even go down that road.

I've got a cocktail to r8.

>Paxil
0/10; did little to help anxiety, gained 15 kg and started to sweat profusely. also felt dopey and sleepy all the time.

>Prozac
5/10 sort of took the edge off depression. caused bad insomnia, though

>Wellbutrin
2/10 sort of help for a limited time but stopped and had to take twice the dose which screwed up my sleeping pattern

Xanax
2/10 only worked for anxiety 50% of the time or less; tried not to take it too often because of addictiveness

Trintellix
6/10
helped for a few years, no longer suicidal but had to double the dose this year due to tolerance

anti depressants are evil in a way I can't even speak about. the evil that they are suppresses all understanding, all progression, all struggle. to kill misery is to kill humanity. dissatisfaction is blood and it's draining out. the future of anti-depressants and birth control pills is less-than-human, mechanical, without chance, entirely ordered, and without god. god only lives in the unexpected. the pills kill all that is unexpected.

>>17988
I know this is an old post and all, but i don't think depressant means what you think it means in this context.
Hint: a depressant is not the opposite of an antidepressant.

>>17991
it's not?

>>17992
I know you're probably not from the same country as I am, but please please tell me that they still teach this stuff in school. Understanding this sort of stuff while you're younger, ignorant, and most at risk of dangerous drug use just generally makes everyone safer.

I'm on Mirtazapine 30mg, it really sucks at first because it makes you so out of it and zombie-like but once you get used to the dose i feel like it's helped me. Like, compared to other anti-depressants I've been on (SSRI's mainly) those just made me lethargic and I wanted to sleep all the time but with these it's less of a 'tired' feeling more of a content, peace-like feeling. It's partly a tranquilliser and I've literally never felt so chill in my whole life. Only downside is the slight weight gain but it's mainly water weight, just control what you're actually eating and you should be okay. 10/10 would recommend.

I feel like this is appropriate to post here.
So my DUMBASS made a appointment to a psychologist to try and get on antidepressants. I should have been looking for a psychiatrists. I dont fucking understand the difference.

>>17995
Psychologist listens to your problems , trys to work through your emotional issues with you , etc . They can't prescribe medicine and are usually very sympathetic and good listeners . Psychiatrist is a medical doctor who will look for other causes like brain tumours , hormonal problems , etc . They evaluate you and write scripts that compliment their diagnosis . They usually don't mess about and play their cards close to their chest with you . They have the power to section you and also perform quite intrusive therapies on you like shock treatment . It's best to stay on their good side .

It is important to get a correct diagnosis.

SSRIs did nothing for me. Depakote, a mood stabilizer, has markedly helped me with the crazy, racing thoughts I get which made me depressed as a result.

I still cry quite a bit, but nothing insane like it was (episodes of weeping to the point where I could barely be in public) and these episodes now tend to be seemingly at random. I need to talk more with my psychiatrist to see if I need something else.

I have some sort of personality disorder (either bipolar or BPD but I think BPD is more likely), depression, and OCD.

>>17996
Thanks for the descriptions.
I'm ready for a psychiatrist. Fuck me up fam.

I finally did it I went on medication.
I am on duloxetine for depression and anxiety. I've only just finished my first month on a two month trail. But I feel better an less like dying all the time. It's been really helping. Although it not helping with the brain sluggishness as much as I would like. I still get suicidal thoughts but it's more like a passing thought, like a brief comment, and not something I am heavily fixated on. But I'm not as anxious anymore and constantly filled with fear. I am not panicking over every slightest mistake. Or freaking out constantly.
The best part is that I am not breaking down and crying my eyes out for hours and I'm generally less moody.
My boyfriend has notice a improvement in my mood and seems to be enjoying being around me more. He seems a lot more affectionate.
Some side affects that I don't like are that they make me incredibly tired. My brain feels kind of heavy. Time seems to move incredibly slow. And oddly my face gets numb and tingles. And when I started it was kind of awkward but I couldn't stop smiling, I don't do that anymore.

>>17985
I’m the same way with the useless procrastination/motivation I hate myself

I take an NDRI (bupropion/wellbutrin xl 300 mg), not an SSRI. I got put on cipralex (an SSRI) initially, which made all my symptoms worse.

I can notice its effects if I forget to take it for a day or two; I get very lethargic, my sinuses feel swollen, and I feel all of the guilt that I have suppressed. I also become incredibly hungry (Wellbutrin is used as an appetite suppressant).

The only problems that I have with it are that it causes tinnitus and hand tremors. It also heightens my anxiety level, but that's relatively okay. It also makes me more prone to seizures and I'm not supposed to have alcohol with it, but I don't really care about that and drink normally anyway.


>Are SSRIs a meme?
Can't say, but my NDRI appears to be working.
>Did they help?
Yes, I don't think I would be where I am today without it.
>How long did it take for the supposed effects to kick in?
I'd say 3-5 weeks.
>Did you experience severe adverse effects or weight gain?
I experienced a lot of weight loss, which I loved.

>>18001
I forgot that I also get super dizzy on it, but I have low blood pressure and poor coordination anyway so that isn't a big deal.