Do antidepressants help?

Posted , 11 users are following.

Hello all you strong ladies.....i have posted this question before about 4 months ago but i am just so tired of feeling this horrible and i feel like i just cant take it anymore! I feel like i just want to die! I always feel sick, dizzy and anxious (to the point where i dont leave my house!), i cant eat and ive lost so much weight, when i do finally get to eat for like 1 or 2 days it all comes back again hardcore, my gut and stomach are always gurgling! and now im beginning to get so depressed cause im trapped in this hell! I havent had a period since February. I tried taking Zoloft 2 years ago and i only lasted for one month on it, I hated the side effects cause it also made me feel sick alot, gave me bad headaches, and twitches but it did calm down the anxiety. Has anyone taken an antidepressant and it actually did help after being on it for over 3 months? Another worry i have is it will help with the depression and anxiety for awhile and then it will stop working then i will have to go through withdrawals on top of everything else!

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32 Replies

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  • Posted

    I have been taking Venlafaxine (Effexor) for almost a year and it's been a life saver for me. It has calmed down my anxiety, mood swings and hot flashes. If you decide to try it, take it slowly; work the doses up slowly. I found my perfect dose at 150 mg. Everyone is different as to what will work for them.

    • Posted

      Thank u i need to hear about people who have had some success with it! I know its no miracle cure but any little bit helps to relieve the torture!

  • Posted

    yes they do!! when your estrogen lowers dueing peri and menopause it drops hour serotonin.

    • Posted

      Thanks! im really considering it i just need to encouragement to stick with it as it takes a long time to help & not to mention side effects!

  • Posted

    Hi Brandy,,, I just started amitrptaline well let you no Im on day 5 and seem to feel alittle happier this morning usually I can't even smile until noon since these hormones have hit with all the sleepless nights....

    • Posted

      hello...yes please do let me know! I did the blood test to see what antidepressant i can take and zoloft, Lexapro & Celexa are the only ones i can take. Keep me informed!

    • Posted

      Hi Beverly...how is your antidepressant working for you now? Has it helped your symptoms, how is your appetite on it?

    • Posted

      Are you still on your antidepressant? Has it helped any and has it caused any bad side effects? I still havent started mine yet im too scared

    • Posted

      brandy - i have to tell you im 80% cured and its all because of an antidepressant called mirtazapine that i take along side escitalopram (its called remeron in the us) it is very different to other ssri antidepresssnts and is often used along side them as they boost each other. All i can say is the nausea has gone a week after taking it, my appetite is back! and my anxiety is 60% gone, plus im sleeping like baby (it helps with this to so must be taken at night) you dont need high doses either - im only on 15mg per day along with 10mg of escitalipram - which has also kicked in now ive started the mirtazapine after 5 weeks - i can not tell you how great it feels to want to eat again and not feel sick all the time !!!! maybe could look into it, hope that helps xxxx

    • Posted

      Karen...im so glad you are feeling better!! Unfortunately i have tried remeron at least 4 times in the past five years and i kept having allergic reactions to it, i had blood tests to see what antidepressant i can take and remeron us not safe for me. I can only take zoloft, prozac, wellbutrin, lexapro & celexa.....ironically all if the ones that can actually cause nausea & loss of appetite! Life is cruel to me...but im so glad you are feeling good...enjoy it my friend!!

    • Posted

      oh no, its a shame as it has definitely fixed me, im am sure that you have an issue regarding seratonin and your receptors being messsed up because of hormones - zoloft was awful for me, didnt work at all, but both lexapro and prozac have worked though you have to make sure you are at a theraputic dose, and they do cause nausea but what have you got to lose if you have nausea already?? wellbrutin is different class of AD I hear, ive read many times that it worked when nothing else did and had little side effects - maybe try that one? im determined to help you!!!

  • Posted

    Hi Brandy,

    I started this peri hell about 5 years ago. I knew it would be a rollercoaster. I just hadn't expected for the coaster to get stuck at the bottom of a hill in a long dark tunnel.

    I finally gave up and requested help from my primary doc. I have been on Celexa 20 mg a day since then. I started to see light reaching me again after just 2 weeks. I feel so blessed we got both the med and the dose right on the first try.

    I still have bad days, but they are cyclical again, more like the "old me", instead of being a never-ending slog through the bottom of the deepest trench.

    The first few days you may feel a little odd...maybe some headache, maybe thoughts jumping around. Maybe less bloating even, which at first feels odd. Kinda like when a wound is healing and you can feel some tingle or itch or sensation where the healing is happening.

    I didnt want to try AD's but I am so glad the doc persisted in educating me about positive experiences his patients had.

    I hope you find what works for you. It can be life-saving.

    Let me know if you want more details. Happy to share.

    Sara

    • Posted

      hello sara, thank you for the detailed reply. i have been prescribed 25mg of zoloft but im just so scared to take it. The last time i took it i had some pretty bad effects and i lost weight cause i didnt have an appetite. If i knew it would eventually start working i would risk the side effects. This hormone hell has been so awful! I get dizzy, nauseated, and then depression sets in cause of how bad i feel. I want this to be over 😦

    • Posted

      Yes, this whole experience is a nightmare...

      Is there a specific reason the Dr stuck with Zoloft for you, instead of something different this time?

      I understand about being hesitant to try the same one again if the first run wasn't pleasant.

      hang in there, we're all here to listen when you need it.

    • Posted

      yes i did the blood test to see what antidepressants i can take and there are only three, but the dna genetic technician said i should really just take the zoloft cause it is the only one my body can process properly

    • Posted

      Hey sara how are you doing on your antidepressant? Is it still helping and has your sick days gotten better? Has your appetite gotten better?

    • Posted

      Hi Brandy,

      Overall, the AD has helped my appetite, yes. And has helped me keep in touch with the positive things in life, instead of staying stuck in dark tunnels, unable to plan my way out.

      I am having a rough patch right this minute, not with the AD, but with antinflammatories I'm on for back pain. They mess with my digestion, which effects my appetite too. My back is improving slowly with physical therapy, so hope to be off those soon.

      How are you getting on these days?

    • Posted

      Im still not well....still contemplating that ADs, thats why i was curious how you were doing. Ive been constantly sick for 4 days and cant stomach any food 😦

    • Posted

      Oh Brandy, I am so sorry!!! Can you stomach teas at all? My Mom swears by peppermint tea when she has a bad stomach, and I've had good luck with lemon ginger tea.

      Also french onion soup without the cheese on top, with a few saltines... has helped me feel like i've accomplished eating something on the bad days.

      My sister had a terrible time with sickness when she last had endometriosis surgery... she had good luck with the BRAT diet... bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. She would eat little bits of those things through the day and was able to keep it down... that helped the appetite.

      Praying we can find one thing to help your stomach, then build on that success!!

    • Posted

      Yep been drinking tea and i try to get down peanut butter & crackers or a peanut butter sandwich here or there but it isnt enough to keep weight on. That is the only problem with the brat diet, i dont want to lose any more weight. im so scared im going to wither to nothing and im so scared nobody will believe me and think its a stupid eating disorder! If i dont eat at all then they assume its anorexia, if i force food abd it makes me throw up they think its bulimia! Nobody that knows me has ever had a problem with pms or perimenopause causing sickness like this so they dont get it. So besides being stressed out by what its doing to me on a daily basis i have to worry about other people around me talking about me or worse trying to put me in a hospital for an eating disorder cause they are so clueless!

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