Coming off anti depressants after 20+ years

bright_side

Has anyone here successfully come off anti depressants, or know someone who has, after being on them (very) long term? For many years I have been in a state of acceptance that I would need them all of my life after being told so by a doctor, however I feel now that I would like to try to 'go it alone', so have recently decreased my dose. Please understand that I am not asking for medical advice in any way shape or form, I'm just interested in other peoples experiences.

puddy

some are easier than others. i was on seroxat and it was a nightmare the few times i tried to come off them, then at some point i felt they were not working for me and then some months later, realised i kept forgetting to take them, so wondered if i could just do it cold turkey and i did

seroxat are the hardest to come off, out of the ssri versions, because they have a very short half life, i believe that prozac has the longest half life so the symptoms are not as bad

bear in mind its not withdrawal, its just your brain adjusting the levels of seratonin and other chemicals back to normal, so you'll feel a bit odd

does your dr recommend you come off them?

have you written out a plan, like reducing them slowly?

System

Ive been on antis for 2 years now. I tried to come off them around Christmas, managed to stay off them for 3 months before going back on them in March.

All the old feelings of depression and lack of self worth came flooding back which i found very hard to cope with.

the_girl_you_once_knew

Although I haven't been here personally, I just wanted to wish you luck and maybe give you some helpful advice. Firstly, I think it's great that you want to do this. I think it's easy to believe that you will need them forever and to forget that there are other options.

I suppose it depends on why you where put on them in the first place, but I think it's good that you are trying to decrease the dose. Have you spoken to your doctor? They will be able to give you the best advice on how to do it properly. If you don't feel supported by your doctor, don't be afraid to get a second opinion.

Have you considered counselling instead? I think this can do amazing things for people, particularly if you are decreasing your anti-depressants as you will need some support.

And I would definitely get friends and family involved if you can. You can never have too much support

I'm not sure if I've helped at all but I wish you the best of luck, and you can come here anytime you need to talk

x

charlieann

although decreasing your dose slowly rather than completely stopping would be the better way to approach it, i wouldn't do it without medical advise/supervision.
go back to your doctors or a different doctor and tell them you intend to come off them so they can monitor your progress and make sure you don't slip back.
have you been offered alternative treatments/ management of depression rather than just meds. meds IMO just mask the feelings and dont address the issues. i was asked kept a mood diary and noted down key events, what i had eaten and feelings. it gave me a lot more control over the situations and I could see what triggered low periods and was able to manage them better.

cottonhead

Hope you dont mind me posting as I have not been in this situation personally but a friend has. She decided on her own that she wanted to stop 'relying' on pills and just stopped taking them without telling anyone. She changed over a few days from relaxed to moody and snappy and very anxious. She clearly needed them and stopping put her further back in her recovery than she was before.
If you really feel its time then speak to your GP to come up with a strategy. Dont feel down on yourself if you do need to carry on taking them. Some people do for a very long time and its nothing to be ashamed of.

fluffnutter

People often try to come off them too quickly without adequate support in place. Some are easier than others in terms of physically stopping (as pud's already said seroxat are a nightmare!) so it's critically important that ceasing an anti-depressant regime is done with the knowledge of your GP. Even if it's 'time' to come off them, some degree of rebound anxiety is likely, even if this is mainly psychosomatic.

The GP also needs to assess whether the underlying causes of depression have been resolved or at least come to terms with. If not, how can you expect stopping the pills to help?

AbbieCadabra

i took fluoxetine/prozac for over 8 years & had psychotherapy on & off for over 5 years during that time. under doc's supervision i decided i was well enough to try living without them & she started reducing my dose (i was taking 40mg daily at that time, had been on 60mg for a time previously). i think it took about 6 months to finally end them & my therapy ended a few months after that.

that was around 2 years ago now & things have been on a reasonably even keel since. i still have periods of being depressed but i'm recognising it now & trying to do something about it at the time, when possible, instead of it completely overwhelming me.

sometimes it's not possible for me to fight it though & i just give in! the difference being now that i understand what triggers it, sometimes, & i actually allow myself to be less than 100% instead of beating myself up about it. sounds weird i know but it's what works for me.

i've had a lot going on for the past 6 weeks or so & have really struggled, i've definitely considered if i need the pills again but i'm just about keeping my head above water & saying 'no' to that one at the moment. really want to avoid it if i can, i know the pills definitely helped when i was at my worse (curled in a ball for about 6 months & completely incapable of anything), but when you are off them, i realised just how numb they made me feel.

doc's supervision & as much support as you need is the way to go

Judith_W

This time of year is apparently good, with the sunlight etc it is easier to cope than in the midst of winter. Just whatever you do, don't come off them without talking to a doctor. The reason you feel you can come off them is because they are doing their job, make sure you come off them really slowly, and always in consultation with your GP.

Racheldevon

Hi
Just wanted to echo the comments about doing so with your GP support/supervision. Also, it will be important to address the underlying root cause of the depression through either counselling/psychotherapy/IAPT/clinical psychology services, which if you haven't already done so I would strongly consider.
Best of luck to you

emerald21

I ve just come off prescribed ones after 15 years or so. I had seroxat, citalopram then another type. I felt it was about time i came off them so i did it gradually over several months halving the dose then halving again etc till the whooshy sensations in my head finally stopped. However after struggling for a month or so without i felt i needed something so i ve just started on some from Holland and Barrett. Mind you i do have issues in my life which make me in not a very nice place. In fact its my birthday today and despite seeing all my kids and grand children i still feel sad. Its not very nice is it.