Coming off anti depressants after 20+ years

bright_side

No anti depressant I have been on has ever stopped me thinking. I am a serious over-thinker and that is something that has increased with age as I try to understand myself (and other people) more, however I have trained myself to 'get up and get on with things' so that it doesn't bring me down. I AM a different person now to the one I was even 6 years ago let alone 21 years ago.

For me they have never taken away my issues, just given me the emotional strength to try to sort them out.

rita-rabbit

What about mindfulness?

http://www.thehappinesstrap.com/

I am studying counselling & found this very useful (no surprises that us students to be practitioners have our own issues which have come out whilst taking turns on each other!).

when_will_it_end

hi all
its been 15 years for me on seroxat
i tried a few times to come off them once i was so so close but the side effects were horendous sp?

i went from 40ml to 20 to 10, then went on the liquid got down to 2 ml but it was not to be

i would suggest putting a plan in place
search for a locl support group
change ur diet you need brain food and some vitmin supliment they help alot
it doesnt matter how slow you decrease the tablet, i did it 1ml week/2 weeks from the liquis stage, the slower you do the lesser effects an the more chance of success
keep a diary of your feelings, if you have a down day you can look back at days/weeks where you felt good see what the trigger may have been
last inform your doctor give him a copy of your plan
dont rush, they say a month for every year apparently

good luck, maybe i may try again my self, doctor wants me on amitriptaline as its a pain surpresser as well but i am so scarred of feeling the way i do if i miss a dose

Savvy_Sue

There have been some studies showing links between depression and Vitamin D deficiency, so it could be worth asking your GP to check your status, and / or supplementing yourself. The RDA for Vit D could well be too low, based on the amount of sunshine people get in the southern hemisphere rather than a UK summer ...

when_will_it_end

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

There have been some studies showing links between depression and Vitamin D deficiency, so it could be worth asking your GP to check your status, and / or supplementing yourself. The RDA for Vit D could well be too low, based on the amount of sunshine people get in the southern hemisphere rather than a UK summer ...

i agree with you there sue, i took vitamin D, E an C, i also took omega supliments, there are different ones so not sure which one, i also changed my diet to a high protien one, i do think it helped alot, its amazing what just changing your diet can do

This is the money saving bit, join the boots club the one that gets you money off vitmins and wait till they have an offer on them i saved loads doing it this way

bright_side

Well it's 2 weeks today since I reduced my dose, still early days, but so far apart from some strange headaches and some really random dreams, I'm feeling no different

Dawning

Hi Karen, sounds as if you're doing well.

I went on seroxat 20 years ago. Had a lot of side effects including gaining weight very fast (I was already about a stone overweight). Doctor switched me to something else, can't remember what. Then I went onto citalopram. I found with that, if I forgot to take it one day, I'd feel very dizzy and spacey the next day. Stayed on that for years. Then I felt I was no longer getting any benefit from. I asked the GP if I could come off it and I was also told I would need to be on AD's for life. That was about 10 years ago, I'm wondering if that was the standard advice they were giving then? Anyway, I then tried sertraline. That made me so tired and lethargic I hardly left my flat for about 3 months. So GP switched me to edronax which turned me so angry I was scared I was going to harm someone.So I came off that and back to Citalopram. This was all several years. I eventually tapered myself off the Citalopram and haven't taken any AD's for a few years. I felt ok for a while but it's becoming apparent that I'm sliding back down again now and have been for some time... So I think I need meds again.

For people who've had a major depressive episode, I think it's important to recognise your own signs that you may be slipping down again so that you can catch it before it gets too severe again. I'm not very good at doing that, I know my own signs but always think 'Oh I'll feel better tomorrow' and of course, tomorrow never comes.

Good luck Karen, and everyone else who is struggling with depression.

Dawning

krlyr wrote: »

If you were taking insulin for diabetes, would you feel the need to wean yourself off it after 20 years just to "go it alone"? I would question whether you have a medical need for antidepressants, e.g. a chemical imbalance that physically causes depression. If that's the case then antidepressants are no different to the insulin for diabetes, anti-inflammatories for arthritis, or other medications.

That's the exact comparison my GP gave me when I talked about coming off them about 10 years ago.
I have just had a quick look at the patient information leaflet produced by NICE for depression. It doesn't say anywhere that AD's must only be used short term. It says that depending on the type and severity of depression they should be taken for at least 6 months. That is what my GP told me years ago when I was first diagnosed.
For more serious depressioin at least 2 years. It doesn't mention any maximum time, in fact it gives me the impression that those of us who have had more than one episode of severe depression should continue taking them for life. I know that mine is caused by chemical imbalance so it does sound as if my GP gave me the correct advice. (Also, I've moved house several times and have had several different GPs since I was first diagnosed 20+ years ago, and they've all told me the same thing).

As I said, I've tried and done well for quite a few years off them, but I fear it's now time for me to get back on them. :mad:

bright_side

It's coming up for a month now since I reduced and I have to say I am amazed that I feel no different whatsover. I think I will leave it another month and if I'm still doing ok, will speak to GP about reducing again

pink68

karen23 wrote: »

It's coming up for a month now since I reduced and I have to say I am amazed that I feel no different whatsover. I think I will leave it another month and if I'm still doing ok, will speak to GP about reducing again

I think the thing is just to take it really slowly like you're doing. I have been on fluoxetine several times and each time made the decision myself that I had enough of them. I reduced them really slowly. even to the extent of increasing the hours between does rather than the days. So to start with I took my usual dose six hours later than normal, so I was taking it every thirty hours, then after a week or two every thirty six hours, then eventually every forty eight hours.

it was long winded but it worked. Now I realise if i have a bad day i'm best to keep out of everyones way and take to my bed if necessary. The next day is nearly always better.

good luck