What was your best and worst Antidepressant?

J

Jester

Member
Best - Nardil. Has saved my life, literally. And it's also changed my life, as I'm now a social beast with no anxiety. Amazing.

Worst - Every other anti-depressant I tried was equally useless, but Cymbalta takes the cake because it had the most side effects/and the typically atrocious SNRI withdrawal.
 
Slytherin88

Slytherin88

Well-known member
started on zoloft and had a very quick up (like 2 weeks) then crashed really bad. then was switched to venlafaxine which is called effexor in Australia. This has been the best one, even though it is pricey and very hard to come off, or even if you accidentally miss a day you feel on deaths door. In Aus it is in capsule form with the little balls inside, and I never had a problem with it (bedside the coming off it) until I came to the UK and it was in tablet form and this was easier to come off of, however when on it had anorgasmia and felt sluggish and different to the capsules. I don't know if thats just me and my brain doing weird things or the actual drug chemistry is different.
 
girlinthecorner

girlinthecorner

Active member
I have had the worst reaction to Prozac and Risperodone. I was taking them at the same time and they increased my anxiety x 100. I felt as if I were high on drugs. It was really bad. I had the worst anxiety attack of my life while taking those and I was only taking them for two weeks. I had to go to the hospital because I was having such a bad reaction. I couldn't stop shaking, biting the insides of my mouth and my arms and legs went numb. My psychiatrist actually told me that it wasn't the medicine, that it was just me and my emotions, so I trusted him and kept taking the medication, but it was definitely the medicine because I started feeling so much better after I stopped taking it. Also I had completely forgot that I had taken prozac and risperodone before years ago and had a bad reaction back then too, just not as bad as this time.
I've tried others like Zoloft and Paxil and I didn't have a good or bad reaction to them.
 
W

Whoopdeedoo

Well-known member
Paxil worked well for 7 yrs
But than stopped working
Than I worked the gammet of ssri s which just seemed to not work
So tried an maoi - nardil
It worked a little while
Than not so much
Marajuana works well but makes you a bit ditzy and forgetful
Not to mention its still illegal here ,expensive and work to obtain
Binge drinking helps
Shopping helps
Great sex helps
But all these things have a cost and side effects
I think loves the Answer but thats hard to find & keep too
 
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E

Earthcircle

Well-known member
Best: Nardil

Worst: Prozac

I also took Zoloft, Desyrel, and Efexor. Nardil was the best simply because I was able to stay on it for well over a year. But it disinhibited me so much, I was really a **** with people. It was like Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. Prozac was the worst because, once it kicked in after a month, I was derealizing very badly. I felt like I was on another planet.
 
E

Earthcircle

Well-known member
girlinthecorner said:
My psychiatrist actually told me that it wasn't the medicine, that it was just me and my emotions, so I trusted him and kept taking the medication, but it was definitely the medicine because I started feeling so much better after I stopped taking it.
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It's remarkable how psychiatrists will do this. I think it is a defense mechanism; they can't admit, not even to themselves, that the therapies might cause harm. They also tend to see the patient as crazy, anyway.
 
E

Earthcircle

Well-known member
Lonelykitsune said:
I've never tried any but I want to
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Best of luck. I think they're dangerous, and psychiatrists will misconstrue really dangerous side effects as just your mental illness. Given the horrible state of mind you will be in, you will be lucky if you can think your way out of it.
 
L

Lavinialuna

Well-known member
I didn't really have much of a depression problem, mostly anxiety- but they kept trying to treat me with antidepressants. What happens when I take them is that they solve the anxiety, but cause me depression :eek:

Next they tried to put me on all kinds of things like depakote, gabapetin and others. I was to a point where the depression was so bad and every time they increased the dose I got worse- to the point where I was suicidal. I decided to just stop taking them (because they weren't working) and boom, depression cleared up. Yes, the anxiety came back, but between anxiety and feeling like I wanted to die I think I will choose anxiety. There is medicine for anxiety. They don't love giving people anxiety medication, but in my case it's my only option. Not only did my suicidal tendencies go away, but my debilitating migraines stopped after I discontinued antidepressants. You couldn't pay me to take them again, although I realize that for some, they are life savers.
Diet change and yoga have done more for me than any pills my Dr's have tried to dole out for depression.
 
lyricalliaisons

lyricalliaisons

Well-known member
I've only been on 3. Lexapro, the one I'm currently on, is the best and Wellbutrin was the worst. Celexa was good but made me tired a lot.

EDIT: WHY? Well, Lexapro works just as good as the Celexa but without all the tiredness and the Wellbutrin made me VERY anxious and irritable.
 
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E

Earthcircle

Well-known member
cocorose said:
The worst has been any medication I ever took.

I have found the best medication is good friends, eating healthy & getting excercise, laughing alot, and the one important thing is being surrounded by good people who lift your spirits and staying away from negativity. If you just try to stop the negative self-talk and try to stay positive, even though it is hard, just take it one step at a time. I found that that is better than any medicine you can take. And no side effects. :)
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Unfortunately, I would have to agree. Why did I say "unfortunately"? Because finding people has been the main challenge in my life all along. I've been isolated for nearly five full decades now.

P.S. And note that, for decades, wisdom had it that the best treatment was free associating about childhood trauma. Many still believe this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mkin1FhojCo
 
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edwardcejka

Banned
You feel better right away,You experience no relief from depression symptoms after a few months,You feel a sudden surge of energy,Your depression gets deeper,You’re having violent mood swings.
 
awkwardamanda

awkwardamanda

Well-known member
lyricalliaisons said:
I've only been on 3. Lexapro, the one I'm currently on, is the best and Wellbutrin was the worst. Celexa was good but made me tired a lot.

EDIT: WHY? Well, Lexapro works just as good as the Celexa but without all the tiredness and the Wellbutrin made me VERY anxious and irritable.
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Hmm. I've been on citalopram (generic Celexa) for the past three months and I had a month of Cipralex (escitalopram; Canadian name for Lexapro) before that. I can get the Celexa free, but the Cipralex is only covered by private insurance, which I don't have because I don't have a job. My doctor had a card for a month free of Cipralex (which is her first choice) and they're similar and easy to switch between, so that was the plan. Too bad I couldn't have just stayed on the good stuff. I'm less anxious and I'm in a better mood for the most part, but it made me kinda tired too. (Ok, I don't quite get enough sleep, but I think I get more now than I used to.) It's not that I'm drowsy all day; I just get tired sooner at night. And it hits me like a ton of bricks. I'm fine one minute and then all of a sudden I'm ready to crash. I'm normally a night owl. I used to be wired at night. I was most productive around 2-3 AM. I wasn't just up late pissing around. I honestly got more accomplished late at night than during the day. Now I don't get that anymore and I kinda miss it. (That's when I got the most work done on my job search. Of course, it was the job searching that was making me depressed and anxious, so now I feel better but I'm less productive. Go figure.) I was really hoping these things would give me more energy but unfortunately that has not been the case.
 
S

sunny404

Member
The best--Wellbutrin (though I do have some gastrointestinal side effects); also Prozac worked well for a while but seemed to stop

The worst--antipsychotics. Risperdal was awesome for about a week, then made me incredibly dizzy while driving. Abilify was also great for a time, but then I was just left with a 30 pound weight gain and a sedated feeling.
 
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