Medications that did/didn't work for you

[everydayiloveyou]

For anyone who's been on meds, what have you been diagnosed with, and which meds worked for you? What didn't work? Did you go to therapy or experience a traumatic event throughout your course of meds that could have affected their effectiveness?

I'm technically "depressed" as in that's part of my diagnosis, but tbh I'm a happy person, my social anxiety is just severe. The pain and stress it causes me makes me extremely sad, which is a normal human reaction. Much like how people in solitary confinement go crazy not because they are naturally inclined to be crazy, but because it's a situation that stresses out anyone.

I'm thinking of asking for Wellbutrin or benzos to at least limit the anticipatory anxiety I get when doing my daily tasks. I really want to try MAOIs before I ctb, I hear they are the solution for pure SA, but I think my psychiatrist will be too cautious to prescribe it before I lose my benefits. So far Zoloft 50 mg has no effect on me aside from nausea and aches in my first couple weeks.

details about side effects/other potentially relevant info would be great!

 

[TheGreatEscape]

Zoloft worked great for me. It truly blocked me from completing suicidal thoughts. But I realized I would rather have suicidal ideation than deal with the sexual side effects.

i took Wellbutrin for six months and it may as well have been tic tacs.

Everyone is different and this is just my experience.

 

[Bahbah Blacksheep]

So far I've tried escitalopram, venlaflaxin, wellbutrin, tianeptine, and fluoxetine. Honestly the best case was a lack of side-effects without any real benefit, usually the meds made me feel worse. Like anxious or just numb.
Wellbutrin made super jittery and anxious, but I maybe had too much caffeine while I was on it.
I have been given Benozs on occasion in psych wards, and they have so far been the only meds to alleviate symptoms, but I doubt I'd get a regular prescription for them, because of the potential for addiction.

 

[ven]

I do not have a personal history attempting to alleviate symptoms with medication, but I'm familiar with reading clinical studies for various mental health medications.

First off, are you losing your benefits and access to medication and therapy? If yes, what sort of time period are you talking about? Most reuptake inhibitors require several weeks before the targeted neurotransmitter builds up to a therapeutic level. MAOIs or RIMAs (safer) are probably out of the question until you've tried different RIs or tricyclics.

Wellbutrin isn't known to help with social anxiety and is more so known to exacerbate or cause anxiety issues.

I wouldn't recommend benzos unless you're suffering panic attacks, using them chronically for daily use is a treacherous path due to addiction and withdrawal risks.

The problem with social anxiety is that it's harder to treat than general anxiety disorder imo, event related anxiety is tricky.

Can you explain how you react to knowing there is an upcoming social situations and how you feel during social situations? Do you ruminate on negative possibilities leading up to the social situation? Do you encounter a strong fight or flight response during all or specific social situations?

 

[everydayiloveyou]

First off, are you losing your benefits and access to medication and therapy? If yes, what sort of time period are you talking about? Most reuptake inhibitors require several weeks before the targeted neurotransmitter builds up to a therapeutic level. MAOIs or RIMAs (safer) are probably out of the question until you've tried different RIs or tricyclics.

I get free psychiatric treatment through my school's resident program. So my free treatment expires after either me or my psych graduates, which is within a year (i.e. Summer 2022 at the earliest). If nothing works by then I'm really not sure if I will be able to get treatment. I'm in the US, once I graduate I'll be too old to use my parents' insurance but my SA makes it hard to get/hold jobs the kind of jobs that cover mental health care.

I wouldn't recommend benzos unless you're suffering panic attacks, using them chronically for daily use is a treacherous path due to addiction and withdrawal risks.

The problem with social anxiety is that it's harder to treat than general anxiety disorder imo, event related anxiety is tricky.

Can you explain how you react to knowing there is an upcoming social situations and how you feel during social situations? Do you ruminate on negative possibilities leading up to the social situation? Do you encounter a strong fight or flight response during all or specific social situations?

Yeah my psych said the same thing but I'm very desperate.

With my SA it can really vary. For example, recently I was evaluated for my campus job and it went really bad. The person who evaluated me was clearly upset with my performance, and I started sobbing while they debriefed me on next steps. I tend to burst into tears when I'm very anxious, embarrassed, stressed, etc. However I can't really predict that. I used to cry whenever I gave presentations for example, but that hasn't happened in a while.

I definitely ruminate a lot. According to my psych, I turn to avoidance for everything. Like when I first moved to campus, I was very worried about cooking. I thought my roommates would find me gross or weird for cooking, or that they'd make fun of me for being bad at it. So I went several days without eating because my roommates were in the kitchen when I planned to cook.

I get a bad flight response if I anticipate a situation will go badly. When I started college, I began skipping school if I knew I was going to be late, because I was embarrassed about it. I don't do that anymore, but I tend to find excuses to leave my dorm if my roommates bring people over, or if I'm invited to something I won't go unless I'm certain it will go well.

I see my psych weekly and I've been in and out of therapy prior to that. I liked CBT and I know that plus controlled exposure is the best treatment for SA, but so far it hasn't been too effective. My job rn is actually controlled exposure gone horribly wrong, I took a job doing presentations multiple times a week (I teach classes) and it's gone really badly so far, which makes me very depressed.

Also Ive been on Zoloft for 8 weeks, my last depressive episode was a few hours ago and it isn't any different from the ones I got pre-Zoloft.

 

[Cheers]

I'm diagnosed with major depression and so far i've tried sertraline, escitalopram, fluoxetine, venlafaxine, agomelatine, duloxetine (some of those were potentiated with aripiprazole and i occasionally had some alprazolam).
At best it just did nothing for me, at worse, it gave me very uncomfortable side effects and bad withdrawals (nothing traumatic though!)

 

[Tempest]

Bupropion (generic Wellbutrin) helped me maintain enough energy to get out of the permanent depressive haze and lessened some of the ambient dread. It's a stimulant, which was what I needed to be able to function, but that won't help everyone. Got tinnitus from it though; it's a rare side effect but I wish I had been told about it before I started the medication.

 

[nerve]

I had to make a list for a recent appointment :,)

From what I remember: Prozac, Zoloft, Celexa, Parnate, Remeron, Rexulti, Viibryd, Trintellix, Lexapro, Pristiq, Effexor and Effexor XR (combo points), Cymbalta, Wellbutrin, and then right now I'm on Lamictal and Pamelor. And there's been all sorts of cocktails and things like Abilify and Seroquel that are supposed to like amplify an AD's effect. 0 symptom reduction times anything is still 0 lol

I'm basically a brick wall to all of these drugs. There was no real effect for me on any of them. If there are any side effects at all, they're almost always tolerable & run the spectrum from mildly annoying (hand tremors, nausea right after taking tablet) to genuinely distressing (I blacked out a few times once my Parnate went too high). Right now, with the combo I'm on (Max dose of Lamictal, starter dose of Pamelor), I'm not dealing with any side effects.

I've been on and off these drugs since before puberty so I can't really compare it to a "before" but I might have some level of post-SSRI sexual dysfunction. Or it could just early sexual trauma or BDD issues preventing me from ever relaxing in front of another person idk. Otherwise, I've never had a serious problem with long-standing issues.

I just got off an MAOI, and my experience is that most doctors are only willing to prescribe one if a decent chunk of other, newer, safer ADs from different classes are tried first. Between dietary restrictions and like "oh no which OTC painkiller is okay to take and which will give me a stroke," MAOIs are kind of a big hassle too. Would have totally been worth it if there was enough of a positive effect, but there wasn't so after six months I was like fuck it I miss peanut butter.

A doctor might hesitate to prescribe a benzo (for good reason imo), so if they kick up a fuss about it, maybe try asking about buspar, trazodone, or propranolol, which all target anxiety specifically without the risk of dependence. Propranolol gave me some fucking wild dreams (in a fun way!) so there's that too.

(Quick fyi in case you don't know: Zoloft goes up to 200mg so you're still on a pretty low dose. Most doctors are gonna want to gradually bump you up to the 200mg before trialing another med.)

 

[ven]

I get free psychiatric treatment through my school's resident program. So my free treatment expires after either me or my psych graduates, which is within a year (i.e. Summer 2022 at the earliest). If nothing works by then I'm really not sure if I will be able to get treatment. I'm in the US, once I graduate I'll be too old to use my parents' insurance but my SA makes it hard to get/hold jobs the kind of jobs that cover mental health care.

Enough time to try different medications.

I definitely ruminate a lot. According to my psych, I turn to avoidance for everything. Like when I first moved to campus, I was very worried about cooking. I thought my roommates would find me gross or weird for cooking, or that they'd make fun of me for being bad at it. So I went several days without eating because my roommates were in the kitchen when I planned to cook.

Yeah, I have this issue too from bullying at an early age. Forced to retrain my thoughts to proactively think about what I'm suppose to be doing in a situation or figuring out problems I'm working on to occupy space in my mind to sort of push rumination out, and recognizing when ruminating occurs to stop and refocus attention toward something productive. Required a lot of practice, but I'm way better than before.

I get a bad flight response if I anticipate a situation will go badly. When I started college, I began skipping school if I knew I was going to be late, because I was embarrassed about it. I don't do that anymore, but I tend to find excuses to leave my dorm if my roommates bring people over, or if I'm invited to something I won't go unless I'm certain it will go well.

If you don't have any contraindications with beta-blockers, I'd recommend talking to your psych about propranolol. This was the miracle drug for me. The fight or flight response releases a lot of adrenaline and propranolol substantially reduces the impact it has on your body. In effect, it makes you feel "normal" enough to engage in social situations or while giving presentations in front of audiences. This allows people to affiliate normal reactions with high stress situations and it effectively deprograms the fight or flight response out of many people with endured exposure therapy. You wouldn't take it all that time, although it is safe to do so unlike benzos, and ingesting 10-20mg about 45 minutes before an anticipated fight or flight situations is a night and day experience.

I see my psych weekly and I've been in and out of therapy prior to that. I liked CBT and I know that plus controlled exposure is the best treatment for SA, but so far it hasn't been too effective. My job rn is actually controlled exposure gone horribly wrong, I took a job doing presentations multiple times a week (I teach classes) and it's gone really badly so far, which makes me very depressed.

Also Ive been on Zoloft for 8 weeks, my last depressive episode was a few hours ago and it isn't any different from the ones I got pre-Zoloft.

You can either increase Zoloft dose or try something else, there are "stronger" reuptake inhibitors to try or variations that target neurotransmitters in addition to serotonin. I'm thinking your psych went with Zoloft because it has less imposing binding profile (impacting other neurotransmitters) that leads to fewer negative side effects.

 

[callme]

Let's see now, I've had the Red Label, but it's too rough on the throat. Black Label is better if you can stand the burning; 40 different flavors inside? Nah I don't buy it. I've found Hendrick's nice, nice juniper and it gets better if you pair it with some meat. As a life without hope would have it, none of them have helped me forget, just feel a little better in "social situations".

More like antisocial situations.

 

[DJJE]

I might be wrong, but medication seems to be a quick and easy way for doctors to get rid of patients quickly.

They are always used as a first resort, once you go on them you are stuck, and left with the impression that their is something wrong with the way you are made which will not change.

There's nothing wrong with the way you are made, you've just gone through some tough experiences and overloaded your emotions. That can all change with a bit of therapy and some lifestyle changes.... that's the best way to get lasting change. Not by using drugs to suppress you're thoughts, and sweep issues under the rug.

 

[ven]

I might be wrong, but medication seems to be a quick and easy way for doctors to get rid of patients quickly.

They are always used as a first resort, once you go on them you are stuck, and left with the impression that their is something wrong with the way you are made which will not change.

There's nothing wrong with the way you are made, you've just gone through some tough experiences and overloaded your emotions. That can all change with a bit of therapy and some lifestyle changes.... that's the best way to get lasting change. Not by using drugs to suppress you're thoughts, and sweep issues under the rug.

I'd agree that pill farmers are a detriment, but believe most doctors recommend the combination of therapy and medication. Medication is far from a cure all and is more so a tool to enable or enhance therapeutic efficacy.

No one is implying there is anything wrong with the way someone is made and using medication doesn't imply that there is, and I'd argue that medication can free thoughts. Speaking from experience, propranolol helped ease the edge off social anxiety enough to enable exposure therapy. And, I still use it when I anticipate speaking in front of larger audiences. Medication essentially enabled my thoughts and desires to express to a greater degree instead of hiding them completely behind a wall of anxiety.

It's okay to be skeptical of medication, but it's difficult to ignore their usefulness in helping people improve their quality of life.

 

[ChobaniFlipSmores]

So I've only been off of Wellbutrin for a few days, but I'm beginning to think it was a significant cause of my suicidal ideation. Then again...I'd rather go on Wellbutrin than Lexapro (sexual issues) or Remeron (gained 30 lbs) or the other one that made me sleep all the time.

I'm not even sure how you'd know if Wellbutrin was a cause of suicidal ideation without taking it, not changing anything else, and then seeing if it had an effect. I.e. my suicidal ideation made sense to me in in the moment

 

[Celerity]

To my knowledge, I have only been formally diagnosed with GAD, but I would not be surprised if insurance was also billed for MDD or the catch-all "adjustment disorder". A therapist in the past thought I may be bipolar. It is at least clear to me that I do not have BP I, but BP II is a decent possibility.

I have been prescribed a number of mainstream antidepressants and sleeping aids of various drug classes. To my recollection, these include: Wellbutrin/Bupropion, Celexa/Citalopram, Zoloft/Sertraline, Prozac/Fluoxetine, Ambien/Zolpidem, Doxepin, Trazodone, and Seroquel/Quetiapine.

Of these, I would only take Quetiapine and Ambien again.

The effects I perceived from any of the SSRIs (or, in Wellbutrin's case, SNRI) were so minimal and fleeting as to be indistinguishable from placebo.

Ambien is the single most effective medication I have ever taken. It did what was advertised with entertaining "visual disturbances" on the way to lala land. However, it is extremely habit-forming due to just how amazingly effective it is. It is difficult to disentangle whether my increased Ambien use was a cause or effect of my most severe depressive episode, but taking Ambien for more than 2 weeks (a month at most) is asking for trouble in my mind.

Doxepin did nothing to ease anxiety or help me sleep. The only effect I remember from it is sleep hangover. Trazodone was a little more effective but only at dangerously high doses that gave me a heart flutter from QT inversion even without stacking alcohol.

I take Quetiapine 25 mg for sleep and to manage possible hypomania which, if I'm right, goes hand in hand with my insomnia anyway. Since I no longer have insurance, I have had to lean on OTC meds and strict sleep hygiene to keep my sleep schedule in line. The problem most people have with Quetiapine at this dose is the profound drowsiness hangover the next day. If you wait until you have failed to sleep naturally and take it on hope of getting 6-8 hours of sleep, good fucking luck. I plan for at least 10 hours of sleep and 2-3 hours hangover. I can and have slept for 13 hours straight with this medication. Aside from Ambien, it has the most pleasant sedative effect I have found and is very effective in stopping rumination in its tracks. Higher doses prescribed for daily intake to treat Bipolar and Schizophrenia have a whole host of negative, sometimes permanent, side effects associated with them. I don't know what that is like.

I have also taken Xanax/Alprazolam and Valium/Diazepam. I know they are highly addictive, but I didn't see what all the fuss was about. Xanax didn't touch my anxiety, though I will admit I was in a particularly bad way when I took it. Valium helps take the edge off but is not a magic bullet for me like Seroquel and Ambien have been. Maybe if I took benzos on the regular I would feel differently, but I personally found them to be overrated.

 

[Celerity]

Bupropion (generic Wellbutrin) helped me maintain enough energy to get out of the permanent depressive haze and lessened some of the ambient dread. It's a stimulant, which was what I needed to be able to function, but that won't help everyone. Got tinnitus from it though; it's a rare side effect but I wish I had been told about it before I started the medication.

I did not know it could cause tinnitus! I think I would have developed it anyway due to my time in high school band, but I wonder if taking Wellbutrin contributed.

 

[everydayiloveyou]

I might be wrong, but medication seems to be a quick and easy way for doctors to get rid of patients quickly.

They are always used as a first resort, once you go on them you are stuck, and left with the impression that their is something wrong with the way you are made which will not change.

There's nothing wrong with the way you are made, you've just gone through some tough experiences and overloaded your emotions. That can all change with a bit of therapy and some lifestyle changes.... that's the best way to get lasting change. Not by using drugs to suppress you're thoughts, and sweep issues under the rug.

They're not used as a first resort, I've been to several therapists and we always start off discussing a therapy-only treatment plan. Usually I get "the talk" when I go to a session while I'm very depressed or worried and say that it happens a lot.

I think the main thing that makes psychs consider meds is the impact your mental illness has on your life, and whether you have been able to make progress with therapy alone. For me, therapy alone hasn't done much to allow me to live a normal life. I do poorly at work, fail classes, and neglect my basic needs if I feel anxious or anticipate a bad social reaction from others.

It's not just "a bit of therapy," I used to go twice per week since my anxiety was so debilitating. I do all my CBT homework, I am honest and do exposures to try to get more used to social situations. I tried exercising indoors and outdoors, exercising every day for an hour, going 2 days on/2 days off, brisk walking, intense cardio, eating more, eating less, eating no meat, eating more vegetables, rigidly scheduling my time, drawing more, playing less video games. Literally any reasonable thing that they tell you to do in the mental health world. It hasn't changed anything. I still felt unreasonably anxious about being outside. I would clam up and not eat if other people were around, or eat so much I'd get sick. I preferred to fail tests if it meant I'd walk into class late. I would burst into tears constantly. I have no friends and even when I did, it was only a couple people. None of those problems subsided even with all the efforts I made. I certainly wish it was as simple as having a bit of therapy and facing my problems.

It's at that point where meds are considered, when it's clearly not possible to manage on your own. And there might possibly be something out of wack in your brain chemistry, even though we don't fully understand it yet. And Zoloft doesn't supress my thoughts in the slightest. I actually feel the same as ever, that's what I *don't* want.

 

[LittleJem]

Diagnosis: anxiety and depression. Always had it and got worse over time - have now suffered over 30 years. Symptoms: constant suicidal thoughts, crying, fatigue (bedridden for two years), agitation, panic. Medication tried:
Vortioxetine (Trintillex/Brintillex) meant to be a good one, did nothing for me. Moclobemide- helped for two weeks then crash. Selegiline - helped for a week. Currently on Prozac. Not bedridden thanks to Prozac. Currently one day off weed, so my friend tells me I'm in withdrawals, but I just think I'm still pretty depressed. Been crying all day today. Sigh.

 

[User200]

Been diagnosed with anxiety , psychosis and post psychotic depression . Meds I took (was forced to take) are

Risperidone - took my anxiety away but dragged the whole mind with it (creativity, imagination , taughts , happiness ) basically dopamine

Olanzapine - same and made me gain lots of pounds

Aripiprazole - game me restless legs and couldn't stay still

Clozapine - Same as Olanzapine and risperidone

Ritalin - Actually can't complain. Gave me abit of energy , motivation , creativity ... and helped me lose some weight back

Sertraline - I'm not sure I was already on the med cocktail when I was prescribed this one

Risperidone , Olanzapine and Clozapine had some sexual side effects too.

Basically Ritalin/ methylphenidate is like more powerful caffeine . It should help with numbness, lack of motivation , emptiness inside ... I don't know if it helps if your depression is the opposite though like lots of running and intrusive taughts ... so not saying its a magic pill . Just worked in my case when it came to the "negative symptoms of psychosis" or as I like to call it the side effects of the other meds :P

 

[Sittichmutter]

Diagnose: Major depression
Treatment:
1) Citalopram - makes me tired and numb + weight gain
2) Escitalopram - almost the sane as citalopram
3) Sertraline - high for 2 days, then unberable headache
4) Fluoxetine - I like It, but It loses effect in one year
5) Desvenlafaxine - I am taking 150 mg. I Just love It. Best med ever! Feel normal and focused. When shit goes up at work, I am the only one in the Room with a stable and clear mind. It's just amazing.

 

[Celerity]

They're not used as a first resort, I've been to several therapists and we always start off discussing a therapy-only treatment plan. Usually I get "the talk" when I go to a session while I'm very depressed or worried and say that it happens a lot.

I think the main thing that makes psychs consider meds is the impact your mental illness has on your life, and whether you have been able to make progress with therapy alone. For me, therapy alone hasn't done much to allow me to live a normal life. I do poorly at work, fail classes, and neglect my basic needs if I feel anxious or anticipate a bad social reaction from others.

It's not just "a bit of therapy," I used to go twice per week since my anxiety was so debilitating. I do all my CBT homework, I am honest and do exposures to try to get more used to social situations. I tried exercising indoors and outdoors, exercising every day for an hour, going 2 days on/2 days off, brisk walking, intense cardio, eating more, eating less, eating no meat, eating more vegetables, rigidly scheduling my time, drawing more, playing less video games. Literally any reasonable thing that they tell you to do in the mental health world. It hasn't changed anything. I still felt unreasonably anxious about being outside. I would clam up and not eat if other people were around, or eat so much I'd get sick. I preferred to fail tests if it meant I'd walk into class late. I would burst into tears constantly. I have no friends and even when I did, it was only a couple people. None of those problems subsided even with all the efforts I made. I certainly wish it was as simple as having a bit of therapy and facing my problems.

It's at that point where meds are considered, when it's clearly not possible to manage on your own. And there might possibly be something out of wack in your brain chemistry, even though we don't fully understand it yet. And Zoloft doesn't supress my thoughts in the slightest. I actually feel the same as ever, that's what I *don't* want.

I think a factor in your situation may be that you're receiving treatment at a student center. My psychiatrist when I was a student was old school and willing to throw a ton of a meds at me to see what stuck. I have learned since in my interactions with other clinicians that his lackadaisical approach is controversial. [It probably should be. He messed up quite a bit on the whole.]

Point is - have they discussed other classes of medications with you besides antidepressants? Are you planning to approach them about the meds mentioned here in this thread?

 

[ascetic_]

Was diagnosed with major depression disorder in HS. Basically had it my whole life since and am currently untreated.

Celexa - made me hypomanic, manic-depressive.

Prozac - sort of helped with depression, but made it difficult to fall asleep.

Buspar in combo with some anti-depressant I can't recall - helped temporarily, but I cold turkey quit and ended up with chronic panic attacks for six month straight.

CBD oil - gives me anxiety.

Psilocybin (micro-dosed) - amplified my irritability.

Yeah, so nothing works, lol.

 

[everydayiloveyou]

I think a factor in your situation may be that you're receiving treatment at a student center. My psychiatrist when I was a student was old school and willing to throw a ton of a meds at me to see what stuck. I have learned since in my interactions with other clinicians that his lackadaisical approach is controversial. [It probably should be. He messed up quite a bit on the whole.]

Point is - have they discussed other classes of medications with you besides antidepressants? Are you planning to approach them about the meds mentioned here in this thread?

Yeah my psych said we'd go over other options once I do a full trial of Zoloft and decide it's not for me. It's been like 12 weeks now tho so idk.

I asked a couple weeks ago if I could stop taking it cold turkey. My psych said she would like me to stick with it, but that if I wanted to stop I could, since my dose is pretty low, so it wouldn't cause any problems.

I also have a concern about other physicians not taking me seriously once I leave school and need to pay for a GP or NP to give me meds. So my psych said it's better to do a full trial so that we can completely rule out Zoloft from my medical record.

My psych might've also said that because I've been in an erratic and depressed mood lately. This week I feel more "baseline" I guess. I got some advice about meds for social anxiety disorder specifically from people on a different site, so I'm going to ask for either a dose increase or to stop Zoloft completely. Then I will ask for a betablocker/anxiolytic like Buspar, a different SSRI, or an SNRI. I really want MAOIs but psychs see those as a last resort unfortunately even though they are the most effective medication for SAD

My psych said she gave me Zoloft because it's FDA approved to treat SAD, typically has very few side effects, and it is very cheap (important since I get paid very little atm). I also specifically asked for no numbing effect since I do not have anhedonia, fatigue, or numbness right now and I certainly dont want to get it again. Apparently Zoloft gets less reports of numbness than other SSRIs like Prozac.

 

[NearlyIrrelevantCake]

Diagnosed with OCD and depression for nearly 20 years, since my early teens.

I was put on several SSRIs during my teens, but they only made me worse. They took me from depressed to violently suicidal. I was put into the psych ward frequently while on those drugs. I remember I was on Prozac for sure and at least two others that I don't remember the names of.*

I was put on another SSRI in my early twenties, Lexapro, and ended up in the early stages of serotonin syndrome for that. I stopped taking it after less than a week, but I still have a permanent twitch from that ordeal a decade later.

At that point, my doctor and I agreed that SSRIs as a whole weren't going to be safe for me and he put me onto an SNRI six years ago, Effexor. The Effexor triggered my first ever manic episode [a rare side effect] and led to my bipolar II diagnosis. The Effexor helped with my lows, though, so I was put onto an anti-psychotic, Seroquel, to deal with the highs. The combination works pretty well and I've been on it ever since. The last time I was hospitalized for psych shit was before I was on Effexor/Seroquel.

*I have really bad memory loss from another [non-mental health-related] medication, rip.

 

[Celerity]

Diagnosed with OCD and depression for nearly 20 years, since my early teens.

I was put on several SSRIs during my teens, but they only made me worse. They took me from depressed to violently suicidal. I was put into the psych ward frequently while on those drugs. I remember I was on Prozac for sure and at least two others that I don't remember the names of.*

I was put on another SSRI in my early twenties, Lexapro, and ended up in the early stages of serotonin syndrome for that. I stopped taking it after less than a week, but I still have a permanent twitch from that ordeal a decade later.

At that point, my doctor and I agreed that SSRIs as a whole weren't going to be safe for me and he put me onto an SNRI six years ago, Effexor. The Effexor triggered my first ever manic episode [a rare side effect] and led to my bipolar II diagnosis. The Effexor helped with my lows, though, so I was put onto an anti-psychotic, Seroquel, to deal with the highs. The combination works pretty well and I've been on it ever since. The last time I was hospitalized for psych shit was before I was on Effexor/Seroquel.

*I have really bad memory loss from another [non-mental health-related] medication, rip.

So how is it that you take Effexor and Seroquel? Do you switch between them or have a steady regimen? I ask because I'm wondering if this combination would work well for me.

 

[ReallyTired]

I've been on most antidepressants currently on the market for severe depression: atypical-mirtazapine, ssri's: fluoxetine,sertraline, even the new ssri vortioxetine( Brintellix), they did absolutely nothing for me. (I was told by my psychiatrist that Brintellix is a new wonder drug, well, it didn't work for me at all). After I tried Lamictal and Trazodone and Aripiprazol, not effective, and horrible side effects. Snri's: Venlafaxine did only work on very high doses and the same goes for Duloxetine. After taking Venlafaxine I developed a very itchy red skin rash all over my body and I was advised to discontinue. I'm on duloxetine now but I developed severe diarrhea, after increasing the dose, so I might have to discontinue it as well. The only antidepressant I haven't tried is Bupropion (Wellbutrin or Zyban). Bupropion acts as norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitor. I wonder if increasing dopamine in my brain could help with my main symptoms: no motivation, apathy, anhedonia, staying in bed all day, fatique, brain fog, slowed thinking, problem with concentration, excessive sleeping. I definitely had a little success in the past with Modafinil and Adrafinil, which I purchased online. With modafinil I had amazing focus, lots of energy, I was really productive all day, all brain fog gone and I really wanted to socialize and meet people.The problem with modafinil is that I need to take a high dose and when I took it every day, it stopped working soon. Another problem with modafinil can be insomnia, I've read the same goes for bupropion but I'm currently taking quetiapine for sleep, so it shouldn't be a problem. But I know when I see my psychiatrist and ask for Wellbutrin or Zyban, I already know the answer : 'I can't prescribe it, because it's not on NHS list'. It's so frustrating with NHS psychiatrists. Sometimes it feels like talking to robots.

 

[NearlyIrrelevantCake]

So how is it that you take Effexor and Seroquel? Do you switch between them or have a steady regimen? I ask because I'm wondering if this combination would work well for me.

I take both medications every day

 

[Celerity]

I take both medications every day

Thanks for the info!

 

[grungeCat]

Drugs which didn't work :
- Sertraline - no effects, still severe depressionn, worse mood swings
- Fluoxetine - same as above
- Risperidone - feeling lethargic, numbness, feeling emotionless
- Olanzapine - same as above

Drugs which work partially :
- Diazepam - numbness, low intellectual prowess, addictive, BUT it is best against sleeplessness
- Hydroxizine - sometimes works when I can't sleep, sometimes doesn't but it isn't addictive and relieves anxiety a little bit
- Venlafaxine - most anti-depressive, still does not eliminate my aversion to existence but partially relieves depression symptoms
- CBD - reduces anxiety a little bit
- caffeine - reduces anxiety, raises intellectual prowess, raises will to live, common and banal but very good drug

 

[DepressoEspresso]

I've tried quite literally everything from SSRIs, SNRIs, NDRIs, tricyclic, tetracyclic, Serotonin Modulators, and Esketamine at the maximum dosage. Bupropion was the only medication to dent depression for a while. I switched to dextroamphetamine and Adderall. Dopamine seemed to be the issue.

For anxiety, I've been on the same dose of Clonazepam for 5 years. 2mg in 4 divided doses. I also take Alprazolam for the more severe panic attacks. (I'd recommend diazepam before Clonazepam for GAD/social phobia). Clonazepam is more potent. I never had any cognitive issues.

To clarify for anxiety, I had a resting heart rate of 120+ BPM and was constantly getting sick whenever a social event came up. It's like someone installed a hair trigger on my stress response. Clonazepam made going out possible in less than a day. Sure, I'm dependant, but that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make over the fear of getting sick in a situation where I can't find a bathroom or trashcan.

 

[dandan]

I think I did tried them all, until I've used testosterone and dianabol.
Been the only two meds for depression I've used the last two years, with success.