Posted by Hiba on August 13, 2002, at 0:07:19
Hello Dears,
I am A chronic depressive patient, have been subjected many kind of antidepressant experiments. To overcome the depression that started 12 years ago, I have gone through several kind of antidepressants. First it was amitryptiline, then came dothiepin,maprotiline, mianserine, sertraline, fluvoxamine, flupenthixol, motival(a combination of nortryptiline and fluphenazine), imipramine and at last fluoxetine. All these medicines have helped me to overcome depression but not without paying huge prices for it. I have been on amitryptiline for almost six months and it made my mouth dried like a sand, so did dothiepin and imipramine. Flupenthixol precipitated my obsessive worries although it was good in activating. Sertraline and fluvoxamine made me agitated while mianserine was not too good to alleviate depressive symptoms. Now I am on fluoxetine for the past couple of years and the real story now begins.
Though I was severely depressed, my sexual self was not seriously affected by this deadly affective disorder. At least it was there intact.After I started taking fluoxetine, I don't know where my sexual desire has mysteriously disappeared. No more sexual fantasies, no excitement even if I see a naked woman standing in front of me. Otherwise fluoxetine helped me a lot to overcome depression and obsessive worries. But a sense of well being without sexual desire!! Does anyone think it worths? I told my psychiatrist and he suggested to reduce the dosage which didn't help. I decided to wean off the medicine and stayed off it for almost five months. But alarmingly my sexual self remained the same. Not like the older tricyclics which reduced my libido while I was on them but got it back soon after I got off them. Depression began to annoy me again and I had to go back to fluoxetine which I am still on. I have tried gingko biloba for a while, buspirone, tentex forte(an Indian herbal preparation for increasing libido), periactin. Nothing works. The impact fluoxetine made on my desire phase is so deep and strong. And what makes me more worried is the thought that I am not going to regain my old sexual self, even if I manage to get off this stuff forever. Is the damage irreversible ?
Is there any psychiatrists or mental health professionals to answer my question, who hail SSRIs as safe and less toxic than older tricyclics ? As less addictive and habit forming ? So far fluoxetine has made me dependent on it, because I don't think I can come off it because of a return of depressive symptoms. Is it not the same with benzodiazepines also ? You are using Benzos to overcome anxiety and when you withdraw them your anxiety returns. Then the benzo drug is blamed as addictive, but why not an AD is not being called addictive? When I stopped my first AD amitryptiline I was nauseated and lightheaded for almost two months and depressive symptoms came back after that. I have used a benzodiazepine called rivotril(klonopin in US)which effectively controlled my anxiety and obsessive worries thus preventing depression. But my doctor was concerned of addiction(?) and withdraw it although it was tremendously helping me. It did not do any damage to my sexuality like fluoxetine did. Still fluoxetine and other ADs are haild as safe and effective by professionals. PHENOMINAL!!
I am waiting to get attacked by AD lovers and benzophobics
HIBA
poster:Hiba
thread:116231
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020807/msgs/116231.html