Posted by bozeman on January 13, 2003, at 21:15:33
In reply to Re: Generally numb and stupidlike on ssris?, posted by viridis on January 13, 2003, at 3:33:28
Agree with viridis' idea that ssri's are not for everyone. Makes me wish there was a way to actually know in advance how a drug would work, that the darn things were more selectively "targeted" so you could predict response reliably. So much suffering could be relieved that way.
Have known friends who got jumpy, paranoid, apathetic, or just plain weird on ssri's -- but then some like me, who just dumped the obsessiveness and the rest of me pretty much stayed the same. People look at me strangely and can't figure out what's different, tell me I'm more in the "zone" than they've ever seen me but can't put their finger on it. My mind is clear, calm, resilient, I sleep, and sex drive has finally returned full force. Sadly not everyone has such a positive experience, and I resisted being put on ssri's previously because of side effect profiles. Makes me wish even harder that neuropharmacology was more of an exact science.
Keep trying to find a regimen that works for you -- the last stuff they had me try put me in two months of hell where I wished I was dead (and everyone who came within 50 feet of me, too.) Changing meds changed my world. If giving it several weeks to level out doesn't help, talk to your doctor about changing again, and best of luck to you.
> I think that's a fair assessment (in terms of my response). I was on and off Prozac for years, and the typical pattern was intense anxiety, followed by a feeling of being wired, yet not really caring about anything. Other people described me as "spaced out" etc. I wasn't exactly depressed, but not happy either, just sort of numb. And I did gain some weight.
>
> Zoloft made me feel bizarre, with unpredictable, rapid mood swings. It was very unpleasant, even at a tiny dose.
>
> I won't touch SSRIs any more, and my pdoc agrees that these aren't appropriate meds for me.
>
> Having said that, I know people who have done very well with various SSRIs, so I guess it all depends on brain chemistry. I don't think these are inherently bad drugs, just not right for everyone, and definitely overprescribed.
poster:bozeman
thread:135592
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030113/msgs/135746.html