Posted by flipsactown on July 8, 2004, at 1:13:26
In reply to prozac?, posted by lexman on July 7, 2004, at 21:12:03
> i have been on prozac 40mg since june 10th when will it kick in.
I took prozac at the maximum 80mg for 7 years, starting at 20mg, and in my experience, I felt dramatic lifting of my depression in less than 3 weeks. I felt the best, depression wise, by the 8th week. In fact, I felt so good, that I was able to go back to work on a part time basis only because of a dibilitating chronic back pain.
>Before i was on 20mg for 5 weeks.I have been having frequent headaches, insomia, and loss of appetite.Will this go away?is it depression?i feel weak for taking meds but i feel very depressed also.
For me the headaches indicated that Prozac was doing its job. I had some mild insomnia and actually gained more weight. After 8 weeks or so, my body adjusted to Prozac. The headaches and insomnia were mild and I was as depression free as I can remember. As far as feeling "weak" for taking meds, you have no reason to be. Depression is an illness, just like diabetes. Would you feel "weak" if you took insulin if you had diabetes? Absolutely not, because a person with severe diabetes needs meds (insulin) to continue living. Likewise a person with severe depression needs meds (anti-depressants) to continue to exist.
Also, from my experience, you should be seeing a therapist on a regular basis. The combination of talk therapy and anti-depressants have been shown to be more effective than just taking meds. So, if you are not seeing a therapist already, please consider it.
One last thing, remember that depression is not a sign of weakness or being a failure, it is a treatable mental illness and nothing to be ashamed of. Reaching out to Pyscho Babble is a great start in learning about depression as most of us have been there, done that. Take care.
FST
poster:flipsactown
thread:363849
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040704/msgs/363923.html