Posted by Iansf on November 26, 2004, at 17:32:38
In reply to Were You Depressed in the 80s?, posted by cubbybear on November 25, 2004, at 2:23:07
> I'd be curious to hear from people who suffered from depression back in the 70s or 80s, before Prozac or the other SSRIs hit the market. What medication(s) were you prescribed? Were you given a TCA or MAOI anti-depressant? If neither, what did you take? Most importantly-- Looking back on these years, do you feel that your depression was properly dealt with and the medications were helpful?
>Only once did a doctor or therapist ever recommend antidepressants to me, and she neglected to tell me about the side effects or explain how they work. After two days of trying Elavil, I stopped using it because it made me so sleepy and I didn't feel any better. It never even occurred to me to take it before going to bed instead of in the morning! And I had no idea it might take four to six weeks before I felt any effect.
It was 15 years before I tried them again, and when I finally went for antidepressants, it was only on my own volition. Neither my psychotherapist nor my doctor so much as mentioned the possibility, even though both (especially my therapist) knew I was deeply depressed.
poster:Iansf
thread:420022
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041123/msgs/420598.html