Posted by linkadge on May 19, 2006, at 19:07:23
In reply to Re: ECT sounding pretty good » Pfinstegg, posted by blueberry on May 19, 2006, at 18:35:28
Heres my take. The TCA's are vastly superior to the SSRIs for ameliorating f'd up HPA axis function.
The SSRI's are not that great for doing that. A few studies have shown that in the first few months of taking an SSRI, HPA axis responces are exasperated, ie increased levels of cortisol etc. Sometimes that tames down a little over time, somtimes not. When you come off an SSRI, you have to go through all of the horrible start up side effects again.
When I took an SSRI for the first time it was a totally different situation. It was in the summer, and I had just crashed from school exams. The SSRI's probably replaced the cortisol crash, and worked. The second time I took an SSRI right before midterm exams, my so called "bipolar reaction", was in my opinion was an antidepresant induced exasperation of already high levels of cortisol.
High levels of cortisol can make some people very suicidal, and psychotic, hence the use of drugs like RU-486 for psychotic depression/mania.
IF you were really bipolar, you would not have lasted so long on the drug combination that you had taken before.
In the end, if you can find a balance, then it doesn't matter what drug you are taking.
Linkadge
poster:linkadge
thread:645989
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060515/msgs/646052.html