Posted by CamW on February 18, 2013, at 21:05:29
In reply to Re: Zoloft Anxiety at first? » CamW, posted by PrettyLady on February 18, 2013, at 20:38:52
> p.s. Cam- could you explain this process a little more/why it makes you feel more anxious? I feel more amped up, it's weird. Is that the dopamine? Thanks!
The following may not be the full story (I have been out of psychiatry for a decade), but here goes:
During certain forms of depression, a side effect of the depression is decreased serotonin neurotransmission, The post-synaptic neurone tries to adjust for this by producing more serotonin receptors, to try to bind as much serotonin as possible to trigger an action potential in the post-synaptic neurone, & keep the electrical signal going on to the next neurone.
Ingesting an SSRI blocks the re-uptake of serotonin into the presynaptic neurone, in essence increasing the amount of serotonin in the gap between neurones that can bind to the post-synaptic receptors. This flooding of serotonin & the resultant increase in serotonin neurotransmission may be a cause of the anxiety.
The body begins to down-regulate (get rid of) the excess post-synaptic receptors, which takes a couple weeks or so. This returns the serotonergic transmission to "normal" levels, thus getting rid of the SSRI-induced anxiety, as well.
Now, I would like Scott or Larry Hoover (or others) to comment on my answer, as the explanation may have changed over the years, & I'd hate to give erroneous or incomplete information.
I hope that this is of some help. - Cam
poster:CamW
thread:1038364
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20130205/msgs/1038391.html