Which anti-depressant?

[2Shy]

I've been on Paxil, Celexa and now Zoloft. The Zoloft is not working for me. Doc changed me off of Paxil for same reasons and because one of the side effects is weight gain. Celexa was okay, but my insurance didn't cover it. Anyway, I will probably up the dosage on the Zoloft and see if that helps any.

So, I was curious about others experiences. What's worked best for you?

 

[FitFossil]

I've been on Prozac, Celexa, and now Lexapro. I've had great results with all of them, but Lexapro is the best as far as no side effects. Celexa worked well but made me extremely sleepy. It also had bad sexual side effects. Prozac worked as well as Celexa, and sides were much less. These are in the same anti-depressant family as Paxil (famous for weight gain) and Zoloft. They're all SSRI's - selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, that work on the brain chemical serotonin.

If upping the Zoloft doesn't help, ask your doctor about the other classes of anti-depressants that work on different brain chemicals, such as Wellbutrin or Effexor.

 

[makedah]

2Shy - what's your diagnosis? I ask because anti-depressants get prescribed for stuff other than depression.

 

[2Shy]

I take it for depression. I have all the classic symptoms. Took me years and a good friend pushing me to force me to get the diagnosis. Now I appreciate what the meds can do for me.

 

[Temple]

Prozac worked very well for me. It did have sexual sides but so did being depressed

 

[Torchy]

I have taken celexa, zoloft, and wellbutrin. The celxa made me very forgetful. I had to start writing things down for I would forget in the middle of a sentence. God forbid I had to remember to tell someone something. The zoloft was terrible for me as it produced more sides of anger and just didn't work with me well. The wellbutrin did nothing either except give me boughts of anger and made me extremely hormonal.

The celexa worked the best, but I could not deal with the memory loss and lack of sexual inhibition.

 

[takniteasy]

I have used effexor xr and would not recommend it. It supposedly works with the epinephrine and it is one anti-d that you cannot just decide to quit taking (like I did). I found that it was effective for a short period, I did experience some weight gain (not good) and when I forgot to take it I experienced extreme dizziness and what can only be described as a bad druggy feeling. I still get the dizziness now after weaning off about 6 weeks ago and from what I have learned this may go on for up to another year. Additionally, this anti-d was originally formulated for short term treatment and the docs are now prescribing it for anywhere from 18 months to 3 years. Personally that is not something I want to do.

 

[BigEasy]

Did any of you experience initial sickness with the ssri's? My last client is struggling with this side and trying to keep from losing any more weight, or else they will change her class.

 

[Torchy]

No sickness, BigEasy. I actually really liked the celexa, if it wasn't for those terrible sides,lol...Now that I re-read my post, seems like i have a problem with anger and anti-d's

 

[2Shy]

The drugs I've taken have never made me feel physically ill. I can't recall whether that's a side effect of any of the three I've taken. I just know first hand about Paxil's weight increases and the general tendencies of many SSRIs to lessen sexual desire. Is your client taking other meds? Maybe it's a combo problem.

It seemed to me the Celexa didn't work as well as the Paxil. Of the three I've tried, I'd say the Paxil worked the best for the longest. Since I struggle with my weight, it is just not a good choice for me. And, like I said, it stopped being as effective.