Depression is one disorder that can completely change a person's life even before it is diagnosed. A human who could once be the most joyous person in the room could suddenly be so shut off that getting through them or even conversing with them might become a task. For people suffering from depressive disorder (depression), life is no longer a simple journey, but a complex web of jumbled thoughts and emotions.
In such a condition, many seek the professional help of therapists and medical experts who prescribe antidepressants to treat the condition. They relieve the symptoms of depression such as feeling very down and exhausted. According to experts, antidepressants mostly work by improving the availability of neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain.
Antidepressants leave you more unwell than before?
However, now more and more people are sharing how quitting antidepressants left them with shocking lingering symptoms. Phillipa Munari, who started antidepressants in 2003 and continued for 10 years, decided to get off them. While it was fine at first, 6-9 months later she started facing severe nerve pain, her neck and shoulders were always sore and her anxiety increased.
She revealed to American Public Media how she felt so exhausted and weak that she was unable to continue her job at a call centre and was bedridden for the next two years. When she did go back on Effexor, the drug she took, the nerve pain and exhaustion were relieved but her anxiety got worse. "I had complete panic. I couldn't leave the house," she said. Driving in the car, she said, "I'd be in the passenger seat with my eyes closed." It took two more years before things began to improve, she said in an interview as she choked up.
Not just Munari, thousands of other people have appeared on online forums revealing the lasting health impacts of leaving antidepressants. There are numerous forums on Reddit that have people sharing their experiences of facing withdrawal symptoms from antidepressants. Sven Huber, who was taking escitalopram faced symptoms such as brain zaps, anxiousness, confusion, sexual dysfunction, emotional numbness and even suicidal thoughts, which are all documented symptoms of antidepressant withdrawal.
According to various studies published in the National Library of Medicine, JAMA Network, and more, some symptoms of antidepressant withdrawal for the long term include dizziness, nausea, vertigo, and nervousness.
What do the experts say?
Well, doctors always warn patients about the short-term withdrawal effects of antidepressants. These include symptoms like dizziness, anxiety, insomnia and nausea. However, according to British psychiatrist Mark Horowitz, what most prescribers and patients fail to understand is that "you can have symptoms that persist for long periods after you stop them."
According to antidepressant withdrawal experts, the risk of lasting symptoms may be blurred by the fact that many struggle with stopping the drugs. "I've never seen anybody come off long-term Effexor or Cymbalta and not have years of trouble," said Horowitz. While these drugs are known to be harder to stop, the professional has seen the same problems with people taking drugs with less withdrawal risks like fluoxetine and escitalopram.
While some people suffer from symptoms after stopping the drug, others face them as side effects during the treatment that get worse after stopping. Horowitz's research published in Psychiatry Research shows that the longer a person stays on antidepressants the more likely they are to have long-lasting conditions after stopping them.
Experts want the effects of antidepressant withdrawal and long-term use to be studied more thoroughly. However, whether this can happen in the US at the moment is an enigma. While Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Secretary of Health is a vocal critic of antidepressants, the Trump administration has cut federal funding for biomedical research and staffing at federal health agencies significantly, impacting research.
In such a condition, many seek the professional help of therapists and medical experts who prescribe antidepressants to treat the condition. They relieve the symptoms of depression such as feeling very down and exhausted. According to experts, antidepressants mostly work by improving the availability of neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain.
Antidepressants leave you more unwell than before?
However, now more and more people are sharing how quitting antidepressants left them with shocking lingering symptoms. Phillipa Munari, who started antidepressants in 2003 and continued for 10 years, decided to get off them. While it was fine at first, 6-9 months later she started facing severe nerve pain, her neck and shoulders were always sore and her anxiety increased.
She revealed to American Public Media how she felt so exhausted and weak that she was unable to continue her job at a call centre and was bedridden for the next two years. When she did go back on Effexor, the drug she took, the nerve pain and exhaustion were relieved but her anxiety got worse. "I had complete panic. I couldn't leave the house," she said. Driving in the car, she said, "I'd be in the passenger seat with my eyes closed." It took two more years before things began to improve, she said in an interview as she choked up.
Not just Munari, thousands of other people have appeared on online forums revealing the lasting health impacts of leaving antidepressants. There are numerous forums on Reddit that have people sharing their experiences of facing withdrawal symptoms from antidepressants. Sven Huber, who was taking escitalopram faced symptoms such as brain zaps, anxiousness, confusion, sexual dysfunction, emotional numbness and even suicidal thoughts, which are all documented symptoms of antidepressant withdrawal.
According to various studies published in the National Library of Medicine, JAMA Network, and more, some symptoms of antidepressant withdrawal for the long term include dizziness, nausea, vertigo, and nervousness.
What do the experts say?
Well, doctors always warn patients about the short-term withdrawal effects of antidepressants. These include symptoms like dizziness, anxiety, insomnia and nausea. However, according to British psychiatrist Mark Horowitz, what most prescribers and patients fail to understand is that "you can have symptoms that persist for long periods after you stop them."
According to antidepressant withdrawal experts, the risk of lasting symptoms may be blurred by the fact that many struggle with stopping the drugs. "I've never seen anybody come off long-term Effexor or Cymbalta and not have years of trouble," said Horowitz. While these drugs are known to be harder to stop, the professional has seen the same problems with people taking drugs with less withdrawal risks like fluoxetine and escitalopram.
While some people suffer from symptoms after stopping the drug, others face them as side effects during the treatment that get worse after stopping. Horowitz's research published in Psychiatry Research shows that the longer a person stays on antidepressants the more likely they are to have long-lasting conditions after stopping them.
Experts want the effects of antidepressant withdrawal and long-term use to be studied more thoroughly. However, whether this can happen in the US at the moment is an enigma. While Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Secretary of Health is a vocal critic of antidepressants, the Trump administration has cut federal funding for biomedical research and staffing at federal health agencies significantly, impacting research.
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