zolofts hidden killer

hi
i had depression a few years ago and so i saw a GP
they told me to take Zoloft so i checked the side effects on the pamphlet and they did not seem to bad so i took them
well lets just say the medication did not work
so i did some research and found out the side effects of Zoloft is sucidal thoughts
how can they do this not mention you might try and kill yourself taking these pills!
i now do not trust doctors or medications
my depression has gone and you now how i did it
excercise and a healthy diet
now wonder how many other medications people are taking not knowing the true effects
im starting to believe that mental illness is a man made killer
the hospitals the doctors the mental industry are designed not to help
think about it
no medication
no money.
cheers

Mod Edit: Gratuitous Link Removed.

[edit on 22/8/2006 by Mirthful Me]

I tried Zoloft and wound up in the ER having stitches put into my wrist at 130am. I KNOW that Depression is real, simply because I've lived with it for 15+ years undiagnosed. The problem is just that different medications affect different people in such a huge way. I've known people that say Zoloft saved their lives, and they were on it for 20 years with no problems. Then there's me, I was on it three weeks.

Originally posted by Zaphod58
I tried Zoloft and wound up in the ER having stitches put into my wrist at 130am. I KNOW that Depression is real, simply because I've lived with it for 15+ years undiagnosed. The problem is just that different medications affect different people in such a huge way. I've known people that say Zoloft saved their lives, and they were on it for 20 years with no problems. Then there's me, I was on it three weeks.

thanks for replying Zaphod58
are you better now?
i hope you are
CYRAX

Like most people with depression, I have good days and bad ones, but there's finally a light at the end of the tunnel for me. They tried me on Paxil for awhile, but sedatives really knock me out cold, so I just quit taking anything and have been fighting on my own.

Originally posted by Zaphod58
Like most people with depression, I have good days and bad ones, but there's finally a light at the end of the tunnel for me. They tried me on Paxil for awhile, but sedatives really knock me out cold, so I just quit taking anything and have been fighting on my own.

i trully believe you have a better chance fighting it on your own
depression is a soul taker and you have to fight for it back!!
cheers

There are some new SSRIs (I think they are anyway) out now that from what I've heard truly do work well, and don't have the side effects that Paxil and Zoloft have with them. I BELIEVE Levaquin is the name of one of them. My sister took it, and my mother takes it, and both of them have had absolutely no problems at all with it. Several other people that I've talked to about it have had nothing but wonderful things to say about it.

I don't think it was Levaquin, that is an antibacterial.

I also know people who feel their lives were saved by Zoloft, but not all anti-depressants work for all people. The problem is none of them should be prescriped by a GP or PC. These types of drugs should only be handed out by a specialist after a complete and thorough evaluation as well as ongoing monitoring - PERIOD!

There are too many conditions that cause depression that are so much more serious than depression, such as bi-polar and some anit-dpressants can be disastorous to these problems. Your GP is in no position to evaluate any condition that involves the balance of brain chemicals, or messing with them.

I know it starts with an L. It's something similar to that, and it supposedly works really well.

FYI- any anti-depressant medication they have come up with may give you suicide thoughts.

I had strange thoughts with Prozac also. So, i dont take any of them anymore. I have come to realize, that mine is not a biological problem. My problem "depression" stems from circumstances surrounding me. Without much detail, mine is not a peaceful existence. I want to have peace but others surrounding me do not. They love chaos. They can be sadistic; example A- I ask them to bring me home a pack of cigarrettes, they go to the supermarket and get me a tub of ice cream, and no cigs. (they smoke, so its not being done for my wellbeing)
See?
Its like that constantly all day long. I dont have a car right now, and they have standard shift vehicles, so i depend on them. Worse thing in the world depending on anyone.

Anyhow, i'm sure nobody cares about my problems, its just good therapy for me to write my thoughts down.
I dont need meds, what i do need is to be surrounded with caring, compassionate people, which i'm not.
One more thing about sadistic people??? They love it, they love to mess with your head...maybe i'll start a thread on that one.

Anyhow, dont take anti depressants without looking around you first and seeing where the REAL problem comes from.

dgtempe i feel you
without the feeling of been wanted or loved
depression will get you
anyways thanks for replying and i hope you find and souround yourself with carring, compassionate people
cheers

A close relative of mine has set up a myspace account and uses it for part of his therapy. He doesn't give out any identifying info. Myspace has lots of groups to join that are category specific. He's got everything on his blog and he said he felt instantly better. He's got lots of "crazy" friends there - maybe they're helping each other.

His Dr said that writing it all down is quite therapeutic and going so far as having someone else read it that you don't know is even better.

Hey Zaphod,

Perhaps the med you are thinking of is Lexapro. I have lived with severe depression since 1983, compounded by severe OCD and Anxiety attacks...lots and lots of therapy, diet, exercise, and it all helped...but, in the end, it all came back down to brain chemistry for me.

I started on Sinequan (remember, this was back in '83) which was like hitting me in the head with a sledgehammer. Forget getting anything done on that stuff.

Over the years I have progressed through meds as better products (less side effects) came out. Venlaflaxine was the worst, but a low dose of Lexapro along with the diet, exercise, and paying attention to the nature of my "self-talk" has me feeling and thinking pretty normally most of the time.

Like an earlier commenter said, there are lots of different meds; none work for everyone, and all of them take different lengths of time to become effective, depending on the individual. Suicidal ideation can go hand in hand with depression anyway, so the drug companies would be smart to warn people that certain meds, especially in the begining phases of treatment, may aggravate these impulses.

I think CYRAX made an important point about diet and exercise. While this may not be a total "cure" for all depression, cognitive therapies, generally healthy living, and healthy "self-talk" are fundamental to conquering it.

Sometimes you simply have to include the drug component (no shame in that, it's a chemical world afterall) but living well with depression is truly a multi-faceted endeavor.

I wish you well in your path. Remember...you have as much right to a reasonably happy life as anyone (even Jesus said that "In this life you will have troubles) and I wish you all success and Godspeed in your pursuit of it.




[edit on 10o08e314408e 44 by apocalypticon]

That's the one. Thanks. I was going to try to get on that one, but I seem to be doing better right now. For once there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's NOT an oncoming train. I've heard really good things about Lexapro though so I may end up trying it in the long run. It's going to be really hard for me to find something I can use though because I'm training for my CDL right now and drugs are a REALLY huge thing and I have to be very careful about any prescription I get.

Each antidepressant works differently for different people. I took Zoloft for 2 years and it worked very well for me, as did Celexa, which I took for 2 years before Zoloft. Lexapro (which is a derivative of Celexa) did not work for me... it caused more anxiety and depression (weird). Now I am on one of the latest and greatest meds called Cymbalta, which does not have the weight-gain and sexual side effects that the other meds have (the weight-gain issue is the only reason I've changed meds at all).

Some people have periods in their lives where they require these medications for a short period of time (such as a death in the family or something that causes depression or anxiety in an otherwise normally functioning person). Other people (like myself) have a disorder (mine is GAD - Generalized Anxiety Disorder), which is a chemical imbalance in the brain which causes us to feel anxiety and depression for no real reason. Those individuals have to stay on meds long-term, sometimes forever.

Getting to the conspiracy issue... I have a belief that the government has experimented on us long enough with various chemicals that it has caused a lot of the population to suffer from chronic anxiety and depression.

There is an article I read recently that explained how the government wants to make the general population more apathetic (uncaring about our society) so that we don't fight back or uprise against them. In my opinion, this could very well be part of that scenario.

Hi all,

I've been on Zoloft for quite a few years now and it works fine for me. I believe the initial energy gain from an anti depressant could give someone enough energy to carry through the suicidal thoughts before the medication can help diminish these negative thoughts.

With these new anti depressants I'm curious. Even though I feel Zoloft overall has helped me some side effects like lack of emotion bother me. I have tried other ones but for me, I feel Zoloft has the least side effects.

I can understand people (and there's a lot) who have been able to let go of anti depressants and lead a good life, but then there are some who need it. Then there are others where no matter how much help they receive (everything from meds, electric shock therapy, psychiatrists, etc) they still lose their life to depression through their own hands. In fact I have had someone very close to me do this, may God rest his soul.

What bothers me is the fact that I feel there are people who pressure others into getting off anti depressant medication when they actually need it. Sure, these people may have been on it at one point in time, they are into natural therapy, hell I don't disagree with going the natural way. But what these people do not understand is most of us, including me would rather be off this medication if the good side effects didn't greatly outweigh the negative.

Eventually hopefully I can one day reduce, eliminate it or perhaps not. I think the fact I'm still here on this blessed earth greatly outweighs not being here at all.

Any medication can have its side effects and everyone reacts differently.

Take care and peace,
- Naz

HI Zaphod,,

Did you know that PAXIL is an SSRI not a sedative. Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors. People should also not confuse anxiety with depression, these are two different things and dealt with by different types of drugs. ( Now that is ...LOL)
You can of course have depresssion induced Anxiety which is where the confusion comes from.

Better ( Newer anyway) technology than the SSRIs is the Serotonin and Noradrenaline (another Neurotransmitter) re-uptake inhibitors. Best advice is if it doesn't work try another. They don't all work for everyone.

One thing for certain is that they are a lot lot lot better than the tuppence a bucket amytryptyline and its ilk. Too many of those and it isn't suicidal thoughts that will kill you the medication will take care of that.

Glad you are through your episodes. See ya

Yeah, I found that out. But according to my dr at the time, there is either a slight sedative added to it, or it has a slight sedative effect, I don't remember which he said.

Hi Zaphod

Seroxat ( Europe) and Paxil ( name in USA) does not have any sedative added to them. The sedative effect your doctor mentioned may be due to the fact that very high serotonin levels may induce a feeling of contentedness and hence induce a sleepy drowsy feel. Don't worry if your doc got it wrong, they do all the time. If you want to know a composition of a medication go ask the guy in the Pharmacy. they are the ones who know what they are talking about.

Doctors Quacks and Shamen.... Don't get me started ...lol

Did you know Doctor is the only profession where you are called by what you do not how qualified you are. Most of them do not in fact have a higher degree (PhD) and the title doctor is purely honorary. Makes you laugh doesn't it ...

For all those anguished medics out there, yes I know some of you have a PhD. Didn't have to jump as many hoops though did you ...LOL

Have a good one

[edit on 6-9-2006 by Deharg]

Gosh six years of higher education and I still kant spill propurly...

thats how i feel about doctors too
and when you question them they get so defensive lol