Depression drugs don't work, finds data review

Depression drugs don't work, finds data review

www.timesonline.co.uk

Millions of people taking commonly prescribed antidepressants such as Prozac and Seroxat might as well be taking a placebo, according to the first study to include unpublished evidence.

The new generation of antidepressant drugs work no better than a placebo for the majority of patients with mild or even severe depression, comprehensive research of clinical trials has found.

The researchers said that the drug was more effective than a placebo in severely depressed patients but that this was because of a decreased placebo effect.

The study, described as “fantastically important” by British experts, comes as the Government publishes plans to help people to manage depression without popping pills.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.timesonline.co.uk
www.timesonline.co.uk

This seems to apply to mild/moderate depression than severe depression, but it does also highlight something very important - many of these drugs are over prescribed.

There's a culture in modern medicine of throwing pills at everything - which can't be good.

That said, I firmly believe that some anti-depressants work for some people.

I wonder as well, if this is intended to cut costs relating to prescriptions - anti depressants are quite expensive, and the government is always looking for ways to cut NHS costs.

www.timesonline.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 25/2/2008 by budski]

wanna know what will solve depression..... fix this world...


Honestly isnt everyone who is or has been depressed had something bad happen to them, i know thats like saying doesnt a ball roll, becuz everyone has had something bad happen to them to trigger that chemical to be released?

could it be that when this bad event happens on some it malfunctions an never closes or takes alot longer to close an stop the the flow of that chemical to the brain?

A psychologist once prescribed me Prozac I was on it for a month before nearly committing suicide. It actually made my depression worse than it was without the drug. I found that other things like regular exercise and a good diet work much better than an anti depressive.

I am against all of these anti depressive drugs. I don't believe that we know enough about the human brain to prescribe these dangerous drugs without further study. I am sure that they work on a select few people but those people must have a common thread about them that these drugs affect in a positive way.

This could explain 2 things that always amazed me:
1: Some people (few, but never the less) are taking SSRIs when they feel that they are depressed (at that moment), not a prolonged use as it should be taken. It usualy takes several weeks till the drug begins to work. However people claim that it still helps. Placebo?
2: Richer neighbourhoods consume these drugs MUCH more then poorer, and for both here price is subsidised. So i suspected that it is just a popular trend,and now it really gains some "weight".
Thanx for the post.

Depression drugs do work I know I've taken them. I aslo have friends and family that have taken them. Although I do agree they are over perscibed and should only be taken if someone can't function without them.

Alot of people don't know what it's like to have a mental illness for some it's beyond comprehention to them. Alot of people think we're all the same mentaly but we're not. Our mind are like finger prints and no two minds are alike.

I have paranoid schizoeffective disorder which is basicaly schizophrenia and bi polar combined. Without the miricals of modern medicine I'd be locked away in a stray jacket unable to participate in society.

Just like a diabetic I have to take a pill to keep my mind in check. Without it I live in a world full of hallucinations and delusions a living nightmare that I can't wake up from with no sense of reality.

Thanks to todays drugs I'm 90% who I was before I became ill.

However thier are doctors out there that make a living off of perscibing medications to people that don't need them and it's all about money. Also thier are good doctors too that truely care about thier patients and wouldn't do such a thing. In my 12 years of being a patient I've seen good and bad doctors in psychiatry.

There was an article in the free paper about the positive effects of depression, going on about how people who had gotten over it were more mentally resilient simply out of emotional scope.

Kinda like once you realise there is a certain emotional wavelength you find out how easy it is for you to get depressed.

It will be interesting to see how Parliment decides to deal with the people who are still depressed though.

That article (or the study) says nothing about its effects when used to treat things other than depression, such as OCD.

No one can tell me that SSRIs are as good as placebos. I know, because I have OCD and definitely feel that SSRIs work for the symptoms I have.

Also, the study didn't take into account children who are on the drugs...

[edit on 25-2-2008 by writtenimage]

reply to post by writtenimage


It doesn't address OCD because that was not part of the study - the placebo effect apparently refers to moderate/mild depression.

The report states that the drugs are only good for severe depression.

I'm not saying there aren't cases where people are in a state of "depression which requires medical attention, but I think it is now an overused phrase and a sympton of our self obsessed times.


Depressed is basically "sad", the opposite of which is happy, no pill can make a person happy.

The medication of much of our population is worrying, and I notice in that recent mass killing in the US, the guy was on "medication"............

Depression is NOT "sad".
Depression is nearly always a chemical imbalance in the brain, which causes a variety of symptoms which MAY include a deep or profound feeling of sadness, but also includes lack of sleep, lack of energy, anxiety (panic attacks), inability to cope, disassociation and many others.

Before making such a sweeping generalsiation, perhaps a fuller understanding of the illness is in order.

I agree though, that SSRI's, SRI's and other anti-depressants are over prescribed, and in some cases, self help, therapy (such as CBT) may be more helpfull.

Originally posted by budski
Depression is NOT "sad".

actually, it can be, and is one viable definition

Depression is nearly always a chemical imbalance in the brain, which causes a variety of symptoms which MAY include a deep or profound feeling of sadness, but also includes lack of sleep, lack of energy, anxiety (panic attacks), inability to cope, disassociation and many others.

all our emotions are generated from somewhere in the brain, including sad, so not sure what your point is.

Before making such a sweeping generalsiation, perhaps a fuller understanding of the illness is in order.
I agree though, that SSRI's, SRI's and other anti-depressants are over prescribed, and in some cases, self help, therapy (such as CBT) may be more helpfull.

I am not making sweeping generalisations, I would agree "depression" would require medication in severe cases, however in MOST cases I would say it does not

People demand instant happiness, they aint gonna get it in chemicals

Originally posted by blueorder

Depressed is basically "sad", the opposite of which is happy, no pill can make a person happy.

#
You feel miserable and sad.
#
You feel exhausted a lot of the time with no energy .
#
You feel as if even the smallest tasks are sometimes impossible.
#
You seldom enjoy the things that you used to enjoy-you may be off sex or food or may 'comfort eat' to excess.
#
You feel very anxious sometimes.
#
You don't want to see people or are scared to be left alone. Social activity may feel hard or impossible.
#
You find it difficult to think clearly.
#
You feel like a failure and/or feel guilty a lot of the time.
#
You feel a burden to others.
#
You sometimes feel that life isn't worth living.
#
You can see no future. There is a loss of hope. You feel all you've ever done is make mistakes and that's all that you ever will do.
#
You feel irritable or angry more than usual.
#
You feel you have no confidence.
#
You spend a lot of time thinking about what has gone wrong, what will go wrong or what is wrong about yourself as a person. You may also feel guilty sometimes about being critical of others (or even thinking critically about them).
#
You feel that life is unfair.
#
You have difficulty sleeping or wake up very early in the morning and can't sleep again. You seem to dream all night long and sometimes have disturbing dreams.
#
You feel that life has/is 'passing you by.'
#
You may have physical aches and pains which appear to have no physical cause, such as back pain.

source

So, sad doesn't really cover it - which was your original assertion.

You can argue semantics all you want, the fact is, you were wrong.

Originally posted by budski

So, sad doesn't really cover it - which was your original assertion.

You can argue semantics all you want, the fact is, you were wrong.

spare me your sanctimonius lectures, you ain't the King


thesaurus.reference.com...

Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: depressed
Part of Speech: adjective 1
Definition: discouraged
Synonyms: bad, bleeding*, blue*, blue funk, bummed out*, cast down, crestfallen, crummy*, dejected, despondent, destroyed, disconsolate, dispirited, down, downcast, downhearted, dragged*, fed up*, glum, grim, hurting, in pain*, let down, low, low down, low-spirited, lugubrious, melancholy, moody, morose, pessimistic, ripped, sad, sob story*, spiritless, taken down*, torn up*, unhappy, weeper, woebegone
Antonyms: cheerful, elated, encouraged, euphoric, exhilarated, happy

I took depression meds for a really long time. I started when I was young and took them for multiple years. They made me feel really numb and to not care about a lot of different things. I'm off them now and while I still feel down sometimes I just think it's life brining me down and not depression. These pills are not for insta-happiness and can be very dangerous. I feel like I lost multiple years of my life to them and wish I would have stopped sooner, but I was to believe that that was happiness.

Excellent post, I am glad you are away from this mind numbing pills

--------------------------
removed quote of entire post directly above

please read ABOUT ATS: Warnings for excessive quoting, and how to quote

www.abovetopsecret.com...

[edit on 26/2/08 by masqua]

So you're trying to compare a thesaurus definition with a medical definition?



now that IS sad.

Do your research and find out what depression really is.

What i would like to know is who decides to give sugar pills to people to test the placebo effect?

Thats what you should be asking.

since every persons brain chemistry is unique,

there can never be a magic-bullet anti-depressant drug that works
across the whole spectrum.

there are dozens or perhaps scores of depression drugs out there,
it is up to the persons doctor to arrive at the correct drug & dose...

so looking at a snapshot of prescription useage on the whole
depression suffering prescrition takers as not better than a placebo,
is a 'spin' tactic

next weeks test, when another 15% of depression pill takers
have changed drugs and resulted in remedy...
the nay-sayers will still be calling depression drugs ineffective...

until more than 51% & a more successful remedy rate of 75% of depressed persons find the proper drug & dosage...
the industry will continue to be chastized,


designer drugs will/should be individually available before 2026AD

Originally posted by budski

So you're trying to compare a thesaurus definition with a medical definition?

now that IS sad.

Do your research and find out what depression really is.

So you now know more than people who compile such respected thesaurus, you really are the "KING OF THE WORLD", you decide everything, well done buddy, and keep popping the pills

Nothing you have said contradicts the fact that depression equates to unhappy, and the opposite basically is happy- all these emotions come from the chemicals in our brain, it is how we operate

Good to see this report highlighting the abuse by those who perpetuate the depression industry, be they medical or industrial