Antidepressants change personality, study suggests.

Ativan almost killed me. Zoloft has saved me, my relationships and my sanity.

In general I am against prescription meds but the Zoloft is a miracle. I'd buy the SAM-E's but insurance won't cover that.

reply to post by InertiaZero


OMG yes, i totally understand what you are talking about with the foggy feeling, one drug actually made me feel like i was literally "high all the time" wellbutrin was the nasiest drug i ever had, it did actually change me from a quiet person to a raving lunatic, and I am not lying, i was on it for two months, and that time i went from being depressed to yelling, screaming, trying to fight with everyone. I yelled just to yell, and it wasn't until my husband pointed out that since taking the drug i was being cruel to my children, I got off of it immediately, and told my doctor no more. The last time i took meds for my anxiety was 2 years ago. yes, i live with anxiety but i have learned how to deal with properly. I put myself out there daily, yes i have social anxiety and there are still some things i am trying to deal with, but by not hiding and not avoiding things, situations or people I feel i am doing much better then being on anti-anxiety meds. i know not everyone will agree with me but after finding out easy it is to a prescription for basically anything, (yes there is even meds to help you stop vomiting from the stomach flu!!!) i don't think it is safe or even healthy to be taking mind altering drugs. I think some drugs such as drugs for the common cold or drugs to get rid of certain infections are okay, but not depression, anxiety, add, adhd, and son. I think they are bad news. I will also agree to disagree with other people.

good thing I'm not one of those people that reads the headline only and replies, cuz my one line reply would have been composed of profanities and secret ats police would come and capture me for multiple violations

Yes, antidepressants MAY change a person's personality
I'm so happy they might have come to conclusion since there are millions of people that take them.

I do find the placebo effect very telling in regard to depression. Granted there will be a small minority that truly have a chemical imbalance and may need some sort of pill. The majority, however, probably only need a little hope. They are sad for any number of reasons, probably just stuck in rut (been there for sure) and they THINK they will feel happier on the pill (even if its just sugar or a vitamin), therefore they do feel better, and things look a little brighter.

Many people swear by SSRI's but i have seen a few studies that show them no more effective than placebo if you would believe it.MAOI's have more side effects but much better. Anti-Depressants are handed out like sweeties, a very very large portion of these people don't need them in the first place. As for changing your personality...well i have never found any anti-depressant to do much at all. It is a very,very small change in mood if you have severe depression but not enough in my experience to warrant it being called personality changing. For alot of people that's just enough to get them through day to day and talk with psychologists and mental health workers without feeling absolutely dreadful. But i think this anti-depressant culture is harmful to people who are completely debilitated by the illness. Most people don't understand that you can't just "snap out of it" and simply brush it aside like a member said, but because of the willingness for doctors to hand them out every chance they get the term depression has been diluted.



[edit on 8-1-2010 by Solomons]

It's all about the MONEY.

Sleep fasts can reset brain chemistry too. They are free. Why is it they are never prescribed? lol

Personally they are very iffy. After a while I came off them, then when I went back on them again I was suicidal within days!!!

reply to post by pharaohmoan


That happened to a friend of mine. She been diagnosed with depression and they put onto some antidepressant ( I don't recall which one) and after being on it a few weeks she tried to commit suicide. Fortunately she survived and while in the hospital she was told that one of the side effects of the pill was suicidal thoughts. She never went back onto it or anything else because as she said she may have been sad, but at least she hadn't thought of offing herself without the pills.

I like to have a structural model of how anti-depressants work rather than just having a chemical model. It seems that generally speaking the fewer structures called dendritic spines one has protruding from one`s nerve cells the more negative one is - i.e. more fear (anxiety) and self-pity (depression).
en.wikipedia.org...
Maybe people with more spines have more psychological resilience.
Anti-depressants such as Prozac (Vitamin P in New York) or fluoxitene increase dendritic spine growth and result in good feelings i.e. gratitude and trust.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...

I can only speak from my own experiences, but I would have to say "Good thing the article confirms the drugs do their jobs!"

While I can appreciate the idea behind, and those who can adequately handle issues without the use of medications, i can honestly say I could not.

I was literally out of control before meds. I can't even remember half the crazy stuff I was doing in my teens, but I know it ended up in 3 pregnancies, prostitution, and lots of coc aine. That's before i reached 20. self medication has it's merits- twinkies work...but not everyone chooses to medicate with a sugar high. Sometimes that simply isn't enough.

Even in the past year, before I began the current drug i take, celexa, i had two weeks out of every month where i truly had no motivation to do anything, shower, chores, leave the house. I cried over every tiny thing, and not just tears. Huge heaving sobs for NO reason. This is NOT normal behavior.

There was no way in hell I could try to work myself into a state stable enough to take a look at these issues and find a positive way to handle them.

So has my personality changed? Well, that's the point. Has my personality changed in a positive or negative way? Well, i showered today, made coffee, did the dishes, sent the kid off to school with a smile, and managed to get some writing done. So i'd say that's pretty positive.

I get a bit irate with those whose lives are so picture perfect they can damn and condemn these lifesaving medicines that some of us just need. Biologically, we need them. You can't say we don't until you have lived as us at our worst.

Demonize the insurance rates and pharmaceutical companies for their prices, whatever- but for those who wave these off as if it's mind over matter and if we were "strong" enough or "motivated" we could solve our problems without the use of these drugs- I say move along then. Nothing to see here. And i would add that it is my most fervent hope that those who say these things never have to be faced with a loved one who was just randomly born with tweaked brain chemistry, but if they are, I'm here to commiserate.

ETA
I feel like i have to repeat what most people already know:

Not every med works the same way. With a responsible doctor who informs you, and some independent research, as well as monitoring your own thoughts and feelings; "bad med experiences" would be lessened greatly. For me, I had to try over 5 different SSRI's before I found one that worked. Just because one doesn't does not mean to give up on them entirely.

[edit on 11-1-2010 by cjcord]


edited again to point out my twinkie reference. Twinkies taste good when you have the blues because you get a sugar high, which elevates your mood. Chocolates for women with PMS anyone?

Our bodies crave feeling good. With sugar, high inducing drugs, romance, adrenaline, whatever it is, we all have something that makes us feel better than normal. But those with actual chemical imbalances- these fixes don't work for long.

I also felt I needed to point out that I happen to be prescribed oxycontin due to cervical damage that is not surgery eligible. Without it, I can't lift my kids, or stand in line at the grocery store, or play with my children. No, i don;t get a high off of it- after a few days that effect wears off leaving you with only pain relief. But due to those who abuse the drug, I have to go through hoops to have my pain managed.

As for anti-depressants being a last resort? Please bear in mind some people cannot even begin to enter therapy until their chemistry has been stabilized. Would you send to physical therapy someone with a still broken leg?

[edit on 11-1-2010 by cjcord]