If you read one citation I give, read this one:
http://www.antidepressantsfacts.com/Prozac-Backlash.htm
Do SSRIs cause brain damage? Well, first we have to define “brain damage”. Changes in the structures of the brain would seem to qualify. We have plenty of documented evidence of changes in the hippocampus. Changes in the structure of proteins also qualifies, disease like cystic fibrosis are caused by exactly such changes of proteins – the only difference being that those occur in primarily in the lining of the lungs instead of the brain and nervous system.
When they are talking about brain cells developing “corkscrew” shapes that is exactly what they are referring to. Changes in protein structure do indeed occur. All of the above are documented. (The work with the rats did indeed include 4 administrations of the drugs at levels vastly exceeding the amounts used in typical therapy. They are just now doing work on rats in moderate doses for longer periods of time. We await those results. I would also add that the total cumulative dose the rats received was not beyond the normal range used in therapy. They just got their 20-30 doses at once, then a month later, the same – rather than taking them daily in a division of that dose for the month. Not the best study in the world.)
But what do we mean by changes in the brain or proteins or new growth? Consider how the body works for a minute. You want to build new muscle mass in a muscle? You do this by creating a stimulus for it. Working out – you tear muscles and new growth occurs as your body repairs the damage. ECT is a similar process, where you create a trauma to the body to stimulate changes in brain chemistry. It’s my opinion that the effects you see from serotonin agents like SSRIs are precisely that. They inflict a chemical trauma to the brain & the body reacts to that trauma. That depression relief occurs at all is a tribute to the minds ability to adapt to a sudden imbalance of chemicals running through it, not due to an initial imbalance. Further support for this idea comes from the onset of action of the drug itself. You can measure blood levels of serotonin and SSRIs hours after administration, the principle side effects can be noticed within a day or two, when does onset of depression relief occur? 4 to 8 weeks after. What is happening in those 4 to 8 weeks? If it were truly a case of serotonin being absent, would not increasing those levels dramatically bring near instantaneous symptom relief? (BTW, this doesn’t even occur if you put a person on IV serotonin. Numerous studies have been done attempting to find a direct causal link between serotonin and depression all have failed to find it. They did however find out about serotonin syndrome from this work and it’s led to some interesting theories about autism & organic brain disease both of which have elevated levels of serotonin as an indicator.)
Evidence of brain damage from SSRIs includes: tinitis (caused by the drug Venlafaxine HCL, otherwise known as Effexor™. It has also occurred with the drug Prozac™.) Tardive Dyskinisa has been documented with Prozac™, Luvox™, Zoloft™.. Uncontrollable muscle spasms that continue for years after taking SSRIs & SNRIs are more evidence. Facial and muscle “tics” are yet another documented occurrence of brain damage from SSRIs and SNRIs. Memory loss, and trouble with verbal recall (remind you of say another serotonin affecting drug, MDMA?) are again documented with the use of SSRIs. As are autistic like symptoms in a small minority of patients. I would add that these symptoms are listed in the PDA under the cryptic title “Extrapyramidal Syndrome” for several SSRIs. Don’t let the name fool you it means: acute dystonic reaction, parkinsonian syndrome, akathisia, akinesia, "rabbit syndrome", tardive dyskinsia (TD), neuroleptic inducted dyskinesia, neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS). What causes EPS? Neuroleptic drugs, including SSRIs. What is EPS (sometimes referred to as EPR in the literature,) It’s brain damage, pure and simple.
The “standard of evidence”, while there aren’t controlled clinical trials for long term use of these drugs available, there are more than 100,000 adverse event reports, the experience of patients themselves, doctors experiences, and a wealth of anecdotal evidence. There aren’t clinical trials for long-term methamphetamine use either. Yet we have a wealth of evidence pointing to their neurotoxicity. I will also point out that the adverse events are bizarre for SSRI class drugs. Most drugs you see events reported 500 times for a handful of symptoms. SSRIs you see events reported over 500 times for dozens of completely different items. Serotonin affects far more in the body than just transferring a few chemicals between synapses in the brain.
It is illustrative to look at the evidence for other neuroleptic agents and how the evidence for them being neurotoxic came to light & eventually became accepted knowledge in the medical community. When you do, you find an alarming similarity to the case for SSRIs being neurotoxic. It’s well known that anti psychotic medications like Thorazine™ cause the full range of EPS, EPS is just a polite way of saying brain damage and avoiding terms that strike fear into patients and put dollar signs into lawyers eyes like “Tardive Dyskinisa”.
SSRIs do, in fact, share many things in common with amphetamines. MDMA, while being an amphetamine itself, also shares many things in common with SSRIs. When you look at brain scans of people who have used them for long periods of time you would be hard pressed to tell a difference. Now, mind you, a scan is not quite the same as cutting someone’s skull open and examining the tissue under a high power microscope, but we’re not that barbaric of a society. The coroner’s office would be a good place to start doing research of this kind however. Anyone got a couple hundred grand to put up for a study? It’s a logical end to finding or not finding this type of damage. No drug company, FDA, or other government entity has to my knowledge volunteered funding.
One of the interesting things SSRIs have in common with amphetamines is the phenomenon of “teeth grinding”
http://www.neurologychannel.com/NeurologyWorld/teeth.shtml. And one from the Mayo clinic same topic:
http://www.mayo.edu/comm/mcr/news_921.html This shouldn’t be at all surprising when you realize the chemicals amphetamines & SSRIs affect.
http://www.citizen.org/ELETTER/ARTICLES/stuttering.htm SSRIs can induce stuttering along with a host of other vocal recall, and memory problems.
There was a reference to sexual promiscuity during mania as a result of SSRIs. While the effects on performance and desire are reduced for most people (if not eliminated entirely in some men who take them), mania is a whole different animal. People experiencing mania have been known to have delusions of grandeur, go on multi thousand dollar shopping sprees, have methamphetamine like psychosis including going several days awake at a time, go full blown psychotic, initiate long distance relationships, engage in casual sex and other risky sexual behaviors, sell everything they own and move to a foreign country, start new businesses (with no capital to back them up), even occasionally murder people while in a state of psychosis. Religious delusions are not uncommon either. Nor is the behavior of driving 120 mph through a crowded area in a ‘flight’ of paranoia to escape perceived enemies. Use of SSRIs and SNRIs in people who are bi-polar is risky for these reasons and all of them carry a warning about this in their packaging.
). For the people who need them, they stop these 'normal' negative emotions (which are a part of life) turning into all-consuming things which stop them from feeling positive about anything.