Misc Anti-Depressants that have worked for you?

[bananamama]

My dr. prescribed Miirtazepine, after declining on his proposal for a SSRI
ATT I looked like a skeleton with muscles. under 60 kg and I am 1.8 meter lenght. That was btw a side effect off having/ labour kid's, you be running from here to there pure on mental energy.

After taking Mirtazepine for a while and my BMI slowly raised to my perfect weight. Even had a litle fat allover. So my ever being coldish dissappeared. Great med. Improved my sleep, anti-emetic. So a good combo with Kratom. Add the Dextro-Amphetamine i was on during all went well. Till the dr. stopped the adhd med.

Mirtazapine caused constipation and hunger for me and I didn't care about anything. I was so uncomfortable from not pooping how are you dealing with that... oh never-ending I read the rest of your post

 

[emkee_reinvented]

Mirtazapine caused constipation and hunger for me and I didn't care about anything. I was so uncomfortable from not pooping how are you dealing with that... oh never-ending I read the rest of your post

Constipation is mainly for me eating white grain product s, red meat, my gut can t handle milk protein so i get sticky poo.
De-hydration hardens my turds, but do not obstipate, milk a little. The white and the red are the main problem, so these i eat sparingly.
Adding sufficient greens and some fruit, last are besides healthy also mostly laxatives and like greens, whole grains rich in fiber.
Especially the pits in Kiwis if your are a baby, but Plums when adult rule. Never eat to much , unless constipated or wanting to experience power poo.

Opiods finetune my colon movement to perfection, an oddity i know. The exepcion to the rule.
Diet and individual body chemistry are main keys. Most likely.

 

[rentedbythehour]

I've taken many different antidepressants. Not just for depression, but as migraine preventatives as well. I started at a young age, maybe 12? Nothing has ever worked, for depression or migraines. Prozac made me suicidal. Literally woke up in ICU on a respirator 4 days after my Dr told me to stop taking it (not to taper, just stop). I was having some success with celexa, then I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I started on cymbalta then. I will say that was the first time I felt how I was supposed to feel. I still take it 9 years later, 60 mg once daily. Can't say it does anything for the migraines, but for dysthymia and fibromyalgia it's great.

 

[Robi]

Remeron

 

[Raya22]

Here’s my question. How many of you have never found an antidepressant that really seemed to make a difference (including the recommended talk therapy) and in fact, you are starting to wonder if you’re resistant to antidepressants/mood stabilizers/whatever else you’ve been prescribed in life??

 

[lovemissile66]

took a few tries...but ultimately, Wellbutrin SR 100mg 2x a day but only take it once in the morning and Celexa 40mg at night. The Wellbutrin was only added to the mix after i discovered sexual side effects from the Celexa. Worked like a charm. Only ever went off the cocktail when i went on my little 18 year heroin odyssey. Oh, the good old days of real junk. Only come off them again if heroin ever EVER makes it back East again. Fuck Fent

 

[happyone]

Here’s my question. How many of you have never found an antidepressant that really seemed to make a difference (including the recommended talk therapy) and in fact, you are starting to wonder if you’re resistant to antidepressants/mood stabilizers/whatever else you’ve been prescribed in life??

Raya22- Here is my Answer:

Me for sure; now im on an MAOI and it is helping... I am tx resistant to ssri snri snra's...Dx'd in that manner. Treatment resistant depression.
Talk to your provider abt perhaps trying an MAOI. I am on Selegiline.... a/k/a Emsam. a 9 mg daily transdermal. I ws moving along fine until the sudden, and very recent death of my partner.... now it's a mess... Raya22, how long hv you been 'at it'? iow, trying to find a med that works for you? I ws off and on at least 12 meds. that did zip. Also , look into Ketamine infusions. low dose. for treatment resistant depression.
Hope this info. helps you...
Happy One

 

[paltatomate]

not a medication, but the only thing that really has helped me with bad mood, anxious moments, and night terrors are my dogs.
i do take benzos, but not on a daily basis and they are for other stuff.

according to several mental health professionals i'm not clinically depressed nor do i have an anxiety disorder. i only have ptsd.
so i guess dogs (or cats, or any other) might not be enough to help someone with real depression/mood issues.

 

[SuperPsych]

I'm diagnosed with Persistent Depressive Disorder, Generalized anxiety disorder as well as PTSD.
SSRIs I hated. I would not take them again. Made me feel robotic but worst of all it caused such bad sexual dysfunction thatt I was consttantly in extreme pain due to "blue balls". I could not walk or even sit without being in horrible pain.

Venlafaxine actually helped my depression. Made me feel robotic still but helped me survive a period where I was deeply suicidal. It eventually led to the same blue balls that SSRIs did. I would take it again if I found myself feeling suicidal.

Mirtazapine kinda helped but not enough for me to keep taking it due to the weight gain I was experiencing from the extreme munchies that it gave me.

Bupropion is the prescription antidepressant that I've had the most luck with. Helps a bit with my depression. Only real downsides are I have to be really careful with my caffeine intake as even just a tiny bit too much can cause an anxiety attack. I also don't like that I can tell that I'm "on something" but the feeling isn't as severe as the others. I'm also pretty sure that I have ADHD and it helps somewhat with those symptoms.

The things that have helped the most have been things not prescribed by doctors.
Stimulants: A once or twice daily dose of a stimulant basically cures me of my depression. Though I do have addiction issues so its hard for me to not slip into it. 4f-MPH helped a lot though and was pretty easy to keep at 1 or 2 doses a day.

NMDA antagonists: These are a magic bullet for me. The only downside is they really only help the day that I take it. The second I feel it hit my brain my depression disappears, but my depression usually comes back the next day which makes it really hard for me to not want to dose every day.

Psychedelics: Psychedelics have been the best for me. It can be a difficult experience but 99% of the time during my trips I have moments where I'm genuinely happy to be alive and it fills me with drive to keep living and make positive changes in my life. I've taken them as a last resort during a bout of suicidal depression that lasted months. It pulled me right out and I didn't slip back into suicidal depression for almost 5 years after that trip. Before that experience I experienced those thoughts fairly often. Even if its not a life changing trip I usually have an afterglow for at least a week where my mood is improved.

Exercise: I didnt try this seriously until recently, the reason being that when you're depressed and don't want to get out of bed, exercise is the last thing that you want to do. I forced myself to go to the gym every other day for one week. Nothing intense, only 30-60 minutes of pretty light aerobic exercise and one or 2 sets of strength training. By the end of the week I could already feel my mood improving. It's been maybe 4 weeks or so and I now do 45-60 minutes in the gym almost every day because I genuinely look forward to it. I feel good about myself afterwards I and I'm starting to feel a lot healthier both physically and mentally. I just throw on a podcast that I like and watch it while I work out. Makes it hardly feel like working out. It's my quiet alone time where I know I wont be bothered

 

[Raya22]

The things that have helped the most have been things not prescribed by doctors.
Stimulants: A once or twice daily dose of a stimulant basically cures me of my depression. Though I do have addiction issues so its hard for me to not slip into it. 4f-MPH helped a lot though and was pretty easy to keep at 1 or 2 doses a day.

 

[Raya22]

I hear ya there. Quite the predicament I am currently in

 

[Ismene2]

Dunno if anyones mentioned it but if you're depressed try psilocybin chocolate. Cured me of depression with two squares of choc.

 

[Dreamflyer]

I take 10mg Lexapro and 15mg Remeron.

In addition to depression, the Lexapro helps with my OCD and the Remeron helps with my anxiety, insomnia & poor appetite.

 

[Dextro .45]

I posted this already….but $&*# it, I’ll do it again… BEST Antidepressants

1) - Phenylethylamine skeletal structure molecules (dopaminergic stimulants)
Benzedrine / Dexedrine / Methedrine / Benzphetamine / Biphetamine / Phenmetrazine / Vyvanse
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) (and low therapeutic dose of pharmaceutical Cocaine as needed)

2) - Opioid Mu-receptor Agonists (Oxycodone #1) / Diacetylmorphine (Diamorphine) / Hydromorphone (Dilaudid)

3) - GABA-A Agonist / PAM - Diazepam (Valium) & Alprazolam (Xanax)

4) - Gabapentinoids - Pregabalin (Lyrica) amazing anxiolytic + mood-boosting properties

5) - Ketamine - TRMDD - dopamine increase, euphoric, anxiolytic, sedative anaesthetic (disassociate)

6) - LSD-25 & Psilocybin- low therapeutic doses of LSD or Psilocybin mushrooms have PROFOUND antidepressant properties.

7) - depo-Testosterone 200mg IM - very effective antidepressant with robust mood-boosting properties. Confident, increased vigilance, pro social , outgoing, bold, energized

Me personally…..testosterone 200mg I’m two days prior to event (Saturday) so it has reached C-Max in bloodstream, daily healthy diet, water, cardio exercise, health supplements ,,,,,,then oral Brompton Cocktail / Speedball which for me is Ritalin (Methylphenidate) very safe & effective dopaminergic stimulant, increasing dopamine 3-4X over norepinephrine within an hour (3-4 hours duration) VERY euphoric & pleasurable with rapid mood-boosting properties, further paired with a super euphoric non-sedating opioid such as Oxycodone.

Also, further more ….a rapid acting potent anxiolytic benzodiazepine Aprazolam (Xanax) possesses antidepressant properties in addition to causing a significant increase of dopamine in the Stratum as compared with Lorazepam (Ativan) may contribute to Xanax as being #1 abused Benzo in States due to dopamine increase, potent anxiolytic & antidepressant effects

Valium (Diazepam) is absolutely invaluable as an anxiolytic benzodiazepine with robust muscle relaxant properties…..only to be used prior to bed or if too amped up

Ketamine is very pleasure & euphoric when bumping little piles

I feel very happy and comfortable…..extremely rapid acting antidepressant cocktail

 

[mscudery]

Great if it's working and it will. I remember being on California rocket Fuel( Venlafaxine + Mirtazapine) only Mirtazapine was easy to just stop cause of weight gain.

Venlafaxine is also very unforgiving when miss the dose after 8 weeks sometime sooner...I was on it for 2-3 years..
I knew that a lot of them wouldn't work as my psych said at the time that I should drop them cause she said you are not depressed...you had maybe acute phazes when all that stress happened to you....
She helped me with giving me a Vigifinil(Modafinil) to ameliorate status in withdrawal. later she prescribed me Concerta cause those states stems from being in fatigue and ADD.


hey Sertraline(Zoloft) is SSRI and with Ecsitalopram and Venlafaxine is at the top from the report made by Journal of Psychiatry( I think that was global)! Case study

Venlafaxine has also push with noradrenaline but lower dopaminergic affinity( it's something like 30:1 in contrast to noradrenalin or serotonin ). But I speak from inbetween newbie and basics of pharmacology but I got here and I'm more self-aware now than ever in my life.

Also Effexor(Venlafaxine helps with neuralgia and neuropathy fybromiyalgia chronic fatigue but....only don't be affraid of antidepp withdrawal it looks like it will get hard but in 3 days I was like myself again( a bit of BRAIN ZAPPSS and RLS but not mentally only irritated) and I think they worked for me as I don't see path where I didn't take em.(paralel Universe BS).

Zoloft also has a bit of a push in the morning where I had the most difficult time I tried with one box only and I saw it's almost the same as Venlafaxine so when I felt good she said to me ok...now you drop all of them as you feel better and I also was on that page and I was acctualy better after 2-3 years.

Stimulants helped me but modafinil had very long half-life so it sorta after two months I started always get some rashes and my pee was like dark metal..

later I saw potential in Ketamine so whenever I wanted to leave benzos and bupe it helped me 80% leaving me 3 weeks later in great shape.

I take MDMA 3 times a year I even tried and I wrote here a small report on M&EDD taking it like micro-doses for a two weeks with hard supplements and NAC before and later- Nacetyl-Cysteine or mini doses 15-30mg 3 days, than break for couple days and again.

almost like I knew when to take it like that cause I had traumatic event that I needed to deal with which I neglected thus being crippled for daily activities and I did helped myself.

Those last two things are not recomended without specialist and MDMA is not antidepressant as it helps with PTSD which whcih also I think that
This is my take:
PTSD, ADD, depression always from 4 hospitals that I monitored for my (i don't know how you say the paper you do when finished with 4 years in college) not the PHD like before you become Engineer before Bollogne proces. You know what I mean..
they are cause for later developing OCD or depression that always has manic side which later become bipolar and there are couple fo them.

Then people take lamotrigine to level them-selves or Valproate....Jesus almost like we invented those 100 different states when we patent new drug well we must now invent a disorder that the drug heals.
That is cored in our humans being people with quality like comforting ourselves that we have this or that cause drug works and later we pay for that.

The antidepressants also have ugly side so if I or from my experience: take what you heard works best, or what you see on internet. thank GOD on WWW for that cause there is a lot of information and when you see people mentioning that California Rocketr Fuel is working better than Trazodone or Amislpiride or Quetiapine which are antipsychotics and here doctors still prescribe them for depression or insomnia.

Quetiapine is great in 25mg dose for insomnia but using it sparingly or when have a bad trip or in US you have meth so acute psychosis!

well there are now year and a half for magistrate and and after 3 or 4 years to phd. I'm 36 now and I hope with I will be a doctor. It is my wish and I think I can help as I love people now...I hated hem cause of being sales manager I still twitch when my mobile rings from those 7 years of stress. That is why I use laptop or desktop cmp for most of the time and mobile being for texting and calling..

Zoloft, Prozac(fluoxetine), Venlafaxine, escitalopram are what I think works from all SSNDRI

Mirtazapine is in a bit different category but it works for insomnia also dreams on it are frickin to Lucid I dreamt a butterfly that is me that have dreams of a butterfly and so on!
Weight gain is downside

I hated trazodone, all antipsychotics only use Pipamperone which is a mild one for insomnia.

The MAOi cannot be taken with a lot of stuff from food. so they are way less prescribed but still are.

Jesus Christ am smart today, i think I need to take something fro narcissistic behaviour so I will just go take some cubensis and kill that EGO.

til then....

I figured that some people had been through more antidepressants than I have, but it almost hurts to see it in print. There's such a history of pain behind all of that - it's easy to understand why people are resorting to psychedelics (I doubt the effects have staying power. LSD didn't seem to keep Cary Grant chipper for long).
But the prozac/lexapro/cymbalta and Wellbutrin go-round seemed so pointless that I gave up for a while. I only take a low dose of adderall right now - because it works. 10 mgs a day eases the adhd and the suicidal ideation that plagued me since grade school and reduces anxiety. I'm still hella depressed and desperate enough to try anything but ECT, but am saving up for a real psychopharmacologist appt before messing with antidepressants again.

 

[Nas47]

i tried only Sertralin...nothin'...side effects...and some ad properties from trams(which are good for depression,but wish i try tapentadol)...usually weed is one the best ad drug for me

 

[mscudery]

Psychedelics, particularly LSD for me is practically the only foolproof cure to my depression. Albeit my depression is never permanently cured, it goes away for the longest periods of time, from the most infrequent amount of dosing, with LSD. I have tried every pill and drug you can damn near think of, and have held a habit to an extent with most. The only antidepressant FOR ME besides LSD, was ketamine, GHB, and most of the time any opioid will work. These are all more like antidotes rather than a solution to the problem through behavioral mechanisms, whereas LSD is 100% both, and I can confidently say is a TRUE solution to the core issues causing the depression. I wish i could say that it holds true for everyone as well, although I would say a vast majority would find a psychedelic that works the same way for them.

The only times in my life that I was free from depression were at 16, when I took LSD at least once a week, and during the years I was on methadone - and detoxing is one of my biggest regrets. (Bupe did NOT have the same effect). My luck with antidepressants has been nil, but will try again because self-medicating has too many pitfalls for me. Am messing with 7OH now and may try mesembrine/Kanna next, because we all get that desperate.

 

[mscudery]

But since placebo effect can account for 20% patient improvement, 33% overall isn't very good. There was also fraud in a lot of SSRI studies, particularly counting suicidal patients as "voluntarily withdrew from study". When FDA demanded label warnings, the industry wanted to warn "teenagers", but the stats included patients up to 25yo having suicidal impulses. I wouldn't say they never work, but the corruption of Big Pharm (and not just for Prozac and Paxil)... Well also, in uni, I finally went to a psychiatrist to deal with suicidal thoughts, and he gave me a drug that increased my impulses into an attempt. I hate SSRIs!!!! Bupropion/Wellbutrin does more for ADHD than my depression. I now take kratom also, mainly because I control the dose, not a stupid pshrink. Ketamine isnt covered by ins, besides, on ket my face muscles lose tone and I look obviously on drugs after taking it. At least at doses that would help for 2weeks or so.

Have had no joy with any antidepressant (and only adderall helps with my suicidal ideation), BUT... my brilliant why-antidepressants-can-increase suicide theory is that feeling more motivated to kill yourself at first might mean that the drugs are working.
Depression can be so demotivating that I often feel guilty about still being alive, so perhaps the meds - if they have any effect at all - can be dangerous if they reduce that velleity when your head's in a bad place.
Which seems just-right in a cruel universe .

 

[mscudery]

i am going to throw my situation out here for comment. i started to once before but thought the forum not appropriate? anyway, i hv had depression since my teens, first manifesting as anorexia at age 14-15. through my 63 yrs. various psychiatrists have changed my diagnosis but the treatment has remained pretty much the same. ssri's with a sprinkling of snri's. major depressive disorder, treatment resistant depression. right now, i'm treating with iv ket at 85mg/60 min. on my 155lb frame. i have two more appts scheduled with my dr. (an md and anesthesiologist) who is going to be closing his doors. i'm looking for another iv ket provider that'll take my insurance (unitedhealthcare) to no avail. that's another story. my backup plan after suspending ivket is to go back to -via my psychiatrist- (es)ketamine FDA approved as Spravato. 2x wk at 84mg.
my question is regarding maoi's though. my psychiatrist wants to take me off the ssri's , most of them, and put me on maoi's. ive read that maoi's are often more effective (parnate) but come with restrictive dietary requirements. i'd be on tricyclics for two weeks coming off the ssri's. i am very apprehensive. i see where this could be a step in the right direction when combined with the spravato however and am seriously considering it. i just dont want to become too much of a mess changing over. i also take 150mg wellbutrin, trintellix, rexulti and modafinil and suboxone right now. as you can see it's complicated. and as someone who's a patient not a doctor, my knowledge is limited. i read alot, ask lot of questions, not necessarily the right ones though.
anybody switch from ssri's to maoi's? anybody take suboxone and ketamine in either of its forms (S, R).? for some reason at a good dose of ketamine, i'm not responding more than a day. any input most appreciated. tia - happyone

Always felt like opiates and psychedelics wouldn't collaborate well, but will have to check pubmed. I'm just a few years younger, with a lot of similar history, and I stopped sub/bupe a few months ago.
While on cymbalta, wellbutrin, lexapro, etc, I tried psilocybin and other things that could cause SSRI syndrome with no ill effects - but are you asking whether the bupe might reduce the staying power of a psychedelic?

Because shrooms made for a nice evening, but they had no more lingering effect than any antidepressant (so, nada, in my case). Perhaps I'll stop the 7OH, then try microdosing the rest of my shrooms to see whether they make more of a difference (7OH scares heck out of me btw. People on the forums sound exactly like the old Drugbuyers.com hydro crowd, and am not going back there. Stick with the leaf, cause the extracts don't offer enough reward to be worth it).

 

[aokorn]

My psychiatric history goes back about 50 years. During that time, I have taken various antipsychotics and neuroleptics. Occasionally, I have stopped taking these medications (on my own initiative), which did not end well. I took Zyprexa for a long time. It lasted for several years. But somehow this medication did not work well for me. Towards the end of the treatment, I became depressed, even though my psychiatrist said that Zyprexa also has an antidepressant effect. At some point, my body was in a state of despair. I no longer dared to go to work. The usual “good day” at work in the morning caused me problems. I solved the problem by drinking a beer or two before work. That helped for quite a short time. Then it only got worse. I had to ask my psychiatrist for help, who said, astonished and vehemently, “You are depressed!” Apparently, this was inconceivable to my psychiatrist in my past. She prescribed Cymbalta (duloxetine).

Rarely, if ever, in my life have I experienced such a positive change in my well-being in such a short time through medication or drugs. Suddenly everything was easy. Not a trace of depression. And that was already the next day! I was really grateful to pharmacy for an achievement like Cymbalta.

I took it for several years (in addition to the antipsychotics). The negative effect was that I gained quite a bit of weight. I also developed diabetes. But it was worth it to me.

I think Cymbalta served its purpose for me, so I stopped taking it at some point. I have to say that this was another good decision in my life. In one month, I lost 15 kg and my diabetic picture (which was already worrying in the meantime) returned to normal! Two very positive changes.

I would like to say that antidepressants (Cymbalta) were both a blessing and a curse for me. It seems that Cymbalta worked well for me and it was a good thing that I stopped taking it. It has now been 2.5 years since I stopped taking it and there are no signs that I am becoming depressed again.