Different reasons why drugs interact badly with SSRIs.

[Mycophile]

Ok,

I want to understand this better from a scientific/neurological standpoint WITHOUT it being described in terms that a person not inclined towards science (me) will understand.

SSRI's, like Prozac, seem to interact so badly with so many things.

I accepted a long time ago that they don't mix with MAORI's, and I'm not sure I need much of a reason, except for the fact that while taking an SSRI i am curious about certain drugs that *MIGHT* have *SLIGHT* MAOI properties, which totally leaves them in a vague category where I cannot determine if they are safe to experiment with.


What's entirely new to me, is the idea that certain drugs that interact too much with serotonin, even if they are NOT MAOIs, cannot be mixed with SSRIs.

First off....What exactly does SSRI means in terms of "reupptake"?

Does that mean that they inhibit Serotonin or increase it?

How can one know whether or not a drug that interacts with serotonin is safe to take with an SSRI?

Hell, I want a better understanding overall of Serotonin, Dopamine, and other...whatever they are called...lol....


Just general info.

Thanks

 

[St3ve]

SSRIs act by inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin. What does this mean? Under normal conditions if a serotonin containing cell is stimulated it will release thousands of serotonin molecules into the extracellular space (the area immediately around the cell). Some of these serotonin molecules will drift around until they find a serotonin receptor to bind to and activate it. The vast majority of them however, are taken up again by the cell that initially released them through a sort of "gate". The SSRI binds to this gate and seals it so that the serotonin molecules can't go back in, hereby forcing them to float around longer and increasing the chances that they will bind to a receptor and activate it.

Monoamine Oxidase (MAO) normally breaks down free floating serotonin molecules to keep levels under control. MAOIs are inhibitors from MAO so that it can no longer break down serotonin (as well as few other things).

If you mix SSRIs and MAOIs you'll be blocking two of the mechanisms that normally keep serotonin levels under control. In this scenario, at sufficient doses (as in the majority of MAOs are blocked and most of the serotonin reuptake sites are blocked) you can get dangerously high levels of serotonin, over activating serotonin receptors and causing unpleasantries such as serotonin syndrome.

Normally substances reported to be weak inhibitors of MAO can be mixed with SSRIs without any serious risks. In order to be safe though you should start with very low doses and slowly work your way up.

As for knowing which drugs are safe to mix with an SSRI, you can look it up on bluelight/other places on the internet, or just ask.

Things like serotonin and dopamine are called neuromodulators! A good place to start is to read their wikipedia entries. If you want a better idea, get an undergraduate level textbook on neuroscience (eg. Fundamentals of Neuroscience by Larry Squire).