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Why do strong SRIs (serotonin reuptake inhibitors) often cause / induce apathy, indifference and laziness? Maybe not in everyone, but it's one of the most common complaints. I regularly read about it on the internet. I myself was affected by it. My questions would be: 1.) What causes it? 2.) Were you affected? 3.) Did you successfully get rid of these specific side effects? If so, how so? 4.) Further comments regarding that "phenomenon"?

Both are second-generation SSRIs, both exhibit minimal drug interactions via Cytochrome P450, both are the most prescribed SSRIs and are considered first line antidepressants. Who's been taking both and what were your experiences? (How did they compare to each other?). I am looking forward to read your experiences... Which one did you like more?

I'm tapering off clomipramine, right now I'm down to 75 mg. I've been on it for almost a year, but I'm not impressed with the results. I was hoping it would work better than my last two SSRI's (which seemed to do the best job when I took them for the first time) but I can't go higher than 100 mg because of side effects. A few months ago risperidone was added to the clomipramine. I'm on 1 mg a day. I've seen some improvement, but I can still have difficult days or even weeks where I'm having too much intrusive thoughts (or thought, since it's been only one thought which bothers me). I've had good results from fluvoxamine and escitalopram, but both pooped out. Maybe clomipramine had pooped out too. According to my pdoc, taking risperidone as a monotherapy won't have much effect. And with OCD, an antipsychotic is mainly added as an augment treatment. So what to do next?

Is it possible that a brain becomes immune to working mechanism SSRI's for long time users? So there can be side effects but no effect on thing you are taking it for? I can't find anything on this on the internet. I know individual SSRI's have different properties, but I wonder if they could also do some kind of 'damage' (I'm not talking about withdrawal and recovery). Like insensitive / insusceptible? I've been using Luvox(2/3 years) and Lexapro (6/7 years) and now Zoloft, which I have been on for 6 months (200 mg for almost about 1,5 months). But Zoloft doesn't like the other two, not much effect on my intrusive thoughts. I've read from a lot of people that SSRI's don't work as good when you restart the same one. I had this experience with Luvox, when I took it for the third time in two years time. I then switched to Lexapro and it worked great! But now I'm not so lucky and I wonder WHY my brain isn't responding the way I like. Apart from mild side effects I'm not getting the same relief from Zoloft. If anyone has more (indepth) info that would be AWESOME! :-)

I know that a lot of bipolar folks take an SSRI as part of their daily regimen of meds and apparently it seems to help. But there's some growing concern in the pdoc world now that SSRI's may be causing manic symptoms and even directly causing manic episodes. I was on SSRI's for 10 years before quitting last October. In chronological order: Celexa, Zoloft, Celexa again, Lexapro, Zoloft again, Prozac, Zoloft again briefly, back to Prozac to close it out. For me, personally, after stopping them altogether, I was able to see what they were doing to my system. I truly believe they made me much more unstable and greatly increased compulsiveness and just made a bad situation worse. Switching from Lexapro to Zoloft sent me immediately full-on hypomanic for over a month in early 2015. I was high as a kite and on top of the fucking world. It was unreal and so obvious at the time. From the beginning of it, I was certain something unusual was going on. Now I wasn't diagnosed bipolar yet, just depressed, so I didn't even know what hypomania was then. It fizzled out eventually (sigh) but I had at least two more, shorter, and less intense episodes late spring 2015. I've not had anything quite as euphoric as those since. My last pdoc expressed some concern about the prozac but wasn't very insistent on me stopping it, just that I would want to eventually. I've since read that there is increasing concern in the pdoc community. Yet a lot of bipolar people still take SSRI's and don't seem to have problems. Do SSRI's seem to help your causes? Do you notice any unusual side effects? Have any of you stopped taking SSRI's and noticed a change? Other comments? This could be interesting.

Hi, I'm a new member. Former English professor, had to shift to train for another career after long-term unemployment and still looking. I'm also an author of horror and fantasy books. I joined up here because I'm looking for some help after withdrawing from the SSRI Lexapro. The only thing worse than the side effects that caused me to quit are the withdrawal symptoms. I'm three months in and seriously wondering if I have cognitive impairment. It's as if somebody took my emotions and put them on a dimmer switch. Everything is numbed out. Lexapro causes such radical changes to the brain that withdrawal seems to be especially fraught with complications, and I'm afraid I may have tapered down too quickly--over five days, after taking it about three months. The immediate result was horrific, as though my brain were on fire. That burning sensation lessened, but was replaced by a sort of emotional numbness. I know that Lexapro controls blood flow to the limbic system, which is the site of emotions, and wonder if it's possible I sustained damage from pulling the plug too quickly. Thanks.

Im not saying that doing coke is good, i have done Ketamine on the past whit no bad reaction whit my meds. Im taking Sertraline and Fluoxetine and also on 300mg Seroquel XR. I have acces to cocaine, i can take cocaine whit my meds, or it will blunt the effect of cocaine?. can i have a serotoninergic syndrome? I know drugs are bad ok, dont need to tell me that.

has anyone experienced this? its been linked to paxil and zoloft. i'm not sure whether zoloft caused this issue for me or just worsened it to the point that it became noticeable to myself and others (didn't seem to have this prior to taking zoloft for the first time and the condition persisted off zoloft for years.. on zoloft again and i think the problem might be enhanced but i can't say that for any certainty). i've looked into it and its never specified whether the problem persisted after stopping the meds or whether it can be a permanent thing.

Something I've always been curious about. Shouldn't the norepinephrine reuptake feature be stimulating? It seems like drugs such as Effexor get more complaints of severe fatigue than SSRI'S

I started taking gabepentin and it helped the symptoms I was having tremendously, but it's had so many side effects that i've had to go on medical leave from my job! my psychiatrist had me lower my lexapro fromj 40mg--which is about twice the normal highest dose, but I've been on that dose for years and it's helped a lot!!--to 20mg just last week. And i'm on less than half the normal dose of gabepentin. So, now i'm all sad and crying and depressed and i don't know if it's the lower dose of lexapro or me. i'm bummed out and worried about some stuff and i get this way anyway sometimes, so I don't know how to tell the difference. it's frustrating. i really need the gabepentin, but every since i started taking it, i've been kind of a mess. UGH!!!

Hi all, I'm hoping someone can provide me with some feedback regarding my current situation. Right from the start, I do apologize if the post is graphic in nature, but I am attempting to be as concise and honest as possible, and am having a difficult time discerning whether my current mental status has more to do with change of medication versus environmental circumstances. I have switched from Celexa to Effexor 75mg, and have been on it for about a month now, without ever missing a day. I've been diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder many years ago, although Depression-esque symptoms seem to parallel my anxiety, and have decided to switch from Celexa, as I was still having symptoms. How/what do I feel? Well, within the last month, I've been feeling anxious almost constantly, and have had episodes of stabbing pains in my chest every so often. I haven't passed out, but I have had difficulty breathing/weight on chest. At various times, my thoughts and worries seem to almost swirl throughout my mind, and everything going on in my life appears to be catastrophized in my head. I most often am consumed with insecurities about career/relationship/appearance, and always seem to feel completely isolated. I'm very avoidant of just about everyone these days, and find myself completely frazzled and stressed out by mere interaction with my clients (I work in a highly stressful mental health outpatient center and have a degree in Psychology, go figure). I find myself having outbursts of anger, and even the simplest things set me off sometimes, causing an unexplainable sense of anger, and desire to physically act upon this anger. Speaking of which, after over a decade of off/on self-injury, I have returned to my frequent patterns of cutting, burning, and peeling off my finger nail. I've always had some eating disorder tendencies (limiting intake, bingeing when emotionally unstable followed by hating myself, obsessing over exercise, vomiting, etc), but throughout the past three weeks or so, I've been obsessed with looking at "thinspiration" photos, and eating no more than 500 calories per day. What potential environmental triggers do I have? Well, I live alone in an apartment I can barely afford. I'm terrible with money and always struggling. My father's alcoholism has gotten out of hand lately, and he is getting sued by a client. My full time job makes me spread so thinly that I can't even go pee without 10 clients following me to tell me what they need from me. I'm also a full time student in culinary school, which requires a lot of travel, dedication, and time running around the kitchen. My boyfriend of pretty much forever won't move in with me because he's "not ready", and has a son, spending the majority of time caring for him at his ex-girlfriend's house, who barely knows I exist. Also, his best friend just died. My best friend just got married, got her PhD, and a fabulous life. Anyway, so after all of that..I guess everything just seems to always be a struggle. Nothing can ever just be, nothing can ever just come easily, and I certainly can't just catch a break. Now, should I stay on the Effexor, and blame my recent slip-ups as a result of environmental stressors, or should I already disregard the Effexor, and try something else? Anyone want to take this hot mess on? I truly appreciate feedback..