Some side effects may not go away, but usually there are ways to manage them. Talk with your doctor about how to manage side effects. Problems with sexual arousal and a lack of interest in sex are common side effects. If this happens to you, talk to your doctor. There are other medicines that may help with these problems.
Women who take an SSRI during pregnancy have a slightly higher chance of having a baby with birth defects. But not treating depression can also cause problems during pregnancy and birth. If you are pregnant, you and your doctor must weigh the risks of taking an SSRI against the risks of not treating depression. Health Canada and the U. Food and Drug Administration FDA have issued advisories on antidepressant medicines and the risk of suicide.
Talk to your doctor about these possible side effects and the warning signs of suicide. Counselling is an important part of the treatment for depression. The types of counselling most often used for treatment of depression include:. These stories are based on information gathered from health professionals and consumers. They may be helpful as you make important health decisions. I didn't even realize that I was depressed for a long time.
I thought everyone felt this way; at least everyone in my family seemed to. I probably would have just gone on like that if my doctor hadn't asked one day if I had ever thought about taking an antidepressant. I was relieved to find out that it isn't normal to feel like I do and that a lot of people are helped by medicines.
I know it might take a while to find the right one, but I'm in no hurry; I've spent my whole life feeling sad. I tried antidepressants about a year ago. I really was not prepared for the first few weeks, when the side effects seemed to get me down even more than the depression did. So I stopped taking them. It took me about 3 months, but I eventually started to feel better without any medicine. Then last month, I started to feel depressed again. I don't want to wait so long to feel better this time.
So I'm going to try the antidepressants again. This time, I know what to expect and am better prepared for it. I guess I'm just not comfortable with taking medicine for my depression. I feel like I ought to be able to manage this on my own without needing medicine.
It seems too much like taking the easy route. But maybe I just don't feel bad enough yet. I recently began going to counselling. I know that if I took an antidepressant, I might feel better sooner, but I don't like the sound of the side effects I could have. My therapist and I have set some goals for me to work on, and we agreed to revisit my decision in 3 months. I want to wait and see how the counselling goes before I take medicine. Your personal feelings are just as important as the medical facts.
Think about what matters most to you in this decision, and show how you feel about the following statements. I'm willing to take medicine every day for at least 6 months, and maybe longer. Now that you've thought about the facts and your feelings, you may have a general idea of where you stand on this decision.
Show which way you are leaning right now. How sure do you feel right now about your decision? Use the following space to list questions, concerns, and next steps. Here's a record of your answers. You can use it to talk with your doctor or loved ones about your decision. My symptoms are worse than the possible side effects of the medicines. Is it possible to manage the side effects of antidepressants? Are you clear about which benefits and side effects matter most to you?
Do you have enough support and advice from others to make a choice? Author: Healthwise Staff. Weinstock MD - Psychiatry. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Learn how we develop our content. To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.
Depression: Should I Take an Antidepressant? Get the facts. Your options Take antidepressants to treat depression. Don't take antidepressants. Key points to remember Taking medicine for your depression can help you get your life back to normal, especially if you also get counselling.
But if your symptoms are mild, lifestyle changes and counselling may be all you need. The medicines won't change your personality. Antidepressants don't work right away. And you may need to try a few before you find one that works. Side effects are one reason that people stop taking antidepressants.
But talk to your doctor. There are many ways to manage side effects. And lowering the dose or changing medicines may also help. This is why they're usually used in combination with therapy to treat more severe depression or other mental health conditions.
Research suggests that antidepressants can be helpful for people with moderate or severe depression. They're not usually recommended for mild depression, unless other treatments like talking therapy have not helped.
Antidepressants are usually taken in tablet form. When they're prescribed, you'll start on the lowest possible dose thought necessary to improve your symptoms. Antidepressants usually need to be taken for 1 or 2 weeks without missing a dose before the benefit starts to be felt.
It's important not to stop taking them if you get some mild side effects early on, as these effects usually wear off quickly. If you take an antidepressant for 4 weeks without feeling any benefit, speak to your GP or mental health specialist. They may recommend increasing your dose or trying a different medicine.
A course of treatment usually lasts for at least 6 months after you start to feel better. Some people with recurrent depression may be advised to take them indefinitely. Read more about antidepressant dosages. Different antidepressants can have a range of different side effects. Always check the information leaflet that comes with your medicine to see what the possible side effects are.
The most common side effects of antidepressants are usually mild. Side effects should improve within a few days or weeks of treatment, as the body gets used to the medicine. Talk to your doctor before you stop taking antidepressants. It's important that you do not stop taking antidepressants suddenly. Once you're ready to come off antidepressants, your doctor will probably recommend reducing your dose gradually over several weeks — or longer, if you have been taking them for a long time.
This is to help prevent any withdrawal symptoms you might get as a reaction to coming off the medicine. Read more about stopping or coming off antidepressants. Greg felt scared about taking the tablet for the first time Is that a feeling of failure or something like that? Andrew was relieved when his doctor diagnosed depression And he gave me a couple of websites to look at to just looking at possible side effects and how it might work and that sort of thing. Hannah spent a week wondering whether to take the I think it was quite a biased article and it was implying that that was why this person felt more began to feel suicidal which but we don't know if that was necessarily the case.
So I thought okay fine, fine so I took it reluctantly and I think I had the prescription for a while and was sort of dithering about taking it and eventually I thought no, do it. Thomas wrote down the positives and negatives I weighed things up in my mind. But I clearly saw there were many more negatives and almost no positives. And, and so I just wrote it on a piece of paper and took it from there really.
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