Ssri’s

Thanks for this - you’re very informed and thorough - which is excellent and really appreciated! 

Thank you and glad you came back! 

Take care

Brave I think. You learn as you go and it sounds like you handled this very well, I’m just sorry you suffered because you went. Today is a new day though and you can put it behind you now and look forward.

This community is the best resource for anyone with autism IMO. I haven’t been here in 4 or so years but when I was here and struggling this community was that light in the dark for me, I owe many lovely people here so much.

Have a nice day today, enjoy the sun. It’s cloudy here..

Best wishes, Verity x.

Kate Kestrel said:

I’m sure I replied to this post but can’t see my reply here now - have moderators removed it? Do you notify people when you remove a post? 

If they'd removed the whole post you'd normally expect an email saying you broke a rule.  If they removed part of a post you'd see clearly that they'd redacted some of it for rule breaks.  However, there's also been a problem with some posts 'disappearing' of late (can't make this up) or caught up in the spam filter.  It might re-appear. 

Seeing I get notifications by email when someone replies to posts I contribute to, I'll go look to see if your post was ever published, and then withdrawn - or is stuck in the spam queue.  


Edit - no sign that it was published then deleted - so either stuck in the filter awaiting publication or someone (might) have deleted it (if) it breached a rule (possibly) and didn't inform you.  My guess is the former - there's been a lot of that. 

Thank you Verity. 

Brave or stupid I not sure which as it comes at a cost but I managed it for an amount of time. In the past I would not have tried to keep myself safe by taking time out and this would cause me a great deal of stress. I’m still learning how to be a little better to myself and everyone on here has helped tremendously.

Although tired I do feel at peace today and the sun is shining 

Hi Take5, I'm sorry about your recent struggles and the meltdown last night. Glad to hear you are feeling a bit better now, and big congrats on going to the party - very brave, you should be proud of yourself for going. I hope you are able to have a restful day today after such a challenging week.

Without giving medical advice – (Sharing my OWN experience) – The first SSRI the GP prescribed me didn’t help me. I didn’t have many side effects but I found it to be ineffective, made very little difference and when I tried coming off of it I had similar experience to you, I was also under a lot of stress from mental health problems at the time. My personal experience has been to try and come off medication under a doctor’s approval, gradually, and as stress free as possible.

I returned to my GP and said I had been on this medicine for a few months and no change had come, so gradually I got off it and tried a new one, and that one worked for me and has been working for me for about 3-4 years. I went from being an anxious wreck who never went out to being still anxious but able to go out and enjoy life a little more.

If I were in your situation I would return to the GP and see if they can suggest anything different. Medication affects everyone differently, something else might make all the difference.

Anyway, glad you are feeling better and I hope now the party is been and gone you can chill and relax a bit more.

Best wishes, Verity x.

Thank you everyone for your kind wishes. I just wanted to say Chloe I don’t see anyone’s responses as medical advice or recommendations, I take them as they are which is shared experience. I’m very grateful to hear of others experiences and I intend to get a Gp appointment to review my situation. 
I think on top of this I was over anxious about a party today which I had been thinking about for some time. After 4 hours I booked a taxi home as I could no longer cope and felt totally overwhelmed. I intended to go back after I had time to regulate but that never happened. Had a complete meltdown once home and eventually calmed down by watching some of my favourite things. 
You are all very kind

Thank you

Please contact the GP who prescribed them. You have a right to get help getting off them. 

I’m sure I replied to this post but can’t see my reply here now - have moderators removed it? Do you notify people when you remove a post? 

Dear Community Members,

I would like to gently remind you of Community Rule 6: No medical or legal advice. Do not offer medical or legal advice. Always seek professional help for these matters. Treat any medical or legal information shared as the opinion of the user who posted it and meant for general discussion purposes only. 

Many thanks,

ChloeMod

I’m really sorry you’re feeling so bad right now. Ssri’s affect everybody differently. I would have thought after three months you should be feeling a bit better, perhaps this particular one doesn’t work well for you, that can happen. A different one might benefit you much more, giving you more functionality.

You might be feeling some effects from withdrawal. One thing my GP suggested was breaking the pill in half (check with your own GP) and having half a pill for a week or two and gradually coming off them that way, as when I first tried coming off my Sertraline for similar reasons to your own, I also had bad withdrawal.
Having half a pill resulted in no side effects for me.

If I were you I would talk to your GP about all of this. They might be able to give you something different that will make you feel better, or, they can definitely help you to come off them in a way that should be much better for you with less side effects.

Good luck – be well :-)

It is very difficult, differentiating between the before and afted. I know. But do trying taking them continuously? Your GP has considered your symptoms and think they may help? Unfortunately some medications DO take a little while to 'kick in'. Perhaps set yourself a consistent period of three months and then see how you feel? Then, have another consultation with them to review?

I know if I am off my night meds, I feel it within days. Some of us are uber sensitive to meds. 

Life IS complicated and sucks big time, at times. You can get through this. You will find an equilibrium x

I begrudgingly started taking SSRIs a few months ago, only a low dose at 5mg but I feel that they have been really beneficial. I had a lot of anxiety, particularly around my home, neighbors and noises. I have very sensitive hearing. I used to have so much anxiety my chest would feel like it was full of cortisol and I couldn't relax. I've always been very "fidgety", I'm more relaxed and "realistic"/"logical" with the SSRIs. I want to continue with them. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started taking them. 

Thank you all for your responses. I was feeling particularly bad yesterday and a tiny bit less so today. I agree I probably need to try something else. 

I've had one for years now too, it definately helps with PTSD, if I stop taking it, I start getting more anxious and prone to flash backs, with it I feel I can excert some control and remind myself that I don't live there anymore and talk myself down from some of the anxiety

They affect different people in different ways, some find them incredibly beneficial others not (I fall squarely into the latter category). I didn't find that they changed my mood, I didn't feel numb or distant. It can also depend on the brand or specific drug you are taking, apparently they all work slightly differently.

With all medication concerns you need to speak to your prescriber, don't just stop as some have worse withdrawal than others.

If one type isn't working, ask to try something else possibly in conjunction with some talking therapy. They aren't a quick fix but they can be a useful tool.

Take care 

I've been taking a very common Ssri for literally years (to the point I now question if it actually does any good at all).  Really someone ought to have done a medicine review by now, but that's besides the point.

It certainly sounds like the particular medication you are on is not functioning as you'd hope for.  I'd suggest that after three months, you should be deriving some benefit (but you do infer you've tried to stop taking them, so I am thinking that perhaps you've not taken them regularly?)

Regardless, as you know I can only go by my own opinion & experience here as we are forbidden to give medical advice.   I'd recommend you go back to your GP/Medical Practitioner and have a good discussion about this - as you are clearly not deriving any benefit at the moment. 

Take care & good luck.