Concerns about going on antidepressants

You never know if they’ll help if you don’t try them. They can work well to remedy a situation you might find yourself stuck in, and if it means you can get out of that hole, they’ve helped. They do take a while to kick in for most people. For me, it was about 12 weeks, and they can make you feel a little unwell, but nothing you can’t manage. 
Antidepressants aren’t for life, so if you feel better about some things after a year, you can taper off, if that’s what you and your GP suggest. Some can cause feelings of self harm and suicide, but the GP will chose one to suit you, and there are multiple options if one doesn’t agree with you. Try not to worry. Most medications come with side effects, and as long as we look out for and report changes, all will be well.

You are over 18 your mum can't make you do that. You should inform her ie show her from some valid site on Internet or the doctor etc that anti depressants will not help autism...in fact no drugs do. You should tell her that you're ideas are good and healthy ask her to be involved in helping you ie cook some healthy recipes together.. and tell her there are other real people with the same problems who do not take drugs and have helped themselves by adopting a healthy lifestyle.  My son tried anti depressants that did not work to help his autism so instead he tried a healthier lifestyle we stopped eating processed food etc etc.

No need to apologise, you made the call you feel is right for you and that is always a valid choice, I hope it works out for you.

Thank you Number i really appreciate the support. 

It's your choice and I, for one, unreservedly support you in that.  We all understand how difficult these decisions are because you have to make those decisions at a time when you are least able to do so.  I do really understand how dark can difficult life can become.  My overriding mantra is to "stay sane."

Please don't feel that you need to leave this place.  Many of the threads here are less weighty than your first enquiry so you could maybe stick around for a while, talk some nonsense together whilst you find out how your pills are going to influence you.

You are very welcome here.

Number.

Hi everyone. Thank you all for your replies. The experiences that you shared and opinions are very helpful. I feel like i got what i wanted from making this post. I do wish i could reply to each comment but i feel anxious about oversharing and getting sidetracked. I appreciate all the advice about employment/education but i should have made it more clear that it wasn't exactly what i was asking for help in, i apologise for that. I am getting support for finding employment or a path which could include more education but i feel like recently i have become so desperate that i am struggling to even work with the support provider, this is what i wanted to originally communicate. Also i have done volunteering before but i found my social anxiety was so bad in regards to fear of failing that i couldn't do it anymore. 

This sounds completely contradictory but today i ended up starting antidepressants. I couldn't sleep because of racing thoughts and i felt really despondent by morning so my mom offered to take me to the doctors and i finally decided to accept today. Doctor decided antidepressants is how they will treat me and i felt like i had no other way forward anymore, after trying therapy, counselling and many lifestyle changes i decided to give into it. 

I do not like the idea of supressing thoughts and feelings but it's become debilitating for me so if feel like if antidepressants work as expected then it may allow me to get me to a point where i can support myself again.

Again i appreciate everyone for their help, i feel as though it allowed to make a more informed decision. I am sorry if i disappointed any of you or you feel like you wasted your time.

I'll skip writing my whole reply again but on another thread I already said this: https://community.autism.org.uk/f/mental-health-and-wellbeing/32415/do-antidepressants-work/301224#301224
TLDR version: if your depression is mild enough that you aren't desperate to go numb as the only way to escape your unimaginably tormented sorrow then you don't need pills, (you sound like you have a pretty good degree of fight left in you tbh) what you need is support to take away things contributing to your depression so you can fight it and recover on your own and keep you from spiraling down to the point at which you would actually need pills.

And I actually also think maybe going back into education or taking some Courses could be a great idea if that is something that you think you might like? Also it’s important to keep in mind when you are feeling so low not many things will feel very appealing. In that case sometimes it can be helpful to go with things you’ve always wanted to do or that you know you liked in past

Hi, My mum used to say the same to me and doctors tried multiple times to prescribe antidepressants- i have multiple reasons why I didn’t want to take any (some similar to yours). A key point for me was that whenever I was struggling there were clear reasons contributing to my unhappiness  (such as being in a bad environment, isolated, not being paid for work, in a stressful environment, unhappy with job etc). So I felt what I needed was to make changes to my situation and not take antidepressants to numb me and allow me to cope and tolerate the situation. (Also I am stubborn and I do not trust medication that changes neurotransmitter levels in the whole brain...plus there can be a lot of side effects and it can be trial and error to figure out if it works). I do believe that antidepressants can be helpful for some people- it can help people to give them the strength to make a change and get out of a bad situation or if nothing can be done about the situation (eg. you are grieving) then maybe it can give some comfort and help someone keep going. However I feel like all too often doctors just prescribe antidepressants without also looking at external and environmental factors that are contributing! And in this case it seems to me that the antidepressants are then mainly ‘helping’ someone tolerate a bad situation rather than helping them get out. 
A professional I know who feels similarly about antidepressants once said to me how she replied to a friend who suggested she should take antidepressants: « I don’t need antidepressants, I need a divorce » (this was someone who was in an abusive relationship). 
I think it is highly individual and if used well antidepressants can probably help people get better and make positive changes. 
I’ve never taken any and that was right for me. I made changes instead to my life and I am of course also working on myself by trying to learn grounding techniques, better stress management and figure out how I work best. 

I think it really depends on the person and situation. What I really want to tell you though is that antidepressants or no antidepressants you can make changes to your life and address these things that are making you unhappy- change is terrifying for me but I do not regret any of the changes I made- it gives confidence to give things a go- because then you know no matter what if things aren’t right you can and will get out- so then it gets easier to try new things too in future because it feels less risky and scary if you know you can get through things and change again if necessary 

i agree, your choice. anti depressants can have really bad effects.... also it doesnt entirely help in some cases.

depression comes in many variants and feelings... antidepressants only solve some of it, but yet they make some worse.... for example antidepressants can make you feel flat emotion... but yet in some depressed people that flat emotion is part of their depression so youd be digging that hole deeper making it more entrenched making the problem worse. antidepressants can make you lose interest and lose motivation, yet again this is another part of depression but yet antidepressants also make you feel that so can entrench that and make that worse.... even more antidepressants can make you balloon in weight which then makes you feel lesser and feel bad about yourself which again this will cause worse more prolonged depression and health effects.

so yeah i dont trust them too.... but to be fair, i have felt like going to the gps to get some despite that... i guess if your suffering and a thing that claims to stop it is dangling youd still be tempted to reach out for it even when you know most of it is false promises or makes it worse... in that way its kinda like alcohol or drugs. people reach for that to solve their problems knowing its bad and causes worse problems.

You certainly have legitimate and valid concerns about the treatment being proposed for you.

In your shoes, I should have the same concerns.

It's your body, it's your mental health - and YOU get to choose what is done with it/to it because you are a sound-minded adult by the sounds of things.

I'm in my 50's, and prior to discovering my ASD, my nearest and dearest seemed convinced that I was somehow depressed and should seek "pills".  I was not depressed - I was struggling with my (at the time, unidentified) ASD.  I do not harshly judge them for their mistake.....I know that they just dearly wanted to help me return to a more happy functionality......but their proposed resolution WAS wrong.

I do agree with Peter that, if possible, re-entering education might be a good 'next step' for you, if you think you can cope with that.  If that does not appeal, finding any good reason to get you "back out there" with other forms of sentience is going to make you feel more alive inside.

Personally, I found walking very helpful in turning my mood and my spirit around.  I think it has something to do with the 'forward motion' involved in walking that enables my brain to stop circling around negatives.  The physical exercise also certainly helps your mind feel more lubricated and it will DEFINITELY help with your sleep patterns.  I started with a mere half a mile a day, but soon had that up to 4-5 miles per day (only takes an hour if you tackle it like a task rather than a joyous meander) and it is amazing how many micro interactions you can have with people along the way.  I found these very minor interpersonal chance meetings with animals and humans (whilst walking) very restorative and made me feel much less isolated and alone.

Don't be stressing about having no friends.  Do baby steps.  Get out first, and see what develops.

Keep in touch with us on these pages 86128.  You are welcome and you will be understood here.

Bravo for seeking out this place and seeking opinions on your own opinions.  I reckon you are gonna be just fine - you seem very wise for 19.

Number.

Actually the point has been made above about qualifications is a really good one. Not having at least A-levels is really going to limit your options in life. At the same time education is an opportunity to build social networks. We could probably give you some advice about this but we would need to know more about what your situation was with leaving college and also what your aspirations are.

going back into education might be a really good way to break out of a rut you’re in. Although if it’s a real strain on your mental health some sort of part time education might be better. Again with more information we could offer more targeted suggestions.

Peter, I think you have made a good reply which I agree with and my experience would support.

OP, it sounds like one of your issues is social isolation, something I can relate to, as I suspect, can many autistic people.

If where you live is like mine, there are groups around that can help. For instance, I found a ND social group near me on Facebook, that has gaming, music and films amongst other activities. In the past, I have attended a gardening group for people with mental health issues which I found open and welcoming (nobody bothered with what your diagnosis was but just accepted the need to be doing something together for mutual support). I have also attended an art and craft group run on a similar basis. These have very mixed age groups from older than me (and I am retired) to your age. We still have a laugh together. If being more active is more your thing, look out for walking groups. Your local library, Citizens Advice or County Council may be able to help.

You could also consider volunteering at a food bank, charity shop, environmental group or animal shelter. Yes, again, you might be around older people rather than your peer group, but us oldies can often be more tolerant and supportive of difference. Volunteering also looks good when applying for jobs.

Trying an activity and persisting with it for some time, can generate an interest, and a sense of achievement. 

If you have no qualifications, you should be able to attend college and they ought to give you support. You can do this part-time to make it less stressful. College as an adult is different to school as a child. With no qualifications you should also get funding.

As a competent adult, you ought to be in control of your medication, if you decide you want it. Your mother has no rights. She doesn't even need to know you are taking ADs. I have no idea how far you are from a chemist, but you could arrange to pick up your prescription on a weekly basis, which would not give you enough to overdose.

You are still an adolescent at 19, and recent studies have shown that many adolescents function better with late rising and late bedtimes. Some schools have even experimented with a school day starting after lunch. So don't berate yourself about this.

Let us know how you get on

I’ll start by saying your concerns are valid. I think too often doctors do substitute antidepressants for therapy because appeal is cheap and the mental health provisions in the NHS are really underfunded.

so let’s start by talking about what antidepressants can do and what they can’t do. They are not a happy pill. I’ve taken antidepressants for depression and they do not work like that. You don’t suddenly feel happy about your life. what they do tend to do is stop you from getting in deep holes where you’re completely devoid of energy and all you can think about is negative things. The side-effect also seems to be the kind of blunt your feelings about everything. Little moments of excitement in your day will go longer feel quite as exciting.

I don’t view antidepressants as a long-term solution and in my opinion therapy was more helpful in the long term. They also tend to have side-effects. The most extreme ones I experience was disruption to my sleep patterns. I’m very much not a morning person and antidepressants made this much much worse. Also I found my creativity was slightly slowed and also my five senses slightly dulled especially taste and smell.

no point to it’s very important to point out that the other forms of help you can receive aside from antidepressants. you’re mentally competent your doctor can’t force you to take antidepressants if you don’t want to. however your doctor can still refer you for for therapy even if you are not taking antidepressants. If you’re determined not to take antidepressants it might still be worth going to your GP and asking to be referred for therapy.

and yes it’s true if you tell your therapist that you are having suicidal thoughts and you think you might possibly act on them they are going to do something about it. they are legally required to. That said a good therapist will tell you that this is the case beforehand. My therapist made it very clear that they would only discuss what I said with him with a third-party if there was a risk that  I might harm myself or others