I would rather start it here amongst my friends. I have been put back on anti-derpessants. I am on 30 mg of Paxil 1x a day, and 100 mg. of Wellbutrin 2x a day. I am depressed, with general, and social anxiety disorder. I don't really know why I'm posting this except to say that I may be a bit weird (ok, weirder than usual) for a bit. I have heard that some peole gain weight on these meds, but so far I haven't wanted to eat much at all. Well that's one side effect I can handle. LOL! So anyone else in here have problems with depression or anxiety?

NOPE!! But seriously, I am currently on Paxil and was taking Prozac before that. I gained a lot while on the Prozac, and it has seemed a bit easier on the Paxil weight wise. I have some problems with both anxiety AND depression, but more with depression. You are NOT alone here. There are lots of us around!! Sometimes I think overeating is ONE of the things I did to try to self-medicate. I'm trying to break that habit now. Especially since in the long run it doesn't work anyway!!! If you took meds before then you know the drill....it takes a few weeks for them to start working. Take it easy on yourself until they start to kick in, and DON'T worry about weirdness!! You know we LOVE that here!!!

Thanks Den, I appreciate that a lot. Yeah I've been on Paxil, and Wellbutrin both before, but my Doctor doubled my dosage of Wellbutrin for my anxiety, and ADD (which I didn't mention before). It takes about 3 weeks for me to feel anything. I always have the strangest dreams on anti-depressants. Oh well, I guess I'm goin' for another ride. LOL!

Oh, ****... I think I can count on one hand the number of people here NOT on meds for depression.
I take Fluoxetine, Velvet. (prozac, baby) 40 mg a day. It works for me for the most part. Okay, it's a miracle worker. But I still get depressed several times a year, and it can get pretty "ugly" at times.
It really works for me with the anxiety. I am SO not anxious anymore! I know I'm probably at the stage where I should switch meds... they're not working as well as they should... but I don't look forward to "experimenting" with something new.
I WILL be on meds for life for depression. They're my life support, and I'm grateful to have them. I can't "pull myself together", and I'm NOT ashamed of being mentally ill.
It really helps to do some Cognitive Behaviour Therapy when your meds are working well for you. I can't recommend it enough. It can get you through a lot of messy situations.

I hope your meds kick in soon, hon. Like Den said, we LOVE weird. Hang in there, sweetie...

Ah, thanks Ellis, yeah like you I am not ashamed of my illness. Some of the greatest artists and personalities were derpressives. I am reading Prozac Nation now as a matter of fact, and one of my favorite books in the world is The Bell Jar. The Bell Jar is what really made me see that I was depressed and needed help. I was feeling exactly the same way as the character in the book. I thought depression was crying contiuously on the floor like Elizabeth Wurtzel in Prozac Nation, but since I have a social anxiety disorder, crying, and making a spectacle of myself isn't an option. I wish I could though, it would feel good to let it all out, but maybe with therapy I will one day. I am feeling positive about the medication, and I am hoping it will kick in soon, but I'll hang on til then. I know that I may very well have to be on meds for life. I've had these problems since I was a young child, just never had it diagnosed. Oh well, some people need insulin, others need blood pressure pills, I'll need anti-depressants. Such is life.

I love the fact that you are all so content with being on depressants. It says a lot about who you really are, Fantastic, Wonderful , Beautiful ladies. I have started taking St Johns Wart and can already notice a difference in my moods. I also think being back to worka, enjoying my job, and feeling good about myself is helping tremendously too. I hope I never have to go on presciption meds, but if I do I will look to you all for support and examples. You are great women and I love you all.
Virginia

Well, I'm not on drugs for depression but am on metformin for diabetes. No difference as far as I can see.

I do hope the old stigma re folks on anti-depressant disappears soon. My Dad was on phenobarbitol for many years and still criticized people who had to take tranquilizers in times of stress! My sister and I were discussing that the other day when we chatted about a mutual friend who is taking Paxil for a while.

Now Velvet, we know you are weird but so are the rest of us. That's why we are here. So keep posting here, ya nutcase!

The medication has really made the difference for me. I'll probably be on it for life too. It allowed me to get to a point where I could go to therapy and start working on myself. It also allowed me to take a chance and start doing the jewelry!! When I am feeling lousy I tend to isolate myself at home (sometimes I get almost afraid to go out.) The medication gave me enough of a boost that I could get out of the house and start working on it. As Ellis is saying, the cognitive therapy helps too. I found that even after getting on the meds my mind was going in certain directions just from HABIT! I try to stop myself when I think negatively and ask myself if that is rational given the circumstances. And increasingly now I am thinking more positively. Example: when people are "being snotty" it often has more to do with how THEY are feeling then how they are viewing YOU. (I used to take a lot of stuff personally.)

WEIRD? Once again, no problem with that. In fact, I tend to pride myself on being weird. It puts us ahead of the pack!!!

Hey Velvet! I'm am not on meds but quite a few of my friends suffer from depression and axiety disorders and are taking meds themselves.

As the other Alternachickies have said there are others on this forum who are in similar situations and we won't think anything negative if you post about what is going on with you. Hey, I am weird without meds

Love to all you chickies for being such great women!

Hey Velvet,
I'm on Lexapro b/c my doctor likes the results better than Paxil. I especially like that it's an appetite supressant....not that it stops me! Hang in there... drugs are gooood. On a serious note, we all need some help at some time in our lives to get over some rough spots. IF it comes in the form of counsuling, pill or other, it's OK. Life sucks sometimes....

Velvet, you are in good company. I take Wellbutrin as an anti-depressant and my dh takes it for ADD. It is a lifesaver for both problems. Hey Ruthxxx, I also take Metformin but not for diabetes but PCOS. I have found Wellbutrin to suppress my appetite at first... also the first few days on it I become violently irritable but that goes away quickly. Best thing about Wellbutrin... no sexual side effects. I hope to be on it forever as I can barely function without it. Thank God I'm back on it after a long year of trying to conceive and no drugs. How miserable was that. I was in denial for YEARS about my depression and needing medication and some counseling. I should have been on these things fifteen years ago. My life would have been very different... better. For so long I thought I should be able to cope and deal with it "on my own". Now that I know more about my family history and about depression, I understand that in many cases it is a genetic condition that can be inheritied. It is a chemical imbalance, an illness like diabetes or any other disease you can think of. Alas, as it turns out depression and bipolar disorder are in my family for generations back. It doesn't mean I'm weak or pathetic or abnormal, it just means I have a medical condition that needs to be treated with medication. So now I'm happily on meds... it is really an issue of taking care of myself and admitting that I can't will myself out of an illness. You should start feeling better, more normal, within the next several weeks.

Hi Velvet....... I don't suffer from clinical depression or anxiety......... but like many people, have occasional bouts of sadness or tension which I understand is way less severe from the condition you are referring to - therefore knock on wood, I don't need medication.


That said, my friend recently told me that her sister is taking Wellbutrin for weight loss - not depression. She said that antidepressants are widely known to depress the appetite.

Do you notice any effect on your appetite?


Terri

Thanks to all of you who responded! I feel lots better now, and your understanding makes me feel very safe, something I have a problem with because of the anxiety.

Virginia- Yes well, I've decided that I am better off being open about my illness, and not hiding, because if you hide it seems worse than it is. Besides, there in no more reason to be embarrassed by depression than there is my asthma.

Den- Again thanks for the kind words!

Mauvais-

Ruth! You make me laugh, thanks for the grin!

Wfh- I will keep that in mind, Lexapro, if the Paxil doesn't work I might mention it to my doctor.

Sojo- Yeah I hear that Wellbutrin is good for ADD, I hope so! I am starting a major semester, and I need my concentration skills to be in top form.

Terri- Yep I have noticed a decrease in appetite, as a matter of fact my doctor asked me if I had a history of Anorexia/ Bulimia. I almost laughed in his face, but I was good and politely said no. I haven't been hungry since I started, only a little peckish.

Velvet, my hat's off to you for having the ovaries to start taking the Wellbutrin. I've seen far too many people who could really benefit from taking an antidepressant who just refuse to even entertain the notion that they might need some chemical assistence because of the so-called stigma of it. Which is just STUPID, as far as I'm concerned... it's like not taking aspirin for a headache because of what people might think. Phooey on what people think. Taking good care of yourself and loving yourself is the most important thing.

I consider myself really lucky to be on it myself, because depression runs wide in my family (to keep the overeating tendencies company). I wrestle with it myself on a semi-regular basis, but so far mine has been controllable with diet and meditation, but it takes work. Sometimes a lot of work. But I don't fool myself into thinking that more seriously dark times aren't lurking right around the corner.

My aunt reacted really well to Wellbutrin, and my S.O. has done really well on Celexa. I hope you have as much success.

Sending positive energy your way. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I'm a prozac chick too!! I just wish I had realised how depressed I was getting years ago, then maybe I would have been able to sort it with out the aid of drugs.
I don't like taking pills, not even headache tablets, but sometimes you realise that you need the kind of help that comes out of a bottle (and not in liquid form!) I feel tons better now and I'm hoping to start fazing them out pretty soon.