Which antidepressant?

[Vi37]

I’ve just had a baby, struggling with everything. I’ve had a breakdown. I have a mental health nurse once a week and a counsellor and diazepam for when I’m particularly in a tis. I think im going to have to give in and go back to the doctors because I think I need medication again, nothing else is working. I was on fluoxetine for ages and that didn’t work, I’ve been on citalopram, mirtazipine, cipralex and I took one setraline and had to go to a and e I felt that bad. I know they work for everyone differently but just any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.

If you have tried that many then ask your GP to refer to a specialist who can explore this with you properly
After lots of SSRIs I was moved to tricyclics by psychiatrist

Thanks, I’ve been on amytriptaline which I think is a trycyclic but it gave me heart palpitations so I’m not sure if others will do the same?

I was on Citalopram for years, it was the only antidepressant that didn't have any side effects for me, like you I tried sertraline & I had to stop it after 2 days as it made me feel so ill, I was having weird thoughts, sweating, was agitated, I thought I was going out of my mind. I'm now on Mirtazapine as I was having problems sleeping & I'm starting to feel a lot better on it. Antidepressants are a bit trial & error, just keep on trying what the doctor suggests & you will find one that suits you & will help you feel better.

Thank you, I think because when I tried the sertraline it frightened me that much, like you I sweated profusely and felt like I was spaced out, I just said I wasn’t going to try anymore but it’s getting to the point where it needs to happen now.

Have you had any non-drug treatment? I have had citalopram, CBT and Mindfulness Meditation. None of them worked on their own. It was only when I had CBT while on citalopram that I saw any lasting effects.

The drug may change your brain chemistry, but unhelpful thinking patterns will reverse the effect.

CBT and MM may help you change your thinking patterns, but, unless your brain chemistry changes, it is difficult to maintain the effect.

That's my opinion, anyway, based upon my own experiences.

No, I have my counsellor and nurse but maybe it’s because I need medication too that’s it’s not working.

Paroxetine may be worth a shot. I really didn't get on with it but I can't tolerate any SSRIs and have only really had any success with Amitriptyline. Not all tricyclics give you palpitations. It might be worth trying Imipramine.

Other than that, possibly Duloxetine? I haven't had it but it was an option. If you didn't get on with Mirtazapine then probably Venlafaxine isn't worth a try, I think they are similar.

I'm trying to get Bupropion prescribed, I really want to try it but it's not easy to get in the UK.

Thank you everyone, I’m going to try get into the docs but it’s a nightmare at the moment. Can’t seem to get an appointment at all. 🙄