Antidepressants to take or not to take?

[Lillipop87]

Hi. Ive posted before a bit about this. ive been very low for a good while now but I am having a tough time and I feel like have lost myself in the process. Things have gradually been getting worse so i eventually caved and went to the doctor on the advice of my family and she has said she thinks I have post natal depression and has prescribed me antidepressants. I'm reluctant to take these I'm not even one for taking pain killers and I'm still breastfeeding and even though she said they are safe I still feel anxious about it .I think don't have pnd and it's just my life situation is shit and what has me down. Dr said she would never push them on me but she believes it will help me in the short term. Has anyone been in the same boat where they have not wanted the meds but they have ended up helping them ? Am I being silly to be worrying so much about this?Tia. X

Limensoda I agree and I wish I'd never taken them.

53DangerFrog

I agree...doctors should provide a short course if absolutely necessary but also be able to have the resources to refer for therapies..At the moment, waiting lists for therapies are far too long.
We need to move from meds to treating the person...not the symptoms.

Limensoda my partner is now saying he doesn't want to be with me if I don't take the antidepressants

47LHMBF

What?!! That's terrible... I wouldn't want to be with a partner who said that! He should be supporting you and caring about you. He sounds selfish.
YOU are the important one...Put yourself first. You can't live your life to please someone else.

Says he doesn't like who I am when not on them, he only loves me on my good days and when I'm having a lot of bad days it makes his life miserable. He said the damage has already been done from being on them most of my life so why not just go back on them and stay on them. He said I don't love him or I would take them

53LHMBF

Whilst I know it's not easy living with someone who has mental health issues, he is talking rubbish. OK, he may need some support himself but he shouldn't blame you for your 'illness'
You could say that he can't really love you if he can say such awful things!
He should speak to your doctor and educate himself on the reality of your condition. Taking meds has to be your decision because it's what you feel is best for you!
It's not a situation that requires 'tough love' You need support and understanding. He is actually making things worse for you.
I felt guilty all the time at the height of my anxiety and that made it worse. The last thing I needed was a partner who tried to blame me for being ill.
Speak to your doctor, but I've found even doctors put pressure on people to take meds just to keep everyone else happy.
You need support to get better.
Given a choice between my mental health and keeping someone else happy, I would choose my mental health every time. Your partner is finding it difficult but he can't expect you to fix that.

Limensoda thank you. I'm having a terrible day, I was recently prescribed Venlafaxine and partner made me take one today, I'm having a bad day, crying all day and he's said he's losing patience and has had enough and that poor mental health is bad parenting

50LHMBF

Oh you poor thing! He shouldn't make you do anything! That's abusive...Please see your doctor to discuss how you feel. If the doctor advises its best to take meds then make your decision based on that...but explain to him how you feel about it. If you do continue with meds, try to get referred for other therapies alongside the meds so you aren't relying on those alone.
Don't take advice from your partner. He is looking out for himself so will not be putting you first.
You have too much to deal with right now to be making decisions about your relationship but in the future you may have to have a think about whether it's good for you.
I'm so sorry you are going through all this. xx

Hi I hope you're alright. Despite my daft username, I'm struggling too and just about to start a course of sertraline. I've not been myself for quite a while now, anxious, snappy, low mood, and generally not a nice person to be around. I've been trying all my best non-medicinal techniques like mindfulness and meditation, exercise etc, but they haven't been enough this time.

Limensoda xx

08TheMostHappy

Do keep up with the mindfulness and meditation alongside your meds because you may find it helps you to feel better sooner. Try a daily walk too, especially somewhere with trees and a calm atmosphere.
I've found yoga and Thai Chi helps too...None is a quick fix but just like meds take time to work, so do other therapies. You have to do them every day for a build up effect of feeling better.
Good luck

I've just started taking Sertraline. It does help. I don't intend to be on it too long, but see it as support to get back on the right footing.

I had PND when my youngest was born 23 years ago. I’d suffered with anxiety and panic since I was 7 but I’d never been depressed. I had no idea what was wrong with me. I didn’t feel sad or sit around crying I just knew something wasn’t right. Things got really really bad and on occasion I would have psychotic episodes. The doctors put me on so many different pills and I saw endless therapists. All these years later and I still have it but it’s “kind of” controlled. I’m on antidepressants and I will be for the rest of my life but I firmly believe they have saved my life. Therapy never helped me. I always found it emphasised the problem even more and made things worse. I’m restricted to what I can do and when I have a bad episode it really is bad but my husband will recognise it and reassure me that it won’t last. I’ll never be cured but life is so much better than it was. It’s been 8 years and 5 months since I last attempted suicide which years ago was a regular thing. It will get better but as far as medication goes,I can’t recommend it highly enough. I hope you soon feel better. Best wishes to you x

Hi everyone sorry I didn't get any notifications. Wonderpants I'm feeling better thank you. I decided to give the pills a chance and i have noticed a difference after taking them for a couple of weeks I have more patience, i feel less irritable and not nearly as tired I act feel a bit restless at times. Its not a miracle cure by any means but I am feeling noticably better and it's ironic now I feel more sociable and want to go out and do things I can't due to the pandemic! Thank you all for your words of advice and encouragement you have helped me enormously. I hope you are all doing ok ❤️ x

LHMBF that's awful I'm so sorry that your dh isn't supporting you the way he should be. I hope you are doing ok. You have to do what is right for you xx

Dita73 thanks so much for sharing that with me and for your kind words I'm so glad you are in a better place now xx

Lillipop87 thank you, I'm glad you're doing better.
I've had a very bad breakdown today, the whole Corona virus and lockdown thing has pushed me back and made me feel 10 times worse. I'm quite frightened about how much my mental health has deteriorated in the last few months

I'm so sorry to hear that you are having such a hard time :( wish I could say something to help. This whole coronavirus thing is going to really impact on people's mh I've had a few moments myself of feeling really anxious and overwhelmed .keep talking on here it Ive found Alot of comfort in talking about how I'm feeling. Xx

The most happy I hope you are doing ok x

Thank you Lillipop87 I'm really struggling and finding MN makes me more anxious as there are so many nasty posts at the moment

Yeah I noticed that as well act so I've been keeping quiet mostly .I think this is bringing out the worst in some people!it is a very worrying time for all. In so sorry your struggling so much it must be hard to not have the support from your dp do you have any close people you can Skype or FaceTime? I hope things improve for you soon.xx

It really does seem to be bringing out the worst. I have a couple of close friends I text daily. Thank you, I hope you're doing okay xx