Prozac for Teen?

[Hugga]

My DD (15) is suffering from acute anxiety which causes strong physical symptoms of various kind when in situations that she finds stressful. She's not been able to attend school recently due to these issues. She's started seeing a counsellor and her doctor recently suggested that she takes prozac. He said that Prozac combined with counselling will be more effective than counselling on it's own.
DD's Dad (my ex) is against the idea of offering her the choice to try Prozac. I've asked him to talk his concerns through with the doctor.
If you've had similar experience with your teen I would be grateful to hear how you and they have managed and whether they found prozac helpful?
Thank you!

My DD also was on promethazine hydrochloride to help sleep. She used to get really anxious at bedtime, these magic blue pills knocked her out.

Can I ask what process you went through to get these medications?
We've been to gp, he referred us to cahms in oct, we've not heard anything from them at all.
Is cahms the only way to access the consultant psychiatrist?

I had to pay for DC to see a private psychiatrist sadly.

We also went private. Once on stable dose, prescriptions went via NHS.

We went private for diagnosis and the first few medication appointments, and once the dosage was stable we moved to shared care and get prescriptions from the GP.

We have a six monthly appointment with the nurse at the private clinics which costs £200.

Hi, for those in the UK - you actually CAN get Prozac/ fluoxetine prescribed by a GP rather than a psychiatrist but it really does depend on your GP and on the individual circumstances.

My DD was prescribed it by the GP at the age of 15, but this was after weeks of self-harm, total school refusal and a period of psychosis lasting several weeks, during which not a single psychiatrist could be found even thought she was cutting herself multiple times a day and hurling herself against the wall (and, once, tried to fly out of an upstairs window). (Our local CAMHS was advertising for a psychiatrist, as theirs was retiring, and there were no psychiatrists in our county or the neighbouring one who would see under-18s either on the NHS or privately). Recognising that DD would probably end up dead if she didn’t act, the GP discussed things with two other GPs at our surgery and agreed to prescibe under very specific conditions (all meds to be kept locked away and supervised by me; phone reviews every week initially, then every 2 weeks; only 1 month’s-worth of meds to be prescribed at any one time; if the dosage was changed, any remaining tablets of previous prescription to be returned etc). I am eternally grateful to her and have told her so!

DD started off on 10mg for six weeks which did absolutely nothing (and yes, suicidal feelings definitely can increase during the first 2 weeks. We removed all knives and medication from the house during this time). The dose was then upped to 20mg and within 2 weeks DD was much more able to cope.

She tapered off the meds last year and, sadly, had to go back on them in the autumn (actively suicidal). As she was then turning 18, the GP recommended starting on 20mg and we watched DD like a hawk for the first 2 weeks; GP then upped the dose to 40mg and this seems to be working well.

the whole thing is a minefield, and there is no one-size-fits-all, but I just wanted to share some of our story in the hope that it may be helpful to somebody else. DD will probably have to stay on fluoxetine for a very long time, but if it means she can have a shot at a semblance of a “normal” life then I’m all for it.

good luck OP x

I find that really surprising @MrsEmmelinePankhurst , they’re not licensed under 18. I had to sign disclaimers to acknowledge that.

Our fantastic GP said he couldn’t prescribe, another consultant (condition being treated had an impact on depression) said the same, that we’d have to wait for an adolescent psychiatrist. The waiting list was 2 years, by which time DC would have fallen down the cracks.

Your experience just highlights the unfairness of the health system’s postcode lottery. I paid £4K. Fortunately I could but it was a lot of money and not everyone can pay.

DD2 was prescribed Prozac by a GP under 18.

@CloseYourRingStress Our GP had to prescribe because there simply wasn’t a psychiatrist ANYWHERE in either our county or neighbouring county who would see an under-18, either privately or on the NHS. CAMHS was operating without a psychiatrist so I think that definitely highlights the postcode lottery that is the N”H”S. We spent thousands of pounds on private clinical psychologist etc but tbh if the GP hadn’t prescribed when she did, our daughter would have died, and as I said in my post, I did have to to agree to certain conditions etc and the GP had to get it signed off by other doctors in the practice. I’m now living with PTSD as a result and shelling out thousands on therapy but hey ho, here we are.

im editing to add that I’ve found your post really upsetting. My daughter repeatedly tried to kill herself before anyone would even see her face to face, let alone prescribe anything. I was mopping up self-inflicted bloody wounds night after night for weeks on end, and was checking on her throughout the night for weeks to make sure she hadn’t tried to kill herself. I hardly think it’s unfair that she was EVENTUALLY prescribed medication that could help her and I’m sorry that you do. I will never be able to unsee my bleeding child screaming to the faces in the wall to leave her alone.

@MrsEmmelinePankhurst I am sorry you found it upsetting, that really was not my intention. My comment was not about the unfairness of your individual situation, but the unfairness in the global system.

I am staggered that it can actually be prescribed by a GP under 18, there are so many young people in desperate need of help that are stuck on long waiting lists, with no help in the interim. I was told it was an absolute no, nowhere in the system, it simply could not happen.

If one GP can prescribe then why can't more?

Just wanted to say that I entirely 100% understand and empathise. Have been there and never ever want to go back.

My daughter would be dead if it wasn't for Prozac, no exaggeration.

No philosophical objections from a clueless ex-husband (who is in no pain himself btw) should stop a child from accessing medication that could potentially save her life, if not her happiness and her education.

DS1 is 17 and has huge anxiety and depression. Very luckily, because he has ADHD he was seeing camhs regularly, and we have a great psychiatrist.
He started on Prozac but it didn't suit him and he had a couple of quite worrying episodes. He's now on 100mg of sertraline and it's working well. He's actually travelled to meet friends and seems ok. He's been depressed for so long I don't know if he's back to his normal self!