Antidepressants quit

aaqil

Hello everyone, I am on few antidepressants since 12 years. I decided to quit multiple times but I couldn't. Can anyone help me to quit taking these medicines? They are Keplin, Qusel and Serlin

sarahsweets

Hello; It is very important that you have this discussion with your prescribing doctor and to never ever attempt to suddenly stop mental health meds with no medical oversight. Is your doc in agreement with you?

Quote:

Originally Posted by aaqil Hello everyone, I am on few antidepressants since 12 years. I decided to quit multiple times but I couldn't. Can anyone help me to quit taking these medicines? They are Keplin, Qusel and Serlin

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aaqil

Thank you for your response.

I have told my doctor multiple times that I want to quit these medicines, but every time he tells me that I need to continue for some time. I tried to quit myself a few years ago, but that disturbed my sleep routine and appetite, so I have to start it again.

Do you think a nutritionist can replace these medicines with some natural/herbal alternatives that aren't going to hurt my health in the long term?

CANDC

@aaqil the short answer is we do not know you or what you suffer from as well as a professional does. Going off meds is not a guraranteed way to be free of the condition they are meant to treat. A friend ended up in the hospital because going off their meds totally disrupted and destabilized their life.

Can you tell the doctor about specific symptoms that you find objectional on the meds? Maybe there are other meds that do not have the same side affects.

I find that lifestyle changes with the meds can diminish the effects that a friend finds not so pleasing. They do exercises, yoga, 5 minute Tai Chi on youtube, mindfulness (Healthy Mind app) and eating healthy low carb high protein diet help but they alone do not offer what is needed to keep stable.

The meds work on specific receptors in the brain and are highly specific treatments for brain receptor disorders that I only have a vague understanding of. I have never heard of foods that can target brain receptor functioning in a comparable way to how meds address those issues. Changing the meds to other meds may offer some relief. Talk to your psychiatrist.

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sarahsweets

Are you willing to share your diagnosis? Mental illness frankly is a brain disorder and there are medicines to treat our atypical brains.

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aaqil

I've been with my psychiatrist for almost 12 years. Medicines kept changing, but for the last five years, I've just been taking them and haven't seen him for a check-up because I'm tired of seeing him. He asked me to see a psychotherapist; I did so, but it didn't work out, so I stopped. My conditions were mainly anxiety and depression. It all started with some indigestion, restlessness, and after seeing many doctors, they just pushed me to see a psychiatrist, because all the body tests were coming back normal, So I visited many psychiatrists, but nothing made my condition better. Then this psychiatrist whom I am seeing from 12 years, his medicines worked and I started acting normal. But now I am fed up with these medicines. I am so dependent on them that I cannot stay a single day without them, and I want to quit because I think that they will harm my health in the long run. If I don't get sleep for 8-10 hours a day, I feel sick. I think it's because of these medicines, so I want to quit and want to spend a normal life without any dependency on any medicine.

steelmagnolia65

I would really love it if I didn't have to take psychiatric medications....But I realize that I need them because of my depression and other conditions.

I could not get a decent night's sleep without my meds, and sleep is very important.

I would really encourage you to talk to your doctor about this again.....If you truly want to quit all the meds, and your doctor agrees, the doc needs to come up with a tapering plan for you to safely quit.

Please do not quit cold turkey....

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Diagnoses:
Major Depressive Disorder (treatment-resistant)
Anxiety/Panic Disorder (treatment- resistant}
OCD (treatment-resistant)
Agoraphobia (treatment-resistant)
Chronic Insomnia (able to sleep with current medication)

moodyblue83

Quote:

Originally Posted by aaqil I've been with my psychiatrist for almost 12 years. Medicines kept changing, but for the last five years, I've just been taking them and haven't seen him for a check-up because I'm tired of seeing him. He asked me to see a psychotherapist; I did so, but it didn't work out, so I stopped. My conditions were mainly anxiety and depression. It all started with some indigestion, restlessness, and after seeing many doctors, they just pushed me to see a psychiatrist, because all the body tests were coming back normal, So I visited many psychiatrists, but nothing made my condition better. Then this psychiatrist whom I am seeing from 12 years, his medicines worked and I started acting normal. But now I am fed up with these medicines. I am so dependent on them that I cannot stay a single day without them, and I want to quit because I think that they will harm my health in the long run. If I don't get sleep for 8-10 hours a day, I feel sick. I think it's because of these medicines, so I want to quit and want to spend a normal life without any dependency on any medicine.

I have to say that for most psychiatric disorders you shouldn't have to see the psychiatrist for 12 years ! Psychiatrists , psychologists and therapists tend to stretch out the time spent in " treatment " . These drugs are normally not meant to be on for such a long time. And in all truthfulness the psychiatrists themselves don't really know how these medicines work.
Why do you want to stop taking them ? Side effects ? That's the worst part for me. The side effects. I know how you feel about trying to live a " normal " life without these drugs but maybe we're not " normal" to begin with ? Maybe we need something to help us get through life somehow ? There are other methods besides meds that can help anxiety and depression , but it takes effort , something that most depressives don't have much of.
I have sympathy and empathy for you and how your feeling.
Think about it some more. Just never quit cold turkey. Be safe and the best of luck to you.....

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walkingthecow

I used to wish I was "normal".

Until I heard that "normal"people are people you don't know very well.

Take care.

AprilRains

This is not true. I have depression, anxiety, and ADHD and see a psychiatrist for my treatment of all three. While therapy has helped me with my depression far more than the antidepressant, my psychiatrist is still an important part of my treatment.

Studies have shown that many anti depressants are actually safe to be on for a long time which is also true of many medications for ADHD.

While it is true that there are psychiatric drugs that physicians don't completely understand how they work to treat specific illnesses, this is also true of many, many medications for physical illnesses. This does not mean that the drugs don't work or shouldn't be taken.

To the OP, I would press my psychiatrist more as to why he feels you should continue on these drugs. Not liking the side effects is completely valid and it would be reasonable to try different medications. Or trying to taper down.

I do strongly agree that you should not just quit them. Anti depressants can be difficult to taper off. As I have tapered the dose of the antidepressant I take, my provider has given me very specific instructions for doing so. Quitting all at once can cause some serious side effects.

Take care of yourself.