[ilovedogs]

My husband was put on Paxil(the generic, whatever that's called) and trazadone. I thought trazadone was also an antidepressant so I was wondering why his doc would put him on 2. My husband said the trazadone is for sleeping but I saw that it was classified as an antidepressant. Any thoughts? I'm still new to all these types of meds and my husband just wants to be normal right now and not feel the anger and depression so he's just doing what the doctors tell him with no questions asked(which is totally unlike him).

Trazadone is technically an antidepressant, but it is not usually prescribed for that (as it isn't a terribly effective one), but it does work well as a sleep agent. This isn't unusual at all.

[Oxidopamine]

I don't intend to be offensive by this but don't get too caught up in figuring out which category a medication is in, such as anti-depressant, mood-stabilizer, anti-psychotic, anti-seizure, anti-anxiety, hypnotic, and so forth. These boundaries are abstract and many medications fit into several categories because their effects can be more wide-spread than their category name suggests. For example, several anti-seizure medications are also effective anti-psychotic and hypnotic medications, whereas many anti-psychotic medications are also effective mood-stabilizer, anti-anxiety and hypnotic medications.

Back on topic, although Paxil and Trazodone are both anti-depressants, they have many differences, starting with the type of anti-depressant. Paxil is a SSRI, the type of anti-depressant you often hear and read about as being very effective. Trazodone is a SARI, which acts upon the serotonin system (as do SSRIs) but in a different way. The details aren't important, although if you want I'll explain some of them later. Some of the key details are mentioned below.

A fundamental difference between Paxil and Trazodone is Paxil is an effective anti-depressant. It has a much stronger binding affinity to certain serotonin receptors (5-HT2C) as well as to a mechanism called the serotonin transporter (SERT). On the other hand, Trazodone has a very weak binding affinity to SERT and serotonin receptors.

Trazodone has a stronger binding affinity for alpha-1 (α1) adrenergic receptor. While it also has a strong affinity for serotonin receptors, it targets 5-HT2A instead of 5-HT2C like Paxil. The combination of targeting 5-HT2A and alpha-1 adrenergic receptor lead to moderately strong sedation effects. In other words, it's more of a hypnotic than an anti-depressant.

[Umbral_Seraph]

Prescribing multiple anti-depressants is common practice. Many people do not see relief with using only a single medication, and many medications work better with certain other medications.

[IdoubtIT]

Farmgirl has the answer you are looking for.

[Daeshim]

I take Celexa, Remeron, Wellbutrin, Trazodone, Vistaril, Buspar, Geodon, and Depakote. I think it is pretty normal.

[honeybee131275]

I'm on three different ADs, and they all address different symptoms of my depression and work synergistically to produce a MUCH better outcome than medication 'monotherapy' for me. Could be a similar reason for your husbands prescriptions, I'd say, but don't be afraid to ask his doc why though, if you are worried, (but I definitely wouldn't be worried). Hope it works out.