Depression Medications, and Side Effect

Has anyone had any problem with their bladder, after taking Depression Meds?

I had a Girlfriend that had this problem, and so I am afraid to go on them, because I could not handle that.

Thunderstar - Some antidepressants can cause urinary urgency, while others can stop the flow. I have seen the urinary urgency thing with Serzone™ (nefazodone) the most, and usually in women only. I have only seen 3 case (all women) and heard of 2 more (one man and one woman).

I believe that because Serzone blocks serotonin receptors, lessening muscle tone in the ureter. This is a rare side effect, and is even rarer in men. This is due to the differences lengths of ureters between men and women. Their's are very short (also making them more prone to bladder infections) while guys are longer, so a little less tone in the muscles of the ureter doesn't make much of a difference (unless the guy has prostate problems to begin with).

I have also heard of the urinary urgency thing with Paxil™ (paroxetine), but that is even more rare.

The older tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) can cause urinary retention, especially those that bind fairly strongly to anticholinergic receptors (eg. Elavil - amitriptyline).

I hope that this helps - Cam

<font color=orange>"Sometimes you may be shown the light in the strangest of places, if you look at it right"
- Robert Hunter</font color=orange>

I had that problem with one or two medicines. If you try a medicine for awhile and experience that effect for a long time you can always go off of it or switch. The problem wasn't so bad for me that I had to run to the "john". I had to go more often but it did become annoying. That alone, though, did not make me stop the medicine.

<font color=red>"The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience." Emily Dickenson</font color=red>

may i ask if nayone knows about luvox 100mg??
jess

take care all

Let me just say that it was the worst experience of my life. Now, I am only one person though and I have heard it helps some people. It made me nuts, or nuttier. We are all different though and one persons garbage is another persons treasure. I heard that the other day. But if you are on it I sincerely hope it helps you. Best wishes to you. Hope you will stop back, too.

<font color=red>"The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience." Emily Dickenson</font color=red>

Jecca - What would you like to know about Luvox™ (fluvoxamine)? It does not seem to have the same rate for causing bladder purgency problems as Serzone. I have not personally seen many people have bladder problems with Luvox, but that may be due to Luvox not being used as much as the other SSRIs.

- Cam

<font color=orange>"Sometimes you may be shown the light in the strangest of places, if you look at it right"
- Robert Hunter</font color=orange>

I was on a medication for depression several years ago that the Dr. think threw me into a manic episode.
I think it was either luvox or effexor. Do either of these have the potential to do that-anyone know?
I know the bi-polars out there would think I'm nuts, but I sure wish I could get back some of the mania I had then. Boy, life was great-I did a bunch of irresponsible, hurtful, and stupid things, but I sure was happy and full of energy. I read somewhere that celexa (which I'm on now) can cause mania. Anyone on that? I have my fingers crossed for that to happen in a very mild form. I keep hoping if it happens again that I can keep control of my mind and not do the stupid stuff I did before. I just want the energy and 'life is great' attitude I had back then.

Tracyrip - All antidepressants can (and seemingly have) caused "manic switch" in those with bipolar disorder. The extent with which the newer agents, like Effexor™ (venlafaxine) or the SSRIs (incl. Luvox™ - fluvoxamine) cause manic switch seems to be less than is seen with the older agents (eg. TCAs and MAOIs).

I have heard many theories for why antidepressants seem to cause manic switch. One is that the antidepressants decrease the depressive side of the bipolar illness and the sensitive neurotransmitter systems of the person with bipolar disorder overshoots normal mood and results in hypomania. Another is that depression in bipolar disorder is holding the mania in check, and when the depression is relived the mania comes back. I don't think that either of these theories have been proven.

Not everyone who has bipolar disorder who takes an antidepressant will become manic or hypomanic. Many people with bipolar disorder have taken antidepressants for years, without any manic or hypomanic episodes. Current theories suggest that about 50% of people with bipolar disorder taking the older TCAs (tricyclic antidepressants like imipramine), 33% of those taking SSRIs, and 13% of those taking Wellbutrin™ (bupropion) will have a manic switch. This includes people who are already taking a mood stabilizer.

Many of those who have bipolar disorder (especially the Type II variant) need to take some sort of antidepressant to fight the debilitating, sometimes life-threatening, depression. Some of the newer mood stabilizers seem to have built-in antidepressant activity. This is especially true for Lamictal™ (lamotrigine) and possibly Topamax™ (topiramate). These two medications do not seem to cause manic switch, but since they are new and we are not sure what causes manic switch, I will not say that they won't with any absolute certainty that manic switch will not happen.

Many people who have had a manic episode and are successfully treated with mood stabilizers will end up missing some parts of the manic feeling. Unfortunately, we cannot give a person a little mania without the risk of the unsafe behaviors that can result from it.

I hope that this is of some help. - Cam

<font color=orange>"Sometimes you may be shown the light in the strangest of places, if you look at it right"
- Robert Hunter</font color=orange>