[learning1]

Has anyone taken antidepressants for a short time and gotten off them? I'm wondering if they can ever have long term unwanted side effects on your mood or anything else.

[struggling2]

i dont know about that but i do know that ive been on a super low dose of citalopram(20mg) for over a year and at first it was very effective but now it seems to make me feel worse.

You'd probably have more responses on the psychiatric medications board than on the therapy board; just FYI.

I've taken many different antidepressants over the years, some for as short as a few months, some for several years. I've always been able to discontinue their use when it was time with pretty minimal withdrawal effects and no long-term residual effects. That's my story. Any change to my personality/emotions has been due to work I've done in therapy and has been an improvement, not a decline.

I suspect you'll hear stories from both sides. The difficulty with any psychotropic meds is that no two people seem to experience exactly the same thing with them. Just the nature of the meds I guess.

[AngelWolf3]

I was on 150 mg Zoloft for about 7 years, and then decided to quit taking it cold turkey...that was NOT smart. I definitely experienced side effects in my mood, and actually lost a year of time which I can't remember a dang thing about that time. (e.g. there are pictures with me in them but I have no clue where I was or what I was doing)

But, Zoloft didn't give me any weird side effects when I was taking it properly and was quite helpful. My advice from my experience is: if u start taking the meds and then the time comes when you think it is time to stop taking them, do it under a doctor's care, not on your own. but like Chris said, no two people seem to experience exactly the same thing...good luck!

[Silent_tsol]

I took lexapro for about a year and just finished tapering off them last week. So day I haven't noticed any laying side effects other then anxiety being back.

[Wren_]

I had to take them for awhile with fibromyalgia to see if it helped for that (low dose of anti-depressants) and was on a different kind for depression at another time; both times for short periods of time ... my thoughts are that they would completely leave the system and wouldn't have a long term effect when it was only short term usage, but not really sure

[learning1]

Thanks everyone, and thanks Farmergirl for the other board suggestion. I'll try that.

I was on Celexa for about seven months . .. about a month or a month in a half into the seven months, my pdoc added a dose of Abilify because the depression wasn't lifting. I was hospitalized during the "abilify" adding period and then released after two weeks. I was better in regard to the depression about four months into the medication/psychotherapy treatment. I weaned off the abilify very quickly and at about six months, I started weaning off the Celexa. I was again drug free after seven months. I haven't been back on meds since.

The only "side effect" that I experienced was a DEFINITE pulling of the appetite center trigger. I think I've very sensitive in that area of the brain. I was very glad to get off both medications but I also know that they helped me during a very difficult time in my life.