Do Antidepressants Actually Work? #AskDNews

Depression is a complicated illness and the main form of treatment comes from antidepressants, but how do they work?


Read More:
What causes depression?
“It’s often said that depression results from a chemical imbalance, but that figure of speech doesn’t capture how complex the disease is. Research suggests that depression doesn’t spring from simply having too much or too little of certain brain chemicals.”

How Anti-Depressants Create New Brain Cells
“Antidepressants increase the presence of a growth factor in the brain, which then leads to a proliferation of new cells, according to a study by Yale School of Medicine researchers.”
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[jaynoxjay]

As someone that is currently taking antidepressants I noticed a difference almost a week into my current prescription. I'm not overly happy or depressed. I just feel blaaaa. I like it compared to how I was before, I have more control over my emotions and am able to get through the day

[jonah]

I have major depression, and as soon as I went on my antidepressants, I noticed immediate change. I am much happier and energetic, and I have a much more positive outlook. When I forget to take them I slip back into my depression and I have bad withdraw symptoms, so I know they're working. They don't work for everyone, but they certainly work for me. Also, different people react differently to different pills so it's important to try different ones. Depression runs in my family, and we all found a pill that works for pretty much all of us who are affected. But trust me, they do work- I probably wouldn't be here without them.

[thinkingscottish]

In my experience they do work, in the sense that they are like pain killers - they make you feel less bad but they don't address the root cause. It's important to remember that these medicines are blunt instruments, I feel they should be used while you go though therapy so you can address the problems in your life.

[drewmack]

I just dont get why i am depressed. I have a good life but just dont want to feel right now

[tobiaswedin]

Why didn't you bring up how antidepressants/SSRIs actually make you emotionally numb and apathetic?

[azsxdcfvgbhnjmhn]

The best way i could describe depression is for some reason being unable to remember good things and having no drive to do activities

[BenPalmersuniverse]

Can you do a video on seasonal depression?

[happykilmore]

This was less "Do Antidepressants Actually Work?" and more "How SSRI's are theorised to work in the body"

[Seeker]

Have any questions about science and the world around you? Ask away, and we'll pick a new question to answer every single week! #AskDNews

[Yerlockk]

While suffering from depression for practically my entire life, one odd benefit I find is that it makes me feel more altruistic towards others with they're problems. Maybe because I can more easily empathize with how bad people can feel. Then again, misery loves company.

[jaymanlakes]

I took something similar today, I got through the day without over thinking and thinking crazy thoughts, which make me go mad. To be honest, I felt happier, I walked and noticed the trees and lights more than the people passing by. I do not know what exactly I have since I haven't seen a doctor, but all I know is that I think things that aren't real, I think of killing people I get angry over, or simply think bad things in general, which cause me to think the world and even my family is against me, even though my family loves me. If I have to take meds, which will cause my life to shorten let's say from 40 more years to 20 years, I'll gladly take it for the sake of being happy and keeping my sanity.

[steveozone]

I always thought they just mask the problem and don't deal with the actual problem. It's like a painkiller for your brain.

[nottheone]

antidepressants are not a cure-all for depression and mental illness.. I wish DNews would practice a more responsible approach to talking about treatment. you never mention the very real negative side effects of treating depression with pills, and also that medication is only one part of a complete treatment plan. Therapy, diet, exercise and stress-reducing activities are just as important when treating people with depression.

[Cosmic-Turtle]

I'v been taking antidepressants for what feels like 3 years now. I'm definitely a lot better than I was before taking them, but 5 times a day I'll have random moments where I feel really depressed but then after a while my mood will go back to normal. It's like a roller-coaster ride, it just goes up and down every so often.

I'd love to have kids someday but because of genetics I think I'll do them a favor and not have them be born so they wont have to suffer through this bs.

[qqq]

When I've been on them they did make things different. Even though I felt better I was aware it was the pill doing it. Maybe if I stayed on them long enough and learned I should feel that way it would help but then what happens if I stop taking them? Good feeling withdrawals? It's been a long time, I've learned to live depressed. You live for a while and then you die. No need to be happy about anything.

[Neceros]

Yes.

I've been diagnosed with chronic major depression, and have been on and off SSRI (anti depressants) since I was around 15. It was not a light decision, but we knew there was a possibility of it genetically.

It was very hard. I first struggled with Paxil for a few years, but I found that brand did not work with me. All it did was bring my drive and motivation down, and stabilized me too low.

After some experimenting with my doctor I found Celexa works wonderfully. I've been on it for around 5 years (with only one or two periods of bad pill behavior), and I can say I absolutely feel better on it.

When I'm not on my meds, I can feel my mind start to turn sour. I can see the change day by day as my imbalance returns. It takes weeks, and it's very hard, including violence, extreme sadness, mood swings, intense dizziness, sleeping for 10-12 hours a day and still feeling tired, inability to eat (or eat properly), headaches, hypertension, and on and on.

It's different for everyone, because everyone's mind has grown in a unique way, with different base genetics. But they do work.

[rossmwi]

I am not a fan. I was prescribed many different antidepressants and the only thing they ever did for me was cause me sexual dysfunction and directly contributed to my first bipolar/manic episode. Thanks antidepressants!

[inxs]

If they don't know how antidepressants work, how come they know all about synapses, neurons, electrical currents, reuptakes, etc. and show video images of the brain at work and what antidepressants do ..??? Explain that to me !!

[ravenwilson]

I took prozac and it helped me by making me more numb. So it didn't really help at all. I slowly stopped feeling a normal range of emotion but I still thought about suicide on a daily basis. I felt a great amount of literal pressure on my middle chest area and it felt like a knot of sadness that I couldn't shake. I stopped taking prozac and I currently take 5-htp and marijuana. Now that I'm okay most of the time I realize that I was much more depressed than I thought when I was on prozac. if you're depressed I'd recommend marijuana and 5-htp but of course everyone's body reacts differently to medication.

[hifall]

Julia, What is the evolutionary advantage/purpose of gaps between the synapses. It seems that the signals crossing the gaps would be faster and there would be less "loss of data" if they were directly connected.