Psychiatrist Dr. Domenick Sportelli joins The Doctors to share about serotonin syndrome and what you should be aware of. Subscribe to The Doctors: …
50 Comments
Doctors r killers and they damage kids who r depressed they made everything worst for me they only ruin lives and screw up ur health these psychos r a joke by shoving antidepressants and carcinogenic crap down there throats these doctors r evil
Could effexir zifran and oxycodone have been cause I ended up in ICU? Zofran caused uncontrolled dry heaving then seizure activity. Just sent home no answer
I ended up spending my bday yesterday in the ER. My doctor increased the zoloft prescription to 200 mg that I had started the month b4. I thought I was hitting menopause due to hot flashes. And Parkinson's due to shaking arm. Then I woke up shaking everywhere uncontrollably.
Serotonin Syndrome really fucking hurts. A LOT. Headaches, like electrical zapping in your brain, too hot, keep shaking your legs, confused and feeing like you’re brain damaged. It just hurts like nothing you ever felt.
Had this happen to me from too much prozac and cough medicine. I didn't know that's what it was at the time. I went to the ER and they just thought I was going through drug withdrawal even though I told them I wasn't taking anything. I was having horrible tremors, practically shitting my pants, had the worst restlessness I've ever felt, unbearable anxiety, I would get extremely hot and sweat everywhere and then get freezing cold and start shivering like crazy. The ER literally did nothing for me. I was there for like 45 minutes after taking an ambulance there. Got a cab home and basicly just let it run its course in my bed. It took about a day. My psychiatrist told me like a week later it was serotonin syndrome. I don't wish that shit on anyone man that was easily the worst I've ever felt in my life. I thought I was dying and then when they told me I was fine and sent me home from the ER i thought I was losing my mind.
I had serotonin syndrome a few months ago and it was a terrible week , I initially thought I was going to go to hospital , be very careful because it was totally uncomfortable for days
U can’t measure serotonin so if u increase it via a pill u may get too much serotonin and this syndrome is,bs antidepressants do not work and are bs based on bs studies
doctors here in Ireland put me on three different SSRIs concurrently at the fullest strength, completely and consistently ignored my complaints about sweats, shaking, confusion, irritability, mood swings, fatigue, insomnia, memory loss, tremors, convulsions and refused to look at the medicines interactions even when I started having regular seizures and was hospitalised numerous times. They refused to lower the dosages of any of the SSRIs and denied that the medications had anything to do with my worsening condition. I did the research for myself and took myself off all the toxic pills they had me on and guess what?! after many months of recovery I'm starting to regain my health, strength and no longer have any of the above mentioned symptoms including seizures!!!
be VERY careful with doctors. the one's I had clearly did not have my best interests at heart.
Don't mix Trazodone with Buspirone , I almost died. Dropped my blood pressure from 160/105 P60 to 97/57 P54 for 6 days. Dr. prescribed Trazodone which is for Severe Depression that's known to offset insomnia, but has major negative interaction with Buspirone used for antianxiety. Have GAD (General Anxiety Disorder) and Insomnia. If you're not depressed Trazodone won't work for insomnia. Dr was trying to stop me from taking Ambien for sleep and Xanax for anxiety. He said one or the other not both. Then gave me this cocktail of Trax and Busp. Don't do it if your not severely depressed.
Pretty pathetic that cough medicine can cause this yet so called doctors don't care enough to explain this!!! Make sure to let your doctor know??the doctor should make sure to damn well ask!!! 🖕
I had it from taking escitalopram and an herbal supplement call kudzu root. Started with hot flashes, then weakness, muscle spasms, severe headache. Once the hot flashes went away at the ER, I returned home and the pain/weakness lasted weeks. I couldn’t work, walk, or look at any screens or lights. Very uncomfortable.
Psychiatrist will just blow you off if you mention any side effects
Psychiatrist are not real doctors, their no medical diagnosis to prove you have a mental illness. They are just drug pushers and if they believe then they should take it and let us know his it goes.
I'm a little woozy and legs are wobly. Took um tramadol oxycodone melatonin tizanidine ondansetron.
For pain and nausea for kidney stones. I didn't take them today but have anxiety and depression prescription. Also just got but didn't take it yet but kava 250mg.
What should I take at home to fix or check for I mostly keep falling asleep fast alot fell out of bed twice which I do often so dunno. But I don't want to go to a doctor I don't know what to do
Someone tell me if this is safe my doctor told me to take zoloft and buspirone together to help mu Anxiety and depression there both low doses tho so will 8t be safe I'm suppose to trust my doctor so I hope its safe
When I had my first run in with serotonin syndrome I ran out of my antidepressant and the pharmacies were all closed or something and I wasn't able to get it refilled and then I started having this throbbing pulsating headache which can be a sign of a seizure about to happen. I went to the ER and I told them that I thought I was having serotonin syndrome and they instantly told me I wasn't having that. But they put lorazapam into my iv…. Which is to help serotonin syndrome…. I think they thought I was just having a panic attack or something but I definitely was not. I have had panic attacks before and they don't feel how that felt… The second time I had it was from zofran (anti-nausea) and sumatriptan (anti-migraine)…. That made me feel like I was actually going to die… It was scary. The third time I had it happen was from St. John's wort. Which also made me feel like I was dying. Point is I'm very familiar with the feeling of serotonin syndrome…. Don't let any doctor tell you you're wrong if you know what's going on in your own body…..now I have facial twitching in my brow bone all around the eyes and lips…. It goes absolutely crazy when I sneeze. I also had a muscle twitching in the back of my head which was scary and went to the neurologist for it and I asked him about it and he dismissed it and I asked a second time also dismissed it and a third time also dismissed my question…. Need to find the right doctors guys.. Even though it might seem hopeless… Find the doctor that is willing to talk to you about things and answer all of your questions and do the tests you want.
I am on so many different pain medications for chronic pain including opiates. I’m also on 50mg of amitriptyline for migraine prevention. I recently had a mental health breakdown and I was put on 15mg of mirtazapine. I’ve been on it now for two weeks despite me telling my dr how horrendous I’m feeling and I’d like to stop taking it but was told to give it another week for my body to adjust to it. Tonight I stopped taking the mirtazapine as I have all the symptoms of serotonin syndrome and SO poorly.. I feel drs really need to be aware of what other medications you are taking. I know the amitriptyline and the Mirtazapine taken together have caused this. It’s really serious and needs to be addressed so thanks for bringing it up!
SSRI’s achieved notoriety years ago when it was discovered that frequently they seemed to help patient’s more than talking therapy. SSRIs were celebrated in Peter Kramer's contemporary classic Listening to Prozac. Kramer’s book was remarkably honest for its time. The book was a discursive memoir by a therapist who is forced to admit that many of his clients seemed rapidly to fare far better on a pill than on his industrial-strength regimen of caring talk-therapy.
Science and medicine have advanced to where we now know that pharmacological intervention is initially necessary to boost the brain’s physical strength – much like a muscle. Once the “muscle of the brain” is strong enough for talk therapy, then – and only then – is the patient finally ready for Jungian Psychoanalysis and Behavioral Modification. So really, patients with tired brains are unable to profit from “physical therapy of the mind”, (talk therapy). First, the brain needs to acquire the strength necessary to undergo & profit from talk therapy.
The SSRIs all differ in their half-lives, chemical structure, and precise specificities. Their functional effects are broadly similar, though Prozac is the most activating, longest-lasting, least selective and most likely to provoke dose-related akathisia; paroxetine has anticholinergic and sedating antihistaminergic effects; fluvoxamine most commonly induces nausea and has the shortest half-life; and, citalopram is the most serotonin-selective (see citations 2 and 3 regarding heart warnings). The mood-brightening, resilience-enhancing and anti-anxiety properties of the SSRIs really can make a (very) modest percentage of the population feel “better”. Unpredictably, other users feel worse. As a class, SSRIs (mostly) don't have the physically unpleasant and cognitively debilitating anticholinergic effects of the tricyclics. SSRIs don't demand the dietary restrictions of the MAOIs. Their dependence potential and withdrawal reaction is usually milder than the powerful opioids.
Overall, SSRI’s operate by blasting more serotonin through the system than any other neurotransmitter. The result is imbalance, a flat affect (which typically diminishes motivation and causes power imbalances among the social fabric of the patient’s life), neuroleptic malignant syndrome, galactorrhea, sleep bruxism, decreased vigilance & tired brain , extremely serious extrapyramidal reactions, and the plethora of other side-effects for which SSRI’s are known (including homicide & suicide).
It is important to realize that the efficacy of SSRI’s is somewhat less than that of even the older conventional antidepressants including the tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs). Two common problems limit the usefulness of SSRIs, at least when taken on their own. The problems stem from the indirect inhibitory effect sometimes exerted by SSRI style drugs on dopamine function, a consequence of deliberate selective targeting of the serotonin system. SSRI’s have a very poor performance record in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) which is believed to be related to its inhibition of dopamine in the mesocorticolimbic system. It has been theorized that SSRI’s causing a psychiatric emergency – Restless Leg Syndrome – is precisely a result of SSRI inhibition of dopaminergic systems; a condition corrected by bupropion (Wellbutrin).
As we already elucidated in the Mechanisms of Depression section of this text, this is precisely what clinicians should not be doing: limiting dopaminergic function of the mesocorticolimbic systems. Rather we learned that effective treatment requires that we augment the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic systems! Part of the reason for the effectiveness of Nootropic class drugs is that they stimulate all the monoamines including norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. Where many Nootropics enhances inter-hemisphere communication, SSRI’s such as fluoxetine (Prozac) impair it.
First, SSRIs can compromise libido and sexual performance, often times lingering long after cessation of the drug. SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction can still be a highly distressing phenomenon for older people too embarrassed to talk about it. These side-effects exacerbate one of the major signs of depression: loss of interest in sex and reduced libido. Proper treatment strategies must not induce sexual dysfunction. SSRI's have killed at least 800,000 patients in the USA since January 2000. If it weren’t for the Citizens United case (the USA Supreme Court case permitting Congressional bribery by Corporations), and the fact that heads of pharmaceutical industries sit on the board of the U.S. FDA, there is little doubt that SSRI’s would have been banned outright years ago.
Second, though a few subjects may feel mildly euphoric, in time most patients succumb to a flat affect and loss of motivation in their lives. What many treating physicians have observed is that the flattening of the patients affect by SSRI’s will more often than not, subtly change the "balance of power" in personal relationships – for good or ill. In some cases, SSRIs may even act as thymoanaesthetisers which diminish the intensity of felt emotion, both positive & negative, giving way to a “flat affect”. By contrast, a mood-brightening serotonin reuptake-enhancer like tianeptine (Stablon) may intensify positive emotion or sense of wellness & hope. Affective flattening may be welcome to someone in the pit of unmitigated clinical depression – But there are much better options light years ahead of SSRI’s. Succumbing to a flat affect is scarcely a life-enriching property.
A recent analysis cited the specific serotoninergic mechanisms associated with SSRI’s for making patients worse. The researchers also found tianeptine to resolve depression in these patients whose symptoms were worsened by SSRI’s.
By the late 1990’s, a backlash against SSRIs finally gathered enough pace to substantiate a flurry of lawsuits. In February 2008, a Public Library of Science meta-analysis of four commonly prescribed "second generation" antidepressants – using both published and withheld drug-company data – reported that SSRIs were scarcely more effective as antidepressants than placebos. The illustrious UK psychopharmacologist Professor David Healy delivers an even more damning verdict on contemporary psychiatry: "there is probably no other branch of medicine where the outcomes for a core disease are steadily worsening." [p. 95; Shock Therapy by Edward Shorter and David Healy (2007)] Today enormous class-action lawsuits are underway against the makers of SSRI’s – Soon to be filed against physicians prescribing them too!
In summary, the old concept of a single isolated monoamine system resulting in depression is no longer tenable. This concept was frightfully over simplistic. Today science has extensively mapped out how physical (organic/histological) alterations in a CNS ecosystem lead to multi-faceted chemical alterations and neurosis. Replacing a single monoamine creates a further imbalance to this delicate ecosystem along with extensive negative side-effects. On the other hand, proper treatment of this neurosis begins with regrowth of key structures of the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system.
In other words, the development and rationale for SSRI deployment were based upon a disproven myth. “The science backing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, as an effective remedy for increasing serotonin levels in the brain and helping depression sufferers achieve mental ‘balance’ is entirely nonexistent,” warns a prominent psychiatrist in a new peer-reviewed editorial published in the esteemed British Medical Journal (BMJ)… “…the entire premise behind SSRIs and how they supposedly work is based on a myth.” Healy warns that the drugs, which have been linked to provoking both suicidal and homicidal tendencies in some users, have never been scientifically shown to balance anything in the brain. ”
I mixed a medication with an antidepressant. It sent me to the E.R. The nurse was annoyed because she thought I was just having a panic. For background information I have no history of panic attacks and I have a stress free life. She didn't even consider this or acknowledge that it could be anything other than a panic attack.
It happened to me when I took an intentional OD. I took an old antidepressant called Parnate and Fluvoxamine, worse experience of my life and I will never OD again. Please note, I was on both of these medications on their own and didn’t have any SS symptoms, it happened when I combined them. I still have depression today, but having SS scared me so much that I won’t do an OD again. I wouldn’t worry about having SS, unless you’re on more than one serotonin increasing medication. They treated me with charcoal and Cyproheptadine to reverse the serotonin and also Midazolam to help reduce symptoms. If you experience symptoms, call 000/911 etc straight away.
Every interaction they’ve listed are on the fact sheet of your prescription. People just need to be more cautious and read about their medication when they first pick it up
This why Americans skip all of this fuss and go straight into prescribing benzos, opiates and amphetamines. It's crazy, it's almost like the American pharmaceutical industry has a vested interest in churning out addicted zombies…. Oh wait.
For me I accidentally mixed Ayahuasca with MDMA. DMT from Ayahuasca can stay in the system for weeks in low doses! MDMA can also be stored in Fat cells and can be released when fasting! It was very scary psychologicaly. Took a REALLY tiny amount of MDMA (a few grains) 1 week after an Ayahuasca trip – the two interacted and had a really INTENSE and scary trip. Feel very lucky to be alive and not suffer permanent psychosis. Took me 1 year with recurring PTSD episodes to fully recover.
I'm not sure if I have a mild case of this or not. Started on a new antidepressant and also was dumb and did a bunch of whippits, way more than I usually would. Didn't realize they also increase serotonin and now I have a tingly cold sensation all over, temperature being off either too hot or too cold or both at one time, and very restless and can't sleep. I'm also withdrawing from suboxone too
All antidepressants are neurotoxins. Antidepressants do not cure anything. They all have hundreds of side effects and the side effects can pop up at anytime. Some of the side effects can be permanent and last long after the antidepressant is stopped like Tardive Dyskinesia, tinnitus, and sexual side effects. Antidepressants actually increase the risk of suicide in people of all ages (not just young adults), they are linked to worst long term outcomes compared to those who do not take antidepressants for their anxiety and depression. The chemical imbalance theory is not true but rather a marketing ploy by big pharma. Antidepressants also all need to be slowly tapered and can cause debilitating withdrawal symptoms that can lasts for years in some cases if someone doesn't taper safely. The issue would be to try to find the root cause of your symptoms. If not caused by trauma then anxiety and depression are thought to be symptoms of something physically going on in the body. It could be nutritional deficiencies or allergies, hormonal imbalances such as Thyroid disease or vitamin D or other vitamin deficiencies, heavy metal or chemical toxins, Lyme disease, genetic defects such as the MTHFR gene variations, histamine intolerance, previous medication toxicity, bad gut health, brain trauma, systemic inflammation and oxidative stress, unbalanced blood sugar levels and more.
If you can find a functional or integrative doctor then they can do the testing to find the root cause of your symptoms. Antidepressants only mask symptoms and damage a person's health while they do not realize it. Any part of the brain and body can be affected so many doctors do not tie health problems with the antidepressant.
If you have a mental health issue, don't go see a psychiatrist. It is too dangerous and might turn out to be the biggest error in your life.
Doctors r killers and they damage kids who r depressed they made everything worst for me they only ruin lives and screw up ur health these psychos r a joke by shoving antidepressants and carcinogenic crap down there throats these doctors r evil
Could effexir zifran and oxycodone have been cause I ended up in ICU? Zofran caused uncontrolled dry heaving then seizure activity. Just sent home no answer
Liar. Drs don't know how SSRI really work. They just work. How. Who knows
I ended up spending my bday yesterday in the ER. My doctor increased the zoloft prescription to 200 mg that I had started the month b4. I thought I was hitting menopause due to hot flashes. And Parkinson's due to shaking arm. Then I woke up shaking everywhere uncontrollably.
Paxil mirtazapine caused it for me
This happened to me today but I think it may be because I mixed weed or with my medication
WARNING DO NOT TAKE TOGETHER WITH PAMELAR YOU WILL GET MESSED UP. LEARNED THAT TATH THE HARD WAY.
Serotonin Syndrome really fucking hurts. A LOT. Headaches, like electrical zapping in your brain, too hot, keep shaking your legs, confused and feeing like you’re brain damaged. It just hurts like nothing you ever felt.
I use medical mj is sertraline safe to take with weed i have always had mild ocd Even before weed
I have been on 50mg for 5 weeks and terrible daily migraine and nausea..gut.rot feeling..I hate sertraline
Had this happen to me from too much prozac and cough medicine. I didn't know that's what it was at the time. I went to the ER and they just thought I was going through drug withdrawal even though I told them I wasn't taking anything. I was having horrible tremors, practically shitting my pants, had the worst restlessness I've ever felt, unbearable anxiety, I would get extremely hot and sweat everywhere and then get freezing cold and start shivering like crazy. The ER literally did nothing for me. I was there for like 45 minutes after taking an ambulance there. Got a cab home and basicly just let it run its course in my bed. It took about a day. My psychiatrist told me like a week later it was serotonin syndrome. I don't wish that shit on anyone man that was easily the worst I've ever felt in my life. I thought I was dying and then when they told me I was fine and sent me home from the ER i thought I was losing my mind.
I had serotonin syndrome a few months ago and it was a terrible week , I initially thought I was going to go to hospital , be very careful because it was totally uncomfortable for days
U can’t measure serotonin so if u increase it via a pill u may get too much serotonin and this syndrome is,bs antidepressants do not work and are bs based on bs studies
No,this is so wrong
Can I alternate 50mg Trazdone one night and then Mirtazapine 7.5mg on alternating days?
doctors here in Ireland put me on three different SSRIs concurrently at the fullest strength, completely and consistently ignored my complaints about sweats, shaking, confusion, irritability, mood swings, fatigue, insomnia, memory loss, tremors, convulsions and refused to look at the medicines interactions even when I started having regular seizures and was hospitalised numerous times. They refused to lower the dosages of any of the SSRIs and denied that the medications had anything to do with my worsening condition. I did the research for myself and took myself off all the toxic pills they had me on and guess what?! after many months of recovery I'm starting to regain my health, strength and no longer have any of the above mentioned symptoms including seizures!!!
be VERY careful with doctors. the one's I had clearly did not have my best interests at heart.
dang i took cough syrup 2 days ago
Don't mix Trazodone with Buspirone , I almost died. Dropped my blood pressure from 160/105 P60 to 97/57 P54 for 6 days. Dr. prescribed Trazodone which is for Severe Depression that's known to offset insomnia, but has major negative interaction with Buspirone used for antianxiety. Have GAD (General Anxiety Disorder) and Insomnia. If you're not depressed Trazodone won't work for insomnia. Dr was trying to stop me from taking Ambien for sleep and Xanax for anxiety. He said one or the other not both. Then gave me this cocktail of Trax and Busp. Don't do it if your not severely depressed.
Dude I ate like 10ecstasy pills in one night and if I didn't get Serotonin Syndrome U won't get it because of antidepressant
I am trying to kill myself…I hate America
Pretty pathetic that cough medicine can cause this yet so called doctors don't care enough to explain this!!! Make sure to let your doctor know??the doctor should make sure to damn well ask!!! 🖕
I had it from taking escitalopram and an herbal supplement call kudzu root. Started with hot flashes, then weakness, muscle spasms, severe headache. Once the hot flashes went away at the ER, I returned home and the pain/weakness lasted weeks. I couldn’t work, walk, or look at any screens or lights. Very uncomfortable.
Psychiatrist will just blow you off if you mention any side effects
Psychiatrist are not real doctors, their no medical diagnosis to prove you have a mental illness. They are just drug pushers and if they believe then they should take it and let us know his it goes.
I'm a little woozy and legs are wobly. Took um tramadol oxycodone melatonin tizanidine ondansetron.
For pain and nausea for kidney stones. I didn't take them today but have anxiety and depression prescription. Also just got but didn't take it yet but kava 250mg.
What should I take at home to fix or check for I mostly keep falling asleep fast alot fell out of bed twice which I do often so dunno. But I don't want to go to a doctor I don't know what to do
Someone tell me if this is safe my doctor told me to take zoloft and buspirone together to help mu Anxiety and depression there both low doses tho so will 8t be safe I'm suppose to trust my doctor so I hope its safe
Blame it on the supplements 😂 ok you keep flogging that horse docs
Or it could get you high?
Oh not these bias doctors again. Why would I take medical advice off someone who is paid by a corporation?
Would it be harmful or fatal if I intentionally overdosed on my SSRI?
When I had my first run in with serotonin syndrome I ran out of my antidepressant and the pharmacies were all closed or something and I wasn't able to get it refilled and then I started having this throbbing pulsating headache which can be a sign of a seizure about to happen. I went to the ER and I told them that I thought I was having serotonin syndrome and they instantly told me I wasn't having that. But they put lorazapam into my iv…. Which is to help serotonin syndrome…. I think they thought I was just having a panic attack or something but I definitely was not. I have had panic attacks before and they don't feel how that felt… The second time I had it was from zofran (anti-nausea) and sumatriptan (anti-migraine)…. That made me feel like I was actually going to die… It was scary. The third time I had it happen was from St. John's wort. Which also made me feel like I was dying. Point is I'm very familiar with the feeling of serotonin syndrome…. Don't let any doctor tell you you're wrong if you know what's going on in your own body…..now I have facial twitching in my brow bone all around the eyes and lips…. It goes absolutely crazy when I sneeze. I also had a muscle twitching in the back of my head which was scary and went to the neurologist for it and I asked him about it and he dismissed it and I asked a second time also dismissed it and a third time also dismissed my question…. Need to find the right doctors guys.. Even though it might seem hopeless… Find the doctor that is willing to talk to you about things and answer all of your questions and do the tests you want.
I am on so many different pain medications for chronic pain including opiates. I’m also on 50mg of amitriptyline for migraine prevention. I recently had a mental health breakdown and I was put on 15mg of mirtazapine. I’ve been on it now for two weeks despite me telling my dr how horrendous I’m feeling and I’d like to stop taking it but was told to give it another week for my body to adjust to it. Tonight I stopped taking the mirtazapine as I have all the symptoms of serotonin syndrome and SO poorly.. I feel drs really need to be aware of what other medications you are taking. I know the amitriptyline and the Mirtazapine taken together have caused this. It’s really serious and needs to be addressed so thanks for bringing it up!
Can you overdose on serotonin?
SSRI’s achieved notoriety years ago when it was discovered that frequently they seemed to help patient’s more than talking therapy. SSRIs were celebrated in Peter Kramer's contemporary classic Listening to Prozac. Kramer’s book was remarkably honest for its time. The book was a discursive memoir by a therapist who is forced to admit that many of his clients seemed rapidly to fare far better on a pill than on his industrial-strength regimen of caring talk-therapy.
Science and medicine have advanced to where we now know that pharmacological intervention is initially necessary to boost the brain’s physical strength – much like a muscle. Once the “muscle of the brain” is strong enough for talk therapy, then – and only then – is the patient finally ready for Jungian Psychoanalysis and Behavioral Modification. So really, patients with tired brains are unable to profit from “physical therapy of the mind”, (talk therapy). First, the brain needs to acquire the strength necessary to undergo & profit from talk therapy.
The SSRIs all differ in their half-lives, chemical structure, and precise specificities. Their functional effects are broadly similar, though Prozac is the most activating, longest-lasting, least selective and most likely to provoke dose-related akathisia; paroxetine has anticholinergic and sedating antihistaminergic effects; fluvoxamine most commonly induces nausea and has the shortest half-life; and, citalopram is the most serotonin-selective (see citations 2 and 3 regarding heart warnings). The mood-brightening, resilience-enhancing and anti-anxiety properties of the SSRIs really can make a (very) modest percentage of the population feel “better”. Unpredictably, other users feel worse. As a class, SSRIs (mostly) don't have the physically unpleasant and cognitively debilitating anticholinergic effects of the tricyclics. SSRIs don't demand the dietary restrictions of the MAOIs. Their dependence potential and withdrawal reaction is usually milder than the powerful opioids.
Overall, SSRI’s operate by blasting more serotonin through the system than any other neurotransmitter. The result is imbalance, a flat affect (which typically diminishes motivation and causes power imbalances among the social fabric of the patient’s life), neuroleptic malignant syndrome, galactorrhea, sleep bruxism, decreased vigilance & tired brain , extremely serious extrapyramidal reactions, and the plethora of other side-effects for which SSRI’s are known (including homicide & suicide).
It is important to realize that the efficacy of SSRI’s is somewhat less than that of even the older conventional antidepressants including the tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs). Two common problems limit the usefulness of SSRIs, at least when taken on their own. The problems stem from the indirect inhibitory effect sometimes exerted by SSRI style drugs on dopamine function, a consequence of deliberate selective targeting of the serotonin system. SSRI’s have a very poor performance record in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) which is believed to be related to its inhibition of dopamine in the mesocorticolimbic system. It has been theorized that SSRI’s causing a psychiatric emergency – Restless Leg Syndrome – is precisely a result of SSRI inhibition of dopaminergic systems; a condition corrected by bupropion (Wellbutrin).
As we already elucidated in the Mechanisms of Depression section of this text, this is precisely what clinicians should not be doing: limiting dopaminergic function of the mesocorticolimbic systems. Rather we learned that effective treatment requires that we augment the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic systems! Part of the reason for the effectiveness of Nootropic class drugs is that they stimulate all the monoamines including norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. Where many Nootropics enhances inter-hemisphere communication, SSRI’s such as fluoxetine (Prozac) impair it.
First, SSRIs can compromise libido and sexual performance, often times lingering long after cessation of the drug. SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction can still be a highly distressing phenomenon for older people too embarrassed to talk about it. These side-effects exacerbate one of the major signs of depression: loss of interest in sex and reduced libido. Proper treatment strategies must not induce sexual dysfunction. SSRI's have killed at least 800,000 patients in the USA since January 2000. If it weren’t for the Citizens United case (the USA Supreme Court case permitting Congressional bribery by Corporations), and the fact that heads of pharmaceutical industries sit on the board of the U.S. FDA, there is little doubt that SSRI’s would have been banned outright years ago.
Second, though a few subjects may feel mildly euphoric, in time most patients succumb to a flat affect and loss of motivation in their lives. What many treating physicians have observed is that the flattening of the patients affect by SSRI’s will more often than not, subtly change the "balance of power" in personal relationships – for good or ill. In some cases, SSRIs may even act as thymoanaesthetisers which diminish the intensity of felt emotion, both positive & negative, giving way to a “flat affect”. By contrast, a mood-brightening serotonin reuptake-enhancer like tianeptine (Stablon) may intensify positive emotion or sense of wellness & hope. Affective flattening may be welcome to someone in the pit of unmitigated clinical depression – But there are much better options light years ahead of SSRI’s. Succumbing to a flat affect is scarcely a life-enriching property.
A recent analysis cited the specific serotoninergic mechanisms associated with SSRI’s for making patients worse. The researchers also found tianeptine to resolve depression in these patients whose symptoms were worsened by SSRI’s.
By the late 1990’s, a backlash against SSRIs finally gathered enough pace to substantiate a flurry of lawsuits. In February 2008, a Public Library of Science meta-analysis of four commonly prescribed "second generation" antidepressants – using both published and withheld drug-company data – reported that SSRIs were scarcely more effective as antidepressants than placebos. The illustrious UK psychopharmacologist Professor David Healy delivers an even more damning verdict on contemporary psychiatry: "there is probably no other branch of medicine where the outcomes for a core disease are steadily worsening." [p. 95; Shock Therapy by Edward Shorter and David Healy (2007)] Today enormous class-action lawsuits are underway against the makers of SSRI’s – Soon to be filed against physicians prescribing them too!
In summary, the old concept of a single isolated monoamine system resulting in depression is no longer tenable. This concept was frightfully over simplistic. Today science has extensively mapped out how physical (organic/histological) alterations in a CNS ecosystem lead to multi-faceted chemical alterations and neurosis. Replacing a single monoamine creates a further imbalance to this delicate ecosystem along with extensive negative side-effects. On the other hand, proper treatment of this neurosis begins with regrowth of key structures of the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system.
In other words, the development and rationale for SSRI deployment were based upon a disproven myth. “The science backing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, as an effective remedy for increasing serotonin levels in the brain and helping depression sufferers achieve mental ‘balance’ is entirely nonexistent,” warns a prominent psychiatrist in a new peer-reviewed editorial published in the esteemed British Medical Journal (BMJ)… “…the entire premise behind SSRIs and how they supposedly work is based on a myth.” Healy warns that the drugs, which have been linked to provoking both suicidal and homicidal tendencies in some users, have never been scientifically shown to balance anything in the brain. ”
I had zero positive reaction to lexapro, complete adverse reaction that led me to hating big pharma
I mixed a medication with an antidepressant. It sent me to the E.R. The nurse was annoyed because she thought I was just having a panic. For background information I have no history of panic attacks and I have a stress free life. She didn't even consider this or acknowledge that it could be anything other than a panic attack.
Why do people in California always like looking orange? They need to lay off the orange makeup!
It happened to me when I took an intentional OD.
I took an old antidepressant called Parnate and Fluvoxamine, worse experience of my life and I will never OD again.
Please note, I was on both of these medications on their own and didn’t have any SS symptoms, it happened when I combined them.
I still have depression today, but having SS scared me so much that I won’t do an OD again.
I wouldn’t worry about having SS, unless you’re on more than one serotonin increasing medication.
They treated me with charcoal and Cyproheptadine to reverse the serotonin and also Midazolam to help reduce symptoms.
If you experience symptoms, call 000/911 etc straight away.
Can you get serotonin syndrome when taking SSRIs with vitamins and essential amino acids from the drug store?
Sportelli is the king 👑 of gaslighting and narcissism.
Every interaction they’ve listed are on the fact sheet of your prescription. People just need to be more cautious and read about their medication when they first pick it up
but WILL SOMEONE FOR GOD SAKE TELL ME HOW LONG I NEED TO WAIT AFTER BEING ADDICTED TO DXM FOR A FEW YEARS TILL I CAN TAKE LEXAPRO!!
This why Americans skip all of this fuss and go straight into prescribing benzos, opiates and amphetamines. It's crazy, it's almost like the American pharmaceutical industry has a vested interest in churning out addicted zombies…. Oh wait.
For me I accidentally mixed Ayahuasca with MDMA. DMT from Ayahuasca can stay in the system for weeks in low doses! MDMA can also be stored in Fat cells and can be released when fasting! It was very scary psychologicaly. Took a REALLY tiny amount of MDMA (a few grains) 1 week after an Ayahuasca trip – the two interacted and had a really INTENSE and scary trip. Feel very lucky to be alive and not suffer permanent psychosis. Took me 1 year with recurring PTSD episodes to fully recover.
I'm not sure if I have a mild case of this or not. Started on a new antidepressant and also was dumb and did a bunch of whippits, way more than I usually would. Didn't realize they also increase serotonin and now I have a tingly cold sensation all over, temperature being off either too hot or too cold or both at one time, and very restless and can't sleep. I'm also withdrawing from suboxone too
Talk to your doctor? My doctor is clueless about interactions
Dr sportelli, what about PSDD?
All antidepressants are neurotoxins. Antidepressants do not cure anything. They all have hundreds of side effects and the side effects can pop up at anytime. Some of the side effects can be permanent and last long after the antidepressant is stopped like Tardive Dyskinesia, tinnitus, and sexual side effects. Antidepressants actually increase the risk of suicide in people of all ages (not just young adults), they are linked to worst long term outcomes compared to those who do not take antidepressants for their anxiety and depression. The chemical imbalance theory is not true but rather a marketing ploy by big pharma. Antidepressants also all need to be slowly tapered and can cause debilitating withdrawal symptoms that can lasts for years in some cases if someone doesn't taper safely. The issue would be to try to find the root cause of your symptoms. If not caused by trauma then anxiety and depression are thought to be symptoms of something physically going on in the body. It could be nutritional deficiencies or allergies, hormonal imbalances such as Thyroid disease or vitamin D or other vitamin deficiencies, heavy metal or chemical toxins, Lyme disease, genetic defects such as the MTHFR gene variations, histamine intolerance, previous medication toxicity, bad gut health, brain trauma, systemic inflammation and oxidative stress, unbalanced blood sugar levels and more.
If you can find a functional or integrative doctor then they can do the testing to find the root cause of your symptoms. Antidepressants only mask symptoms and damage a person's health while they do not realize it. Any part of the brain and body can be affected so many doctors do not tie health problems with the antidepressant.
If you have a mental health issue, don't go see a psychiatrist. It is too dangerous and might turn out to be the biggest error in your life.
I take trazadone with my ssri and lately have been having muscle twitches at night
What about cocaine with venlafaxine ?
The psychologist has no training in this field. Don't know why she's trying to attach herself to what the psychiatrist is speaking about.