Overcome Your Fear of Antidepressants

Overcome Your Fear of Antidepressants

Many people with depressive disorders let their fears of antidepressants stop them. These fears may have been born out of their beliefs or fiction, keeping them from taking their medications. However, when combined with psychotherapy and support, antidepressants like Prozac are among the most effective treatments for depression!

Let’s look at some of the fears surrounding antidepressants, including their use. When you finish reading, you will find that antidepressants can become your best friend in coping with depression, provided you adhere to regular consultations and proper use.

Fear: Antidepressants Turn You into Another Person

Many people even say that antidepressants will turn you into a zombie! But this isn’t true because antidepressants will not affect your personality when taken correctly. Instead, what they’ll do is they’ll make you feel better about yourself. Once that is achieved, you’ll be better equipped to return to your average level of functioning.

If you feel a loss of emotions (i.e., apathy or indifference), you should tell your doctor about it. Your doctor may have to reduce the dose or recommend another antidepressant.

You will also not forget about your life issues while taking antidepressants. If this were so, more and more people would be on antidepressants, whether they have depression or not. But the proper use of antidepressants will contribute to better coping strategies for dealing with life issues.

Know that people without clinical depression will not feel better after taking antidepressants. This condition is present even when they have “the blues.” Most of them will experience side effects in addition, such as headaches.

Fear: Antidepressants Will Ruin Sex

This statement has some truth because certain antidepressants can affect sex in people who take them. But there’s an ironic twist here. The typical problem lies in achieving orgasm, not in the absence of sexual desire.

You may, for example, you can still enjoy a healthy libido yet experience difficulty in orgasm. If this happens, you should go and visit your doctor. From there, he may refer you to a specialist. For example, a sex therapist or a urologist, depending on the underlying causes.

There’s also the fact that depression itself can decrease libido. So, a prescription drug that alleviates the symptoms of depression will also likely improve sex life! You may not notice it within weeks of taking your doctor-prescribed antidepressants, but it will probably come.

The bottom line

Antidepressants have side effects and drug interactions, which are also common in prescription and over-the-counter medications. The trick is to work with your doctor to find the best types and dosage of antidepressants. They will ease your symptoms and, over time, make you feel much better.