re: Lexapro, Zoloft and other depression meds. Whats your experience with them?

Ive been walking/jogging every few days and I notice the days I do that I feel a little better and sleep better. I guess I will have to up my routine A bit.

I take bupropion which is primarily for depression; i was prescribed it to help me concentrate.

Other than curbing my hunger i notice nothing else.

Lol, the family center at o'donovan has 12 psychiatrist. No shortage. Might still be difficult to get an appt. probably need a referral from the right person.

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Then pop your pills and go cry to your mommy

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What? I take no medications. Resorting to personal attacks is quite petty, by the way.

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because "life is shitty"

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I also don't prescribe antidepressants to people who are just down on their luck or "really having a hard time." That's not depression. That's life. there, we agree.

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when you probably haven't a clue of what that really means.

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Quite honestly, it sounds like you don't have a clue what Major Depressive Disorder actually is. You may be confusing bad doctors who throw drugs at patients who don't need them with people who have genuine disorders. Further, when you mention things you've witnessed that have messed with/affected you, it sounds much more like you're experienced with PTSD than major depressive disorder. Psych illnesses aren't a "one size fits all" diagnosis, and they should all be treated uniquely and on a case by case basis. I'm glad that you're capable of dealing with your own problems. Some people are not capable of that. It does not speak to their character.

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What's really unfortunate is that a combination of CBT and counseling (especially with a drug for a short period, too) would really help people turn the corner, but it's very expensive and so few people do it compared to the demand.

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Cost of counseling: Lost time at work for appointments; $XX per appointment, LIMITED NUMBER OF APPOINTMENTS ALLOWED under many insurance plans.

Cost of Laxapro (20mg/daily): $3.76 per month, no work time missed for counseling appointments.

For $3.76 per month I have a better quality of life than I ever could have imagined over the previous 45 YEARS. My apologies.

Buspar only works if you havn't taken benzos.

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Medicine is an art, unfortunately. If it weren't, most doctors would be replaced by flow charts and computer programs; they would only be needed for procedures, really. If someone is a little bit on the lethargic side, there are a couple of antidepressants that kind of "boost" your energy a bit. There are some that are a bit milder when it comes to that. It's all based on each doctor and patient's experience. Usually, in my experience, patients ask for something different rather than the doctor just saying one day, "you've been on X a while, let's go with Y for a bit." And there's really no good way to tell how someone is going to react to psych/neuro/brain meds.

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What are your thoughts on having a patient's neurotransmitter levels evaluated? Apparently there are even a few labs that do direct-to-patient/consumer testing via mail. I realize there are some issues with this business model that make the results questionable in terms of validity, and potentially dangerous for consumers who interpret the results themselves and start stacking OTC amino acids (L-tryptophan, 5-htp, SAMe, GABA, l-tyrosine, etc.) on top of whatever the Dr. has already prescribed because it's not working. But if you can get an accurate reading, wouldn't that be much more effective, in the right hands, for determining the most-likely-to-be-effective medicine (and perhaps the right dosage level) from the getgo?

It just seems to me, with my non-medical background, that a lot of general physicians only have a peripheral understanding of how SSRIs and similar meds work but still freely hand out an Rx with samples after a one-page questionnaire about your feelings. At least that's how it went for me about 10 years ago. The questionnaire is scored with point values, but the whole thing was essentially a determination for whether or not I walk out with an SSRI script, not an NRI or SNRI or some other mood stabilizer. I did get my SSRI script, and the side effects from taking it and then withdrawing from it were bad enough that it seems dangerous not to put a little more science into the diagnosis of someone who could be one more failure away from offing himself (not me personally, but the effects of the SSRI did put me at one of my lowest lows in life). I firmly believe that medication can work, but I can't help but feel cynical about the whole process.

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Resorting to personal attacks is quite petty, by the way.

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My apologies. I meant this to the general masses. The problem is everything is diagnosed as a disorder if it doesn't fit into a neat little box. No I didn't suffer from PTSD like others that I knew because I was able to come to terms with what I saw and come to peace with it in my mind by enjoying everything else in front of me. I could find at least one "disorder" with everyone I know. It's called being unique.

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By no means was I condemning the medicine or suggesting it wasn't a fantastic route

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My remark wasn't directed to you at all, but to the "pills are for pussies" contingent. In fact, I appreciate your analysis of drug therapy in treating depression, it pretty much coincides with what I've learned through experience and investigation.