Hey everyone,
I originally joined Healing Well because I have Ulcerative Colitis but now I need advice from this forum too,... hopefully you can help :)
I've been treated for depression for the past 10 years (since I was a teenager but some docs think it started when I was 10 or 11). I'm pretty sure it's unipolar and I may have a cyclothymic personality too, I was also treated for generalised anxiety disorder, OCD, agoraphobia and eating disorders.
After a few years of counselling, hypnotherapy and psychiatrist visits I was started on anti-depressants. The 1st one was Seroxat. It didn't do much good and my dose was continually increased for 3 years. In the 4th year my docs added Zyprexa to the mix. A year later I was still severely depressed (and fatter!) and suicidal. Thankfully my good friend is a GP and when I told her about my treatment she advised me to ask docs about new meds. So I came off Seroxat and started on Effexor XL. I had a really, really hard time coming off the Seroxat! The Effexor worked really well for about a year and I was on it for about 2 years altogether. I've been off meds for almost 2 years now but I've been feeling depressed again since early this year.
My latest bout of depression is nowhere near as bad as when I was younger, I think it came on because of stress, my current lifestyle situation and the dark, miserable winter days. I tried CBT this year and although I found it to be really good regarding my confidence and self-esteem it hasn't helped with the feelings of hopelessness, crying, tiredness, poor sleep and the general feeling that everything is a major effort. So my GP friend has recommended that I try meds again, at least over the winter. She suggests that I try the newer ones like Cymbalta or Citalapram. I was so proud of myself getting off the meds in the 1st place that this feels like a step backwards, but it would be preferable to ending up severely depressed again (I think that scares me more than anything!).
Sorry about the lengthy rant here ;) but if you think you can advise me at all regarding good meds (preferably without TOO MANY side effects!) then I would be most grateful to hear your thoughts.
Thanks in advance :)