Antidepressants : the escape from depression

It was 5 months back when I met my friend who had lost a noticeable amount of weight. The reason, she had lost both her parents in an accident and since then she had only been slipping into depression. She told me that it was almost a daily struggle to get up from the bed , take a bath and get ready to face the world. She told me how much courage she had to muster up everyday and tell everyone that she was okay, It has been almost a month that she has been seeing a therapist and I have only seen her get better and better. Although she has been on lighter antidepressants but I respect how she has managed to build a balance with those antidepressants.

 As this world went on experiencing more and more cases of depression , the need of antidepressants was felt. Anti depressants are drugs that can help and tap the symptoms of depression and other isuues caused due to depression such as anxiety , PTSD and etc. The basic function of these anti depressants is to make sure that the brain chemicals which cause imbalance and lead to depression are managed by the increase of neurotransmitters in the brain. Experts suggest that these antidepressants be taken only when there is an extreme case of depression as they may also lead to certain side effects that maybe even difficult to cure. This is artcile will talk about the various types of antidepressants , their functioning , the side effects caused by them and their uses.

Types of Anti depressants 

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There are a few main types of antidepressants and these include:

1. SSRI : selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors 

SSRI's are the most basic anti depressants prescribed to a person undergoing depression. These iclude citalopram , fluoxetine , paroxetine , seetraline and etc.

2. SNRI : serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors 

SNRI's have the same function as the SSRI's but are the latest drugs to be related to curing depression and anxiety. These are responsible for curing ADHD , OCD , fibromyalgia , and certain menopausal symptoms. Thses include duloxetine , venlafaxine and desvenlafaxine.

3. Tricyclic antidepressants 

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Tricyclic depressants are often recommended to patients when there are symptoms of fibromyalgia , anxiety , insomnia and chroic pain as these work best for them. These include amitriptyline , amoxapine , clomipramine , doxepin , imipramine and trimipramine. 

How do antidepressants work?

The antidepressants have the main function of avoiding the serotonin from returning to its birthplace. In short , these pills help to avoid the serotonin or the norephinephrine from getting into the system. Antidepressants have proven to be quiet effective and hence are recommended by experts for treatment in the most adverse of conditions. 

Side effects 

Like every other drug , even antidepressants have their fair share of side effects which include basic side effects like:

1. nausea
2. indigestion 
3. headache 
4. sexual dysfunction 
5. constipation 
6. weight gain 
7. diarrhea
8. insomnia 

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They may also cause side effects like withdrawal symptoms , suicidal thoughts , and sometimes even strokes.

There is a strong record of antidepressants working on depression and anxiety , which has made them quiet popular over the years but there are cases where people have not stopped using antidepressants after recovery and which has utimatwly proven to be fatal. There is also a chance that a person might get addicted to the pain relief that antidepressants cause and hence may not stop taking them on a regular basis. But an excessive intake of anything has proven fatal for the mankind and hence one should be extremely careful while opting for them and not take them without a medical prescription!