Do you feel normal and are you considering to stop taking the medication for your depression? You may think like you no longer need to take the antidepressant drugs as you are feeling better now. Therefore, it is significant for you to follow the treatment plan designed by your doctor. For your body to get used to the idea of being without the medicine, consult your doctor and work with him to draw a plan of action that helps your body if you are considering the option of not using the antidepressant.
Certain brain chemicals called neurotransmitters influence your emotions. These neurotransmitters can be balanced with the usage of Antidepressants. Major depression and anxiety disorders are caused due to the imbalance of these brain chemicals. To rectify these imbalances, the antidepressants can be used which takes 4 weeks to get the maximum effect.
We would recommend that you seek advice from your doctor if you are worried about the side effects and feel like quitting the intake of your medication. You have to keep in mind that to find the correct medical care it might take some experimentation and modifications. There is a high possibility of recurrence of your symptoms if you quit taking your medication, even if it appears that you don’t need the medicine. It is significant that you take counsel from your doctor, before you stop using the antidepressant, as it can be a lethal affair.
What are the side effects of quitting medication?
Your condition will become worse if you suddenly stop taking your medicine. Following are the common side effects of quitting medication suddenly:
Starting to feel sick
You get sick when you stop taking antidepressants suddenly and that syndrome is known as Antidepressant discontinuation syndrome or antidepressant withdrawal. You may feel like suffering from flu or a stomach ache and also you will start experiencing bad thoughts and mood swings.
Thoughts of Committing Suicide
As you stop taking your antidepressant medication abruptly it will result in increasing your suicidal thoughts and the main risk here is you will act on those thoughts accordingly. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, depression is a common health problem linked to suicide.
Other Symptoms get worse
Abrupt stoppage of antidepressants might take your symptoms to the danger level. These include anxiety, sweating, fatigue, headache, nausea, vomiting, nightmares, insomnia, and diarrhea. As your depression remains untreated, it will be difficult for you to manage your remaining health problems.
Antidepressants and Pregnancy
Never stop taking your antidepressant medication when you found out you are pregnant. Because pregnant women can’t take good care of themselves if their problem remains untreated during pregnancy according to the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Make sure that your doctor knows that you are pregnant and he may change the dosage of antidepressants. Work with your doctor for every issue and get the best results during pregnancy.
Discuss With Your Doctor
Withdrawal symptoms are different for each person. Stop taking the medication without telling the doctor to result in recurrence of your symptoms. It should be done under doctor’s supervision and he might ask you to change your lifestyle in order to lessen the symptoms of depression. Following are the lifestyle changes that you can do to prevent the depression symptoms from recurring:
- Exercise
- Yoga
- Getting the right amount of sleep
- Stay away from drugs
- Limiting your alcohol intake
- Following a perfect diet
- Bring down your stress levels
It’s better to discuss this with your doctor before taking any decision.
References
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2045125315612334
- https://www.aerzteblatt.de/int/archive/article/207333
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29873165
Sirisha B