I've been pretty fired up as more and more information is being released about the ineffectiveness of antidepressants.  This has really been a hot topic since Irving Kirsch, Ph. D. released a book in January 2010 entitled "The Emperor's New Drugs."  In his book, Dr. Kirsch reveals mounds of data suggesting that antidepressants are really no more effective than placebo, and criticizes the FDA and pharmaceutical industry's practice of skewing data to make a buck.  And, boy, have they made some big bucks off antidepressants, to the tune of $9.6 billion in 2008.

Mind you, at this point, I am not ANTI- antidepressants. Yet, I do believe people overuse antidepressants and stay on them much longer than necessary. While these medications can help relieve some depression and anxiety symptoms, they do not "cure" anxiety and depression. Furthermore, long-term use causes many problems for people such as weight gain, sexual side-effects, insomnia, and numbing of emotions.

Getting off antidepressants is a very long and uncomfortable process which is why many people continue taking the meds even when they're no longer benefitting from them. Common withdrawal symptoms include dizziness, nausea, irritability, anxiety attacks, and even suicidal ideation.  Both patients and their doctors mistake these withdrawal symptoms as indications the patient still needs the medication. So, many people stay on these expensive meds indefinitely.  I call this the "Antidepressant Trap," because you feel like you get trapped into dependency on these medications, when you may no longer need them.

How do you escape this trap?  It's tricky, but possible. Coming off antidepressants takes about 3-6 months. You have to follow a very slow tapering process, often cutting back no more than 25% of your dosage at a time, and only making one dose reduction per month.  The best book out there discussing the tapering process is Jospeh Glenmullen's book, "The Antidepressant Solution."

However, while you are tapering off the medication, I think it's important to add in some other lifestyle changes that will ease withdrawal and manage your mood and anxiety long term. The first addition is exercising at least 3 days per week.  Several studies show exercise seems to be as effective as taking antidepressants, and actually more effective in managing depression long-term.  The most notable researcher in this area is Dr. James Blumenthal at Duke University. Dr. Blumenthal compared people who took antidepressants to people who simply added in 30 minutes of exercise 3 times per week.  Not only did the group who exercised do as well as the group on antidepressants, but the exercisers maintained their mood improvements 6 months later, while the group who only took medications regressed in their mood long-term.

Another practice that's extremely helpful is yoga. When you come off AD's you can experience flu like aches and pains, panic/anxiety feelings, irritability, and weird muscle twitches. Furthermore, there is exciting research out there about that suggests practices like yoga and meditation actually help to re-shape your brain and make you less prone to anxiety and mood swings. 

How about nutritional supplements? There are some new e-books and websites out there promoting programs for weaning off antidepressants that suggest you need to take lots of expensive nutritional supplements to manage the side effects.  While I appreciate some of their suggestions, I don't think all that is necessary. The only supplements that research studies definitively show as helpful in managing depression are 0mega 3's and the B-vitamins.  I do believe omega 3's make a difference and think adding these supplements are helpful, usually about 1000 mg per day is indicated for mood regulation.

I've been a counselor and psychotherapist for 15 years. Not only have I seen antidepressants help my clients, but I've taken an SSRI antidepressant myself and found it very helpful.  Yet, I think antidepressants are over-prescribed, and doctors mistakenly allow patients to stay on them well beyond what is necessary.  I'll be writing more about this topic in future blogs and articles because I think it's a huge issue that needs to be addressed by both our society and medical community. 

Please let me know your thoughts about this issue, as well as any experiences you've had being on or coming off antidepressants.  Together we can advocate for what is in our society's best interest, and hopefully determine the real keys to ending the depression epidemic in our world.