Behavioral health counseling is an essential service that helps individuals manage their mental and emotional well-being. It’s particularly important in Utah, where residents face unique stressors related to the state’s geography, climate, and culture. Whether you’re struggling with depression, anxiety, substance abuse, or any other behavioral health issue, finding the right specialist is crucial to […]
Cognitive therapy is a non-invasive and non-pharmacological approach to treating mental health issues that has helped millions of people worldwide. Chronic pain is a common condition that affects millions of people across the United States. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including injury, illness, or simply the wear and tear of daily […]
In today’s fast-paced world, it is easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life. Family members may struggle to find balance and harmony in their relationships, leading to feelings of frustration, anxiety, and even depression. Fortunately, there are a variety of mental health treatments available, including family counseling, that can […]
Mood swings are part of youth, but there can be something more serious behind them. Depressive symptoms occur in more than 20% of young people, and 5–10% of young people suffer from depression Teenagers live in a huge hormonal storm and withdrawal is often completely normal. There are a lot of emotions. Almost every moment […]
New Stanford Accelerated Intelligent Accelerated Neuromodulation Therapy is a unique form of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation TMS that is intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS). It is a noninvasive brain stimulation treatment that has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment-resistant depression in September 2022. The “accelerated intelligent neuromodulation therapy” of the Stanford University […]
Social networks have been established in our lives to stay. In the largest studies that have been done on social media, you can see that social media has a small negative effect on mood. So people who use social media feel a little worse afterwards than they did before. But it matters a lot what you do […]
In some countries the return to the office is a fact, which can affect the emotional health of employees. For many people this has caused a series of emotions such as fear, anxiety and sadness; for two main reasons: change in routine and uncertainty in their health. Therefore, it is essential that Human Resources departments implement strategies […]
Traumatic Brain Injury (commonly abbreviated “CTE”) can occur when a person suddenly has a head injury caused by an external object. However, not all head injuries will result in CTE. It can occur if an object hits the head hard or if something punctures the skull to the brain. Either of these experiences can damage brain cells and blood […]
What Should You Know about Stimming and How to Manage It? Stimming or self-stimulatory behavior in an autistic person generally refers to certain behaviors like rocking, hand-flapping, repeating phrases and words, or spinning. Stimming is a pretty common symptom of autism and is the most obvious one. Although one can argue that almost everyone stims […]
Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome – Stopping Antidepressants Safely Have you been recently prescribed an antidepressant by your doctor to ease some anxiety or boost your mood? And as soon as you started feeling well, you decided to stop taking the medication, assuming you no longer needed it? And then suddenly you see these symptoms of having […]
Have you been recently prescribed an antidepressant by your doctor to ease some anxiety or boost your mood? And as soon as you started feeling well, you decided to stop taking the medication, assuming you no longer needed it? And then suddenly you see these symptoms of having a stomach bug or the flu? Or are you having some severely disturbing thoughts? Well, if the answer is yes to all the above questions, my friend, you are probably having antidepressant discontinuation syndrome.
Now, what is antidepressant discontinuation syndrome? Well, antidepressant discontinuation syndrome happens in patients after their antidepressant medication is discontinued abruptly. This syndrome typically occurs if the medications were taken for a minimum of six weeks. Now different antidepressant drugs have different issues with withdrawal, and in this article, we are going to cover some of them.
The SSRI drug is usually used for treating depression. SSRI discontinuation syndrome is described as feeling like a return of depression or anxiety, or simply flu-like. This syndrome includes vertigo, dizziness, insomnia, vomiting, chills, fatigue, visual disturbances, suicidal thoughts, suicidal thoughts, psychosis, etc. Also, these symptoms are never severe, even if they are very uncomfortable. People mostly have only moderate to mild SSRI discontinuation syndrome forms.
SNRI antidepressants help to relieve depression and are also used for nerve pain or anxiety disorders. Discontinuing this treatment or stopping it abruptly may lead to SNRI discontinuation syndrome, which has symptoms similar to withdrawal. These withdrawal-like symptoms generally occur with desvenlafaxine or venlafaxine. Symptoms of SNRI discontinuation syndrome include headache, dizziness, nausea, diarrhea, insomnia, irritation, tiredness, muscle pains, etc.
MAOI is the first depressant to be ever developed and is very effective in relieving depression. Where other depressants tend to fail, MAOI comes to the rescue. Stopping treatment can lead to insomnia, irritation, and anxiety. You might also end up with flu-like symptoms like chills, sweating, headache, nausea, and feeling unwell overall. MAOI discontinuation syndrome can also include symptoms of detachment and confusion.
Tricyclic antidepressants affect brain chemicals and help patients treat depression symptoms. TCA is the right option for people for whom other depressants have failed. Stopping this antidepressant suddenly or skipping the dose will lead to discontinuation syndrome, which includes anxiety, sweating, irritation, muscle pain, headache, insomnia, lethargy, etc. consulting the doctor is extremely important before deciding to discontinue taking TCA.,
Are you seriously considering stopping with your antidepressant therapy? Well, before suddenly considering making that decision consult your doctor. Discuss with your doctor the benefits and risks of discontinuing treatment. In most cases, it is recommended to slowly cut back the dose of antidepressant, you are consuming under your doctor’s guidance. This process is known as tapering and helps to adjust your brain to the chemical changes happening and ultimately prevents the discontinuation syndrome.
Doctors also tend to prescribe medicines to cope with the discontinuation symptoms like insomnia or nausea. Your doctor might also put you on a long-acting antidepressant instead of a short one to help with the transition. Discontinuation symptoms are short-lived and go away within a couple of weeks. In case of severe withdrawal syndrome, your doctor can recommend other medicines for relieving them.
Antidepressant discontinuation syndrome doesn’t have a specific treatment and usually varies from one individual to another. Failure in recognizing antidepressant discontinuation syndrome can lead to psychiatric or medical diagnoses.