How long antidepressants start to work

Sometimes that placebo effect wears off, and the actual effect of the antidepressant kicks in. Other times, the placebo just wears off, and the intended effects of the antidepressant are never felt. The trouble is, not taking an antidepressant medication consistently can prevent it from working as well as it should — or prevent it from working at all, Dr.

Hullett cautions. This can cause people to abandon what otherwise might be a very effective treatment. Lim adds. She says the following tweaks to your bedtime routine can be enough to correct some of these issues:. Deciding which depression medication is best for you often comes down to side effects, says Hullett. If you gain weight or have sexual problems on one antidepressant, for example, you may want to switch to one without those side effects, he advises.

Although antidepressants are meant to help you feel better, in some cases an antidepressant may combine with other medications you are taking or foods you are eating and lead to serotonin syndrome , an uncommon condition involving an overabundance of serotonin in the body, the Cleveland Clinic states. Symptoms to watch out for, Lim says, include fever, aches, shakes, sweats, fatigue, irritability, a bad headache , confusion, agitation, restlessness, dizziness, difficulty seeing or walking, muscle twitching, muscle tension, or jaw clenching.

Typically, serotonin syndrome happens within days or weeks of starting an antidepressant or after a dose increase, says Lim.

The most common factors that affect your risk of serotonin syndrome, per the Cleveland Clinic, are:. As a result, a medication that once worked well at quelling your sadness, anxiety, and other symptom no longer has that power. It felt normal. Ah right. It took about three weeks to get into the system but after that it was a pleasure to take. So how different does it make you feel? Does it feel like it gives you a bit of perspective on things? Yes, yes.

Well no it sounds quite a powerful feeling. Yes it was good yes. Victoria started to feel calmer and happier almost immediately And did you have any side effects at all from it? No not the first time round not that I remember everything seemed fine. I was worried about the fact that I knew the tablets would take some time to have an effect.

Yeah I kind of thought that and to be honest the counselling, even though it was only an hour a week, was medication to be honest. And that did give me a little bit of relief before the tablets started working because it just confirmed that it was, it was alright to be the way I was.

So your body has to get used to having it inside. Your body gets used to it and then it starts doing what it should be doing. Yeah but you do want, you do want that quick fix. Some antidepressants, particularly SSRIs, are considered safe to take while pregnant and breastfeeding. Women and their doctors must make a risk-benefit calculation, Dr. Some people need medication indefinitely, but many do not. This has two purposes, Dr. Cox says: One, it reduces the chance of withdrawal symptoms.

Two, if you start to decrease your dose and your anxiety or depression worsens, you can increase back to your previous dose easily. Think you might be dealing with depression or anxiety? Talk to your doctor or find one near you.

Antidepressants are not just for depression. Antidepressants should make you more—not less—like yourself.