How many people here have actually benefited from SSRI/SNRI treatment on this forum?

[Chriswolf]

Fascinating way to put it. It's the aggressiveness of it that floors me, though. Why push it that hard? If that were all I could offer a patient with CFS, I would offer it to them and then think I had discharged my duty if they said they didn't want it. Why the near-hysteria when you refuse? I encountered the exact same thing...

-J

In my case, he also directly referenced the fact that I had routinely sought out new doctors once pursuing help with my symptoms with an existing doctor proved to be fruitless, what else was I going to do? Hope springs eternal.

Where I live, doctors side with other doctors, and those who pay them (the government) rather than the individual.

By refusing to accept what a doctor offered and instead moving on, I posed a problem to my healthcare provider, I was not being a good patient, as I've said before, I believe it's a hard and fast policy to not treat this disorder with anything other than the easiest, least liability incurring methods.

 

[Sushi]

I had routinely sought out new doctors once pursuing help with my symptoms with an existing doctor proved to be fruitless, what else was I going to do?

Have you considered traveling to see one of the doctors who specialize in treating ME/CFS? While they don't have "the answers" they have a pretty good idea of what has been helpful for their patients and what hasn't.

 

[Chriswolf]

Have you considered traveling to see one of the doctors who specialize in treating ME/CFS? While they don't have "the answers" they have a pretty good idea of what has been helpful for their patients and what hasn't.

I would like to when I have the opportunity, unfortunately I spent a lot of a very good income I had before my symptoms started to overtake me and I had to work less.

 

[jimells]

Part of me really wonders what that's all about, psychologically. (From their perspective.) Why is it so important you take an SSRI? I honestly don't understand.

Maybe they just can't admit to themselves that they swallowed drug company lies about efficacy and safety. It's just too embarrassing.

Not only do the actual research results show no better than placebo, I read someplace that drug company reps admit that the serotonin deficiency theory was simply made up for marketing purposes.

 

[sarah darwins]

Another bad experience with citalopram. It definitely made me far more mentally fuzzy (which I definitely didn't need). I took it for a couple of months then stopped. I've only just realised, typing this, that it was around this time that my PEM episodes, previously very classic flu-like, started to become dominated by migraines. Probably just a coincidence, but worth mentioning just in case someone else has had the same experience.

 

[jimells]

I believe most doctors see people with CFS as being "radioactive".

Ha. I can think of a few doctors I wouldn't mind "contaminating"...

 

[ErdemX]

I was given Cymbalta + Lyrica and actually this combination helped me a lot, a %90 improvement in muscle pain (which I had a lot), %80 with sleep problems and %30-40 with fatigue. During 1.5 years I was on them I had no crashes, just balanced up and downs. Then I just wanted to see how I would be on just one of them, and none of those two worked alone like they used to work together and finally I crashed I tolerated Cymbalte quite well with the most prominent side effect being the libido loss and yawning

 

[Chriswolf]

I was given Cymbalta + Lyrica and actually this combination helped me a lot, a %90 improvement in muscle pain (which I had a lot), %80 with sleep problems and %30-40 with fatigue. During 1.5 years I was on them I had no crashes, just balanced up and downs. Then I just wanted to see how I would be on just one of them, and none of those two worked alone like they used to work together and finally I crashed I tolerated Cymbalte quite well with the most prominent side effect being the libido loss and yawning

Interesting, I have actually taken lyrica, and it worked alright. I really like gabapentin. That stuff didn't put me to sleep, but I slept well when I took it. Baclofen, which I have currently works in a pinch for cramping and discomfort.

 

[Amaya2014]

In my case, he also directly referenced the fact that I had routinely sought out new doctors once pursuing help with my symptoms with an existing doctor proved to be fruitless, what else was I going to do? Hope springs eternal.

Where I live, doctors side with other doctors, and those who pay them (the government) rather than the individual.

By refusing to accept what a doctor offered and instead moving on, I posed a problem to my healthcare provider, I was not being a good patient, as I've said before, I believe it's a hard and fast policy to not treat this disorder with anything other than the easiest, least liability incurring methods.

In my opinion, this is a medical example of "gaslighting" A.K.A. Crazy-making behavior. Of course it's natural to let go of a doctor that isn't help you...but, instead, they call it doctor-shopping and evidence of somatization. Kudos for you being your best advocate and sounds like now you have someone respectful and helpful.

 

[JaimeS]

I read someplace that drug company reps admit that the serotonin deficiency theory was simply made up for marketing purposes.

Why... what...

...maybe I'll go be a hermit.

-J

 

[SOC]

Do ADs do anything for fatigue, PEM, cognitive dysfunction, flu-like symptoms, dysautonomia, hypothyroid, etc? Not for me. Cymbalta helped with muscle aches when nothing else would touch them, but it was antivirals that actually got rid of the muscle aches... that and not PEMming myself continuously.

Trazodone (an SARI, not an SSRI or SNRI) helps me a lot with sleep.

IMO, SSRI and SNRI are not real treatments for ME/CFS. I think doctors just say that when they mean "CFS is just depression", but know you are not going to agree with that assessment. They certainly have no evidence that SSRI or SNRI are treatments for ME/CFS as a whole.

Sure, some of the secondary effects of ADs can help with some individual symptoms in some cases, but that's a different matter. I think it's always a risk to give medications that act on neurochemistry when there's no real evidence of disturbed neurochemistry. You could be messing with something which is currently working effectively, which seems like a bad idea.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Just a FYI, SSRIs have failed to demonstrate efficacy in CFS for any symptoms (including depression) in double blind RCTs. In a word, they are currently not evidence based treatments for CFS patients.

Some studies also show that SSRIs are also no more effective than placebo even for people with just depression: http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20080227/antidepressants-no-better-than-placebo

 

[sarah darwins]

Forgot to say, I actually asked my GP to try me on Citalopram (this was maybe 7 years ago). I did so after seeing a scatter graph on Patients Like Me, or a similar site, which suggested that x% of patients “found it beneficial for cfs”. Of course, I realise now that the trouble with those sites when it comes to me/cfs is that you have no clue which, if any, diagnostic criteria patients are using.

Yet again I wonder how it took me 13 years to find this forum.

 

[paul80]

I take Prozac. when i first started taking it, i definitely found it helped with anxiety and the feeling of hopelessness, but i've started getting anxiety again lately due to poor sleep.

It's hard to come off of prozac though, causes pretty messed up emotions and actually made feel rage for no reason.

 

[Chriswolf]

Do ADs do anything for fatigue, PEM, cognitive dysfunction, flu-like symptoms, dysautonomia, hypothyroid, etc? Not for me. Cymbalta helped with muscle aches when nothing else would touch them, but it was antivirals that actually got rid of the muscle aches... that and not PEMming myself continuously.

That is one thing I've fought with consistently since developing a bad case of mono a while back, I would not be surprised if a lot of my current problems are associated with that.

IMO, SSRI and SNRI are not real treatments for ME/CFS. I think octors just say that when they mean "CFS is just depression", but know you are not going to agree with that assessment. They certainly have no evidence that SSRI or SNRI are treatments for ME/CFS as a whole.

Then the doctors I know are being blatantly deceptive, or lying by omission, which is just as bad.

As far as I'm concerned refusing to tell a patient that they cannot prescribe treatments for the causes of CFS and then offering such a drug, or claiming such treatments help the symptoms, is extremely dishonest.

It is possible some are intentionally very careful in their choice of words, although I've had at least one doctor insist that it helps ameliorate physical symptoms of CFS, whereas I suppose another could have technically been lying by omission by offering it as a treatment and refusing to disclose that they "can't" actually prescribe meds that are effective against physical symptoms.

You could be messing with something which is currently working effectively, which seems like a bad idea.

That's generally my sentiment with regard to my serotonin levels, and in one case, after tiring of the typical sales pitch, I pointed out that there are no hard diagnostic tests they could give me to prove I need them.

As I've said before, at least in my circumstance, I believe that it is the understanding of the health board that administrates our healthcare system, that CFS patients are "problems", and psychiatric drugs are great bureaucratic leverage to write patients off and put them in a position to not ask questions or make demands or complaints.

 

[Chriswolf]

In my opinion, this is a medical example of "gaslighting" A.K.A. Crazy-making behavior. Of course it's natural to let go of a doctor that isn't help you...but, instead, they call it doctor-shopping and evidence of somatization. Kudos for you being your best advocate and sounds like now you have someone respectful and helpful.

He does what he can, but there are numerous articles of whistleblowers where I live pointing out that medical administrators bully doctors into complicity with policy. And yeah, I absolutely do think it's gaslighting behavior, as doctors here fear for their jobs and will do anything to mitigate a "problem" patient.

I'm not going to get truly meaningful treatment here for major symptoms now, and I know that.

I've spent thousands on "private" doctors here, but of course when they're beholden to the same people, it really doesn't matter.

 

[jimells]

It's hard to come off of prozac though, causes pretty messed up emotions and actually made feel rage for no reason.

That's pretty scary. I've tried boatloads of antidepressants, but I was always afraid to stay on them for very long. I don't even want to think about what happens when folks are suddenly denied access to these medications for whatever reason.

 

[Ejw18]

Has anyone on antidepressants also taken LDN at the same time?