Hi,
Can anyone advise what are the medical concerns we should be aware of, like side-effects of medicines we routinely take for depression ?

If there are long term harmful effects (eg suicidal tendencies, etc., as they say), what's the alternative for such problems. Shall we stop the medicines, is there any alternative treatment, or practice that can help ? Or it has to be taken for ever ?

The medicine in particular I want to know, is Alpiprozele, once every day, taking for 1 plus years.
Thanks.

I am on another kind of drug, so I can't give a straight answer.

From what I can get Aripiprazole is usually used as an add-on, meaning you are most likely be prescribed something else as well.

In my case, I am taking escitalopram (Lexapro, but I use generic brand) as the main treatment drug and quetiapine (Seroquel) as an add-on.

Aripiprazole and Quetiapine are both antipsychotics (tranquilizers), but different category. In my experience taking Quetiapine continuously makes me feel sluggish, absent minded, like getting sedated. Reducing the dosage helps. As I don't take it for too long, and I use low doses, I don't experience any long term side effects.

Escitalopram is used much longer in my case. It's an antidepressant, so it is the main drug. Been taking it for almost 3 years now. Most common side effect is weight gain. While it didn't happen to me, I did catch myself craving sweet foods and drinks more than what I used to be. Must conciously make good dietary choices. Other than that I have no complaints.

Thanks for sharing the details, much useful, must appreciated. You're right, she's taking following two (I was asking for someone else):
* Apo-Trihex 2 mg also day and night
* at night one Ariptor tab 15 mg

So, overall, are you suggesting, that we can take such medicines for many years, or forever if doctor asks and live a normal life without any harm?

Different doctor have different idea about this, and generally I think most doctors hope the patient can end the medicine before two years.

From Sky News Sky News Link:

That is a very good question. This all boils down to whether the side effects of lifelong medication is worth the benefits of treatment.

Personally I don't find lifelong medication ideal. Especially in my case (anxiety and depression) the medication works more like painkillers and they never help with the more deep seated issues I am facing, and I am choosing to depend less on medication and gradually switch to a more psychological route.

But I find is surprising that antidepressant is not prescribed here. My guess is that the disorder is not really clinical depression, but somewhere between bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. If this is the case, then the situation entirely different. The question should not longer be whether it is safe to take the medications long term, but whether it is safe to leave the patient unmedicated.

Unlike clinical depression, we still know next to nothing about bipolar disorder and schizophrenia despite all the advances in technology we have today. A curative drug doesn't exist yet. All we have are drugs for managing the symptops to stop the victims from being debilitated by the disease.

I would suggest you to find out more about the diagnosis. These disorders are not the same, and naturally options for treatment are also different. Do not agak-agak because mistaking one for the other can be dangerous, eg. giving antidepressant to someone with bipolar disorder can actually make the symptomps worse.

Thanks for sharing your advice. You got good insight despite very little information from my side. Yeah, she was termed shizophrenia.

I highly recommend this documentary.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovzqqKUQxVw

Really taught me about how complicated schizophrenia is, especially the part about the twin studies.

Hi are you male or female? how does quetiapine affect your sexual function?

i have been suffering from anhedonia for 5 years before seeking treatment, especially sexual anhedonia, anorgasm, it is very noticeable, suddenly cannot enjoy anything, antidepressant and antipsychotics (either one or both of them) seem to make it worse

Guy here. Hard to say whether it's the medicine or my emotions that is affecting my little guy. I mean, when I am in a bad mood I am in no mood for sex obviously, and when the quetiapine kicks in and all I want to do is sleep, not sex.

There is however a phase in which I was trying to use sex as an outlet for my frustrations. This is before I am aware of my own condition and receive treatment. I was a heavy masturbator, and when that wasn't enough I paid for sex the first time in my life. And my experience is probably the same as what you had gone through: I don't feel happy after the deed. All I felt was just a feeling of physical release, but emotionally I am still a wreck. In fact my penis failed halfway once.

Nowadays I don't masturbate as heavy as I used to, but there are days when I just can't do it. But since I don't depend on it as much as I used to for stress relief it is not particularly a big problem. The real problem is the anxiety and self deprecation that I had to go through every single day.

There is another interesting thing about SSRI antidepressants though. It delays ejaculation, and is acutaly being used as a treatment for premature ejaculation. This might me a source of frustration for people taking it for psychiatric reasons.