antidepressants

marmarlade

Registered User
Jan 26, 2015
183
0
forgive the spelling if its wrong
hubby has been in care for 9 months recently his friend was taken to hospital then when she returned she is now in a wheelchair, this confuses him and he is quite lost as she took over the role i played at home,He then had a bad fall and cut his head open had to go to A&E this shook him up and he is quite quiet now, but says when i leave he,s going to die,he,s been saying this to the carers, and the senior carer wants to put him on antidepressants. we do not want this and have made our wishes know to the staff as if they put him on them he will never come off them. Has anyone have a family member on these are they helpful to the patient, i suppose some time he will need to go on them but at the moment we take him out and he,s fine,he used to say he was going to die when he was at home,but this was when things didnt go his way and i think its the same thing now
 

patsy56

Registered User
Jan 14, 2015
837
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Fife Scotland
Doc put B on antidepressants and that was 6wks ago and then two weeks ago increased dosage, B has been a mess on them. I talked to pharmacist yesterday who said if I wanted to cut back the dosage then do that but don't tell doc he said.......so really I want B off them and we go back to doc in two weeks. B says he would rather have a sherry than the tablets
 

jeany123

Registered User
Mar 24, 2012
19,034
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74
Durham
My husband who has vascular dementia had a triple heart bypass and when he came home from hospital he was paranoid that we were trying to get rid of him and that we hoped he would die and he cried all the time, he was put on antidepressants and he was back to his old self in a couple of weeks he had no side affects and is still on them,
 

marmarlade

Registered User
Jan 26, 2015
183
0
Doc put B on antidepressants and that was 6wks ago and then two weeks ago increased dosage, B has been a mess on them. I talked to pharmacist yesterday who said if I wanted to cut back the dosage then do that but don't tell doc he said.......so really I want B off them and we go back to doc in two weeks. B says he would rather have a sherry than the tablets

yes thats what we are afraid of that things will go down hill if he is put on them so will hang on and see what things go like
 

Grey Lad

Registered User
Sep 12, 2014
5,736
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North East Lincs
Doc put B on antidepressants and that was 6wks ago and then two weeks ago increased dosage, B has been a mess on them. I talked to pharmacist yesterday who said if I wanted to cut back the dosage then do that but don't tell doc he said.......so really I want B off them and we go back to doc in two weeks. B says he would rather have a sherry than the tablets

I don't blame him. I have always had dreadful side effects whenever I have been on antidepressants. It is better to cut down gradually and my G P helped me to get off them. Although I have to admit I just stopped taking them and have never looked back. Then again I had a lot of support from the Practice Counsellor and I haven't got dementia. G L
 

Izzy

Volunteer Moderator
Aug 31, 2003
73,994
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Dundee
My husband has been on an antidepressant since his diagnosis in 2001. He hasn't experienced any side effects and they helped his mood. Of course I know everyone is different.
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
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I feel I should point out that while anti-depressants aren't for everyone, and some of their side effect profiles can be less than wonderful, they do have their place. I think it would be unfortunate if anyone was discouraged from considering them by anecdotal tales of "this happened to me". There are one of two of them that I think should no longer be prescribed, primarily because I have personally had difficulty stopping them, but they continue to be prescribed because for some people, they are the only option. Never stop taking medications without consulting your GP.

marmarlade: obviously you know your husband best and it may well be that your take on the situation is correct. But I am concerned about your comment that he "will never come off them" and your desire that he should not have them. The truth is, if (and I realise it's a big if) he needs them why should this be a concern? If they are medically necessary, they could give him a better quality of life. They shouldn't be prescribed lightly of course, or for a care givers convenience, but they were really helpful for my mother when she simply could not stop crying (emotional lability following strokes).
 

cragmaid

Registered User
Oct 18, 2010
7,936
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North East England
My late Mum was put onto 20mg Citolopram to help her with the depression that often hits Mixed Dementia patients. This helped her mood quite well. Briefly the doseage was doubled, however she had an hospital admission and the doctors withdrew the drug from her listed meds in case it was a trigger for her fainting spells. As she shifted the drug from her system, the need for the drug recurred. She went back onto the 20mg dose and was content until she died 12 months or so later.
She had no adverse side effects and I was quite happy for her to be taking it.

I undestand that there is a stigma to taking anti depressants, however my logic was quite simple.....if they helped Mum, then she would take them, if they ceased to help, then there would be a phased withdrawal.
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
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I undestand that there is a stigma to taking anti depressants, however my logic was quite simple.....if they helped Mum, then she would take them, if they ceased to help, then there would be a phased withdrawal.

I think you've summed it up pretty well.
 

CollegeGirl

Registered User
Jan 19, 2011
9,525
0
North East England
I don't have dementia, and was on Citalopram for around three years. They helped me enormously, and I'm so glad that I tried them. I had no side effects that I was aware of, and earlier this year I felt it was time to come off them. I'd tried before by going 'cold turkey' and this just made me ill, so this time I did it gradually under the direction of my doctor.

Now I'm coping without them and am happy to be doing so - but I'm also happy to have had them to help me through a very difficult period (having tried several other approaches before 'resorting' to them) and wouldn't dismiss taking them again if I need to in the future.

My feeling is that if I needed them for the rest of my life - and I have a good friend who does - then I would take them. I don't really see the problem with this, unless of course they cause unbearable side effects.

But if they give a person a better quality of life then there is definitely a place for them.
 

jeany123

Registered User
Mar 24, 2012
19,034
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74
Durham
My life has changed altogether since the GP prescribed me Citolopram, I was stressed had acid reflux had no patience with my husband and was really at the end of my tether, I never wanted to take antidepressants but anything was worth a try at the time things couldn't have got much worse,

I feel tired about a hour after I take them but apart from that feel great, I am sleeping better, got loads of patience I know what to worry about and what not to, mine and therefore my husbands life has been transformed,
 

Loopiloo

Registered User
May 10, 2010
6,117
0
Scotland
An interesting thread and posts from those who have had good experiences taking anti-depressants. There are so many negative reports about them. My GP has tried to get me on them for ages but I have resisted. A gut feeling they are not for me, although I could be wrong. They do seem helpful to some, but not others and I guess you only know by trying them and giving them time to see if they help or not.

Marmalade, would you consider waiting to see how your husband is on them?

Loo
 

lizzybean

Registered User
Feb 3, 2014
1,366
0
Lancashire
My MIL has been on Sertraline for a couple of years & to be honest her anxiety is off the scale. Recently I spoke to her GP & I didn't want a chemical cosh but wanted something to lessen her anxiety. He doubled her dose of Sertraline & she is so much calmer, I can't see that she has any side effects.
 

Loopiloo

Registered User
May 10, 2010
6,117
0
Scotland
a lot of people are sensitive to certain medecines,I can't take anything apart from Paracetamol.
Kassy it sounds like you have problems with pain killers? Me too, big time. I take paracetamol but they do nothing for the pain - so why the heck do I take them! GP has tried to get me on various opiates but in the past I had a year of hell on them with horrible side effects. Living alone, now disabled and high risk of falls I can't afford to be a spaced out zombie.

Loo xx
 

marmarlade

Registered User
Jan 26, 2015
183
0
An interesting thread and posts from those who have had good experiences taking anti-depressants. There are so many negative reports about them. My GP has tried to get me on them for ages but I have resisted. A gut feeling they are not for me, although I could be wrong. They do seem helpful to some, but not others and I guess you only know by trying them and giving them time to see if they help or not.

Marmalade, would you consider waiting to see how your husband is on them?

Loo

yes would be willing to try them if it was thought he needed them and wait to see what results we got
 

Grey Lad

Registered User
Sep 12, 2014
5,736
0
North East Lincs
Loo,I have tried every antidepressant with bad side effects,every painkiller,morphine,codeine,I have severe side effects. Tramadol gave me seizures,hyper sensitive to everything! It is now in my notes should I be hospitalised again,the docs do love to pump you full of drugs!

It's the same for Maureen. She has been round the block on blood pressure tablets and is back where she started. One citalopram put her in hospital over night. Tramadol killed her pain but gave her other problems. It's a battle to get her to take her blood thinner every night- her 'red devil' as we call it. Despite what she has been told she always asks the G P if she still needs medication that hopefully prevents further stroke. As you say it's a personal decision, and each one of us has views on antidepressnats based on our experiences