Currently tapering off. Read up and study psych meds especially getting off. Tapering no more than 5% every 2-4 week's is recommend. Doctor's are clueless about tapering properly. I've heard it 100s of time's. Same goes for benzo's or any psych meds.
Avoid these drugs at all cost. They have been shown to be no more effective than placebos, but unfortunately are much more dangerous. These drugs have been known to cause high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol; you name it. They have also been linked to an increase risk of breast cancer and osteoporosis.
These drugs carry a Black box warning...the strictest warning the FDA can issue because these drugs can increase your risk of suicide and cause suicidal ideation.
Since the SSRIS came on the market, the rates of bipolar diagnoses have skyrocketed, suicide rates, increased, and the overall mental health state has been declining.
A recent study has shown that even people with depression who were not treated (no drugs or therapy) fared better in the long run than people who took these drugs! They have caused mania, psychotic breaks, and more. They have also been associated with significantly elevated risk of death, strokes & heart attacks.
Other studies show these drugs increase the chance of having future depression when off the meds.
Not to mention, most everyone will experience some sort of withdrawal symptom trying to get off these drugs if done incorrectly. Tapering is a very slow process that can take a year or more. If someone comes off meds too quickly, withdrawal can last from months to years. Anxiety and depression have an underlying cause and these drugs do not touch that. I would dig deeper to find the cause of the anxiety and depression to correct that. Anxiety and depression is caused by a past traumatic event many times. In that case, you should seek therapy. You also want to rule out medical causes that could be causing it. If you haven't already, you need a full work up to check your thyroid, Vitamin levels, and A1C. I can post a chart that lists all the medical tests. Another culprit is sugar and blood sugar fluctuations. I would eliminate sugar and junk and be sure to start eating healthy snacks/meals every 3-4 hours. You also want to work on improving your gut health with a good quality probiotic.
It takes a little digging to get to the root cause of the problem but it's much safer than throwing these pills at the problem since they have not been shown to have no more than a placebo affect and are very dangerous.
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