Posted by JadeKelly on January 28, 2009, at 12:51:40
In reply to Re: Risk of prolonged use of anti-depressives » Garnet71, posted by antigua3 on January 28, 2009, at 12:27:06
> I may be jumping in w/something that isn't really what you're talking about in this thread, but you bring something up for me.
>
> I've been in therapy for many years. I've also suffered from several bouts of severe depression during those years, which I've gone on medication to alleviate the symptoms so that I could "supposedly" work with my therapy. But, I've found that the SSRIs blunted my emotions and made working on my issues even more difficult because I was unable to access my feelings as well. I think this has prolonged my healing immensely, although I do understand the need for me to have gone on those medications.
>
> I believe that therapy can cause depression. Maybe I don't mean it in quite that way, but therapy can bring forth such emotional things and a downward spiral that has required medication for me. I have PTSD and there were roads I could never have travled in my therapy w/o the support of medication.
>
> But... w/o the medication, I can actually "feel" things, which has helped me make a lot of progress in therapy, in a quicker albeit more painful way.
>
> I don't know how it really works. I know I have cycles of depression and while I'm not depressed now, I know that at some point in my future life, it will hit again and I will have to deal with it.
> antigua
>
>Hi antigua,
I actually think we're really saying the same thing though. I think the point being if you are emotionally shut down, I mean numb, and you can undo some of that, whether it be by starting OR stopping a certain medication, it seems to me therapy would be more productive.
My current medication treatment (not an SSRI) has allowed me to feel what I need to feel. I do actually believe that had I gone into therapy before being treated biologically for my depression, I may have had some kind of breakdown. I'm not looking forward to therapy, it will be painful, but I'm ready and its necessary.
~Jade
poster:JadeKelly
thread:876522
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090104/msgs/876782.html