Posted by bulldog2 on October 2, 2010, at 10:16:04
In reply to Re: Experiment of own on SSRI's, posted by linkadge on October 2, 2010, at 8:31:07
> >I think we have to take into consideration what >we hear in this forum and what is happening in >the general public.
>
> I partially agree with you, but:
>
> A lot of people are prescribed SSRIs for mild - moderate depression by GPs. This type of depression tends to get better on its own, and is more sensitive to the placebo effect.
>
> The indcidence of side effects (i.e. sexual dysfunction) was grosly underestimated by drug companies. Package inserst say/said ~13% had sexual dysfunction. New questionaires and trials suggest that 60%+ have sexual dysfunction. This calls into question the estimates of efficacy too.
>
> Pooling all clinical trial data (including unpublished trials) suggests that SSRI's are only very marginally better than placebos. These groups were not treatment-resistant. So, unless new, real-world data comes to refute this, this is the only large scale data we have. Catie was not placebo controlled.
>
> I guess what I am saying is that I don't like to assume. Sure, you can assume that psychobabble is not representitive, and that those in the real world do better on SSRI's but what data do we have to support this? Yes, I know people who have got better on SSRI's too, but would they have had an equal response to a placebo?
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> Linkadge
>
>
>I do agree with you that the efficacy of ssris is very questionabel. I myself would only take one as part of a combo. I believe p-docs themselves are beginning to question them as they tend to get more serious cases that are meeting with failure. Hence we see more combos in an attempt to achieve remission.
What I do question is the nature of horror stories of sides reported here as opposed to the percentage of these events that might occur in the general public. I think a stranger wandering into this forum might get a skewed version of what happens when an ssri is taken.
People who have had very bad sides tend to seek out forums to vent or to warn others of what might happen to them. The problem is some report every bad event that has happened to them while on the drug(ssri) even months or years later. I myself and many others I know who have been on ssris have never suffered some of the permanant sides reported here. In reality many of the people here may continue to suffer from continuing mdd which by itself can cause many psychosomatic disorders.
I think askapatient may give a more balanced viewpoint. The drug is given a rating and than the patient gives pros and cons of the medication.
I think that is what Olivia was alluding to the other day. I don't think she was being pro med or anti med but was looking for a more scientific discourse on pychotropic meds. There seems to be more of a group emotional tone to reporting things. Than there are a couple posters who may have an agenda who post on every thread day after day.
I think we need a more scientific method to validate these reported sides. People with mental illness tend to suffer more from psycosomatic disorders in general. Rather than think their dysfunction may be causing their symptoms the med is blaimed.
Right now this forum seems to be leaning towards med bashing and human nature being what it is people will pile on. This can certainly lead one to the conclusion these are drugs from hell. There was a time or I seem to remember one where there was a very rational approach to reporting experiences.
poster:bulldog2
thread:964395
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100926/msgs/964476.html