I have been taking Trazadone for about 3 weeks now and I am waiting for my doctor to prescribe me an alternative due to the side-effects. At first it didn't seem to help me to get to sleep but did help me sleep better once I was asleep. Now, I think it is starting to help me get to sleep but the constipation, nausea, headaches, faintness/dizzyness and lose of coordination are definitely causing me problems. The doc is looking at prescribing me an anti-histamine instead.

It must be quite frustrating for medical staff dealing with people like me who seem prone to having problems the side-effects of medication

Not so long ago I learned an important lesson about trust and diagnosis. If you suffer from any of the conditions I cover in my blog (depression, anxiety, perfectionism) you will probably have some issues concerning the medical profession, medication or being labelled with a particular condition so it's important that you learn to trust the diagnosis.

The last time I took my car in for a service the mechanic reported that my windscreen washer motors had failed. The symptom was only a small bit of water was actually reaching the windscreen when the washers were turned on. My initial reaction was to just accept that the motors had failed and needed replacing but I didn't have time for them to fix it and I was interested to see if I could save money by doing it myself.

A couple of days passed and I decided that it was time to do something about the problem. To do this properly I needed to understand what the windscreen motors were and where they were located and how much it would cost to replace.  It didn't take long before I started questioning about how the mechanic had decided that the motors were faulty. Being a perfectionist I had to decide whether my thoughts were rational or not and the easiest way to do this was to ask the mechanic how he had reached his conclusion.

The mechanic didn't say anything about it but you could tell by the tone of his voice that he thought it was a bit odd that I was asking why he thought the motor was faulty but he humoured me and explained that he reached his diagnosis by looking to see if I had enough windscreen wash (and there was) and then turning on the windscreen washer. Only a small dribble of water was produced and not enough to wash the windscreen therefore the motor was faulty. I thanked him and decided that he had come up with a diagnosis without actually proving that it was right. All that he had proved was that there was enough washer liquid in the container and that it wasn't being propelled with enough power to make it to the windscreen. Presumably it was possible that another element within the process could be the cause of the problem.

Anyway, I decided to use the Internet to investigate further and sure enough I found that there is a small ball bearing that sits in the washer container and this can get gunged up (technical term!), making it stick and causing a reduction in power. Someone had suggested that putting some bicarbonate of soda in the washer container could reduce the gunge and resolve the problem. I looked through the cupboards and couldn't find any bicarb but did find some Andrews liver salts and decided I had nothing to lose. Doing this cheap, simple and quick test would eliminate the ball bearing as the cause of the problem. 10 minutes and two spoons of Andrews liver salts later my windscreen washers were more powerful then they had ever been before and I had saved time and money by not going with the initial diagnosis.

How does this relate to the medical profession? Well, if I am now given a medical diagnosis that I am unsure off I have learnt to ask questions. The answers to these questions help me to decide if my worries are just related to my mental health of whether it is totally rational to be concerned. Often I find that my interest in my health makes the medical practitioner even more helpful and they love to show off their skills. On more than one occassion a doctor has even realised that maybe there were other angles that should be investigated (just by me asking friendly questions) and I am confident I have benefited from this.

So, next time you are unsure of the diagnosis ask some questions - it's easier to trust the diagnosis when you understand how it was reached!

I had to come home from work at lunchtime because I had began to feel a bit odd and emotional. It's possible that I forgot to take my medication last night (Prozac) or it may be a result of last nights lack of sleep. The odd thing was that I actually felt quite happy and I was not aware of anything upsetting me.

When I take my medication tonight I expect my mental state will return back to normal. But it's a big reminder to make sure I take my medication!!!

Having experienced psychotic symptoms I was prescribed Quetiapine (Seroquel) and the visions/hallucinations stopped. However, my life was made a misery by this drug and the side effects I experienced. The side effects for me were worse than the symptoms I was getting in the first place.

Constipation
Normally I have a very strong stomach and have rarely experienced constipation and certainly nothing on this scale. The constipation was extreme and made me very ill. Syrup of figs gave immediate relief but it wasn't a nice experience and I continued to suffer from stomach pains and sickness even when the doctor prescribed a gentler laxative.

Drowsiness
Actually, I'm not sure I should call this drowsiness as the effect was very strong. Life just passed me by and I was completely out of it whilst taking this medication.

Rhinitis (Stuffy nose)
As I was taking Seroquel before going to bed I found that I wasn't getting any sleep because of Rhinitis (blocked nose). This really affected me physically making me very tired but more disturbingly it was causing me to panic about my breathing and I started seeing things at night. Because of the way that Seroquel works I was advised not to use medicaton such as Benedryl or Sudafed. A very scarey experience! 

I knew that this medication was making me feel bad but because of my psychological state it wasn't until I came off the medication that I realised how much of a negative effect it had on my life. There were other experiences I had whilst on this medication but I am unsure if they were a result of my illness or the medication so I haven't listed them. If you are on this medication and suffering from the side effects then there are usually other alternatives available and I recommend you discuss them with your doctor. 

New research on the Public Library of Science web site about the effectiveness of antidepressants recently made front page news with at least four UK newspapers (Guardian, Telegraph, Independent and Times) and the headlines made worrying reading.

“Antidepressant drugs don’t work – official study”, “Prozac, used by 40 million people, does not work” and “Depression drugs don’t work, finds data review” were headlines from the newspapers and the journalists reported that the drugs covered by the research (Fluoxetine, Venlafaxine, Nefazodone, Paroxetine, Sertraline and Citalopram) were ineffective and "had no more effect than a dummy pill for people with mild or moderate depression" - Times 26th February 2008. 

Having read the research I think the media reacted irresponsibly in writing such headlines and my opinion is that they misrepresent the findings of the research and perhaps miss what for me an important part of the researchers conclusion. The research concluded:-

Drug–placebo differences in antidepressant efficacy increase as a function of baseline severity, but are relatively small even for severely depressed patients. The relationship between initial severity and antidepressant efficacy is attributable to decreased responsiveness to placebo among very severely depressed patients, rather than to increased responsiveness to medication. -  Initial Severity and Antidepressant Benefits: A Meta-Analysis of Data Submitted to the Food and Drug Administration

If the conclusion of the research is correct then not only does this potentially question the effectiveness of SSRI medication but also alternative medication such as St Johns Wort. alexander technique and yoga. Maybe those who have benefited from St Johns Wort might have been better off taking smarties?

My personal experience is that both Fluoxetine and Citalopram have provided me with real benefits and to be honest if St Johns Wort and the success of alternative medicines were down to the placebo effect then I really don't care. As long as nobody gets harmed I think the most important thing is that people get better.