Stopping Antidepressants Proved Challenging

Q. Thank you for addressing the many issues with antidepressants. I was given a prescription to help with hot flashes due to menopause. Many years later when I tried to get off of them, my withdrawal symptoms were debilitating.
After several months of missed work and useless and expensive tests, I finally did some research online to find a way to get off of them once and for all. It really is necessary to take responsibility for one’s own health these days. Doctors, nurse practitioners and PAs just don’t know enough to make smart choices for us sometimes, so we need to do that ourselves.
A. You are so right that we all need to be well informed about our health and the treatments we use. Tapering off the antidepressant very gradually may reduce withdrawal symptoms.
You will find an interesting article on the difficulties of discontinuing such medications at the Journal of Participatory Medicine. Taking responsibility for our own health is increasingly crucial.