Antidepressant drugs are an essential tool for someone who experiences clinical depression.
Of course, several factors are necessary that needs careful consideration before taking antidepressant medication.
Some of these factors are the following: types of antidepressant; side effects and adverse effects; and withdrawal symptoms.
Various types of antidepressants exist that a person can be prescribed with.
Some noteworthy to mention are Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Serotonin-Norepinephrin Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs), and Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs).
Of course there are still other antidepressants out there.
SSRI antidepressants include Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft.
An example of an SNRI is Cymbalta.
Additionally, Marplan and Parnate are MAOIs.
Similar to other medications, antidepressants also have side effects that can be categorized as general, sexual, REM sleep, and weight gain.
Generally, these drugs can cause nausea, agitation, diarrhea, and headaches.
A person taking antidepressant medications can have diminished interest in sex and have trouble getting an orgasm.
These medications also affect REM sleep by blocking it.
Antidepressants cause weight gain in most people taking it.
But the most serious side effect is known as the black box effect.
The black box effect is considered a severe side effect because it increases the suicide tendencies doubly in most children and adolescents.
With young adults under the age of 25, the suicide tendencies increase even more.
However, it is even more dangerous when a person taking antidepressants suddenly stops taking it because it can bring about somatic and psychological withdrawal symptoms.
On its abrupt withdrawal from taking medications, depression can even worsen initially.
However, at some rare occasions, the clients become manic.
With all these side effects, antidepressant medications intake need to be gradually lessened before totally stopping them altogether.