Ssris antidepressants how do they work

Persistent depressive disorder, formerly known as dysthymia, is a form of chronic depression. Learn about its symptoms, causes, treatment, and more. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Mental Health. What SSRIs treat. How SSRIs work. Drug list. Possible side effects. SSRI safety. Talk with your doctor. Read this next. Medically reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, Ph. How to Help Someone with Depression Watching a friend live with depression can be painful, but there are ways to help. What Is Anhedonia?

Medically reviewed by Karin Gepp, PsyD. Occasionally, they may also be prescribed to treat pain. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter a messenger chemical that carries signals between nerve cells in the brain. It's thought to have a good influence on mood, emotion and sleep. After carrying a message, serotonin is usually reabsorbed by the nerve cells known as "reuptake". SSRIs work by blocking "inhibiting" reuptake, meaning more serotonin is available to pass further messages between nearby nerve cells.

It would be too simplistic to say that depression and related mental health conditions are caused by low serotonin levels, but a rise in serotonin levels can improve symptoms and make people more responsive to other types of treatment, such as CBT. SSRIs are usually taken in tablet form.

When they're prescribed, you'll start on the lowest possible dose thought necessary to improve your symptoms. SSRIs increase available levels of serotonin, sometimes referred to as the feel-good neurotransmitter, in our brains. Neurons communicate via neurotransmitters, chemicals which pass from one nerve cell to another. A transporter molecule recycles unused transmitter and carries it back to the pre-synaptic cell.

Yet, exactly how this biochemistry then works against depression remains a scientific mystery. In fact, SSRIs fail to work for mild cases of depression, suggesting that regulating serotonin might be an indirect treatment only. Now, research headed up by neuroscientists David Gurwitz and Noam Shomron of Tel Aviv University in Israel supports recent thinking that rather than a shortage of serotonin, a lack of synaptogenesis the growth of new synapses, or nerve contacts and neurogenesis the generation and migration of new neurons could cause depression.

In this model lower serotonin levels would merely result when cells stopped making new connections among neurons or the brain stopped making new neurons. So, directly treating the cause of this diminished neuronal activity could prove to be a more effective therapy for depression than simply relying on drugs to increase serotonin levels.

Evidence for this line of thought came when their team found that cells in culture exposed to a day course of the common SSRI paroxetine Paxil is one of the brand names expressed significantly more of the gene for an integrin protein called ITGB3 integrin beta Integrins are known to play a role in cell adhesion and connectivity and therefore are essential for synaptogenesis. Drug interactions. When taking an antidepressant, tell your doctor about any other prescription or over-the-counter medications, herbs or other supplements you're taking.

Some antidepressants can interfere with the effectiveness of other medications, and some can cause dangerous reactions when combined with certain medications or herbal supplements.

For example, SSRIs may increase your risk of bleeding, especially when you're taking other medications that increase the risk of bleeding, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs NSAIDs , aspirin, warfarin Coumadin, Jantoven and other blood thinners.

Serotonin syndrome. Rarely, an antidepressant can cause high levels of serotonin to accumulate in your body. Serotonin syndrome most often occurs when two medications that raise the level of serotonin are combined. These include, for example, other antidepressants, certain pain or headache medications, and the herbal supplement St. John's wort. Signs and symptoms of serotonin syndrome include anxiety, agitation, high fever, sweating, confusion, tremors, restlessness, lack of coordination, major changes in blood pressure and a rapid heart rate.

Seek immediate medical attention if you have any of these signs or symptoms. Most antidepressants are generally safe, but the FDA requires that all antidepressants carry black box warnings, the strictest warnings for prescriptions. In some cases, children, teenagers and young adults under 25 may have an increase in suicidal thoughts or behavior when taking antidepressants, especially in the first few weeks after starting or when the dose is changed.

Anyone taking an antidepressant should be watched closely for worsening depression or unusual behavior. If you or someone you know has suicidal thoughts when taking an antidepressant, immediately contact your doctor or get emergency help. Keep in mind that antidepressants are more likely to reduce suicide risk in the long run by improving mood.

SSRIs aren't addictive. However, stopping antidepressant treatment abruptly or missing several doses can cause withdrawal-like symptoms. This is sometimes called discontinuation syndrome. Work with your doctor to gradually and safely decrease your dose. People may react differently to the same antidepressant. For example, a particular drug may work better — or not as well — for you than for another person. Or you may have more, or fewer, side effects from taking a specific antidepressant than someone else does.

Inherited traits play a role in how antidepressants affect you. If you have a close relative who responded to a particular antidepressant, tell your doctor, because this could be a good drug choice to start. In some cases, results of special blood tests, where available, may offer clues about how your body may respond to a particular antidepressant. However, other variables can affect your response to medication.

When choosing an antidepressant, your doctor takes into account your symptoms, any health problems, other medications you take and what has worked for you in the past. Typically, it may take several weeks or longer before an antidepressant is fully effective and for initial side effects to ease up. Your doctor may recommend some dose adjustments or different antidepressants, but with patience, you and your doctor can find a medication that works well for you.

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