Antidepressants and their effects

[Villemus]

Doctors get kickbac

I'm not defending anything. What i am doing is highlighting your spiritual narcissism that is masquerading as a "reality check"
What you did was internalize the idea that you were just being coddled and that you were inferior due to your mental illness and so as a result you bypassed (spiritual bypassing) your ACTUAL healing work by assuming an identity of superiority (spiritual narcissism) in order to cope with the internal belief that you are inferior.
I am still waiting for you to tell me what my life experience is. You claim to know so clearly.

Post automatically merged: Tuesday at 11:44 AM

I agree. That is the goal i am working on ATM.
I did tell my doctor I didn't want the drugs but he did make some good points about why he thinks i should and i ultimately did agree with him.
It was already my goal to get off of them after some time, though that will be on hold as I do feel its helping me as I work with my therapist.

Doctors get kickbacks for writing prescriptions, some of them may even think that they are helping people. I worked in a hospital and saw patients coming in with several gallon sized ziplock bags full of prescriptions. Please don't let him prescribe anything else. Your body will thank you in the years to come.

 

[Mars]

I'm not defending anything. What i am doing is highlighting your spiritual narcissism that is masquerading as a "reality check"
What you did was internalize the idea that you were just being coddled and that you were inferior due to your mental illness and so as a result you bypassed (spiritual bypassing) your ACTUAL healing work by assuming an identity of superiority (spiritual narcissism) in order to cope with the internal belief that you are inferior.
I am still waiting for you to tell me what my life experience is. You claim to know so clearly.

Post automatically merged: Tuesday at 11:44 AM

I agree. That is the goal i am working on ATM.
I did tell my doctor I didn't want the drugs but he did make some good points about why he thinks i should and i ultimately did agree with him.
It was already my goal to get off of them after some time, though that will be on hold as I do feel its helping me as I work with my therapist.

I already told you everything

Also read my replies again. Then read yours. Then think who really replied there. Was it you, or your uncertainty/ ego whatever. Was it necessary to understand it like this? Or was it something else?

But this is a different topic.

Tat tvam asi - This is you

Atat tvam asi - This isn't you

 

[whimsicalwarlock]

Doctors get kickbac

Doctors get kickbacks for writing prescriptions, some of them may even think that they are helping people. I worked in a hospital and saw patients coming in with several gallon sized ziplock bags full of prescriptions. Please don't let him prescribe anything else. Your body will thank you in the years to come.

I only accepted one medication for the depression and it was one i had taken before and proved to be effective. the others i need to have so i don't die in my sleep, so they're not exactly optional.

Post automatically merged: Tuesday at 11:59 AM

I already told you everything

Also read my replies again. Then read yours. Then think who really replied there. Was it you, or your uncertainty/ ego whatever. Was it necessary to understand it like this? Or was it something else?

But this is a different topic.

Tat tvam asi - This is you

Atat tvam asi - This isn't you

You're dodging my very clear and direct statements. I have clearly stated that you are wrong in your assumptions and I'm asking you to clarify PRECISELY what it is you are referring to. Your experience was not mine, yet you continue assuming it is, despite me clearly telling you it wasn't. You even were operating under the assumption that I wasn't already planning on getting off the meds. That was already part of my plan and you clearly assumed I wasn't, which highlights very clearly that you do not have some kind of superior insight like you claim to.

So, I will ask you again to tell me what my life experience was/is.

 

[Mars]

I only accepted one medication for the depression and it was one i had taken before and proved to be effective. the others i need to have so i don't die in my sleep, so they're not exactly optional.

Post automatically merged: Tuesday at 11:59 AM

You're dodging my very clear and direct statements. I have clearly stated that you are wrong in your assumptions and I'm asking you to clarify PRECISELY what it is you are referring to. Your experience was not mine, yet you continue assuming it is, despite me clearly telling you it wasn't. You even were operating under the assumption that I wasn't already planning on getting off the meds. That was already part of my plan and you clearly assumed I wasn't, which highlights very clearly that you do not have some kind of superior insight like you claim to.

So, I will ask you again to tell me what my life experience was/is.

If I am wrong anyway with my "assumptions" about you and only project whatever unto you. If all of this what I say isn't the case and wrong then you don't need anything from me anyway.

If everything I told you doesn't even apply to you, then why keep on asking? Why keep going on with this? I am not arguing or debating or whatever. You can go to reddit and argue with the bots there until you turn black. I have better things to do. If this is what you belief so be it.

Just ignore what I said and stay in the right. You don't need to acknowledge anything. See how far it gets you in life.

Just remember that you asked for this, Quite the audacity to even argue away what people say to you then.

 

[whimsicalwarlock]

If I am wrong anyway with my "assumptions" about you and only project whatever unto you. If all of this what I say isn't the case and wrong then you don't need anything from me anyway.

If everything I told you doesn't even apply to you, then why keep on asking? Why keep going on with this? I am not arguing or debating or whatever. You can go to reddit and argue with the bots there until you turn black. I have better things to do. If this is what you belief so be it.

Just ignore what I said and stay in the right. You don't need to acknowledge anything. See how far it gets you in life.

Just remember that you asked for this, Quite the audacity to even argue away what people say to you then.

The reason I keep asking is because you are operating under the pretense that the way you experience things have some kind of universal objective truth to it, and when told you were incorrect about your assumptions, you just dodged and then said "is it even necessary to understand?" I said i wasn't coddled. You insisted I was. That must be because you feel that YOU were coddled. When I challenged you on that, you doubled down and when I stood my ground you abandoned ship and are now trying to paint me as ignorant or unwilling to hear people out or consider other perspectives. This is a clear demonstration of the lack of self-awareness that you are claiming I lack.

Another assumption of yours.
You are assuming i don't acknowledge anything while also doing whatever you can to avoid acknowledging that you've been making and giving assumptions left and right like you're Oprah.
When I ask for input, I want genuine constructive input, not whatever narrative/mask you need to put on to make yourself feel better about your choices.

 

[Nebari]

I went on a prescription antidepressant (Effexor) and an anti-anxiety medication (Lorazepam) for a while back in 2014-2015.

It had no effect on my spirituality. I was just as spiritual and magickal as before. Possibly more, because I was no longer as worried about being caught, and I was willing to indulge myself in a practice that had meaning to me.

I got better at managing my depression and went off after doing a lot of inner work to manage my emotional state, successfully. It was hard to get off of, because I was physiologically dependant, and that kind of sucked.

My spirituality maintained. I had a dip during Covid and then picked back up in 2023-2024.

This year, a doctor suggested my anxiety was pretty bad and having physiological effects on me. I went on Lexapro (an SSRI). I've now been on it for a few months. He was right; my blood pressure went down and I stopped having a headache every three days. My spiritual practice and magick surged and I am experiencing levels of spiritual success that I never dreamed possible.

So, I think it's extraordinarily harmful and egotistical for people to posture against modern medicine just because they did not have good experiences with it. I would consider this: if your spiritual experiences go away when you go on medication, maybe you were imagining the whole thing and now you're no longer suffering from delusions? If you have a bad experience when you go off of it, well, yeah... that's legit. It sucked getting off of Effexor.

Sure, ultimately I would like to fully manage my anxiety without medication. But, the reality is, I had a headache 10 days out of my month, and 6-7 of those were stress related. So it's worth it to me to engage in modern medicine. Without modern medicine I would already be dead from asthma. Why is no one out there wondering if my inhaler is having an effect on my spirituality? Why is treating a "physical" illness different than treating a "mental" illness? Our bodies are a holistic structure that all flows as one. This is as silly to me as dental not being part of Canada's health care plan... it's all part of your body, your mind, your soul...

Sure, the profit driven medicine structure is terrible. Sure, not all medications work the same for everyone. But you aren't going to suddenly "lose your powers" because you start on a prescription medication. If you can manage your condition with lifestyle changes, that's great, but not everyone can. There's no shame in using medication as a stop-gap while you learn the techniques needed and make those lifestyle changes into habits and then going off, and there's no shame in using medication for the rest of your life.

If you feel muted because of the medication you're on, that's something to mention to your doctor in a general sense (you don't have to mention that it feels spiritually dampening, just that you feel like you've been emotionally muted) and ask to try a different medication, there are several options. I feel energy just as strongly as I did before I was on Lexapro... probably stronger, because I'm no longer anxious about the idea of people finding out that I am a witch and I'm just like, screw it, if they're going to judge me then I don't want them in my life, so I'm practising with a lot more structure and openness now!

 

[sherab]

I'm looking into some Buddhist practices/mindfulness practices because they seem like a step in the right direction for me.

Some years back, I had a sudden onset of GAD with a trigger of sleeping (!). The doctors wanted to put me on SSRIs. I ended up finding about exposure therapy, coupled with Buddhist concentration practices.

Basically, the idea is simple. When anxiety triggers, the brain starts to deal with it in various ways: leaving the area, seeking help, etc. These actions reinforce the anxiety, essentially telling the brain "yes, when I felt like I was in danger, you did the right thing." The key is to short-circuit this process by not reacting, which a skill developed by concentration. So when the anxiety triggers, instead of avoiding it, going to the bathroom, telling your special person about it, researching what to do, etc. you have to do nothing and be with it, even if sitting with it feels like it is going to kill you. You can also train the skill it in certain ways. I discovered Drew Linsalata in this, buying his audio book and attending one tele-seminar. I just followed the advice and it worked.

The concentration practice is simple. You choose an object and pay attention to it. It need not be intense attention, just enough attention to know the object. It can be the feeling of the body, the breath (which would not be a proper object if it is anxiety inducing), visual objects, etc. Then you relax and try to remain in place. Even 5-10 minutes can be enough.

Long story short: it worked, the doctors and therapists were amazed. Anyway, a lot of people don't do it, but those who do often find it very effective. I like to mention it when it comes up as a way to pass on what I received.

 

[Faria]

I find it strange that you'd say you don't believe in medical science, while also saying I should visit medicine weaning forums.
Also, could you show me the data (that you don't believe in) that shows that "if i'm not batshit crazy before the meds, i will be when i stop taking them?"
Also, to assume that somebody needs to take meds because they haven't "fixed their fucking life" is a very generalizing, reductive, and ignorant way of looking at mental health and anyone who takes medication to help them cope with whatever issues they may have.

If you want to wean off the drugs, it's almost impossible without other people. Most of the major brands have secret built-in traps to keep you from being able to effectively reduce the dosage. This is done with proprietary coatings, assorted bead sizes, and other sneaky tactics. There are plenty of people who have been through the mess and can offer support. This is especially helpful if you take a variety of meds and need people who understand your specific conditions.
Medical science as it relates to these drugs is just not science. It's a paid-for scam. There's too much money involved, and about a third of all US adults. I would argue that most of the professionals in the psychiatry field actually buy into it, but that doesn't mean you need to be one of them. Arguing on the merits of the data will only send you into a dark forest of facts you can't check based on other facts you can't question. My experience, apart from anything written, is about twenty years of people telling me the drugs are getting in the way of their dreams, both literally and figuratively. I've watched them struggle with the drugs and seen how powerful they grip you when you want to stop taking them. If, for example, a person moves out of state, loses their job and their husband runs off, being depressed is normal and healthy reaction. If a person is unwilling to be a Chad and never gets laid, it's normal to be depressed and angry about needing to be a Chad just to get a date. Broke people got a right to complain. Those are all signs of a healthy normal brain. Working a shitty job with no respect and no future and being OK with that is way more fucked up, and that's what the drugs aim to do for you. Those are the real issues, and working on them is what makes the whole magic and esoteric thing worthwhile.
As far as the data goes about going batshit crazy when you stop taking meds, you can look in a variety of places. First, you can look at news reports of mass shooters. If you want to see "your mind off your meds," that's a great set of examples. If that's not enough, read the package label, which will say things like "Withdrawal symptoms may occur within 5 days of stopping the medication and last for 1–2 weeks. It is possible to experience more severe withdrawal symptoms lasting several months or more. The severity of symptoms will depend on how long a person has been taking sertraline." You can also look up the term "Discontinuation Syndrome." Everyone I know who went cold turkey ended up forcibly detained, all but one of them naked, screaming and violent, a couple of weeks after quitting.

 

[whimsicalwarlock]

I went on a prescription antidepressant (Effexor) and an anti-anxiety medication (Lorazepam) for a while back in 2014-2015.

It had no effect on my spirituality. I was just as spiritual and magickal as before. Possibly more, because I was no longer as worried about being caught, and I was willing to indulge myself in a practice that had meaning to me.

I got better at managing my depression and went off after doing a lot of inner work to manage my emotional state, successfully. It was hard to get off of, because I was physiologically dependant, and that kind of sucked.

My spirituality maintained. I had a dip during Covid and then picked back up in 2023-2024.

This year, a doctor suggested my anxiety was pretty bad and having physiological effects on me. I went on Lexapro (an SSRI). I've now been on it for a few months. He was right; my blood pressure went down and I stopped having a headache every three days. My spiritual practice and magick surged and I am experiencing levels of spiritual success that I never dreamed possible.

So, I think it's extraordinarily harmful and egotistical for people to posture against modern medicine just because they did not have good experiences with it. I would consider this: if your spiritual experiences go away when you go on medication, maybe you were imagining the whole thing and now you're no longer suffering from delusions? If you have a bad experience when you go off of it, well, yeah... that's legit. It sucked getting off of Effexor.

Sure, ultimately I would like to fully manage my anxiety without medication. But, the reality is, I had a headache 10 days out of my month, and 6-7 of those were stress related. So it's worth it to me to engage in modern medicine. Without modern medicine I would already be dead from asthma. Why is no one out there wondering if my inhaler is having an effect on my spirituality? Why is treating a "physical" illness different than treating a "mental" illness? Our bodies are a holistic structure that all flows as one. This is as silly to me as dental not being part of Canada's health care plan... it's all part of your body, your mind, your soul...

Sure, the profit driven medicine structure is terrible. Sure, not all medications work the same for everyone. But you aren't going to suddenly "lose your powers" because you start on a prescription medication. If you can manage your condition with lifestyle changes, that's great, but not everyone can. There's no shame in using medication as a stop-gap while you learn the techniques needed and make those lifestyle changes into habits and then going off, and there's no shame in using medication for the rest of your life.

If you feel muted because of the medication you're on, that's something to mention to your doctor in a general sense (you don't have to mention that it feels spiritually dampening, just that you feel like you've been emotionally muted) and ask to try a different medication, there are several options. I feel energy just as strongly as I did before I was on Lexapro... probably stronger, because I'm no longer anxious about the idea of people finding out that I am a witch and I'm just like, screw it, if they're going to judge me then I don't want them in my life, so I'm practising with a lot more structure and openness now!

I definitely felt it at first but now that my body has had time to adjust, not only do i feel the connection now, but I feel so much more level headed and ever since I started back on the meds I've actually been able to spend more time on my practice than I was off the meds because I'm not spending my energy trying to compensate.