I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

[songbird]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

totally confused

Hi all. I am more cinfused than ever now.

I went through effexor withdrawl late last summer(still have nightmares) and went without AD for a month then fell into big depression. Doc put me on Wellbutrin (generic) 75mg, Now I am up to 150 and drinking more than ever due to many things...lonliness, loss of job, etc...really no excuse. I really feel sick if i don't drink by a certain time of day, and still feel sick after i drink. I get anxiety before and after. Told doc about it and all he said was to cut drinking down. OK...I want to...don't we all.

Not supposed to drink with Wellbutrin, not supposed to stop while on wellebutrin...What does dopamine have to do with all of this...drinking, depression? I was used to ssri's, an do feel not as dopey on Well (generic). Is generic as good?

I have a lot of unanswered questions and would appreciate some advice or direction from first hand experience. My doc does nothing for me.

Honestly...I feel like i'm on the edge. I blacked out going to the bathroom the other night. I am scared for my life, but still keep drinking. Damned if i do, damned if i dont. I need help but have no insurance. I don't want to die. I feel lalot of tightness in my chest as i write. I have not drank today, but feel like i have to go get some to make it through work later.

I am also on valium and vicodin...Stopped taking trazadone 50mg a week ago because i feel sleepy all the time anyway and don't miss it.

This is a long post i know...I have been helped before on these forums and this is my only hope. Thanx for reading.

I was here under another name but had to change because of confidential stuff at home a while back.

[Fresh Hope]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

Not an expert at all, but I think you really need to think about a new Doc and getting some fresh input. You are taking a lot of drugs with AL and stopping trazadone too fast may also be a problem. Does the same Doc provide you with all of your prescriptions?

When do you take your meds – what time of day and when do you drink?

If you can, slow it all down, try to reduce your valium and vicodin and see if you can try not to drink as much...and is there someone you can ask to help you.

Blackouts and chest pain are not to be ignored. I know this all sounds like general commonplace advice but you have to start somewhere. You know you need some serious help. Keep posting and reading, I hope someone else can chime in here.

Write back and let us know how you are.

Good Luck I will be thinking of you.
FH

[out]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

wow..

a very long time ago i posted about ADs and alcohol use...problems, increase etc. The two biggest culprits I have heard horror stories about are effexor and its newer cousin cymbalta...people who never had drink problems before start drinking like...well us, so we have to be particularily careful. I for one know that lexapro for me not only caused signifigant weight gain, when i drank had complete blackouts after even just 3 glasses of wine...it was definatley a bad combo for me.


No one here can give mediical advice, unless they are actually a doctor I suppose, so while I understand the desperation for info, no one can tell anyone what to do, maybe what theyv'e done or what they heard. My eventual soultion for myself was that if I was unable or unwilling to give up alcohol I had to give up the lexapro, because it was dangerous to do both and yes alcohol is a depressant, but for some brain chemistries it acts as the opposite, at least temporarily which is one of the reasons why some of us do it.

[Dolly Sunshine]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

I never drank so much as on Lexapro. Once I quit drinking amazingly I wasn't depressed anymore.

[songbird]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

I am ready to check myself in...i feel tired, and lifeless...don't want to die, don't want to live like this...don't know of any other way.

MY job is suffereing...my social life is almost null...I've got nothing to lose. So much more that i can't type right now...I've been here before...

[dmtodd]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

Valerian

Hi! I'm weaning off Prozac and Lunesta. I'm taking Valerian herbs and Kava Tea for relaxation to help sleep. Although I still end up drinking too much alcohol in the evenings, the less chemicals I put in my body the better.

[out]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

songbird...

how are you right now?

[anne1232]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

to Songbird and all of us, really

All the feelings..tired, lonely, hungry, bored, depressed, loss of job, hopelessness, suicidal thoughts, family stuff:
***what I finally figured out is that we have these issues BECAUSE we drink,
not -we drink because of the issues.
Yikes

[anne1232]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

uh oh, let me clarify

before I get clobbered on that. I understand "faulty wiring," oh dear god, do I ever.
For decades I went around w/ antidepressants, therapies, rehabs, etc., EVERY SINGLE THING except quitting drinking. Constantly putting band-aids on the elephant.
I can only speak for myself, true, but all I know is that every day I string together w/out AL is a day I feel SO MUCH BETTER in every way. The problems seem to melt away when you feel good and strong and sane. Self pity just never worked. Someone here earlier said (sorry, I can't find it now) it perfectly- forget family as a trigger, they're not worth it.
(Or fill in the blank where 'family' was). I couldn't see that through the AL fog. I had to 'fix' everything- make it right and fair, and it almost cost me my life. (heck, still may).
Self pity will only bring you right to the bottle. I didn't think I was "tough" or brave enough to change my thinking. BUT--NOBODY! is tougher than us- what we've put ourselves through- what we've survived emotionally, etc. w/ our disease. It finally occured to me that if I just stopped AL, 90% of my problems would vanish.
Just my opinion.
I love this forum and the beautiful souls here.

[04bluebird]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

Drinking and Paxil started at 50 !!!

I realized after 30 years of tears and desperation that there were products out there to take care of that problem. 48 hours after beginning Paxil 20 mg., I felt like a whole new person with a whole new life. In hindsight, after reading these posts, I realize that is also when I started drinking! at about 50 years old! A winery opened locally and my husband and I received an anniversary gift basket from there. It was so good, we went and bought 3 or 4 more bottles and soon became wine drinkers with our dinner. Then we started making homemade wine, went on a couple all inclusive vacations, and soon became nightly drinkers, progressing to rum and sierra mist. MWO was almost verbatim my story, about me, functional, no one having any idea about my problem, etc. If I don't take the paxil, after about 4 days, I get very paranoid and pretty much curl up in a ball and cry. Is there any medical confirmation that the SSRI contributes to problem drinking? I want to just be me! Thanks in advance for any direction. I have read the book 2 times, ordered the tapes and plan to go the Dr. and the vitamin store for supplements. I don'tknow if I should continue to take the pAXIL or go through without it. Don't know which road to take, just want my dependances to end.

[out]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

I don't necessarily agree

with the idea that we have these issues because we drink, not that we drink because we have these issues. I think it is probably a bit of both. I didn't drink for 13 years and still had the issues with depression, anxiety and obsessive behavior as a matter of fact these issues are better now in my life than they were then. I think eveyone is different.

I don't know if there is good scientific documantation on the effects of antidepressents creating or contributing to drink problems...big pharma companies aren't going to readily admit it if there is...but I have read enough ancedotal eveidence to believe it is true. If a brain drug like topamax can curb binge behavior it only seems logical that another one could create it.

[anne1232]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

Well, it's all very interesting.

I wonder if we are on the cutting edge of 'regular folks' studying this issue via:
ourselves!
Take care everyone.

[Fresh Hope]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

I still believe in the connection between AD use and then increased drinking...maybe it works both ways but it was that order for me.
Having Great! Success!!!! with Kudzu. Took I few days and have no craving to drink and if I do ( I know... what a fool), I do not get a buzz, it doesn?t taste bad but not good either and I really cannot be bothered to get up and refill my glass. Didn?t trust the feeling for 2 nights, but after last night I am pretty sure I will not be pouring a drink. Just seems that there is no point ? that is the best way I can describe it.
Still waiting for supps (10 days now ), it took 1 month for kudzu to arrive... from shipping date...seems rather inefficient that it should take so long to get to a major urban centre in Canada.
FH

[evadstructn@gmail.com]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

i take 10mg of lexapro each day, have been on it for about a year now, and since ive been on it i have had really intense cravings for alcohol, in particular wine... i have a feeling that the ssri and alcohol cravings are a bit related.....

[Fresh Hope]

I truly believe there is an connection to Antidepression use and increased drinking

Clear head and hopeful heart

Update since I started this thread.

I take only small dose of Wellbutrin in the morning...off all sleep aids, Lunesta and trazodone...taking all supps, on low carb diet and 2 days AF (have had patches of up to 4 days AF but was always waiting for the weekend, now I think, hope!! , sense it is different)

Sleeping is OK, not great, but slowly improving and no hangovers, guilt and no AL will only help to improve my sleep habits.

Also lots of exercise!! very important to keep depression at bay ( although I do wonder if I was ever really depressed) or if it was just life?s ups and downs and I might have managed my low/stressed periods with diet, exercise and AF.... I will never really know but I DO KNOW that my goal is to concentrate on staying drug and AL free and put my energy into diet exercise etc.

THAT SAID I do want to state that should I become unable to cope without ADs I would not hesitate to take them...I say this because when I did start ADs they did help and I do want anyone who reads this to think they should be able to handle their situation without meds. Hindsight is why I think it might have been handled differently for me, But AT THAT TIME I had no option (and no experience with diet, exercise etc) and am very grateful that ADs were available to me....feel as though I may not need WellB but want to stay AF for 30 days before I make more changes.

I think the low carb diet is also helping because glucose levels are steady and weight loss always makes me a happy camper.

So that is where I am since Jan 08.

Clear head and hopeful heart..thanks to all who responded to me it is all very helpful and immensely supportive :thanks::h

FH