Taking Antidepressants

by Banov, Michael

• ISBN13: 9781934716069
• ISBN10: 1934716065
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-07-01
• Publisher: Sunrise River Pr

Summary

Antidepressants are the most commonly prescribed class of medications in this country. Yet, consumers have few available resources to educate them in a fair, balanced fashion about starting and stopping antidepressants. People want to know if antidepressants are really safe, whether they are addictive, and how they may affect their personality. In this book, triple board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Michael Banov walks the reader through a personalized process to help them make the right choice about starting antidepressants, staying on antidepressants, and stopping antidepressants. He includes specific guidelines on how to safely reduce and ultimately stop taking antidepressants, if it is appropriate to do so. Readers will learn how antidepressant medications work, what they may experience while taking them, and will learn how to manage side effects or any residual or returning depression symptoms. Most books on depression take a biased view against antidepressant medication due to perceived dangers; this book finally provides a balanced, research-based resource for consumers who want the facts about taking antidepressants.

Author Biography

Michael Banov, MD, completed his psychiatry training at McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and is medical director of Northwest Behavioral Medicine and Research Center in Atlanta, Georgia. He has been a principal investigator in hundreds of psychiatry studies and has published dozens of articles and research papers on the treatment of mental health problems. He is the founder and director of www.psychsource.org, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people find appropriate mental health resources in their area. When not practicing medicine, he is traveling, writing, playing guitar, and practicing martial arts.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. 5
About the Author	p. 6
Introduction	p. 7
Starting Antidepressants
Deciding Whether to Start an Antidepressant	p. 9
Do I Really Have a Mood Disorder?	p. 36
Changing the Depressed Brain	p. 61
What Can I Expect When I Start Antidepressants?	p. 89
Are There Alternatives to Taking Antidepressants?	p. 105
Staying on Antidepressants
Is This as Good as It Gets?	p. 121
How Safe are Antidepressants?	p. 138
Are Antidepressants Addictive?	p. 153
Overcoming Side Effects	p. 162
What if My Medicine Stops Working?	p. 179
Special Circumstances	p. 193
Stopping Antidepressants
How to Decide When to Stop Taking Your Antidepressant	p. 209
How to Safely Taper Off Your Antidepressant	p. 232
Life after Antidepressants	p. 247
Conclusion: Two Years Later...	p. 263
Special Section: Antidepressants for Children and Adolescents	p. 265
Appendixes
Past Medication History Form	p. 274
Mood Disorder Questionnaire	p. 276
Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9)	p. 278
Starting Dosing Characteristics of Most-Common Antidepressants	p. 279
Commonly Prescribed Antidepressants by Side-Effect Risk	p. 281
Successfully Tapering Antidepressants Rating Test (START)	p. 282
Dosing Formulations and Discontinuation Characteristics of Most-Common Antidepressants	p. 286
Dosing Formulations and Discontinuation Characteristics of Less-Common Antidepressants	p. 287
Common Antidepressants that can be Safely Cut	p. 288
Sample Mood Diary	p. 289
Abbreviations	p. 290
Glossary	p. 291
Resources	p. 295
Index	p. 300
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.