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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Arthur Gibson on August 19, 2002, at 5:09:28
PROZAC took 7 weeks to have a good effect on me. Now I feel fine. Not even the hangover effect.
However that 7 weeks lost at work cost me a fortune.
I am told that this depression can happen again in your life after you are cured. Is there a quick acting AD available yet?
You are lucky in the US with all the different drugs. In the UK you get PROZAC or PAXIL or VALIUM or you suffer.
Posted by cybercafe on August 19, 2002, at 6:02:54
In reply to What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by Arthur Gibson on August 19, 2002, at 5:09:28
> I am told that this depression can happen again in your life after you are cured. Is there a quick acting AD available yet?
quick acting ADs? the fastest are probably stimulants and opiates ... then probably atypical antipsychotics, remeron ...
yeah but you should be able to see it coming a bit sooner and stop it before it gets bad
>drugs. In the UK you get PROZAC or PAXIL or VALIUM or you suffer.
is it true atypical antipsychotics were not available on the NHS until maybe a year ago or less??i didn't like UK docs outside of hendon ... i found they would lie to you ... and the damn surgeries are only open like 2 hours a day, so you have to miss work !! ... (okay i also lived in the poorest district in london)
to be fair i had a really awesome doc in hendon who wanted to put me on lamictal back in early 2000 and got to see a whole bunch of pdoc students .. that just rocked :)
Posted by fuji on August 19, 2002, at 12:28:03
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by cybercafe on August 19, 2002, at 6:02:54
I grew up in Hendon when I was a kid and then moved to the US (40 years) ago. Visted two years ago and figured out how to get to my old house on the train & bus. Still a UK citizen!
Sorry for the ot. It won't happen again.
> > I am told that this depression can happen again in your life after you are cured. Is there a quick acting AD available yet?
>
> quick acting ADs? the fastest are probably stimulants and opiates ... then probably atypical antipsychotics, remeron ...
>
> yeah but you should be able to see it coming a bit sooner and stop it before it gets bad
>
> >drugs. In the UK you get PROZAC or PAXIL or VALIUM or you suffer.
>
>
> is it true atypical antipsychotics were not available on the NHS until maybe a year ago or less??
>
> i didn't like UK docs outside of hendon ... i found they would lie to you ... and the damn surgeries are only open like 2 hours a day, so you have to miss work !! ... (okay i also lived in the poorest district in london)
>
> to be fair i had a really awesome doc in hendon who wanted to put me on lamictal back in early 2000 and got to see a whole bunch of pdoc students .. that just rocked :)
Posted by oracle on August 20, 2002, at 1:29:43
In reply to What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by Arthur Gibson on August 19, 2002, at 5:09:28
All AD's (all meds that are have primary indications as an antidepressant) take 6-8
weeks to manifest true antidepressant qualities.
Posted by fairnymph on August 21, 2002, at 18:06:43
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by oracle on August 20, 2002, at 1:29:43
Reboxetine starts working in about 2-3 weeks.
Posted by Dave1 on August 21, 2002, at 19:47:10
In reply to What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by Arthur Gibson on August 19, 2002, at 5:09:28
If you take an SSRI, and add a drug called pindolol, the research indicates (PUBMED,other),
that then AD effect can be speeded up to one or two weeks.Dave
Posted by Randal on August 23, 2002, at 22:43:15
In reply to What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by Arthur Gibson on August 19, 2002, at 5:09:28
Hi Arthur,
Here's something you may wish to consider:
A study was recently published titled "Addition of omega-3 fatty acid to maintenance medication treatment for recurrent unipolar depressive disorder" by Nemets, et al. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY 159 (3): 477-479 MAR 2002. The study involved treatment of breakthrough depression of a group of patients taking medication that previously stabilized them. You may or may not be able to retrieve the article online.
The study found that the depressed patients responded to 2g/day ethyl-EPA (essentially the same as one of the components in fish oil) at the two week point (they don't break it down further than week 1, week 2,...). The improvement in this small study (20 people) is dramatic even at 14 days and essentially no improvement was seen in the control group.
The study is hardly definitive and the results were with a group of people already taking some kind of medication. However, the similarity to your potential future condition is that they were experiencing recurrent unipolar depression.
So there is at least a possibility that this is a treatment that could be effective on a time scale as fast (or perhaps faster) than conventional antidepressants. Hopefully further studies will straighten this out and show whether EPA will have the same effect on people not taking any other medication.
IF this treatment turns out to be effective with a similar time course as an antidepressant, I see a big advantage. You could immediately start treating yourself with EPA or fish oil (keep some at home) on even the slightest suspicion of any depression. I'm guessing that if you felt depression coming on, it might be several days before you would think about calling your doctor, not to mention the time to make an appoitment, fill a prescription, etc. So perhaps you would "save" a week right there, and potentially stop the episode in its tracks.
Oh, the E-EPA used in the Nemets study is, as far as I am aware, not commercially available, but the manufacturer is Laxdale, Ltd. in the U.K.
Randal
> PROZAC took 7 weeks to have a good effect on me. Now I feel fine. Not even the hangover effect.
>
> However that 7 weeks lost at work cost me a fortune.
>
> I am told that this depression can happen again in your life after you are cured. Is there a quick acting AD available yet?
>
> You are lucky in the US with all the different drugs. In the UK you get PROZAC or PAXIL or VALIUM or you suffer.
Posted by hiba on August 24, 2002, at 4:37:24
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by oracle on August 20, 2002, at 1:29:43
Dear Oracle,
I will disagree with you. I am a chronic depressive patient and have tried at least ten different antidepressants in my life. Some ADs are quicker and I will say prozac is the most slow acting AD. A combination of zoloft and klonopin will give better results within days. Elavil will relieve the edge of depression within days, and in my case it worked within five days. Combining an AD with depakote will usually relieve annoying symptoms of depression within the first week. In my experience Elavil works much faster than all others.
HIBA
Posted by Lucy Nash on August 25, 2002, at 18:39:00
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by hiba on August 24, 2002, at 4:37:24
When I began taking Marplan in 1989, I felt immense relief from four years of severe depression in literally 48 hours.
Marplan worked with a vengeance, as I went from one extreme to the other emotionally, to the point where some people thought I'd started drinking. I suddenly became so cheerful and outgoing that it made some people - including my husband - nervous for the first few days.
Of course YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). I can't take Prozac without turning into an absolute pig from hell.
Posted by sjb on August 26, 2002, at 8:58:13
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by Lucy Nash on August 25, 2002, at 18:39:00
I had a prominent PDoc tell me that those who respond quickly to Prozac tend to be bi-polar I or II. I responded very quickly to Prozac and thought it was great, when it worked, other than the sleeplessness and sexual dysfunction. Unfortunately, it pooped and everytime I tried it again, after a layoff or using something else, the time of effectiveness seemed shorter and shorter.
Posted by Randal on August 26, 2002, at 11:34:29
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by sjb on August 26, 2002, at 8:58:13
> I had a prominent PDoc tell me that those who respond quickly to Prozac tend to be bi-polar I or II. I responded very quickly to Prozac and thought it was great, when it worked, other than the sleeplessness and sexual dysfunction. Unfortunately, it pooped and everytime I tried it again, after a layoff or using something else, the time of effectiveness seemed shorter and shorter.
And often the "response" is hypomania--and short lived. It happened to me.
Posted by hiba on August 26, 2002, at 23:34:57
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD? » sjb, posted by Randal on August 26, 2002, at 11:34:29
Dear Randal and SJB,
Please, if you can stay away from prozac and similar kind of SSRIs, do it without any hesitation. I am an unfortunate victim of SSRI experiment. My first dose began as 20 mg and now am on 40 and still feel inadequate and doc says another increase in dosage should be considered. It has already done enough damage to my sexuality, and the damage seems to be long lasting.(I tried a five month off prozac period but sexuality remained the same) The worst of all I can't stay off prozac because of a nasty psychological dependence. Prior to taking this stuff I was on and off another antidepressants like elavil, ludiomil, prothiaden..etc. They also caused some kind of sexual dysfunction while I was on them, but the sexuality returned to the predrug level soon after I quit them. That is not the case with prozac.
I think prozac is the best drug to treat deviant sexual behavior. Because it destroys the desire phase completely with long lasting effects.
Take care guys
HIBA
Posted by sjb on August 27, 2002, at 9:36:31
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD? » sjb, posted by Randal on August 26, 2002, at 11:34:29
Yes, and I can recognize it as such looking back. One night, over 6 years ago when I first went on Prozac, I reorganized the furniture (including lifting some pretty heavy things), and was up all day, talking fast, having all kinds of plans and feeling very excited. I did not think it was mania at the time, as I never felt the need to spend extravagantly, nor engage in "risky" sexual behavior, etc, the things you used to hear about classic manic tendencies. I now know differently, and yes, it was short lived.
Posted by sjb on August 27, 2002, at 9:48:21
In reply to Re: What is the quickest acting AD?, posted by hiba on August 26, 2002, at 23:34:57
Thank you for your input. I have been off and on Prozac many times and doubt if I would ever go back. I was speaking of an experience of mine over 2 years ago. Although my sexuality came back, ie. orgasms, when I went off Prozac, I would tend to agree with you to some extent. I don't think I'll ever be the same sexually as I was before meds but it's really not a high priority for me. However, I can certainly understand that it would be for others, esp. males. I'm now back on EffexorXR (dreading withdrawal if and when I have to go off) and Lamictal. Think it's zapped me again, sexually, but ALL I want is to get through an upcoming vacation in relative sanity with no binge eating, crying, oversleeping, my general crash scenario. I haven't been able to plan and follow through with a week long vacation in 4 years due to my depression.
The PDoc I mentioned also said that he could've helped Bill Clinton with "his problem" by prescribing Prozac.
This is the end of the thread.
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