"When it came time to approve Prozac, the combined efforts of the drug company and the FDA could not come up with even one good study that unequivocally supported the value of Prozac in comparison to placebo.
Wonderful article! Nice to see the quote from Dr. Breggin. Dr. Breggin is one of those rare psychiatrists who so beautifully uses these practical strategies like boosting expectations and giving full support, for successful outcomes. His writings and videos should be required material for all in the field.
In my experience with my husband, anti-depressant drugs do seem to lessen the intense feelings but they do nothing for the long-term treatment of depression. I have attributed this to the numbing effect they have on all emotions. I think they make him less sad/depressed/anxious but also less joyful and less empathetic & compassionate. Do you think this is accurate or is the decrease in sadness/anxiety purely a placebo effect?
There is a clear emotional numbing/blunting effect for a percentage of people who take antidepressants. Not to be confused with an antidepressant effect. This response is often aversive for most people because they find it difficult to access a range of emotions and feel emotionally disconnected.
Yes, this is my point. I think he interprets not feeling sad with the antidepressants working and fails to recognize that his other emotions are blunted. I’ve tried to talk to him about the side effects I recognize but he does not want to acknowledge any of them because the depression & anxiety were so crippling and he believes the antidepressants are working and helping him.
Wonderful article! Nice to see the quote from Dr. Breggin. Dr. Breggin is one of those rare psychiatrists who so beautifully uses these practical strategies like boosting expectations and giving full support, for successful outcomes. His writings and videos should be required material for all in the field.
In my experience with my husband, anti-depressant drugs do seem to lessen the intense feelings but they do nothing for the long-term treatment of depression. I have attributed this to the numbing effect they have on all emotions. I think they make him less sad/depressed/anxious but also less joyful and less empathetic & compassionate. Do you think this is accurate or is the decrease in sadness/anxiety purely a placebo effect?
There is a clear emotional numbing/blunting effect for a percentage of people who take antidepressants. Not to be confused with an antidepressant effect. This response is often aversive for most people because they find it difficult to access a range of emotions and feel emotionally disconnected.
Yes, this is my point. I think he interprets not feeling sad with the antidepressants working and fails to recognize that his other emotions are blunted. I’ve tried to talk to him about the side effects I recognize but he does not want to acknowledge any of them because the depression & anxiety were so crippling and he believes the antidepressants are working and helping him.