Are antidepressants addictive?

Depression is a growing illness caused by many factors. Early and proper treatment improves symptoms and prevents self-harm. Many people, because they do not really understand the antidepressant drugs, hesitate to use them, leading to unfortunate consequences.

Depression is a mood disorder that makes the person have a low and sometimes agitated mood, always feel uninterested in activities, including the ones they love, change their sleep patterns. sleep. If severe, it can lead to thoughts of self-harm, even successful suicide.
Antidepressants come in different types and work to change the chemicals in the body involved in neurotransmitters. This helps to improve the symptoms of depression. Here are some commonly chosen antidepressants:
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) The mechanism of action of this class of drugs is to inhibit serotonin reuptake. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter found in the brain, so it helps reduce the symptoms of depression.
This is a group of drugs often chosen to treat depression, because it is highly effective, easy to use, requires less dose changes and causes fewer side effects than other antidepressants.
Some examples of drugs in this class include: citalopram, fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline...
Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) The mechanism of action of this class of drugs is to inhibit the reuptake of these drugs. Neurotransmitters including serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain.
Some examples of this class of drugs include: Desvenlafaxine, duloxetine, venlafaxine...
Tricyclic antidepressants (TCA) Tricyclic antidepressants can be highly effective in treatment. However, because it can cause many side effects, it is currently rarely used to treat depression.
The mechanism of action of TCA drugs is similar to that of SNRIs: These drugs work by blocking the reuptake of neurotransmitters including serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain. In addition, it blocks M1, histamine H1 and alpha-adrenergic muscarinic receptors.
Commonly used drugs include amitriptyline, desipramine, doxepin, imipramine...
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) This is a group of drugs that are rarely used because they often cause many serious side effects and can interact. interacts with many other drugs, so it is only used when other groups of drugs do not have a therapeutic effect.
The mechanism of action of MAOIs is to block the activity of monoamine oxidase enzyme, an enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitters norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine in the brain
Commonly used drugs include: Tranylcypromine, phenelzin , isocarboxazid...
Norepinephrine-Dopamine Reuptake Inhibitors This drug acts by a poorly understood mechanism, this class of drugs causes beneficial effects on catecholaminergic, dopaminergic and noradrenergic function and has no effect on noradrenergic function. to serotonin.
Bupropion is currently the only drug in this class in use. It can help patients with depression and associated hyperactivity disorder, attention deficit disorder or cocaine use disorder and who are trying to quit smoking.
Other atypical antidepressants include mirtazapine, trazodone... Similar to other antidepressants, the mechanism of action of this class of drugs affects the activity of neurotransmitters including dopamine. , serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain
With the above groups of antidepressants, depending on the symptoms and treatment experience of the doctor, the appropriate drug selection. It may be necessary to take more than one drug together to ensure effective treatment and reduce unwanted effects.

Is taking antidepressants harmful or taking antidepressants is addictive is something that many patients want to know.
Is it harmful to take an antidepressant in the first place? Any medication used for treatment carries some risk of certain side effects. But in this case, the benefit of the drug far outweighs the risk of side effects, because many people with depression have successfully committed suicide, so it is important to take medication to control this risk. set. When using you will be warned about the risk of side effects and if it greatly affects your life, your doctor will change the medicine or adjust the dose accordingly. Some of the side effects of the drug include:
SSRI class of antidepressants: This is a group of drugs with few side effects, but when used sometimes can cause side effects including: nausea, dizziness, headache. , sexual dysfunction , dry mouth , diarrhea , weight loss , insomnia... Some patients may experience more agitation, depression and anxiety within a week of starting the drug. initiate SSRIs or increase the dose. Symptoms of abrupt discontinuation of the drug such as irritability, anxiety, nausea, and insomnia may occur. SNRA class of drugs: Nausea is the most common problem in the first 2 weeks; increased dose dependence occurs with high doses, sweating, constipation, etc. Sudden discontinuation symptoms (e.g. irritability, anxiety, nausea) usually appear if the drug is stopped abruptly. suddenly. Tricyclic antidepressants: This group often causes side effects such as dry mouth, constipation, blurred vision, urinary retention, dizziness, tachycardia, memory impairment, low blood pressure, confusion. Sexual dysfunction... Common side effects of MAOIs: Postural hypotension, weight gain, sexual dysfunction, dangerous interactions with other drugs... Non-specific group : Causes side effects such as dry mouth, constipation, dizziness, sedation, low blood pressure... Next, is taking antidepressants addictive? This is something that people are very worried about when taking antidepressants. When treating depression, the use of antidepressants must be prolonged and should not be stopped suddenly. With serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors group, it can cause some symptoms if stopped suddenly such as irritability, insomnia, restlessness...however to limit the situation This only requires gradually reducing the dose before stopping the drug.
Antidepressants do not cause addiction. The use of the drug must be used for a long time because that is enough to help relieve symptoms. In addition, after some people stop taking the drug, the risk of relapse of depression is due to the patient's own risk of relapse, not because of drug addiction that causes depression to relapse. This you need to understand, if the disease recurs, the disease may be more severe and need to use a higher dose of medicine to control the disease, but it does not mean that you are used to or addicted to the drug. Many people have to take the drug for many years at the right dose, because stopping can lead to relapse and worsening of symptoms.

To use drugs safely and effectively, you need to note the following:
You need to know that depression needs treatment if it's mild, then it's treated with non-drug therapy, but if it's more severe, it needs to be treated with drugs and should be strictly controlled to limit undue influence. Do not self-medicate, but consult a doctor for the best guidance. This is a medical treatment and needs to be prescribed by a qualified doctor. You need to be consulted about side effects and tell your doctor if side effects occur. In particular, in the first period of use, the patient may experience the most serious side effects, the most serious is thinking about suicide more. If your loved one also suffers from depression and is taking highly effective medication. There's a good chance you're a good fit for that drug as well, but a dose adjustment may be needed. You can tell this to your doctor. During drug treatment, you should combine it with psychotherapy, change lifestyle habits and reduce stress to avoid recurrence and aggravation of the disease. Drug Interactions: Many other drugs can cause interactions when taken with antidepressants. Therefore, when taking medicines you need to tell your doctor about other medicines you take, including over-the-counter medicines, prescription drugs or herbal products. If you are pregnant and breastfeeding, you also need to talk to your doctor so that you can choose the right medicine. In particular, if you are taking medication and become pregnant, call your doctor right away for advice. Do not suddenly stop taking the drug: The drug needs to be used exactly as prescribed, you must not stop taking it during treatment. Because it can cause some unusual symptoms if stopped suddenly and it is important that if stopped suddenly, the condition will be difficult to control, the risk of depression will increase. For people with underlying medical conditions: should be checked regularly and if liver and kidney disease should be used the lowest effective drug to reduce the risk of liver and kidney toxicity. Periodic follow-up: This is very necessary when taking medication, helping the doctor to assess the response to the drug and whether the symptoms of the disease have improved or not. Hopefully, with the information of the article, you know whether taking antidepressants is addictive or not and what to watch out for when taking antidepressants.