So I’ve probably started this thread before… but can someone tell me they’ve had some success with an anti-depressant? I would really love to hear some good news. I know it’s hard to condone using one, but I feel like I need something to kill the depression. Anyone? A PM or response here would help tremendously. If you’ve experienced a worsening of your condition in anyway with an SSRI, that would be useful to me too. I’d like to weigh the pros and cons. I would also like to add that I think I always had low-lying depression. I had bouts long before Propecia, and it runs in my family. If it is indeed a genetic thing, do you think it could help me in this case? (I know, all we can do is speculate) Thanks.
Stay away of it as far as you can! It causes the same Problems like Propecia. Just google PSSD.
Try Omega 3 fish oils for depression, before turning to pharmaceuticals:
thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/8/4/410.pdf
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1892224/
soundhealthchiropractic.com/uploads/Article_08-10._Omega-3_Fatty_Acids_Upregulate_Adult_Neurogenesis.pdf
inflammationresearchfoundation.org/UserContent/UserFiles/J%20Neurosurgery-2011%20for%20IRF.pdf
I was on an SSRI due to obsessive compulsive disorder and depression long before I tried finasteride
I felt that the SSRI coupled with counseling brought be back from the brink of suicide
I took finasteride, quit, and recovered several times while on the SSRI as well, but obviously have never recovered after quitting dutasteride.
I’m not saying that they are completely safe for everyone, but I have never noticed any worsening of symptoms or anything while taking one
That being said, I haven’t regularly taken my med since this nightmare began. After I quit dut I moved abroad, where it was considerably harder to get the medicine, so i barely take any anymore and not a single pill since maybe 4 months ago.
I do get anxiety attacks thinking about what dutasteride did to me that i can feel in the pit of my stomach
During both semi recoveries i have had in the last year, i had taken an SSRI just before or just after the recovery set in
Maybe there is a pattern somewhere there, maybe not
I think they are a good idea, but I’m probably starting with psychotherapy. Theoretically, it should remove the side effects, boost testosterone and do tons of other good stuff. You just have to live through the sluggish feeling you get on the first weeks of therapy. It will subside.
There’s no way you get as strong effect with fish oil.
@Frustrated I’m here for short a course of ssri not fin,most common antidepressants are strong antiandrogens… sage is another story but we don’t know yet how can affect us and in wich ways.
Look all Im saying is after 7 years with PFS, and no improvements, I have accepted to take control and focus on quality of life rather than waiting it out and nothing improving.
Antidepressant help? Why yes, it can alleviate brain fog, if you are more concerned about your sex life i don’t know what to tell you, but I could not live as a zombie with brain fog any longer. I had to rejoin my family and friends in this life and step away from PFS hell. Thats my choice and experience. Best of luck.
you must be new here.
anti-depressants also give us the same side effects potentially. many members here have the same symptoms from taking those drugs.
great advice
@lakehouse - @scaredoutofmymind is not new here. He pre-dates many of us. If an antidepressant helps the guy, you can’t knock him for that. He may have found something that thankfully works for his situation and body chemistry. I consider him lucky if that’s the case.
1 Like
i never told him to stop using it.
the fact is antidepressants have landed people in this hell hole and he was encouraging people to try it
I would give any amount of money to take nothing and FEEL OK. So I sympathize with waiting it out and letting things heal. I couldn’t suffer any longer mentally. Good Luck to you
1 Like
Do you get any sides with your antidepressants?
1 Like
Even if he were encouraging people to use SSRIs, I don’t really have a problem with it. It is a personal choice for everybody.
I don’t tell people that finasteride is the devil and nobody should try it. I think it probably does even more harm than we realize but I advocate for patients to make their own informed and rational decisions. Some guys are so desperately dependent on their hair and appearance, for some legitimate reasons, that it might be worth it for them to take an informed risk. It’s not for me to say. In my experience, that type of balanced approach helps people steer clear of finasteride more effectively than making them fear the drug.
As for SSRIs, I think they can potentially offer a lot of benefit and unfortunately, as we see on this forum, it can cause big problems in a minority of people. If we already have PFS, can SSRIs make us worse or are we already protected? We don’t know this answer so that is a risk one has to think about. But taking a risk to cure your mental health often makes so much more sense than for cosmetic reasons in my opinion. I wouldn’t want anybody to be too traumatized to even consider an option that made make their quality of life that much better.
SSRI and finasteride are both antiandrogens they do and act in very similar ways,nothing personal but isn’t either a great advice to be tollerant about “choices” ,i’m in this mess thanks for nine days only on SSRI.
1 Like
I am very sorry about your horrible reaction to an SSRI. Do you have just sexual dysfunction or other symptoms as well? Even though it does cause very bad damage to a very small group of people, doesn’t mean it can’t help others. There are some people that might be suffering so much that it is worth it for them try because the chances of them getting worse from an SSRI seem like they’re very low but the chances of improvement are likely much higher.
I’ve tried SSRIs for myself and they didn’t work at all, but my experience or yours won’t necessarily be the experience for everybody.
I really do hope you reconsider this statement. People say the same about Accutane in the context of severe acne and nearly identical comments about finasteride are posted on hair loss forums. If you are of the opinion that for some, there is nothing left to lose, then I still ask you to reconsider this view. I got burnt by thinking that way. IMO, there is always something left to lose and things can always get worse.
There is also the question of efficacy of SSRI medications, as a recent Cochrane review found only a slight benefit over placebo. Are you potentially trading something for nothing in the event you are in the rare minority?
My personal experience with an SSRI was transient worsening of sexual and mental symptoms of PAS and development of brain fog and derealization that wasn’t present prior to taking it.
2 Likes
a finasteride victim taking an ssri is basically like getting PFS and then taking finasteride again
you dont have a problem with that? okay
That’s the thing. There are a few people on this site who say their SSRI use is worth it and some on the PSSD forum continue to take risks with other SSRIs. This is a bit of a gray area, but that point has been made.
1 Like