While antidepressants can treat your symptoms without therapy, taking them without therapy may not be the best option for your mental health in the long run.
Many antidepressants can be prescribed by your GP, but some types can only be used under the supervision of a mental health professional. If the depression does not respond to antidepressants alone, other treatments such as CBT may also be used to help achieve better results.
Most antidepressants boost mood and reduce depression symptoms by elevating serotonin levels in the brain. Although this is beneficial for someone who's depressed, for someone who does not have depression, taking antidepressant medication can cause serotonin to build up in the body, resulting in serotonin syndrome.
For many the right medication can be helpful. However, while medications can reduce the symptoms of depression and anxiety, they won't “fix” whatever else has been going on in your life that is adversely affecting your mood.
For anxiety disorders, cognitive-behavioral therapy, antidepressant medications and anti-anxiety medications have all been shown to be helpful. Research generally shows that psychotherapy is more effective than medications, and that adding medications does not significantly improve outcomes from psychotherapy alone.
Treatment for depression
Antidepressant medications can be helpful for reducing depression symptoms in some people, especially in people with severe depression. Psychotherapy is also an effective treatment, either alone or in combination with medications.
41% of patients respond to psychotherapy for depression, compared with 17% in usual care. About one third of patients remit in therapies, compared with 9%–17% in control conditions. Most patients do not respond or remit after therapy, and more effective treatments are clearly needed.
For people with chronic or severe depression, medication may be needed on a long-term basis. In these cases, antidepressants are often taken indefinitely. That is, in part, because depression is not an illness that can be cured.
(If a person who isn't depressed takes antidepressants, they do not improve that person's mood or functioning - it's not a "happy pill.") Rarely, people experience apathy or loss of emotions while on certain antidepressants. When this happens, lowering the dose or switching to a different antidepressant may help.
Antidepressants can remove a lot of the stress and costs of scheduling and attending therapy. Another benefit involves the effects of antidepressants on the chemicals in your brain, called neurotransmitters. Serotonin-specific medications may help regulate the levels of these chemicals.
When you're benefiting from antidepressants, you should feel: A mood that is less depressed, less irritable, happier, and more content.
Perhaps the fundamental reason why antidepressants are so widely prescribed and used is that they fit with the 'medical model' of mental illness, which has become the standard view in western culture. This model sees depression as a medical condition which can be “fixed” in the same way as a physical injury or illness.
In order to take anxiety medication, you need a prescription from a licensed healthcare professional. Depending on the medication, you may be able to meet with a provider through telehealth. Some medications can be safely prescribed this way.
Antidepressants may work best for moderate to severe depression. Antidepressants seem to work well for many people with depression — especially if you have moderate to severe symptoms.
People often hesitate to take antidepressants because they're afraid of the side effects or of becoming dependent on the medication. But unlike many sleeping pills and sedatives, antidepressants don't lead to physical dependence or addiction.
They help with emotional balance and reduce symptoms like restlessness, anxiety and suicidal thoughts. As antidepressants work to help treat your depression, they, in turn, can help you sleep better. Depression can sometimes make it difficult to fall asleep or to stay asleep.
It's usually recommended that a course of antidepressants continues for at least 6 months after you feel better, to prevent your condition recurring when you stop. Some people with recurrent illness are advised to carry on taking medicine indefinitely.
Specifically, weight gain seems to be a common long-term risk, especially the medications that affect serotonin levels. This could be because serotonin is associated with an increase in appetite. There is also a risk of higher blood sugar levels and diabetes with taking antidepressants long-term.
Some research has suggested this type of drug aids in neuroplasticity. In other words, these drugs can affect how our minds organize and form synaptic connections. Other researchers believe this type of medication has no long-term effects on our brains once the individual stops using the drug.
So how long does it typically take for treatment to work? Recent research indicates that on average 15 to 20 sessions are required for 50 percent of patients to recover as indicated by self-reported symptom measures.
The number of recommended sessions varies by condition and treatment type, however, the majority of psychotherapy clients report feeling better after 3 months; those with depression and anxiety experience significant improvement after short and longer time frames, 1-2 months & 3-4.
Having more than eight sessions does not confer any additional benefit. Indeed, there is little difference between 1-5 sessions and more than eight sessions for depression. For anxiety, symptoms appear to continue to improve with increasing numbers of treatment sessions.