Nearly half of patients on all types of monoaminergic antidepressants report emotional blunting,6 and it is associated with serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) therapy as follows: among 161 patients, 46% reported a narrowed range of affect, 21% reported an inability to cry, and 19% reported apathy.
On antidepressant medication, it is possible that you might experience a sense of feeling numb and less like yourself. Though the symptoms of depression have decreased, there may be a sense that other emotional responses – laughing or crying, for example – are more difficult to experience.
We have reported 7 cases in which patients treated with a diverse range of SSRIs presented with an inability to cry after several weeks of treatment, even when distressed and in situation which would normally lead to crying.
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. In research studies, most antidepressants worked better than a placebo (sham treatment).
There's a paradoxical period when a person first starts an antidepressant: they may actually begin to feel worse before feeling better. The underlying cause of this phenomenon is a bit of a mystery, but a new study from researchers at Otto-von-Guericke University in Germany explains why this might occur.
When first starting antidepressants, some people have mild stomach upset, headache or fatigue, but these side effects often diminish in the first few weeks as the body adjusts. Some people gain weight, though many stay “weight neutral,” and some even lose weight, Dr. Cox says.
1 Day – On the first day of taking an antidepressant medication, most people will feel nothing at all. Some will notice side effects like nausea or vomiting that could be mild. 1 Week – One week in, people are more likely to note some other side effects like sleeping problems, diarrhea, dry mouth, and sexual problems.
Treating Uncontrollable Crying
PBA may be treated with low doses of tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as citalopram or fluoxetine.
Research suggests that antidepressants can be helpful for people with moderate or severe depression. They're not usually recommended for mild depression, unless other treatments like talking therapy have not helped.
There is new reason to be cautious about using popular antidepressants in people who are not really depressed. For the first time, research has shown that a widely used antidepressant may cause subtle changes in brain structure and function when taken by those who are not depressed.
One of the widely-reported side effects of SSRIs is 'blunting', where patients report feeling emotionally dull and no longer finding things as pleasurable as they used to. Between 40-60% of patients taking SSRIs are believed to experience this side effect.
A common complaint among men using antidepressants is delayed ejaculation or difficulty reaching orgasm. This because the SSRIs or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors used in antidepressants influence the neurotransmitters in the brain, causing a delay in ejaculation.
Some data suggest that SSRIs may also lessen negativity by calming the amygdala, a brain region that governs fear, among other emotions.
Because SSRIs cause more serotonin to remain in circulation in the brain, the individual experiences less depressive symptoms. In fact, many people report feeling completely back to normal when taking these medications.
Headaches, stomach upsets, numbness, insomnia, wanting to sleep more, feeling detached from reality, loss of concentration or memory problems may be typical symptoms of depression, but were also identified as side effects of the medicines (see 'Coping with antidepressant side effects').
It's thought that antidepressants work by increasing neurotransmitters. These are chemicals in the brain like serotonin and noradrenaline. They can improve mood and emotion, although this process isn't fully understood. Increasing levels of neurotransmitters can also disrupt pain signals sent by nerves.
How do I know if my antidepressant works? When you start taking an antidepressant, you should begin to function better in your daily life before you start feeling better, says Dr. Michael McGee. In other words, you should begin sleeping better, eating better, and having more energy.
Emotional symptoms associated with low serotonin include: Social withdrawal. Sadness and frequent crying spells. Low self-esteem and self-confidence.
NEXT time a sentimental movie makes you cry, blame your serotonin levels. Differences in the neurotransmitter might explain why some people are more prone to crying in emotional situations than others.
Dextromethorphan and quinidine combine to treat uncontrollable and frequent episodes of laughing and/or crying caused by pseudobulbar affect. This medication comes in a capsule form. You take it by mouth with a glass of water as directed. If it upsets your stomach, take it with food.
It can take a while for people to adjust to a new antidepressant and sometimes side effects can disrupt everyday life. Getting up to go to work each day can feel impossible. Several people we interviewed had sleep problems in the first few weeks and found it difficult to think or concentrate.
Clinicians generally recommend staying on the medication for six to nine months before considering going off antidepressants.
“It appears that SSRI antidepressants rewire areas of the brain that are important for thinking and feeling, as well as operating the autonomic nervous system,” said Koliatsos. Axons are long, filament-shaped extensions of neurons that, together with myelin, are the main constituents of nerves.