all meds 4-6 weeks?
in [Medication]
|
From: paulfoel on 7 Feb 2006 10:23 Are there any AD meds which work more quickly than the standard 4-6 weeks?
From: bluemoon on 7 Feb 2006 10:26 paulfoel wrote: > Are there any AD meds which work more quickly than the standard 4-6 > weeks? > Not that I'm aware of.
From: radiohead on 7 Feb 2006 12:57 the only one im aware of is a maoi called parnate. alot of people who take it get a stimulating effect right away. it can cause a mild euphoria so i guess thats why it works so fast. i think it still takes about 2 weeks for the full antidepressant effects to kick in though.
From: Cassandra on 7 Feb 2006 13:43 Wellbutrin tends to work faster than that, on average, if it's going to work at all. And everyone is different, and every depression is probably somewhat unique. These days, premenstrual dysphoria is often treated with a few days of Paxil, just three or four days worth, and that seems to work, which makes me think maybe it can help earlier for depression as well, in some people. Also, most drugs out there now will effect different symptoms on a different schedule, so that Effexor, for instance, will often ease anxiety earlier in treatment than it does depression. And, of course, your mileage will vary. Some people are aware of effects earlier than others; it will take longer than 4-6 weeks if you haven't hit the sweet spot dosewise yet; and never underestimate the power of placebo effect -- sometimes the placebo effect can carry you through until the drug actually starts working. Hope that helps.
From: Nom dePlume on 7 Feb 2006 22:18
"paulfoel" <BertieBigBollox(a)gmail.com> wrote in message news:1139325825.405562.259120(a)g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com... > Are there any AD meds which work more quickly than the standard 4-6 > weeks? Yes, there are. The speed with which they take effect depends on a few things. The neurotransmitter affected by the medication makes a big difference. Serotonergic medications (those that increase serotonin, like Prozac) tend to take 2-4 weeks to produce a noticeable improvement, and longer, of course, for maximum benefit. The current belief is that the time lag between dose and effect is due to the time it takes for new serotonin receptors to form in the brain, as lab tests (on rodents, not people) show that these medications do stimulate such growth. The hypothesis is that the mood improvement is not due directly to the increase in serotonin (which happens within hours of starting the drug), but to the growth of serotonin receptors stimulated by the increase in serotonin. That's the party line, and it seems to be a reasonably good one. However, there are exceptions. Some people really do respond within a couple of days, or even hours, to serotonergic medications. I would guess that these folks have enough serotonin receptors already, but not enough serotonin, but that is only my guess. Bottom line: Serotonergic medications usually require 2-4 weeks to produce noticeable benefits, but a small minority of people experience benefits within hours to days. Now, antidepressants which affect norepinephrine (noradrenergic medications) or dopamine (dopaminergic medications) can produce results quickly, within hours or days. In this case, it seems pretty clear that the increase in neurotransmitter concentration affects mood directly. There aren't very many "official" antidepressants in this category, and the only well-known one is Wellbutrin. Selegiline, a much less well-known medication, is another. Both of these cause increases in norepinephrine and dopamine. When it comes to medications that affect serotonin and one or more additional neurotransmitters, like Effexor, Cymbalta, or Parnate, you can't really predict how long it will take to notice benefits, because you don't know which of the affected neurotransmitters is going to help. If the benefit comes mostly from norepinephrine, you might notice great improvements quickly. If it comes mostly from serotonin, the usual 2-4 week rule applies. If you get benefits from both, then you'll notice some benefits quickly, and others more slowly. -- Nom dePlume, Ph.D. Why, yes, in fact, I am a rocket scientist. Guide to Medications for Mental Illness: http://www.geocities.com/nomdeplume1000/ ===== |