Maybe you went on antidepressants after the death of a loved one, the loss of a job or the end of a relationship. Whatever the case, you’re feeling more emotionally stable and better equipped to face the world sans medication. There’s no rule book for when to go off antidepressants, and the reasons to do so are as varied as the patients who use them in the first place. The first course of action, though, is to figure out why you want to stop. Then start a conversation with your doctor, who can work with you to determine the best course of action. If you’ve been taking medication to manage your depression, there may come a time when you want to stop using it.
- Often this will happen in a couple of minutes, but it can take a bit longer.
- This means that the beads have a coating that allows the drug inside them to be released into the body slowly.
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- On the other hand, if you experience loss of appetite with depression, and your depression comes back after stopping antidepressants, you may also lose weight.
- However, it is best to work this out with your prescriber, so that they can prescribe the appropriate preparation and dose(s) for you.
- This can make it harder to tell if symptoms are due to withdrawal or the return of your original symptoms of anxiety or depression.
This may be one or two days for some antidepressants – or even after missing a single dose. The risk seems to be greater if you have taken a high dose for a long time. But it can happen if you have taken an antidepressant for just a short time too. It can also depend on the type of antidepressant you have been taking.
When to talk with a doctor
On the other hand, if you experience loss of appetite with depression, and your depression comes back after stopping antidepressants, you may also lose weight. By Nancy SchimelpfeningNancy Schimelpfening, MS is the administrator for the non-profit depression support group Depression Sanctuary. Nancy has a lifetime of experience with depression, experiencing firsthand how devastating this illness can be. Nancy Schimelpfening, MS is the administrator for the non-profit depression support group Depression Sanctuary. Talk to your clinician about the benefits and risks of antidepressants in your particular situation, and work with her or him in deciding whether (and when) to stop using them.
Treatments and self-care
If you are stopping your antidepressants after a short time, your prescriber might recommend that you do something like the example below. Here, you would reduce your current dose by approximately 50% every 2-4 weeks, and 6 steps to quit drinking on your own stop entirely once you were at a low dose. This can lead to you developing withdrawal symptoms and increase the chance of you becoming unwell again. They can be different for individual antidepressants (see Appendix 1).
Give antidepressants a chance
The amount of time it takes is different for everyone, and it will depend on which medication you take, how long you’ve been taking it, and if you’ve had side effects in the past. The time it will take to wean off your medication depends on your dose and how long you’ve been on the medication. The average amount of taper time is two to four weeks, but it varies based on two important factors.
Taper Off Slowly
Continuing to work with a mental health professional while you slowly taper off the medication may also help mitigate a relapse of depression symptoms. Harari only recommends stopping antidepressants abruptly when there is a clear medical reason to do so. To minimize the risk of antidepressant withdrawal, talk with your doctor before you stop taking an antidepressant. Your doctor may recommend that you how long does crack cocaine stay in your system gradually reduce the dose of your antidepressant for several weeks or more to allow your body to adapt to the absence of the medication. If depression or anxiety recurs after stopping an antidepressant, it is often a gradual process that slowly worsens over time. In contrast, symptoms related to antidepressant withdrawal tend to occur quickly (days rather than weeks) and slowly improve over time.