You may be wondering ‘do I need antidepressants?’ or ‘do antidepressants work?’
We have put together some things to consider about taking medications for depression:
- Antidepressants can be very helpful if prescribed well and used correctly. In the UK, doctors should decide whether to prescribe you antidepressants based upon certain clinical guidelines. Generally it is not recommended that you take antidepressants for stress problems or mild levels of depression. In these cases a psychological therapy like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) that we offer is likely to be more useful to you. This is especially the case if you have not experienced depression in the past.
- For moderate levels of depression, or if you have experienced episodes of depression in the past your doctor is likely to recommend a combination of an antidepressant and CBT or similar therapy.
- If you are more severely depressed and previous antidepressants haven’t helped then your doctor may consider a range of different types of antidepressants and may suggest a combination of antidepressant medications often with psychological therapy such as CBT or Behavioural Activation Therapy.
- It’s important to remember that antidepressants don’t start to work immediately, but can take between 4-6 weeks to take effect. That’s why it is important to take them regularly and consistently if you have been prescribed them.
- There is a myth that you can receive either medication for your depression, or therapy. This certainly isn’t the case, and most good therapists and doctors recognise that getting you the right combination of these is the most important thing.
We work closely with independent GPs and consultant psychiatrists, which means that if you are concerned about your medication and therapy we can help get you the best course of treatment for your current needs.
Contact us today and see how we can help…
