Stopping antidepressant treatment
Antidepressants are not addictive but stopping taking them, especially if you stop suddenly, can lead to unpleasant discontinuation effects.
Therefore, you should talk to your doctor before stopping your medication and you should not come off the medication suddenly. When you stop taking any medication it may cause new unpleasant symptoms or it may lead to increased symptoms of depression. Each person's experience is unique and some people will have no discontinuation effects at all.
Stopping a TCA suddenly can cause a wide range of symptoms, such as:
Commonly:
sweating
nausea
headaches
insomnia
excessive dreaming
Occasionally:
movement disorders
feeling and acting high
abnormal heart rhythm.
Stopping SSRIs can cause a wide range of symptoms, such as:
Commonly:
dizziness
nausea
headaches
sweating
irritability
insomnia
Occasionally:
movement disorders
memory problems.
Stopping MAOIS can cause a wide range of symptoms, such as:
Commonly:
agitation
movement disorders
insomnia
vivid dreams
slowed or rapid speech
irritability
insomnia
Occasionally:
hallucinations
delusions.
It is important to remember that different people will experience different symptoms when they stop taking any drug. Some people may have no effects, whilst others may have many. According to the Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines, the most symptoms at discontinuation occur with paroxetine (Seroxat) and the fewest occur with fluoxetine (Prozac). But each person's experience is unique.
