The Positive and Negative Experiences of 342 Antidepressant Users

Read, John; Grigoriu, Mihaela; Gee, Aimee; Diggle, Jacob; Butler, Helen

doi:10.1007/s10597-019-00535-0

Cited by 11 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…What is overwhelming obvious, however, is the dominance of women in both the group membership and the administrator and moderator communities. Other studies have found similar female:male ratios in patient populations, for example, 70.8% female, 44 76% female, 45 and 66.9% female. 46 One possible explanation of this female dominance may be due to prescribing rates.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

“…Like venlafaxine and paroxetine, duloxetine has a short half-life, which does make it harder to withdraw from. 11,19,42–44 However, it is possible the group membership numbers attributable to the different medications are simply an artifact of the way the Facebook searches were executed in this study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is clear, however, that the longer patients take these medications, the more severe the withdrawal symptoms they may experience and the more difficult and protracted their withdrawal experience may be. 20,42,44,49 Hence, far greater investment is required in terms of coaching patients and guiding them through a process that can be difficult and complicated and, for some, unpredictable and debilitating if completed too quickly. 14 Fully informed consent is crucial and currently severely lacking, 50,51 as most of the people who seek support from Facebook groups are questioning the diagnosis of their healthcare provider when withdrawal symptoms emerge.…”

Section: Why Do These Groups Exist and What Is Their Context In The Antidepressant Withdrawal Issue?mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The role of Facebook groups in the management and raising of awareness of antidepressant withdrawal: is social media filling the void left by health services?

White¹,

Read

Julo³

2021

Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology

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Background: Antidepressant withdrawal is experienced by about half of people who try to reduce or come off their medication. It can be a debilitating, long lasting process. Many clinicians misdiagnose or minimise symptoms, inadvertently prolonging suffering. Most are unable to help patients safely taper off. There has been little research into the peer support communities that are playing an increasingly important role in helping people withdraw from psychiatric medications. Methods: To illustrate the growth and activities of Facebook withdrawal groups, we examined 13 such groups. All were raising awareness of, and supporting individuals tapering off, antidepressants and were followed for 13 months. A further three groups were added for the last 5 months of the study. Results: In June 2020, the groups had a total membership of 67,125, of which, 60,261 were in private groups. The increase in membership for the 13 groups over the study period was 28.4%. One group was examined in greater detail. Group membership was 82.5% female, as were 80% of the Administrators and Moderators, all of whom are lay volunteers. Membership was international but dominated (51.2%) by the United States (US). The most common reason for seeking out this group was failed clinician-led tapers. Discussion: The results are discussed in the context of research on the prevalence, duration and severity of antidepressant withdrawal. We question why so many patients seek help in peer-led Facebook groups, rather than relying on the clinicians that prescribed the medications. The withdrawal experiences of tens of thousands of people remain hidden in these groups where they receive support to taper when healthcare services should be responsible. Further research should focus on the methods of support and tapering protocols used in these groups to enable improved, more informed support by clinicians. Support from Governments and healthcare agencies is also needed, internationally, to address this issue.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Why Do These Groups Exist and What Is Their Context In The Antidepressant Withdrawal Issue?mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The role of Facebook groups in the management and raising of awareness of antidepressant withdrawal: is social media filling the void left by health services?

White¹,

Read

Julo³

2021

Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…The use of psychotropic medication is supported by the literature and many people experience benefits from taking these drugs through their control of distressing symptoms and experiences (Thompson et al, 2020;Read et al, 2020). A recent systematic review of qualitative studies conducted by Bjornestad et al (2020) found that there was general satisfaction with the use of antipsychotics in the short and medium term, but there was less satisfaction with their use over the long term.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental health service users experiences of medication discontinuation: a systematic review of qualitative studies

Keogh

Murphy

Doyle

et al. 2021

Journal of Mental Health

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Background: The use of psychotropic medication is often the first line of treatment for people with mental distress. However, many service users discontinue their prescribed medication, and little is known about their experiences or the reasons why they choose to stop taking medication.Aim: The aim of this review is to synthesize research literature focused on the experiences of people who decided to discontinue taking medication for their mental health problem.Methods: A systematic review of qualitative studies was conducted. Data bases were searched for qualitative research which explored participants' motivations for discontinuing medication and their experiences of the process.Results: Six themes were identified: 1) Taking medications: a loss of autonomy, 2) Discontinuing medication: a thought-out process, 3) Factors influencing the decision to discontinue medication, 4) Discontinuing medication: experiences of the process, 5) Outcomes of discontinuing medication, 6) Managing mental distress in the absence of medication. Conclusion:Service providers need to be aware that for some service user's psychotropic medication is not deemed a suitable treatment approach. Those who wish to discontinue medication need to be supported in the context of positive, therapeutic risk where their mental and physical health can be monitored and the likelihood of success increased.

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Assessing emotional blunting in a psychiatric population: Psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the Oxford Depression Questionnaire

Henriksson,

Fredell,

Sand

et al. 2023

Journal of Affective Disorders Reports

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The Positive and Negative Experiences of 342 Antidepressant Users

Cited by 11 publications

References 22 publications

The role of Facebook groups in the management and raising of awareness of antidepressant withdrawal: is social media filling the void left by health services?

The role of Facebook groups in the management and raising of awareness of antidepressant withdrawal: is social media filling the void left by health services?

Mental health service users experiences of medication discontinuation: a systematic review of qualitative studies

Assessing emotional blunting in a psychiatric population: Psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the Oxford Depression Questionnaire

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