I have found that, despite what many folks believe, antidepressants are one of the most difficult medications to wean off with patients. However, I have been successful getting patients off of antidepressants by going very slowly and using a variety of other holistic interventions.

Thousands, perhaps millions, of people who try to quit antidepressant drugs experience stinging withdrawal symptoms that last for months to years: insomnia, surges of anxiety, even so-called brain zaps, sensations of electric shock in the brain.

But doctors have dismissed or downplayed such symptoms, often attributing them to the recurrence of underlying mood problems.

The striking contrast between the patients’ experience and their doctors’ judgment has stirred heated debate in Britain, where last year the president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists publicly denied claims of lasting withdrawal in “the vast majority of patients.”

Continue Reading this Article by Benedict Carey for the NY Times

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