ssnri make me worse

[mrholmes]

I have suffered depression since I was 17. I am 48 now. I was first treated with Pamelor, and it worked perfectly with the exception of side effects (weight gain, dry mouth). I was then moved onto Prozac a decade later. Over the years my doctor has tried various other meds. I have kept a journal, and for some reason all ssnri class drugs make my depression horrifically worse;that is, a sense of dread and panic set in that is dark and horribly foreboding. I respond well to lexapro or celxa, but those cause my sexual drive to drop to a level that drives my wife nuts.

I wish I understood what and how these drugs worked and what is on the horizon for meds with less side effects.

[Paxiled]

I don't believe wellbutrin is an snri.  When the poster mentions ssnris, I'm confused -- there are snris and ssris and atypical antidepressants such as wellbutrin and others and tricylics and tetracyclics, but what's an ssnri?  Pamelor is a tricyclic.  Prozac is an ssri.  If you mean snri, such as Effexor and Cymbalta, these are very stimulating antidepressants (as is wellbutrin) and can cause anxiety because of that.  Lexapro and Celexa are very similar medications -- Lexapro is basically Celexa with some of it removed -- and these are ssris.  Sometimes you can get rid of the sexual side effects by adding a small dose of wellbutrin to them.  The question is, if you were on meds that worked, why were you switched?  Did they stop working?  Did the side effects become too much?  

[JGF25]

Have you tried Wellbutrin?  It is a SNRI.....