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476654 tn?1207852799

Fish oil for depression?

I am considering going off Lexapro due to wight gain after only 4 months. I found a post and can't find it again about taking Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega Capsules (fish oil) as a form of therapy for depression & anxiety. Has anyone else tried this and had success?
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Avatar universal
I suffered from PPD...and I didn't like the thought of taking prescription medications that I may or may not be able to 'get off' of easily...so I went with a high dose of Omegas & high dose of vitamin Bs.....I felt like it helped a lot FOR ME...and I've recommended it to others...not sure if it's as strong as lex or other prescription medications, but if you can wean yourself down to a lower dose and then switch, it might be helpful...what does your doctor say about it???
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Avatar universal
Hi there,

Fish oil is one of very few non med products I don't write off. I know it helps with knee pain in tablet form and have read that it does help with depression. I haven't had it as I'm OK on my meds for now.

One thing I would say is that if you are switching meds for any reason other than mental health then you are making a mistake. Weight gain is not the result of a med. It is the result of a depressive lifestyle where we move little and eat too much and the wrong thing, always. We don't exercise. But the med does not add weight, we do.

If the med is helping your mental health why go off it? It's so hard to find meds that do help I can only say you'll regret it in time. Hope I'm wrong, truly do.
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1025200 tn?1263690350
Ok, I am a college grad student who has recently come back to school for another degree, and I use fish oil for anxiety- I am horrible with people my own age or older. I am fine with the kids I work with, but my age and older- ugh! Anyways, I take effexor and fish oil (used to take lexapro, it was tough getting off trust me), and I would say stay on it, and add the fish oil. Maybe consider getting the dose lowered.
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432009 tn?1304749841
I'm currently taking 1,000 mg. of Omega 3 in fish oil supplements. I can't say yet if it's helping, as it hasn't been a month yet. Just be sure to use a pharmaceutical grade that has the highest level of purity - re: mercury levels, etc.

If you want to see a reputable rating of all of the current fish oil supplements sold, visit the environmental defense league's site on fish oil supplements. They reviewed all of them. This is a reputable group - it's a non-profit, the info. is available free, and you'll find many products available that passed the test for purity.

Good luck,
-xan-
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424549 tn?1308515502
Oh no! I'm sorry you lost your post. It's so easy to focus on the first page. I'm sure it is out there somewhere. I'm glad you repeat your question!

I know fish oil, Omega 3, works pretty well. It does at least strengthen the immune system. Now depression can come of lower levels of B6, B12 and C-vitamins too so I'd add a multivitamin too.

I wish you great luck!
Do check back,

Florena
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