The Student Room Group

How depressed do you have to be to be allowed anti-depressants?

I've asked a couple of doctors for some, but they've always refused and just put me on a long waiting list for counselling. So I'm wondering what is the sort of criteria you need to meet to be allowed them? Do you have to be very low functioning and feeling suicidal or something?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1
bump
Reply 2
Have you tried councilling?
Reply 3
Original post by nash_4_lyf
Have you tried councilling?


Counselling you mean? Once in the past, but I didn't get round to saying much, and then trying to organise a 2nd appointment turned out a headache, so I left it for a couple of years. Now I've decided to try again and I'm on a long waiting list.
when my doctor gave me medication I was unable to function, I had strong physical pains and I was feeling suicidal. Why are you so sure that you need anti-depresants?
Reply 5
I went to my GP, explained how I was feeling, was referred to a counsellor.
A month later there was no improvement so I went back and asked to be put on anti-depressants and she prescribed me citalopram. (This was yesterday)
They'll make you talk to a counselling or go to group help meetings and if nothing improved then they'll think about putting you on anti-depressants but it'll take about a year before you can go on them.

You have to be older than 18 and it's the last option because it can have bad side effects :/.
I would really consider doing counselling, they'll find what is wrong. Such as low self-esteem or a loss in family then you can go to a class on it. It helps A LOT. I was lucky and I got analysed a few days after going to the doctor, NHS did me good.
Reply 7
Original post by Anonymous
Counselling you mean? Once in the past, but I didn't get round to saying much, and then trying to organise a 2nd appointment turned out a headache, so I left it for a couple of years. Now I've decided to try again and I'm on a long waiting list.


Typo.

Do you think counselling or drugs will help you better? Bare in mind drugs treat the symptoms not the cause. Counselling finds the root of the problem.
Reply 8
Original post by Anonymous
when my doctor gave me medication I was unable to function, I had strong physical pains and I was feeling suicidal. Why are you so sure that you need anti-depresants?


I'm not sure. I just want something to stop these constant low moods that have taken over me.

Original post by nash_4_lyf
Typo.

Do you think counselling or drugs will help you better? Bare in mind drugs treat the symptoms not the cause. Counselling finds the root of the problem.


I don't know. The counselling service I've been assigned to doesn't seem very reliable, as I have to wait around 6 months for an appointment, and then they often cancel and change the date which is annoying. I guess I'll just have to keep waiting and hoping.
I would suggest you go to therapy first.Antidepressants may have side-effects if you are not actually depressed.
Anti-depressants don't help a lot of people, and especially now with the development of IAPT services there is more focus on offering counselling as an option. Once you start taking medication it can be years before you come off it, and they may just want to see if counselling helps at all first. Anti-depressants aren't a quick-fix and if the doctors decided not to prescribe them, they must believe they are not the right treatment for you at this point.
They give you counselling cos it can be long term, although this ends up being mroe expesnive and harder for the aptient than popping a pill every day. But with some drugs you get the revolving-door-phenomenon and other have side affects. Drugs that cna only be taken for a few weeks cure you during, but at the end, you feel depressed again, so a few days after, you go back to the docs and the process starts again. Other drugs have side-affects which may give you worse symptoms than depression. Some how my grandads depression medicine mentioned suicidal thoughts as a side affect :lolwut: But counselling can give you a brighter outlook on life and actually challenge the cause of the depression rather than jsut treating the symptoms.

:h: And who says a-level psychology is worthless.
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 12
i think it all depends on how severe the doctor think you are , there's no standard line or ways of how anti-depressent will be prescrible .

please note there are major difference between low mood and depressed . counselling normally helped people with mild-moderate case of depression effectivetly .

anti-depressent often come with side effect and you might have to tried a few one to work . the chances are anti-depressent dont work as well alone without other sort of counselling or thearpy .even with anti-depressent , it will take a while (2-4 weeks )to start to work .

Do you think there's a main cause for your depression ? if so , maybe counselling is worth waiting for . all mental health service is in high right now to be fair , and normally people have to wait for a while for 1-1 service .

by the main time of waiting , maybe it is good to complete some self help activity . try doing some art or writing . it might help to express your feeling. excercise, good sleeping pattern and balance diet also help a lot in depression (good for your health as well :P )

Good luck , take care .

Have your GP give you some advice on how to improved your mood??
The first time I went to see the doctor for depression was last March. She asked me to complete a survey, but I couldn't even judge my own emotions, so it was really difficult to answer the questions. I felt like a zombie, so she tried to prescribe me with anti-depressants, but I said no.

I'm going to quote my friend's mother now. She said that anti-depressants don't magically make everything disappear. You can't treat it like a magical saviour pill that will make rainbows come out of your butt. If anything, it turned her into more of a zombie than ever.

Different people react differently to the medication, but you should try everything else first, then use the pills as a last resort.
My doctor basically chucked them at me. Irresponsible. They messed me up big time. But everyone has different experiences with them. But it was awful how lax my GP was about handing them out. IN fact at one stage he gave me two different types to have at once.
Original post by katebrighteyes
My doctor basically chucked them at me. Irresponsible. They messed me up big time. But everyone has different experiences with them. But it was awful how lax my GP was about handing them out. IN fact at one stage he gave me two different types to have at once.


My doctor has done the exact same thing just this morning.

I think it's best to try all other options first, rather thank just necking tablets and hoping for a quick fix.
Good luck, and I hope you start to feel better soon :smile:
Original post by KlaireDelilah
My doctor has done the exact same thing just this morning.

I think it's best to try all other options first, rather thank just necking tablets and hoping for a quick fix.
Good luck, and I hope you start to feel better soon :smile:


Mine didn't even do the standard survey they're meant to.

For me the tablets only made things worse. This isn't me saying that applies to everyone at all. But they weren't helpful for me. I don't want to feel depressed but I don't want to not feel at all. It was a nightmare. But I was a silly person and started halving my dose (40mg citalopram to 20mg in a day...) and then halving more and more. I eventually went loopy to the extent that I couldn't leave my room, I couldn't function. I was getting sick consistently and was genuinely insane. My boyfriend tried to get me sectioned.

Basically, doctors needs to be more careful. And I know it was my fault...they NEED to be more focused on what people on these pill are doing with them. Guidance and care.
You have to meet a certain criteria. I you need them your GP should refer you to a mental health service such as CAMHS, and from there they will assess you. If they feel that you are depressed or are showing severe symptoms, they will further refer you to a psychiatrist who will ask some questions and if he feels you need them he will prescribe you with anti depressants.
I got some pretty quickly. Most doctors are very strict on them and tend to just refer people to CBT instead.

They helped a little, but then again, CBT did **** all. It's basically six weeks of "and why do you think this? and why do you think that? and is there any evidence for this belief?"

(which is useless tbh because if a severely depressed person believes everyone hates them, then they'll find evidence to support that, even if a completely healthy and rational outsider couldn't find any)

But that's for another time.
From what I've seen doctors seem to dish out citalopram like it's candy. I knew a girl at uni who was stressed about exams, broke down crying during a lecture and got put on it and as far as I know is still taking it (2 years later) . It's not something you should want to be on, it doesn't make you 'happy', if anything it just makes you numb. If you can come to a solution by talking through your problems that's a much better alternative. It sucks that the NHS just sweeps so many mental health issues under the carpet with drugs and can't meet the demand for counselling and psychotherapy.

Quick Reply