I had no idea that depression was supposed to be episodic. In my experience it's simply a state of being. I can laugh, smile, work, flirt, workout, play video games, and listen to music all while remaining in a depressive state. In my case I would say that happiness is more episodic than depression.

Last section was spot on. I definitely remember SSRI's improving mood but not suicidality, if only because the thought process shifted from "damn, this all sucks, I can't do anything," to "I can make a difference! I can kill myself today!"

I’ve had chronic major depressive disorder (diagnosed) and General Anxiety Disorder (diagnosed) since i was 13, I’m now 28 and I’ve never known life without it since. On and off medications (6 different types over the years) and none of it worked, Prozac made me mentally numb and not care about anyone or anything else, as a result the anxiety was improved, but i still had Self-deletion ideation. The closest I’ve gotten to finding happiness in the last 15 years was going to church and spending time in person with my best friend, which i no longer live near enough to hang out with.

I just took myself off of antidepressants that I was taking for 4 years for anxiety. I feel much more like myself (more talkative and fluid in convo) and am now taking buspirone for the anxiety. It turns out, being off of them allowed me to regain a lot of self awareness and I realized I have bipolar disorder (officially diagnosed TODAY). My anxiety symptoms on the other hand are very isolated to specific situations, and so I still feel iffy about basically being on medication all day every day. I would much rather be taking an as-needed benzodiazepine, but it is very difficult to get prescribed these now because doctors will treat you like you are a casual drug user and fear being sued.

Thanks for bringing up dual-diagnosis cases. So many people in my life tried to push me towards anti depressants even though they don’t work for me. Once I addressed my trauma in therapy my depression is virtually gone. I still get depressed for max 1 week at time about 2-3x year but my episodes are much shorter and way more manageable. I look at it now like an indication something needs adjustment in my life, meaning depression is not a “problem” for me it’s become a helpful reminder to check in on myself

I've had bipolar disorder for 18+ years. It boils down to stress. If I could live a life where I was never stressed out, mental illness would not be a problem for me. But, we do live in a society.

I'm a senior and have been through treatments. I found this to be very helpful, accurate, and well-explained. Thank you.

Bringing up the link between alcohol and depression is so important. I have quit drinking and it made such a positive impact on literally everything in my life, especially the depression symptoms. Thanks for what you do!

SSRI changed my life, it took a year and X months trying and error changing antidepressants every 2 months before finding the one that worked without side effects but once I found the one my life improved significantly, I finally have a decent hygiene and eat 3 times a day and started socializing again. Don't give up friends you can do this

My issue with antidepressants is that I feel like many doctors will throw it at any mental health issue without trying to get to the root cause of what's happening to you. I was put on SSRIs after suffering what was basically a nervous breakdown compounded by too much social media use, alcohol use, marijuana use, and being put in an environment in my college where I wasn't comfortable. The doctor looked at me for all of three minutes before deciding to put me on it. After being put on an antidepressant, I became manic and had thoughts of suicide. My mental issues only continued and (at least outwardly) seemed to get worse. This led, I believe, to years of depression and social withdrawal. That would have been a great time for me to learn about and adopt healthy coping habits, rather than thinking that my only salvation was through medical intervention. That being said, I wish there was a more coordinated effort in the healthcare system to keep you in therapy for a certain amount of time if you switch locations. The semester before everything came crashing down, I had been in therapy which seemed to be helping with the panic attacks I was having. Once I went back home for the summer I stopped going to therapy and fell back into my bad habits. Especially if you're an 18 year old kid like I was who was in denial about the fact that he needed to make changes, you're not going to take the initiative to find a therapist on your own. I wish that my university's counseling department had kept the therapy going during that crucial time.

Thanks! You make so much sense. And that you're brave enough to tell what you know is priceless! Please don't stop!

Thank you for the education. I have PTSD and night terrors. Never thought i would be dealing with this. The onset started when i got out of Military and many years of being on the front line in the medical field. I personally hate medications, but they worked it took time of course. Stopping the meds reverted back. I don't drink alcohol or do drugs especially with meds. My psych doc at VA is phenomenal. After a month or so of starting meds it helped you don't even realize. Great information.

I have a friend that thought she was asexual for until she was 25. She changed meds and she all of a sudden experienced sexual desire. This is a huge potential side effect.

The journey of finding what medications work for you was so damn difficult. I have ADHD and depression and going down the list of medications to find what works is so inefficient. It's literally a game of fuck around and find out and you're the test subject.

Thank you for this video! I really learned *a lot* from this. Clearly explained, including at what level of evidence or anecdotal evidence respectively we are for the different aspects of understanding SSRIs. Very helpful. A good friend has depression, and I was trying to understand a bit better what this means, and what treatment means. - For myself I am looking at ADHD, ASD, anxiety / GAD, trauma etc., maybe dysthymia, but not major depression / bipolar. I don’t expect SSRIs to be part of my treatment, but who knows - it helps with anxiety as well, right? But besides this, I believe we all could benefit from learning more about mental health and treatments in general, to understand and support each other better.

This summary was excellent to hear, I'm reminded of a particular lesson in causality from when I studied neuroscience in university. The professor said antidepressants and the chemical imbalance theory is like looking at Advil and saying headaches must be caused by an Advil deficiency, but that doesn't mean Advil is not an effective tool for helping headaches. Thanks for putting this out there with optimism, I may not like having to take SSRIs but they have 100% been a life saving medication for me.

Thank you for being a stand up psychiatrist with a well rounded perspective on mental health. The field needs more folks like you!

“In effect antidepressants are a means of modifying an individual's internal state in such a way as to enable him to tolerate social conditions that he would otherwise find intolerable.” -Theodore John Kazinsky

I had a traumatic childhood and have been depressed my whole life and there was nobody to even explain to me, that I am depressed and that this is not just the way I am. It took me years to eventually get to the the point where I was ready to admit my weakness and ask for help. I was prescribed SSRI's and after 32 years of being absolutely unable to function as a human being, it took 4 weeks to SSRI's to kick in and my life has changed completely. It led me to taking care of my mental health and I was diagnosed with severe ADHD. Now I am also on stimulants. This has been the healthiest I have every felt in my life. Every single aspect of my life has improved. And occasional negatives are absolute joke compared to what depression feels like. Things like video games just lost their appeal without any effort - so called "addiction" was a result of trying to numb the pain, and if anything I think video games saved my life, because the alternatives were much much worse. The only downside (which really isn't, just a consequence) is that I come to realize that I have never had a chance to really learn how to life a healthy sctructured life with healthy relationship. So I almost feel like a kid that learns to live, learns to manage time, learns to manage emotions, etc. Big part of the fear, was really fear of medication changing my perception, in other words changing who I am. And it's ironical, because if you would ask me before, I would love to not be myself, but that ego and inner self is the only things that is left in a endless pit of misery and hopelessness. You feel like this ego of yours is the only last thing left, as corrupted as it is. IN reality, my real self was in chains and abused all the time and now I have an opportunity to be myself without being in a constant sense of falling and trying to grab anything that flies past me and can give me any sense of relief. So to anyone who is scared to get help and get treatment, just do it. You real self wouldn't be scared to help someone you love and that someone should be you.

I am starting to remember the stuff I learned from high school in AP Psychology. I never finished that class, but thanks, Dr. K! I feel better knowing this information, and it was a lot easier to understand than just reading things up online which was a big consumer of time back then and even now.

You should talk about sexual dysfunction that results from ssri's, I have been off lexapro for around 2 years at this point and I am effectively asexual. Not only do I feel like I was lied to when I was told there are no irreversible side effects, but it has ruined multiple relationships. It isn't talked about enough, this part of my life has been stolen from me.

Congrats on hitting one million subscribers! As a fellow psychiatrist thank you for all the great information you provide. I’ve been following you for a while and incorporate ideas you present into my practice and it helps my patients. Keep up the great videos as you inspiring people to take charge of their mental health!

That was an awesome summary and review!! Thank you!

Thank you for providing some perspective on this... I'm currently more energetic and have had more guilt and sadness... Suffering quite a bit but this helps. Thank you 🙏

i cant stress enough how important your channel and work is. very glad youre doing all this. i wish you a good life

one psychiatrist wanted to put me on SSRis for depression and OCD but I've always had a feeling all my problems are ADHD related. I'm on stimulants now and I've never been more stable and content. it's so important that mental health professional don't just assume you're a 'regularly' depressed person. There's so many cases where sth else is at root

Very balanced, clear, contextualized and organized discussion of a loaded and complex topic. It takes a lot of discretion as consumers of KZfaq information, and I appreciate quality content like this. Well done and thank you.

I recently went to a Psychiatrist, after telling my psycologist I felt like I had depression, and was diagnosed with a sleeping disorder and an anxiety disorder episode. After this video, I feel much more comfortable with the decision of starting treatment. Thank you!

Im glad I found your channel. I resonate so much with what your saying. After years of my symptoms being dismissed I am glad to hear a medical professional process information and see things the same way I do. Thank you I will keep listening in.

I was put on a number of SSRIs because I was having panic attacks. They all had awful side effects (emotional numbing, trance-like feelings), and they didn't stop the panic attacks. I was tested for food allergies, and found I was allergic to milk products. I went off milk products, which lowered my anxiety level very quickly. That was 22 years ago, and I have never had another panic attack. I am no longer taking any psychiatric drugs. Food allergies are at the root of a lot of problems.

What you say makes a lot of sense. It's hard to consolidate my thoughts into something that I could type in some sort of coherent manner but I appreciate your content and hope to be able to contribute meaningfully in the future.

I’m in my 50’s. I have had persistent depression since my teens that was exacerbated by a few situations during my late teens and 20’s. SSRI’s have never been effective for me. I did get a lot of help from studies in psychology and particularly mindfulness (Kabat-Zinn, Williams, Teasdale and Segal). This YT channel has also been especially helpful to me, much mire than SSRI medication. While medication can be a “treat the symptoms” approach, it can never substitute for addressing the underlying causes of depression and anxiety

Hey, it's maybe anecdotal but for me side effect included very annoying sexual dysfunction as well as a change of personality that I didn't really like (sort of apathy). I also found it hard to fully enjoy or immerse in things or see the beauty in life in general, I had the general feeling of being robotic, unable to experience life normally. Needless to say I stopped them after two years, haven't returned to complete baseline even after 3 years off them. I'm not regretting trying them, I had a crisis and I was ready for extreme measures, but I'm still unhappy with the results.

I got a perfect advice from a psychiatrist. He gave me the SSRIs and with them my mood was elevated. It was elevated to the point where my problems were still there but I didn't really worry about them so much since the mood elevation I was kind of in a state where everything was more exciting to do. Reading, meditating, playing games. More motivation, more interest for life. So that's how it kind of works as far as it did for me. After sometimes they kind of stop working and your mood returns to normal since problems return, not return but you become more aware of them. The advice I was really given was while taking antidepressants to slow down my living, to try and just slow down, since we are all living in a world of technology. That's the best advise I was given. After slowing down I realized what was going on and how to deal with the issues, recognizing when they pop up. I'm still struggling but not as much as I did before.

Anti depressants helped me a lot, I took escitalopram and quetiapine (and clonazepam but to only take if I am really restless) for two years. It just made me familiarize myself on how it actually feels not being tensed or too emotional, roo negative.. too worrisome.. I felt nothing and it really bothered me for weeks.. “training wheels” as my psychiatrist told me. I no longer take them but now I can manage my episodes wayyy better than before.

I have no idea how I found this channel but so happy I did. Learning so much!

Fun fact about SSRIs, if you have untreated or undiagnosed ADHD, they can make symptoms of both ADHD and depression worse. I had no idea about this until getting diagnosed with ADHD a few months ago, and it explained why no SSRI really worked for me but when I started an NDRI a few years ago I started to actually see a difference in my major depression. Obviously if SSRIs don't work for you it doesn't mean you have ADHD, but if you have other symptoms and haven't been diagnosed, it could be worth looking into.

When I was put on an SNRI, I ended up going into a psychosis and was left with worse and new symptoms after coming off of it for weeks. The flat affect was horrible and I’d rather be depressed while I go through therapy than being so spiritually and emotionally dead that I stop caring about therapy

Thanking 🙏 you for this information and what you do. Found you recently and really get a lot out of your work on here. I can recognize that this is coming from the right motives, is a passionate personal, caring and helpful intent. I hope I could show you at least a little appreciation through this mechanism.

Thank you so much. I don't know how I haven't seen your channel before. I have only seen the how to go outside more and this one now.

I started having suicidal thoughts when I tried SSRIs for anxiety, even though I had no such thoughts before taking the medication. When I stopped taking the medication, these bad thoughts went away. And, in contrast with what was theorized in the video, I had higher levels of energy before starting the medication. My energy levels went reeeaaly low when taking the meds, so I really don't think "high levels of energy" were to blame. The meds also gave me several side effects; most notably extremely low libido and no pleasure in doing anything.

I was on Sertraline and like Dr.k mentioned, it just kind of damps down the depression. It only gives you the breathing room to work on yourself while going through a hard time. They DEFINATELY work but not in a "take this pill to be happy" kind of way. It's all about the therapy and self love and work you give to yourself that makes the change.

What a nice young man! Very helpful information, too. Thank you.

I absolutely loved this video, LOVED it. I’m not sure if you already are, but you should totally become a professor. You are a fantastic explainer.

I have very limited experience* with SSRIs, but I appreciated your explanation nonetheless! This channel is fascinating, even if the particular subject isn't personal. Thank you! *I was on them for a few weeks in college which caused me to have a full manic episode with psychotic symptoms, resulting in a diagnosis of bipolar.

I most definitely had a reservation against SSRIs because of risk of dependence, so I'm glad i watched your video. Also, on social media, SSRIs are often paired with bizarre behavior and dark humor, so i also have this association in my mind. My guess is that's what happens when you're severely depressed, but your energy is high. It's tough but it's a world off my shoulders to know the symptoms are tolerable and the potential is high! Thank you for that

In all your videos, I really appreciate your way of taking a charged topic and breaking it down to find the truth without being dismissive or derogatory to either side.

Thanks for sharing this information! I hear it in school and it needs a wider audience.

One of the symptoms of anti-depressants: Depression _HEY, WAIT A MINUTE!_

Love you Dr.K Thanks for everything you do for us

a huuuuge pile of useful info, great content!

Very instructive. Thank you so much Dr. Kanojia.

I took an SSRI while going through a separation, it helped with that intense feeling of grief you can feel after a break up, and the depression that comes along with it. It actually helped me get out of my head, I was much less reactive, and I felt more social and extroverted. The only thing I hated was I felt I couldn't feel my emotions as deeply anymore. I eventually got off of them, after I had an ECG scan on my heart and we found out it was giving me a sort of irregular heartbeat. I just felt uncomfortable with that even though it wasn't dangerous, it just weirded me out. Luckily I think I was on them long enough to sort of get through the bulk of my depression, but it still comes back sometimes. Although it is less intense, I also go to therapy. I try to follow my therapists advice and let myself feel my emotions. It is hard, yes, but I think after lots of practice, it does help you gain control of your feelings and your state of mind.

Thank you so much for this detailed explanation of the science behind SSRIs and that recent study. Is there any research on how SSRIs impact people (like myself) with Autism?

I was briefly on an SSRI and had some pretty wild side effects. I honestly don’t think my doc believed they were side effects of the SSRI but there isn’t any other obvious explanation. After about a week of taking it I noticed my entire body felt tingly for most of the day. I definitely felt less “anxious” so it didn’t really bother me all that much at first, but after a few days it became really annoying. I also had 2 occasions where I was running on a field and completely lost control of my legs and fell. It felt as if I tripped over my shoe laces or something. I was just running and out of nowhere my legs gave out under me. I was completely fine otherwise, no pain. The only thing I can remember was feeling kind of spaced out. After that I stopped taking it and all of these symptoms went away. Luckily, I also got over my PTSD in that time so all worked out I guess. I’ve never had anything like that happen to me except for the short period of time I was on SSRI. Weird stuff.

I would be interested to hear you talk about the link between antidepressant use and increased risk of dementia and memory problems. I came off Effexor and it was so bad that I couldn't find my clothes for a while. It was super scary and I didn't know what was going on. I eventually figured it out and fortunately it got better. However, I'm not where I was before I came off the medication. I used to be able to track where I left things like my keys super well and now I struggle with it all the time. I'm a therapist and I didn't even know this sort of thing could happen until I went through it. I'm no longer experiencing symptoms of stage 1 suicidal ideation, but I'm not sure that replacing those symptoms with memory problems and increased risk of dementia and heart problems was really worth it. I'm glad I don't sit around and think about what a relief it would be to die in a car accident or something anymore, but I lost a job because of the memory issues I experienced and it still affects my work performance to this day. I'm a lot more cautious as a therapist about recommending antidepressants unless clients are self harming or have a plan to commit suicide.

As someone who is going into psychology this was really helpful :) thanks Dr. K!

Interesting. I was on zoloft for 6 years before d/cing due to loss of healthcare. Ive been off it for 6 or 7 months now. The only difference i ever noticed was that while on zoloft, I often found it difficult to FEEL my emotions fully, even when i was fully depressed and drinking heavily wanting to die, i still struggled to cry, and it felt like the emotions were wound up tightly inside me and couldn't release. I could usually only cry at movies oddly enough. Now that i am back off i find it easy to cry again and i definitely feel my emotions more strongly again, but other than that, the frequency of depression seems about the same? Maybe it's too early to say. When i think of my life before i was on zoloft, i remember feeling like i was constantly swinging from okay to heartbroken from month to month, from probably middle school all the way through college. While i was on zoloft, i can think of 2-5 major episodes of severe depression/anxiety in that 6 year span. So maybe it really did decrease the frequency! Something to think about. I am re-establishing healthcare with a new GP in September and honestly dont know if i want to go back on zoloft or not, this has given me something to chew on...

Connection between serotonin and peristalsis. THAT IS SO MAJOR. The gut mind connection is so powerful in every bodily function. Wow. I will be able to make more connections with this information. Thank you😢❤

I'm on Cymbalta, which is an SNRI, not SSRI....and it works for me well in some regards. With therapy I've largely gotten over PTSD (anaphylaxis that led to cardiac arrest to dead for 3 minutes, all of which I was painfully awake/aware of...the "heart stopper" IV injections in the ER were the most excruciating thing I've ever felt). Still have some mild anxiety times. I've slowly weened off Cymbalta 3 times in the last 10 years to see how I did. After all, things seemed to be good. 3 things were very obvious very quickly once it was entirely out of my system. My daily, constant GERD returned and was near crippling. I started grinding my teeth at night, which led to TMJ and all kinds of other pains. And my back pain increased again (car accident). I tried all kinds of natural remedies, dietary changes, habit changes (even more exercise, meditation, etc) and I suffered for 6 damn months each time. The basic stresser side effects was where the Cymbalta really shined for me. As for depression, it does help, but by no means prevents it. But being a sober alcoholic, any elevation of depression while not on Cymblata is not a risk I want to take. Go back on Cymbalta and my life goes back to normal; Very little teeth grinding, rare GERD issues, etc. It's aggravating now that all these health nuts on social media have taken the "anti-depressants are entirely placebo" narrative and run with it when they're people who've never experienced it.

I wanna thank Dr K for his guidebook and his deep dive explanations of anxiety and depression with meds. Years ago, i was put on anti depressant meds, had a terrible time, and quit within a week. But learning more about SSRI’s and how they slowly work overtime convinced me to try again. Now it’s been about a month and a half since I started taking Zoloft and I can confidently say that my depression and anxiety has significantly reduced and my overall mood is so much better 😁

I was struggling with major depression and when I found an antidepressant that worked (sertraline, an ssri), it felt like a literal miracle. Miracle, as in "something that was impossible to happen happend". However antidepressants did very little to help with "minor" depression that I'm still dealing with. In that instance medication is less effective than things like proper sleep schedule or physical activity and medication helps with other things than depression itself. So basically what the research is saying in regards to how and when antidepressants work. As a side note, my psychiatrist asked about thyroid on the first visit and the visit was an half hour of talking about my life situation, habits etc. It baffles my how in some places someone can get prescribed a cocktail of medications after a short visit without even being asked about their life situation. I guess living in a country with a little "backward" approach to metal health can be a good thing when the most current approach gets simplistic and goes too much into the wrong direction ("it's just a chemical imbalance bro, it has nothing to do with your life, just take those pills").

Thank you for this objective analysis Dr. Kanojia. I always felt there was missing information to the issue of serotonin efficacy. Also I have recently learned that vitamin B12 helps serotonin uptake to neuron receptors where lack thereof decreases it's effect. Also brain density in hypocampus region increases resistance to depression and conversely decreased density increases depression according to one study at NIH. Magnetic resonance of brain region has been studied to increase this density. PS placebo never worked for me even when i was not informed.

As someone who has been working through my depression. I met with a therapist online and I was suggested medication. I tried the medication for a week but as I worked through things mentally I felt better. Not only was it the mental overcome of it to me, but I heard from parents how hard it is to get off of medication. That said I was skeptical of the medication because I always felt like my thoughts were precious to me. So bending down to consciousness and the brain is all chemicals scared me even more. As someone who went from haha brains are funny things to wait no "I" am a brain and it sunk deep. This set me off deeper and made me even more scared. Just my two cents from my perspective. What did help me a lot was Dr.K's approach and videos. How he approaches the mind as a subjective experience as a monk but also as a psychiatrist.

Anti depressants have been a major benefit to me- there’s so much scare mongering around them that I was afraid to start taking them. I’m glad I did though. I used to get depressive episodes constantly, often times I felt physically paralyzed. On anti depressants it’s much less frequent and even when I do feel depressed it feels much more manageable. Luckily I haven’t really had any noticeable side effects from them either after I got the correct dosage sorted out. I don’t feel “numb” like many people say.

Been depressed for 7 years, i'm 26, and i can't remember a time since then that i was alright while not on meds. A year ago i was on a personal peak in life while on meds and so i stopped very smoothly and it didn't took long until i've fallen as deep i've ever been in my life. Trying it again since last week and prepared to use it until end of life..

This explains a lot. Thank you.

I take Zoloft myself. Have taken it for many years. Definitely know my meds are doing something positive in my brain because if I go off them for a while then I cannot sleep for more than 2 hours a night and go downhill quickly after that. I have also known other people who can go off them with little issue. These things are definitely complex issues. Just found your channel by the way. Enjoy videos about psychology a lot. I have also been formally diagnosed with Aspergers and probably have ADHD as well.

i had like a 3 years long unending cycle of deppression fighting it everyday without finding the exit and logic to overcome it, and this was because of hypothroidism because i was rebelling against my thyroxine medication which ended up with with my thyroid levels decreasing to dangerous levels and when i finally realized this with help of a psychologist and got back on my medication i almost insantly overcome my deppression because i was kinda just dwelling on bad memories and trauma again and again like living in bubble shield surrounded by my demons trying to break in day to day, and then i just realized how the demons didnt even exist anymore after such a long time of working on overcoming my trauma, that they were just echoes of my memories playing on my fears and insecurities so there was no point to any of it.

I've been on zoloft (sertraline) for a bit over a year for anxiety and panic attacks mostly but also major depressive disorder. I can deal with the depression other than having really bad days-weeks here and there not anything I would take an anti-depressive drug for but the anxiety and panic attacks were something I could not live with. The feeling of a panic attack is like you're having a heart attack for hours at a time, you hyperventilate and your face/jaw goes numb, you really feel like you're going to die. Zoloft has helped me for the most part with this, I haven't had a panic attack since i've been on it but i've came really close and calmed myself down or got out of the situation when my head starts spinning out of no where. I'm afraid for any long term effects the drug may have but it came to a point where I would rather have semi-awful long term effects than a panic disorder. I'm afraid to go on a roller coaster or on a plane because I don't want to risk getting a panic attack, even on a ferris wheel I could feel one coming on, but yeah that's just my experience with one specific SSRI.

Thanks for adding nuance to the topic.

In fifteen years of taking SSRIs this is the best explanation I've heard of what they are and how they work. In my experience (with Major Depression, O.C.D, Anxiety) The main effects seem to be that they curtail the extremes of emotion, they just take the sharpest edges off, which is pretty important. I've been through them all at this point, each one seems to effect each person differently.

Ive struggled with anxiety and depression for 12 years. I tried medication year 1 and again year 2 - both times it increased suicidal thoughts significantly, so I swore off them. Fast forward 10 years later, I’ve addressed a lot of issues in my life, but I continued having depressive episodes and suicidal thoughts, and they became more frequent for seemingly no reason. I tried SSRIs again and they’re having an incredibly positive effect on me now

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:14 💊 SSRIs' effects on depression are more complicated and perhaps less potent than originally believed. 00:42 😞 Clinical depression results in persistent symptoms that severely impair daily functioning, lasting weeks, months, or even years. 01:25 🛌 Symptoms of mood disorders include drastic changes in sleep patterns. 02:19 📰 A recent paper from the high-impact journal Nature suggests that the serotonin theory of depression may be false. 03:54 💊💡 Misinterpretation: People think that if the serotonin theory is false, then antidepressants are a scam, which the speaker argues is not a fair conclusion. 04:48 🌿 Fluoxetine, the first SSRI, was revolutionary but not developed based on a comprehensive understanding of depression's mechanisms. 06:13 🤔 SSRIs were somewhat effective in clinical trials, which contributed to the destigmatization of mental illness. 07:35 🧠 Serotonin and dopamine govern various bodily functions, not just mood. 08:03 ✅ Despite controversies around the serotonin theory, SSRIs still have proven clinical efficacy in treating depression. 09:12 🔄 The serotonin deficiency hypothesis was actually reverse-engineered from the effectiveness of SSRIs, not scientifically proven. 09:42 🧠 The most common antidepressant medication, SSRI (Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor), blocks receptors to extend serotonin's presence between neurons, aiming to improve mood. 10:53 ⏰ SSRIs take between 1-8 weeks to show effects because they activate cellular machinery and genes, not just boost serotonin levels immediately. 12:48 🛠 SSRIs initiate the production of neuroprotective proteins in the brain, making their action long-term. 14:42 📊 Clinical data shows that SSRIs can lead to a 30-50% improvement in depressive symptoms but do not induce euphoria or "happiness." 16:08 🎭 Up to 70% of SSRIs' therapeutic value could be placebo, affecting their efficacy based on the individual's belief in the medication. 17:59 🌈 Effectiveness of SSRIs varies: extremely effective for about a third of people, moderately helpful for another third, and not much help for the remaining third. 18:28 🌍 SSRIs are less effective for circumstantial or existential types of depression (e.g., job loss, climate change). 18:56 👨‍⚕️ Clinically, antidepressant medication is beneficial for about two-thirds of patients. 19:25 💊 About 50-60% of people who stop taking antidepressants may experience depression again later in life, typically within one to two years. 19:53 🔄 About half of people might only need SSRIs once in their life and not become dependent. 20:07 📆 Those who require long-term SSRI treatment usually experience frequent or severe depressive episodes. 20:34 📉 SSRIs help reduce the frequency, severity, and duration of depressive episodes. 21:30 🌡️ Side effects of SSRIs are generally well-tolerated, making them widely prescribed. 22:13 ⚠️ Care should be taken when stopping SSRIs; tapering off is recommended to avoid relapse. 23:07 🩺 Always consult your doctor when starting or stopping antidepressants. 24:03 🧪 The neurochemical imbalance theory is outdated, but SSRIs still show effectiveness in clinical trials. 25:23 🔄 When SSRIs "don't work," it might be due to a dual diagnosis like substance abuse along with depression. 27:54 🎭 Trauma can masquerade as depression, complicating treatment with SSRIs. 28:22 🧠 Not all conditions that look like depression are depression; comprehensive treatment needed. 28:51 🎲 About half the people find the second trial of an SSRI effective if the first didn't work. 29:32 ⚠️ Black box warning in the U.S. about increased suicidality in young adults starting antidepressants. 30:27 🕒 Suicidal thoughts tend to be temporary and decrease over time after starting SSRIs. 30:55 📊 Selection bias may skew perception of SSRIs causing suicidality; severely depressed are more likely to be on medication. 32:35 🕰 Different symptoms of depression improve at different rates with SSRIs. 33:44 ⚡ Theory: SSRIs may boost energy before improving suicidal thoughts, possibly increasing short-term risk. Made with HARPA AI

This vídeos are fantastic !! I'ts a pity they end - strangely - so abruptly !!

I am starting on antidepressants this month after years of dysthymia that didn’t improve. It's probably going to take a while to get everything right though, since I have other conditions as well and there are many different types of depression medications, but there's observation periods before they settle on the medication. I really think it may be related to stress or other factors, but we're doing examinations now, so I'm happy to be taking steps either way.

Pls discuss how SSRIs can sometimes be extremely effective for anxiety disorders(panic disorder, GAD, OCD, social anxiety disorder etc.) compared to more potent medications such as benzodiazepines.

My doc warned me that Prozac might not work until I take it regularly on schedule for months. I guess I can't really say for sure what it was that helped me get through my severe episode. However, considering I could only get 1 therapy session every few months, it certainly SEEMED like Prozac was working for me - I actually had the energy to take a shower, eat, etc. (Basic needs) which allowed me to take the bigger steps to healing myself

thank you for all you do with these videos

I love your channel. You remind me a bit of my primary care provider who has changed my life so much for the better. I'd be curious to learn how snr eyes work because I am personally on effexor and it completely rid me of depressive episodes and even changed some absolutely unnecessary, lacks of behavior and social circumstances. This was sent with voice. If you can explain how SNR eyes work and how they're made that would be a great relief. I have kind of planned that I will probably need them for the rest of my life because of the changes that they've provided and I would need some substantial circumstances to change or habits or what have you in order to completely not need them? At least in my current age and state

Psychedelic’s definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it’s just so hard to source here

I was put on an SSRI due to mistaking my Bipolar type 2 for depression (it's very common) and switching meds made me realize that I do have a sex drive. It is wild.

Hey Doc! My psychiatrist saved my life. I've had MDD since my late teens. Lithium helped me to live again! I was wondering if you would do a video on ECT and TMS?

Love your content. What effects do SSRI's have on the heart? Specifically, fluoxetine.

SSRIs and NDRIs saved my life. I was able to actually address all the things in my life that I needed to after some time. I still have the challenges of what autism brings but I don't have crippling anxiety anymore which has been an absolute game changer. I can now get regular sleep. I really appreciate you talking about this Dr. K because it is soooo important right now. Especially with the information about how ssris are a scam etc. Most doctors would not take the time of day to talk about this. I would love for you to talk more about how SSRIs affect our gut microbiome and if increasing certain foods, pro/pre/post biotics that affect the serotonin in our gut microbiome as well, potentially improving the effects of SSRIs.

I've been on Lexapro for about 10 years now. Even when I taper off, my depression comes back after about 4-6 months like clockwork. I also have ADHD and autism, which could be related to why the depression comes back. There are downsides to taking the medicine of course, but it has improved my life massively, whereas previously I wasn't able to get myself to do much of anything. I know that it's not solely related to serotonin, deep down. On a surface level, there seems to be a problem as well with dopamine since things that are normally rewarding don't feel so. Ultimately I'm sure that there are many neurotransmitters that affect how we experience depression, it could be different for everyone, and serotonin is only one part of the whole equation. That being said, I'm glad something exists that can treat my issues despite the fact that we don't entirely know how it works.

A lot of the effect of SSRIs is slower than the time it takes for the serotonin to increase and stabilize. The theory is now that BDNF, and to a lesser extent NGF and GDNF, increase with chronic use of SSRIs after about a month or two. And there's also some possibility that it's actually a desensitization of certain serotonin receptors like 5HT-2c which is seen at increased rates in people with treatment resistant depression and self harm or suicidal ideation.

This was really interesting. I found with my own depression that SSRI's did help end the severe 'tears every day' circumstantial depression, but they continued to induce far too much sleep. It was the third lot that helped me as the first two caused essential tremors. On or off SSRI's, the signs of ADHD did not go away, and residual depression seems more related to that, being more like apathy, or a debilitating lack of motivation without the depression. Coming off SSRI's this year, I changed antihistamines too. I went straight into insomnia for 8 weeks before realising that it was a side-effect of antihistamines rather than coming off SSRI's, so I had to change them back to the ones I'd taken with the SSRI's. Now I wonder if the two would have counteracted each other. These studies rarely take simple over-the-counter remedies into consideration.

I used to take Escitalopram and anti-anxiety/anti-psychotics... and I don't anymore. I determine the mood I'm in at all times. I can let things get to me or choose not to. Years of mental health counseling has led me to believe that I am not ever going to be reliant on medication to help with my problems. I just don't want it, don't need it. This has helped rid my drug and alcohol addiction and gambling problem as well. I control my life, mood, emotions and feelings. It's on me!

I believe in the coming years the emphasis of gut microbiome, hormones, nutrition and exercise will get bigger and hopefully that can solve a lot of issues. I think the society we have built since the industrial revolution has slowly and surely eroded the human body. Antibiotics and hormones in the food supply, microplastics in EVERYTHING, the work environment and technology have ruined human posture, which affects breathing which affects your thinking. The world today as a kid is so insanely different than it was even 10 years ago, it blows my mind that we are still using THEORIES from the 90s.

I'm glad you touched on things that can cause SSRIs to be less effective. I dealt with this issue for a while because I smoked pot and I had no idea what was going on. One day when doing research on how these medicines affect the body I found out that THC bonds to many of the same receptors as most SSRIs. This blew my mind because I've never heard anyone talking about this. I stopped smoking, and I feel so much better, despite that I started smoking pot because I was depressed and anxious. The best way I can put it is that pot was more of a reactive approach where I'd smoke because I felt depressed or anxious, but SSRIs are a proactive approach. I haven't felt the need to smoke in months.

They really helped me. A few months ago I switched to an SNRI(/, and it works really really well for my social anxiety

One of the most prominent side effects for quite a lot of people is the sexual disfunction (loss of libido etc.) I myself experienced complete genital numbness. My member would just feel like touching a finger. Also PSSD exists, for some people the genital and emotional numbness never goes away and they are permanently stuck without any sort of sexuality, which can happen even only after a couple of doses.

SSRI's can be more dangerous than illicit drugs What a shock it was when I learned that growing up

Thank you for the information. I cannot be without my antidepressant Wellbutrin. I also know that even with an antidepressant you still need a lot of self work controlling your emotions. Depression has taken a lot of time away from my life.

i've known four people who reported they tried to jump out of moving car after starting SSRI's which is scary but interesting all not long after starting SSRI's these people varied in age groups, i was only on SSRI's for two weeks, i was getting extremely small, short burst of irritability and restless legs during the day and at night which was stopping me from sleep, could be that i was not taking the medication early enough in the day as my wake up time was late morning but i was unaware it could take so long to kick in but i came off them due the side effects, as i didn't notice at the time any positive just the negatives, most of my issues are not sadness but apathy and low energy, racing and obsessive overthinking and in-ability to focus.....thank for the Video it super informative it's really hard to get condensed and objective information about SSRI's.

I was put on an SSRI and and the only effect I got was a headache. It turned out I didn't have mental illness but was gaslit for years by my doctors as so many people are, now my diagnosis are several neurological illnesses that I was always physically disabled from but denied proper examination and treatment for. In turn dismissal from doctors and psychs as well as mistreatment (in a rich country with 'good' treatment) gave me panic anxiety and mental trauma I have to deal with today ontop of my physical illness >:(

I've been on every ssri, been on many antipsychotics, often combinations, probably 60 medications altogether. Turns out I was never psychotic just very traumatized. I have c-ptsd and now as an adult, I am on medications, in therapy, etc. but I still have yet to ENJOY life. Working towards it. I'm so glad for people like this having REAL discussions breaking down the truth of these often dangerous and difficult to navigate medications and their side effects.

I have PMDD and can say fluoxetine (Prozac) has kept me alive. It's been extensively studied for the condition, and I frankly feel lucky I found something that makes me able to cope with that week of potentially dangerous symptoms. I do have some side effects but overall it's been huge for my healing. I do other types of treatment too, like talk therapy, and this has kept me stable for years while I worked on those.

Had a bad experience with an ssri a couple years ago, the side effects were so strong that I had to get off them after a month. Sleeping, digestive issues and paranoia and anger were what made me get off them. Also for some strange reason it also caused my sinuses to be inflamed idk why. My siblings also didn’t do well on them either so maybe its genetics. Nowadays I feel a bit better and have been keeping myself busy and working on addressing my anxiety and possible adhd. It works for some ppl and I guess not for others.