Is prozac an anti-depressent?

20 is the low dose to be on, I think it also depends though on what it is used for in terms of treatment, the fact that it did nothing for you at that dose it's obvious you likely could have gone up to get any affect. As long as you do not exceed 80mg's you'll be ok. But then again perhaps Prozac just wasn't for you... I've been on meds where it wasn't helping me but it helped other people... so it just depends.

Hair loss could be a severe side effect, doesn't mean it will happen to you....

The most common side effects seen in people taking Prozac include anxiety or nervousness, insomnia, drowsiness, headache, diarrhea, and rash. In addition, sexual side effects (reduced arousal or satisfaction) may occur. Prozac has also been shown to cause changes in appetite and weight, usually resulting in weight loss rather than weight gain.

Which is all normal for most anti-depressants but as it's said it's not permant.

When I even look up prozac side effects besides the obvious and even the more severe ones hair loss isn't one of them...
Who mentioned the hair loss bit to you?

I think it does occur it would have to be either extremely rare or a severe adverse reaction, though from even the severe rare symptoms hair loss is never mentioned.

I don't want to personally ever go on Prozac either really... there's only a selected few I'd ever consider taking...

Butterfly Faerie wrote:20 is the low dose to be on, I think it also depends though on what it is used for in terms of treatment, the fact that it did nothing for you at that dose it's obvious you likely could have gone up to get any affect. As long as you do not exceed 80mg's you'll be ok. But then again perhaps Prozac just wasn't for you... I've been on meds where it wasn't helping me but it helped other people... so it just depends.

Hair loss could be a severe side effect, doesn't mean it will happen to you....

The most common side effects seen in people taking Prozac include anxiety or nervousness, insomnia, drowsiness, headache, diarrhea, and rash. In addition, sexual side effects (reduced arousal or satisfaction) may occur. Prozac has also been shown to cause changes in appetite and weight, usually resulting in weight loss rather than weight gain.

Which is all normal for most anti-depressants but as it's said it's not permant.

When I even look up prozac side effects besides the obvious and even the more severe ones hair loss isn't one of them...
Who mentioned the hair loss bit to you?

I think it does occur it would have to be either extremely rare or a severe adverse reaction, though from even the severe rare symptoms hair loss is never mentioned.

I don't want to personally ever go on Prozac either really... there's only a selected few I'd ever consider taking...

I did a google search on hair loss with prozac, it says it's infrequent, so it's kinda 50/50. It does say with the instructions that prozac can cause hair loss, however loss of libido is very common with the drug, something I don't want. I did notice I lost weight, I didn't feel like eating.

I don't know what the most common drug prescribed for depression in Canada is, I know in the UK it's prozac, were you ever offered it?

I know what you saying, a higher dose may improve my mood, but chances are the side effects would be more extreme, it's a risk I won't take because I know my situation would improve if I get the proper counseling, because I know why I'm unhappy, and I explained that on PM, I won't mention on the main forum.

BTW hair loss and loss of libido can happen on other anti-depressants, Lithium( used to treat Mania in Bipolar disorder) and the ADHD drug Ritalin, though I'm not sure how common.

weird, of all I know about anti-depressants Prozac didn't say that....

Prozac is the same anywhere hon, it's known in the US, Canada etc. Prozac has been around for over 20+ yrs.

Loss of appetite is a common side effect for many medications, which always goes away (usually) after a certain amount of time. If you can get through the side effects you likely would notice a big difference in mood. I think if I didn't suffer from clinical depression or S.A.D I likely wouldn't be on medications... as I can handle the anxiety & PTSD symptoms, but depression I do need help with. Mind you I've not been without since I was ..... 21? less so I don't know.

I was offered Prozac but my doctor gave me a couple of options to try, and I always chose the other ones like Zoloft, Remeron, Celexa and the Effexor. I was offered Prozac prior to Effexor but I said Effexor as it's one of the main medications to treat anxiety etc.

Yes I know why you are feeling unhappy hon, maybe therapy will help.

Anti-depressants like Lithuim is normally not used for strictly depression, I think they would likely put you on one of the more commonly used drugs before giving you that because Lithium does have a lot of side effects...

Yeah, I mean is prozac the most well known antidepressant in Canada? I know it is where I'm from, think it is in the states also.

I know they wouldn't prescribe me lithium, it's used to treat mania, something I don't have, I just mentioned to say about the side-effects.

ha... my threads appeared twice. How the hell did that happen

morning star wrote:Yeah, I mean is prozac the most well known antidepressant in Canada? I know it is where I'm from, think it is in the states also.

I know they wouldn't prescribe me lithium, it's used to treat mania, something I don't have, I just mentioned to say about the side-effects.

It's one of them, as well as others like Zoloft and Effexor etc.

I moved it, but I don't know why it went double.

Actually, if you did abit of research on prozac, the clinical studies shown that, prozac works nothing more than a placebo. That's why the results that prozac offers vary from individuals. Hope it helps you can check it out on wikipedia.

dtrotter wrote:Actually, if you did abit of research on prozac, the clinical studies shown that, prozac works nothing more than a placebo. That's why the results that prozac offers vary from individuals. Hope it helps you can check it out on wikipedia.

Actually, wikipedia says the following about fluoxetine (which is prozac) : "Fluoxetine was shown to be effective for depression in 6-week long double-blind controlled trials where it also alleviated anxiety and improved sleep. Fluoxetine was better than placebo for the prevention of depression recurrence when the patients, who originally responded to fluoxetine, were treated for a further 38 weeks. Efficacy of fluoxetine for geriatric as well as pediatric depression was also demonstrated in placebo-controlled trials."

Unfortunately it often happens that people are started on too low a dose, which causes people to give up on it. But antidepressants are definitely not the only answer, and they don't work for everyone. Other things such as physical exercise, music therapy, and massages have also found to help against depression.

According to what I have read, it can be used to treat mild depression.

Yes, it is prescribed for depression and I know a few people who it has worked for but it did nothing for me. I suppose it depends on the individual 's metabolism. Maybe a tricyclic antidepressant might help - it certainly worked for me - they have been around for quite a while but can have some undesirable side effects and are dangerous in overdose but they are fine as long as you are careful and strictly adhere to the correct dose. I find dosulepin (UK name) are very effective for me with little side effects.