Antidepressants: What you need to know about their uses and side effects

Facts and common misconceptions about some of the most used medications in the United States.

Antidepressants are among the most prescribed medications in the United States. This is partly because the number of people diagnosed with depression and anxiety has increased and prescriptions have increased sharply in some age groups during the pandemic.

Despite this, given the prevalence of these drugs, some patients have "significant misconceptions" about how the drugs work, said Dr. Andrew J. Gerber, psychiatrist and president and chief medical officer. of Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan, Connecticut.

< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0">Approximately 80% of antidepressants are prescribed by primary care physicians who have not received extensive training in managing mental illness.

Dr. Paul Nestadt, associate professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Medical School, said patients tell him, "'You know, Doc, I've tried everything.' But often, he says, "they never reached a good dose." , or they only took it for a week or two. »

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about antidepressants.

How do antidepressants work?< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0">There are many types of antidepressants, and they all work a little differently.

In general, they initiate a change in the way brain cells – and different regions of the brain – communicate with each other, said Dr. Gerard Sanacora, professor of psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine.

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