Side Effects Of Prozac

Prozac was the first SSRI drug to hit the market in the U.S in 1988 and by 2005, SSRI drugs were the most prescribed. About a dozen of SSRIs are prescribed, such as Paxil, Zoloft and Prozac. SSRIs are supposed to have fewer side effects than older antidepressants since SSRIs only increase the serotonin levels in the brain. SSRIs have many common side effects, including sexual side effects, such as a repressed libido, erectile dysfunction and difficult achieving orgasm, for men and women, fatigue, weight loss, apathy, insomnia, headaches and pupil dilation. Believe it or not many pregnant women with depression or anxiety are prescribed these SSRI drugs to lower the risk of hurting themselves or the baby but these side effects are only making
the pregnancy worse for the woman, plus they are putting their babies at risk for developing autism or other birth defects. This has been one of the most recent side effects that researcher have linked to antidepressants.
For example, persistent pulmonary hypertension in the newborn (PPHN) is a disorder of the heart and respiratory system in a newborn baby which causes breathing and circulation difficulties. According to the article “Antidepressants: A focus on SSRIs and SNRIs” by Shah, B and Jadhav, B they explained a studied that was conducted showed that “maternal use of SSRIs during early pregnancy doubled the risk of PPHN… [and] maternal use of SSRIs during late pregnancy trebled the risk of PPHN.” Now for a person who isn’t pregnant the symptoms may be insomnia, skin rashes, headaches, joint and muscle pain, stomach upset, nausea, or diarrhea but are usually temporary or mild. According to an article from the Harvard Health Publications explained a more serious problem from taking SSRI drugs which is reduced blood clotting because of a “decreased concentration of the neurotransmitter serotonin in platelets. Patients are at increased risk for stomach or uterine bleeding, and are more likely to require a blood transfusion during or after
surgery. This risk is about the same as the risk of bleeding with NSAIDs (aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen). If patients use SSRIs and NSAIDs at the same time, the risk more than doubles, so they must be combined with care.” People may think “Why would someone ever mix aspirin with an antidepressant?” Well it can be very easy. Since most of the side effects can cause a lot of pain and discomfort taking an antidepressant only helps with your depression and does not treat anything else, it is actually the one to cause more discomfort in one’s life. Obviously people would want this discomfort to be relieved so they go ahead and pick up a bottle of aspirin without thinking twice about it, eventually making their physical health even worse than what it already it. People must also be very careful when mixing an SSRI drug with another drug that enhances serotonin activity, which can lead in the development of a rare condition called the serotonin syndrome. According to Harvard Health Publications, serotonin syndrome can result in “racing heart, sweating, high fever, high blood pressure, and sometimes delirium.
In particular, SSRIs should not be mixed with certain other medications, especially the herbal remedy St. John’s wort, monoamine oxidase inhibitors such as phenelzine (Nardil), and clomipramine (Anafranil).” There are also some involuntary movements that may result from the use of SSRI drugs. According to the article “What are the real risks of antidepressants?” from Harvard Health Publications these involuntary movements include “tics, muscle spasms, dyskinesia (repetitive muscle movements), Parkinsonism (rigid and trembling limbs, a shuffling gait, loss of fine motor control), and akathisia (compulsive restlessness), any of which may be accompanied by severe anxiety.” These symptoms may be rare but they more mostly seen in the elderly and in patients taking fluoxetine and citalopram, which are SSRIs that remain in the body the longest. Most of these symptoms are very serious and one can only wonder do people know the real risks of these drugs and if they did would they still be taking
them?