Depression Health Center

Coping With Side Effects of Antidepressants

What to Do About Antidepressant Side Effects continued...

Here are some tips for dealing with minor side effects of antidepressant medication.

• If your medicine upsets your stomach, ask your doctor if you should take it with a meal or if the risk may be less with a brand rather than a generic form of a drug.
• If your depression medicine makes you sleepy during the day or keeps you awake at night, ask your doctor what time of day you should take it. By taking your medicine first thing in the morning or right before bed, you might diminish some of the unwanted effects.
• Don't take depression medicine with alcohol. Alcohol can affect how well the medicine works, cause sedation, and possible worsen deprfession.

Don't just stop taking your medication on your own if you don't like the side effects. Stopping your medicine suddenly can make your symptoms get worse and cause a relapse of your depression.

Instead, talk with your doctor about what to do. Trying your medication at a lower dose might still give you benefits while reducing side effects. Or you could try a new one altogether. There are many effective drugs to choose from.

If your doctor doesn't take your side effects seriously right away, be more clear about needing a plan to address them.

Whatever you do, don't ignore side effects. But don't just accept them either. Work with your doctor to resolve them so you have a better chance of recovery from your depression.