Why / How does Prozac help OCD?!


Question: I'm on Prozac, a very low dose..10 mg..and it has erased almost all of my OCD. Im just wondering how it works, the science behind it?


Answers: I'm on Prozac, a very low dose..10 mg..and it has erased almost all of my OCD. Im just wondering how it works, the science behind it?

Prozac is a selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI), meaning it keeps more serotonin- a neurotransmitter- in the junctions between nerve cells, allowing more signaling between the cells.

OCD is an "off label" use of Prozac, which is labeled for major depression, but this improvement in signaling obviously helps with OCD, and it is widely used for this.

What causes OCD? That is more controversial, but since improving the availability of serotonin at these nerve junctions helps, difficulty or delay in signaling probably is at it's heart.

There are more things being discovered about the functioning of the brain every day, and as we learn more, we will have better answers.

In only the last few years we have learned that the "glial" cells of the brain are not just structural supports for neurons, but are quite active in metabolism, waste removal (they metabolize ammonia), and they manufacture myelin which "insulates" nerve axons and thus help coordinate the transmissions of the neurons.

Keep up on "brain news" with an on-line clipping service. It will be educational and fun!

Glad it works for you!

It works the same way it helps depression. Low serratonin levels and it helps to re-elevate them to help the symptoms subside.

ask your health care provider or the pharmacy when you pick up your next RX. I was prescribed Prozac but i am AFRAID to take them for the fear it might counter act and do the opposite or make me worse. I am TRULY HAPPY THAT IT HAS HELPED KEEP IT UP.





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