For people with depression, social anxiety, and/or panic attacks?!
Question: I have three questions for all of you who have tried prescription medications for your problems.
What meds have you taken that have not worked?
What were the negative side effects you experienced?
Are you on something now that works for you (and what)?
Answers: I found that medications really didn't work for me - in that there was a lot of 'messing around' to get the right dose, the right tablet, etc etc... and going through all the mood swings and emotional instability caused by the tablets before they got the dose right was Hell... and not something that a person who is already depressed needs - to say the least.
And then of course there is the question of getting off them when you have finally got the right one and it has done it's job...
I'm not saying you shouldn't take medication - many people I know of have found that it was the medication that really helped them to level off and get their lives back together from the depression that they had.
I just thought I'd mention that I think you're doing the right thing by researching it and asking lots of questions and thinking a lot about what options you have (medication-wise) before just blindly accepting the first option that you are offered.
I had terrible experiences with Sertraline (Zoloft) It was Hell and I would never recommend it to anyone. ditto to Seroxat. But all people are different. It's good that you are taking the options seriously before you decide which is the best one for you.
Can you join a forum that is specifically for people who are 'trying to get off' antidepressants? There you would find lots of people who have experienced all different ones and would probably get a lot more specific advice to your own situation.
I wish you luck and hope you get yourself back on the right track very soon.