Reading Dr. Breggins book, Talking back to Prozac, which was recomended by the pharmacist who was dispensing Prozac to me, was the first step on a very long long journey.
I read Toxic Psychiatry about eight years ago, again a life changing moment for me in my journey.
He is one of my heros.
Here is a link to his web site:
http://www.breggin.com/
Jenny
I never had these horrific side effects from taking Effexor or any other antidepressant, however it did cause me to have full body twitches of which I still have a bit. I will never take antidepressants again for as long as I live, they are horrible!
My advice, is excercise, eating healthy, me time, less stress if you can help it, and yes, quietness!
The problem with SRI's are that they are too often given to people who dont need them, my case in point. I was given Paxil after being depressed for a year after returning from Iraq. At first I noticed a markedly improved disposition and increased energy levels, however they didnt stop over months of taking that drug I slowly decreased sleep and appetite also decreased, finally I hit a wall where I didnt sleep at all and didnt eat for about a week( I even made a post about it here, I was lost). Now I am on Carbamezipine and Clonzepam to control my sleeplessness and agitative states, those are both anti-seizure medicines, Paxil essentially re-wired and damaged my brain ever so slightly. Even one day of skipping Carbamazipine I will lose my appetite and become fully restless, my short term memory is horrible, however it seems my left brain work better(sometimes). I feel that Carbamazepine is the proper drug for me right now, I can tell there is an improvement. Now I need to slowly work myself off this one over time and I will be a-ok.