Depression, Medication and Alcohol

LegacyUser

A very good friend of mine is on Lexapro at the moment which I understand, it was great she finally sought help for everything.

The thing is, she seems to be drinking a lot. It says on the Lexapro site you should not drink while on it, but apparently her doc told her a few drinks are ok while on the drug. She does the weekend binge drinking thing by the way, and she might have a glass of wine with dinner during the week.

What are other people's experiences with Lexapro and alcohol? Have you drank while on it? Was it a good idea? Should I try to get her to talk to the Doc about the drug and alcohol? I have no experience with anti-d's at all, so I don't know what to do.

Mods I am not looking for medical advice, just advice in general!

Xiney

I'm on Lexapro and I find that I can't drink as much as I'm usually able to. I get drunk quicker.

She really should talk to her doctor about it though. You should encourage her to do that.


This thread can be about ways for you to encourage her to see her GP... no medical advice please. (Personal experiences of mixing Lexapro w/Alcohol are allowed within reason)

sunflower27

The drugs wont work if she is drinking to excess. There is no point taking them if she is going to binge drink.

Kevo

sunflower27 wrote: »

The drugs wont work if she is drinking to excess. There is no point taking them if she is going to binge drink.

That is not true. ADs may have more side effects when taken with alcohol but their long term effectiveness remains the same. At least that was my experience. I suppose it is different for each individual.

sunflower27

Kevo wrote: »

That is not true. ADs may have more side effects when taken with alcohol but their long term effectiveness remains the same. At least that was my experience. I suppose it is different for each individual.

I was on them years ago and was told that any more than 10 units a week would affect effectiveness. If the OP#sfriend is binge drinking I'd be very surprised if the meds are working at all.

sam34

Kevo wrote: »

That is not true. ADs may have more side effects when taken with alcohol but their long term effectiveness remains the same. At least that was my experience. I suppose it is different for each individual.

alcohol is a depressant.
it is a major reason why people dont respond fully to anti-depressants.
people who drink on anti-depressants are really shooting themselves in teh foot.

kumate_champ07

sam34 wrote: »

alcohol is a depressant.
it is a major reason why people dont respond fully to anti-depressants.
people who drink on anti-depressants are really shooting themselves in teh foot.

not really, a good night out where you can let loose can lift your spirits up.
I call it 'brain cell spring cleaning'

sam34

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

not really, a good night out where you can let loose can lift your spirits up.
I call it 'brain cell spring cleaning'

it may "lift the spirits" temporarily, but the fact remains that alcohol is a depressant.

it's something i always advise patients about. they really are not helping themselves if they continue to drink on anti-depressants

im not saying they should be tee-totallers, but they should keep their alcohol intake to a minimum, to give themselves teh best shot at recovery.

sunflower27

sam34 wrote: »

it may "lift the spirits" temporarily, but the fact remains that alcohol is a depressant.

it's something i always advise patients about. they really are not helping themselves if they continue to drink on anti-depressants

im not saying they should be tee-totallers, but they should keep their alcohol intake to a minimum, to give themselves teh best shot at recovery.

Exactly, it's common sense.

I'd question why someone is bothering to take anti-depressants if they are going to go out binge drinking.

Surely the decision to take ADs is a serious one, so why do anything that could hamper their effects?

Many people feel an alcohol come-down after a heavy night out drinking. I'd imagine those on ADs would be in the same boat.

sam34

sunflower27 wrote: »

Exactly, it's common sense.

I'd question why someone is bothering to take anti-depressants if they are going to go out binge drinking.

Surely the decision to take ADs is a serious one, so why do anything that could hamper their effects?

Many people feel an alcohol come-down after a heavy night out drinking. I'd imagine those on ADs would be in the same boat.

also, it's not only the short trem side effects pof alcohol that are detremental, but the longer term ones too.

taking anti-depressants while continuing to drink is counter productive.

tbh

Be aware, thread is in LTI now.. If this is your first time here, please read the charter before posting.

Acoustic

im on effexor xl 75mg one a day now for anxiety , and my doctor said its ok to drink on them as long as im not having alot

i drink 1 night a week and have 6 or 7 pints thats it and i feel good the next day , al be it the usuall day after drinking hangover etc

ugliest

Yeh, not really a good idea to mix psychotropic drugs with alcohol. They can sometimes either make the drug less effective and/or make you get drunk faster. I sometimes have a bit of a problem with the binge drinking (student life seems to dictate this sometimes), but as of late I've really cut back. I find my mood is generally far more level overall now. A glass or two of wine during the week is pretty okay, but on a night out now, I try to limit myself to about 3/4 drinks.

It could be she's drinking a lot because she feels she still needs it, or it could be just a bad residual habit from before she was on the meds. Either way, drinking a lot is probably going to make the meds less effective. Depending on her personality, she may not take kindly to you taking the drink out of her hand, you obviously care for a lot, so you want to help. Maybe encourage her to slow down a bit. Going tea-total is a fairly daunting thing, esp in Ireland, I get the vibe she may be on the younger side of things too, and there is a lot of pressure to drink on young wans. If I were in your position, I'd try to encourage her to pace herself. In my experience, over time, you end up drinking a lot less if you do things this way.

Change is hard, and sometimes if you do give up something cold turkey, down the way there's a chance you might lapse back to drinking/taking as much as you used to. Gradually cutting back, imo is a way to alter your behavior more permanently.

You seem to care about her a lot, let her know that, good luck!

Ray007

hi
I am on many antidepressants for the last 2 years(unfortunately). I stopped drinking for a couple of months and it was fantastic, back to my normal level of being myself a few years ago. Everything was going well until I decided to start drinking again. I have to admit that I am not a big drinker, but I think I started drinking more often that I used to before. To cut a long story short, I think that drink & prescription drugs together are not meant to be hand in hand. After a while I started again with my usual depression and the doctor had to increase the medication.

Was that because I started drinking? Was it because I really am more depressed than I realise? I am not sure, not an expert, but I am stopping drinking now again for a few months and see what happens. I can get back to this threat if it is open.

And I have to say, it is hard to go out for dinner and have just 7up, but I really need to recover. Also bear in mind depression is normally a very long term illness and the sooner you tackle it properly, the better.

Gook Luck

madliz

very well said ray007 - i personally don't drink a lot anyway so don't see what effect drinking alcohol has on the antidepressant that i'm on. but i know i shouldn't be really drinking at all as i try to follow the guidelines for each medication.

as you said aswell, we don't really know how depressed we are because the medication does help us if taken properly. but excessive drinking is not wise.

kumate_champ07

did I have one of my posts deleted from here?


anyway, what about people that have to stay on meds for the rest of their life, are they not alowed get drunk every now and again?

I enjoy getting drunk occasionally, being relaxed and having drunken fun. you can still have fun sober but its different when youre drunk, not better or worse. thats why its so popular and we have so many pubs in this country. why should I have to give it up? people say its bad because it will make you feel depressed, but ask anyone how they feel after a heavy night, its called a hangover. as long as you recover from that and dont drink all the time and not become an alcoholic you should be able to drink and medicate.

the medication in the long term is gonna damage your body anyway. a lot of us are guinea pigs, and im not a big pharma conspiracy person but alot of the psysch meds arent fully understood, they work on some people but not on others, they dont know why. 'chemical imbalances' but al thatl the doctors will mention is serotonin, they dont even know whats going on up there. anti psychotics switch off part of the brain. brain cells dont grow back once they arent being used.

you stop bench pressing, your chest muscles shrink, you can start back again a year or 2 later and they'll grow again, but it doesnt work like that with the brain 'muscle'

fun is the best medication for depression, exercise can be fun, and so can going out on the lash

seanybiker

Im on seroxat and xanax for the last I dunno how long. Still drinking like a nutter sometimes. they dont really work when drinking, well they do but not as much.

ronbyrne2005

moderate social drinking on SSRIs is relatively harmless. Sam34 please post some studies if theres any proof to the contrary. If you like a few drinks and find it helps you socialise then the act of socialising can give you a feel good boost too. Ethanol is out of your system very quick and to cause significant mood disturbance you would need to be drinking very heavily or very regularly. Drinking several drinks once a week wont cause signifigant long term mood change to those on ssris. Exercising a few times a week would counter any negative effects anyway. The above statment is for those who are stabalised on an SSRI , not those just starting out or those who are mentally unwell despite taking ssri.

kumate_champ07

ye I should have added if you just started the meds or are already going thru a rough time its not a good idea to drink more than 1 or 2. I never drink when Im down anyway, I like whiskey its my drink but I never turn to it like they do in the movies

lukesmom

Hi Alcohol is a depressant, therefore it dampens the central nervous system and basically undo's all the good work the medication is doing. It is pointless to drink excessively. I have been on citalopram which is a sister drug of lexapro, both SSRI's. I am on it since january, its my second time on it. I came off it and was off it 2 months and I went out and binged drank waaaaay too much and got a hangover that never went away! So after 2 weeks I was put back on the citalopram and am still on it! I dont touch a drop of drink now, I drink non alcoholic becks. Its not worth it for me. I know I could have 4 and that is my max but I just couldnt be bothered risking it!:eek:

meant to add you are mixing chemicals with chemicals you are allready taking and its a dangerous game.

smiley girl

hi, I'm on lexapro amongst other meds. My doctor told me that alcohol was a depressant and while a 'good night out' was good in itself, its the following few days when the down side happens. She said I might aswell not take the meds if i was going to drink cos I was cancelling out the good effects of the meds.
This is just my MY doc told ME. And its true,for me, after drinking I find MY mood dipping and anxiety levels raising.

But really, binge drinking is not really good for anyone, is it?

LegacyUser

your friend needs to have a serious think about what she wants. lexapro and alcohol do not mix, i've suffered the consequences. you are a good friend to care so much so continue to stand by her and suggest that she open up to her doc about exactly how much she is drinking. good luck

chem

HI all,

lukesmom

Hi, you ok?

JackReacher1980

Hi all, I've been on anti-depressants many times over the years - cipramil the first twice, with the only side effect being tiredness. The third time the doc started me on Lexapro, which caused incredible weight gain - almost a stone and a half, for a 5 ' 2" woman. Anyway, I have now tried Effexor, which I found excellent, although had to adjust the dosage up. I have always drank alcohol at weekends on antidepressants, and only in the first few weeks on meds did I ever have any side effects. However, I had a very heavy drinking session on Saturday, and had a two day hangover. I now feel like my medication is not working. My GP tells me I'm on the highest dosage of effexor (150mg), and referral to a psychiatrist will not take place til after Xmas. I dont know what to do here, should I stick it out? Is it all just the effects of a very heavy binge?

madliz

cut out alcohol altogether and see how you go with that. never recommended to drink alcohol while taking any antidepressants.

JackReacher1980

I've already decided to do that, but I'm wondering, if the doctor cant p my dosage of medication, what do I do? I'm off work sick, as I cant concentrate, crying etc. Wondering have the meds stopped working, or did I just feck them up with so much alcohol

tbh

JackReacher1980 wrote: »

I've already decided to do that, but I'm wondering, if the doctor cant p my dosage of medication, what do I do? I'm off work sick, as I cant concentrate, crying etc. Wondering have the meds stopped working, or did I just feck them up with so much alcohol

did you tell the doctor you'd been on a session?

JackReacher1980

I did. I'm not sure I emphasised quite how much alcohol it was - I'm not sure I could even guess at that. To be honest, I rang the doc today, and she just told me to put up with it, or sign myself into a psychiatric ward. Not very helpful. Mornings are the worst, and if I knew it was the alcohol, and that it would settle down after a while, then I would be fine. I just know I couldnt carry on like this long term

lukesmom

It is the alcohol - I have been where you are many times! Its not nice I know but you just got to go with the flow and let it pass and it will. You dont need a psych ward. You are feeling low and anxious. The alcohol more or less dampens the effect of the effexor and it will take a week or so to build back up again to theraputic levels. Just grin and bear it and promise yourself that you will never binge drink again. It is not okay for people on meds. I have given it up for a while due to the meds but I know my limit is 4. P.S positive thinking really speeds up this process of the meds working again . This is just a temporary blip I have had so many of them

tbh

guys, please don't give advice on meds dosages etc.