Paxil And Depression: Getting A Better Understanding

Paxil And Depression: Knowing More About The Drug

Paxil is the brand name of the generic drug paroxetine. Paxil is owned by GlaxoSmithKline and is one of the top-selling selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRI. Primarily, the drug is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder or OCD, generalized anxiety disorder or GAD, post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD and many other psychological ailments.

It is an antidepressant and the very first approved in the United States to treat social anxiety disorder. It has a wide array of uses and there are also controversies involving the drug that it can lead to major depression from Paxil as well as suicidal ideations.

How Does Paxil Work?

Paxil is one of the most powerful and selective SSRIs which acts on 5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT specifically. The effect will lead to reversal of depression due to the increasing amounts of 5-HT in the synaptic cleft that cannot enter the presynaptic cell.

As serotonin levels increase, postnyaptic receptors and presynaptic autoreceptors will be activated causing production of the neurotransmitter to slow down. The lack of serotonin will last for a moment and the body will try to adapt by lowering the sensitivity of the autoreceptors. Paxil helps add more serotonin which triggers the body to lessen the number of total postsynaptic receptors. The lessening of receptors takes weeks and the result will be treatment of depression. Due to the fluctuating level of serotonin, anxiety is a common side effect.

How Can Paxil Cause Depression?

Even though Paxil is primarily intended to counter depression, wrong timing and dangerous amounts of it can actually aggravate the condition. During the phase wherein serotonin uptake is controlled by the SSRI, it is vital that there is enough remaining for the individual to only experience temporary and mild psychological symptoms like tiredness and anxiety.

If serotonin levels go below healthy levels for too long due to overdose or drug interaction, depressive state can occur which can last temporarily. If the drug has been taken for a long time without the person being aware of the side effects, depression can become severe and chronic.

What to Look Out For

Do not take Paxil or any other SSRIs with MAOIs or mono-amine oxidase inhibitors which are also antidepressants since it can disrupt neurotransmitters responsible for balancing mood altogether. Users may experience confusion, dizziness, excitability or sudden

Examples of MAOIs to avoid are Nardil, Parnate and Marplan. The drug Tagamet can concentrate amounts of paroxetine which intensifies common psychological side effects. Tryptophan should also be avoided since it has adverse reactions with the medication. Phenytoin and Phenobarbital reduces the efficacy of Paxil. If patients do not immediately notice anti-depressive effects, never increase the dosage without consulting a physician.

Common Side Effects

Normally, anxiety, nausea, dizziness, sleepiness, tiredness and sexual dysfunction in males are expected. Physical side effects include dry mouth, tingling feeling of the extremities, headaches and visual disturbances. Take note that there is a withdrawal phase after concurrent use of Paxil. It takes about 5 weeks to fully recover and symptoms associated with the phase may be irritability, lessened response to stimuli and poor mood. Depression is never a common side effect of paroxetine.

Always talk to your doctor if you have any concerns about Paxil and depression.