Psychiatrist Questions Psychiatrist

Why do people become addicted to antidepressants?

I am a 33 year old female. I want to know why do people become addicted to antidepressants?

5 Answers

People do not become “addicted” to anti-depressants. They do not need more and more to make the same effect, and MOST IMPORTANT, they do not crave them the way people crave narcotics. The body becomes habituated to them, and one has to decrease by schedule, not all at once, or there are unpleasant side effects. But that fact does not mean "addiction." Here is a useful definition: “Addiction is a complex condition, a brain disease that is manifested by compulsive substance use despite harmful consequence.”
Hope that answers your question – and if it is you who needs an antidepressant, don’t avoid trying one prescribed for you out of the idea that it is addicting!

Peace,

Dr. Marian Shapiro
People do not actually get "addicted" to antidepressants. You do not need more and more like in a true addiction. However, your body does react when you stop taking them abruptly. I am not a psychiatrist, but if you want to know more about how to stop taking antidepressants, discuss this with your psychiatrist. You will need to taper off in order to be comfortable.

Nancy J Warren, PhD
They don’t. It is not possible to become “addicted” to antidepressants.
With one sideways exception, you can't get "addicted" to antidepressants. Medications from the SRI (serotonin reuptake inhibitor) and SNRI (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor) families often have the opposite problem: people don't feel them working right away. When their moods improve, they decide they don't need medications and stop them. The depression slowly comes back. Same story with bupropion (Wellbutrin) and Remeron. That one sideways exception is amphetamines, which are occasionally prescribed for depression but are highly addicting. Addiction is when you crave a medication and take more of it than you intended. When you use it despite repeated adverse consequences. This just doesn't happen with antidepressants.

What **can** happen is if you stop an antidepressant suddenly, you can get a withdrawal effect, like an upset stomach. Or your depression can come back. And antidepressants can have side effects, but those aren't addicting either.
See this link...
https://www.addictioncenter.com/stimulants/antidepressants/