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Joe149's avatar

As someone who has used an SSRI for 25 years to ward off depression, I'm always puzzled by articles on psychedelics for depression that mention SSRIs but fail to discuss the challenge we, who use them, have - that we have to stop our SSRI's to use most psychedelics.

I suspended my SSRIs for several weeks before trying psilocybin therapy, and the result was that some weeks after the therapy, I fell back into a deep depression.

I would like to hear about any research being done to determine if stopping SSRIs is really necessary. I know of one such study - done in Switzerland, regarding very short term use of Lexipro (I believe). Are there others?

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dominica's avatar

I was on an SSRI for a short period of time many years ago. I was going through a divorce and felt very anxious and depressed. The SSRI didn't get rid of the depression. It just removed me from it, but my life experience didn't change. I was still very sad about losing my best friend.

I believe psychedelics can have a major role in reducing depression but not as it's being used in the new world of psychedelic therapy seen today. Herzberg is the first person I've heard in this conversation addressing psychedelic treatments within the Pharma capitalist system. The problem isn't always chemical and in fact, I believe the brain chemistry is altered by our life experiences. The problem is most likely societal and that's why people have depression. I was hopeful for the re-emergence of psychedelics because if enough of us changed the way we see the world around us, we could change it. It's been disheartening to see Wall Street take the lead. The saddest part is seeing people within the psychedelic scientific community not see the problem with that.

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