How Effective Is Trintellix
The times we are living are pretty stressful and it just seems like we dont have enough space for ourselves which can eventually lead to two serious medical conditions anxiety and depression. And anxiety and depression are becoming quite a common issue in people all over the world. Still, it isnt that hard to treat and it just takes a few habit changes and a positive mindset to overcome the same. Yet, some cases of anxiety and depression can be more serious and these may require additional medical attention.
Now, there are numerous antidepressants that are available for your own use still, each and everyone carries its own risks and side effects. Among all, an antidepressant called Trintellix has become quite popular in the past few years but the final verdict on its use and benefits still isnt clear. With this in mind, there are people who support the use of this medication while some disregard it. Lets take a look at the possible benefits and side effects of Trintellix!
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How Do These Medications Work
It remains unclear as to how these particular drugs help OCD. The good news is that after decades of research, we know how to treat patients, even though we do not know exactly why our treatments work.
We do know that each of these medications affect a chemical in the brain called serotonin. Serotonin is used by the brain as a messenger. If your brain does not have enough serotonin, then your the nerves in your brain might not be communicating right. Adding these medications to your body can help boost your serotonin and get your brain back on track.
Your Mood Has Improved But Youre Still Not Yourself
If you experience some relief on an antidepressant, but its not the relief you hoped for, it may be time to try something new, Dr. Thomas says. Options include another depression medication or the addition of counseling, psychotherapy, mood-boosting cardio exercise, or light therapy to your treatment regimen. The combination of medication and other mood-brightening treatments can speed your recovery and reduce your overall time on antidepressants, she says.
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Suicidal Thoughts And Behaviors Risk
Some antidepressants, including SSRIs, may cause an increase in suicidal thoughts or actions. This risk is higher in children, teenagers, and young adults. Its also higher within the first few months of treatment or during dosage changes.
You and your family members, caregivers, and healthcare provider should watch for any new or sudden changes in your mood, behaviors, thoughts, or feelings. Call your healthcare provider right away if you notice any changes.
How To Prevent Weight Loss Due To Antidepressants
When taken as directed, antidepressants can be effective in treating both depression and anxiety.
If you lose an excessive amount of weight after starting an antidepressant, talk to your doctor about the medications benefits and side effects.
If the benefits dont outweigh the weight loss side effects, you can also ask if adjusting the doseor switching medicationsmight be helpful. Discuss the pros and cons with your doctor before making such a decision.
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Does Trintellix Work For Anxiety
Trintellix is one of the brand-names of the generic medication vortioxetine, which belongs to a group of medications called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors . Trintellix used to be called Brintellix, but it was renamed in 2016 because it was frequently getting confused with an antiplatelet medication called Brilinta. Renaming the medication to Trintellix has helped minimize confusion in doctors and patients.
Trintellix is an SSRI that can help improve a persons mood, emotions, and sleep patterns. The Food and Drug Administration has only approved Trintellix to treat major depressive disorder, but it can be prescribed off-label to treat anxiety.
Off-label prescribing happens when a doctor prescribes a patient a medication thats FDA approved to treat a condition thats different from what the patient has. This is a common occurrence thats completely legal to do, and its estimated that about 1 in 5 prescriptions are actually off-label prescriptions.
So a doctor can write someone with anxiety a prescription for Trintellix, but why might they do this when there are so many other anti-anxiety medications on the market? Trintellix blocks serotonin reuptake like other SSRIs, but unlike other antidepressants, it also has agonist and antagonistic effects on the 5-HT1A and 5-HT3 serotonin receptors in the brain. Researchers arent exactly sure how this works, but they believe it contributes to the antidepressant effects of Trintellix.
Uses That Arent Approved
Trintellix is only approved for treating depression, but it may be used off-label for other conditions. Off-label use is when a drug is approved for one purpose but is used for a different purpose.
Trintellix for anxiety
Trintellix is sometimes used off-label to treat anxiety conditions such as generalized anxiety disorder. An analysis of clinical research shows that it improves symptoms of generalized anxiety more than a placebo pill.
Trintellix for ADHD
Trintellix has been studied for treating symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults. However, it did not improve ADHD symptoms more than a placebo.
Your doctor may prescribe Trintellix or other antidepressants if you have ADHD as well as symptoms of depression.
Trintellix for OCD
Trintellix is sometimes used off-label to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder . However, clinical studies have not evaluated Trintellix for this use.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Taking Trintellix
Here are some frequently asked questions about Trintellix treatment:
- How long does Trintellix take to work? It may take up to several weeks for your symptoms to ease after starting Trintellix. We encourage you to talk with your medical professional about when to expect Trintellix to start working for you.
- Can Trintellix be cut in half? The manufacturer of Trintellix hasnt stated whether Trintellix can be cut in half. And it may not be safe to crush, split, or chew Trintellix tablets. If you have trouble swallowing Trintellix tablets whole, we suggest you talk with your medical professional or pharmacist.
- What should I do if I miss a dose of Trintellix? Its recommended that you take your missed dose of Trintellix as soon as you remember. If its almost time for your next dose, you can skip the missed dose and take your next one at its regular time. Its important that you dont take any extra doses of Trintellix to make up for a missed dose. This can increase your risk for side effects from the drug. If you arent sure whether to take a dose or skip it, you can ask your medical professional or pharmacist.
- Is Trintellix meant for long-term use? Your medical professional may prescribe Trintellix for long-term use. If the drug is working for you and isnt causing bothersome side effects, youll likely take it long term.
- Should you take Trintellix with food? You can take Trintellix with or without food.
Should Trintellix Be Taken In The Morning Or At Night
Trintellix can be taken either in the morning or at night. Some people who take Trintellix can feel restless, energized, or have trouble sleeping soon after they take the medication. If this happens to you, try taking Trintellix in the morning.
Trintellix is a unique antidepressant medication because of the way it works. Its sometimes called an atypical antidepressant or a multimodal antidepressant.
Depression may be partly caused by decreased levels of brain chemicals such as serotonin.
Like many antidepressants, Trintellix increases serotonin activity by blocking the reabsorption of serotonin in the brain. This increase in serotonin might help balance out levels of brain chemicals to help improve symptoms of depression.
But unlike other antidepressants, Trintellix also binds to and blocks certain types of serotonin receptors in the brain. Receptors are like docking stations on cells, and serotonin attaches to them.
But when Trintellix blocks these receptors, serotonin cant attach to them. Its not clear how this action helps relieve depression.
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What If I Cannot Take Even The Smallest Pill Size Of The Medication
Some patients are sensitive to these medications and cant stand the effects that come with even the lowest dose. However, patients can start at very low doses and very slowly increase the dose. For most people, they will eventually be able to handle the medication at its normal dose.
Ask your doctor if you can try a lower dose by breaking pills in half or using a liquid form of medication to slowly increase your doses.
ALWAYS be sure to talk to your doctor before making any changes to the way you take your medications!
The following is one example as told by Dr. Michael Jenike:
One woman, who was started on Prozac 20 mg/day, complained of bothersome side effects such as increased anxiety, shakiness, and terrible insomnia. She felt it made her OCD worse. She had horrible side effects from even 12.5 mg of Anafranil, and later with low dosages of Paxil and Zoloft. She requested to start 1-2 mg/day of liquid Prozac, because she heard it was good from other patients that she met from a computer bulletin board. She felt no side effects, and over a period of a few weeks, she got up to 20 mg/day without the previous side effects that she had felt on this dose in the past. Under the supervision of her doctor, she continued to increase the Prozac to 60 mg/day over a couple more months. Her OCD gradually improved quite dramatically.
Trintellix: Pros And Cons
If your health care provider has prescribed Trintellix to alleviate your severe depression symptoms, it is important to weigh the pros and cons of using this medication.1 Trintellix is one of the innumerable SSRI medications marketed by 45 different pharmaceutical drug companies around the world. Antidepressants have seen a significant global decline in sales and researchers report that side effects of SSRI medications, in general, are the main reason for the hampered market growth of these medications.2
Pros
- There was no difference between Trintellix and any other antidepressants in adverse events leading to stopping therapy except where the dosage was high, i.e., 20mg vs 5mg. 1
- Trintellix can be prescribed in an outpatient setting.
- Insurance providers may reimburse some of the costs of medication, reducing the price from $423 for a 30 day supply to approximately $350. or less, depending on your coverage.17,18
- The serious adverse events vs placebo reported for Trintellix resulted in the Canadian Drug Expert Committee not recommending a price premium for the drug, making it more affordable than some other antidepressants.17
Cons
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Can I Drink Alcohol While On These Medications
Many patients drink alcohol while on these medications and handle it well, but be sure to ask your doctor or pharmacist if it is safe. It is important to keep in mind that alcohol may have a greater effect on individuals who are taking these medications one drink could affect an individual as if it were two drinks. Also, alcohol may limit some of the medications benefits, so it may be wise to try not to drink alcohol during the first couple of months after starting any new medication.
Have These Drugs Been Tested
Anafranil has been around the longest and is the best-studied OCD medication. There is growing evidence that the other drugs are as effective. In addition to these carefully studied drugs, there are hundreds of case reports of other drugs being helpful. For example, duloxetine has been reported to help OCD patients who have not responded to these other medications.
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Antipsychotics For Ordinary Depression
“I’m taking an antidepressant, but I’m still not where I want to be with my symptoms.”
If that line sounds familiar, it’s because you might have heard it in recent television commercials for the powerful psychiatric drug aripiprazole . Originally approved to treat the disabling mental illnesses of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, Abilify is now, with permission from the Food and Drug Administration, being pitched to people with depression who haven’t gotten relief from milder drugs such as SSRIs.
In December 2009, Abilify’s competitor quetiapine succeeded in winning the same approval as an add-on for depression.
The mass marketing of hard-core psychiatric drugs is worrisome, said Julie Donohue, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. “People might think from the commercial that everybody’s going to get better, when really it’s a minority of patients who respond to the treatment,” she said.
Another issue is that the studies conducted to secure Abilify’s approval as a depression add-on lasted only six weeks. “That means we don’t know the long-term benefits or harms of the drug for this use, which is a problem because people will take Abilify for monthsand probably years,” said Steven Woloshin, M.D., a professor of medicine at Dartmouth Medical School.
Something else the ads don’t mention is the cost of the drugs: up to 45 times as much as many antidepressants.
Bottom line
What Causes Depression Medications To Stop Working
Multiple factors can change the way your body responds to an antidepressant, including:
- Drug or alcohol use. Illicit drug use and alcohol can cause strong mood changes, which can make antidepressants ineffective.
- Pregnancy. Your body’s weight and blood volume increase when you’re pregnant. Talk to your doctor about taking antidepressants while pregnant, and about potentially adjusting your dosage to continue relieving symptoms.
- New stressors. A new stressful situation at home or work can result in a mood response for which the antidepressant can’t compensate.
- Other medications. Interactions between antidepressants and medications for other health conditions can affect how well an antidepressant works.
Most often, though, antidepressants stop working for what seems to be no reason. “There’s no good research that shows why a medication may stop working for someone,” says Nestadt. “I think it’s less an issue of building up tolerance and more likely constantly changing stressors and factors in the brain.”
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What Should I Discuss With My Doctor Before Taking Vortioxetine
Before taking vortioxetine, you should talk to your health care provider about the following:
Other medications or supplements you are currently taking
Your doctor must know if you are using other drugs and/or supplements because vortioxetine may interact with some of them.
Pregnancy or plans to get pregnant
Some people who are taking vortioxetine have reported experiencing an increase in serotonin. It can cause birth defects and pregnancy complications such as miscarriage.
You Show Symptoms Of Serotonin Syndrome
Although antidepressants are meant to help you feel better, in some cases an antidepressant may combine with other medications you are taking or foods you are eating and lead to serotonin syndrome, an uncommon condition involving an overabundance of serotonin in the body, the Cleveland Clinic states.
Symptoms to watch out for, Lim says, include fever, aches, shakes, sweats, fatigue, irritability, a bad headache, confusion, agitation, restlessness, dizziness, difficulty seeing or walking, muscle twitching, muscle tension, or jaw clenching.
Typically, serotonin syndrome happens within days or weeks of starting an antidepressant or after a dose increase, says Lim. The most common factors that affect your risk of serotonin syndrome, per the Cleveland Clinic, are:
- Too much of one medication that affects your serotonin levels
- Multiple medications that affect your serotonin levels at the same time
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