Depression affects more than five percent of people around the world, according to the World Health Organization.
Many of these people are prescribed antidepressant medications to help improve their mood and manage their symptoms.
These drugs have been used for many years and can be very helpful. However, when someone starts to feel better, a new question comes up: how should they stop taking the medication safely?
This is not an easy question to answer. Stopping antidepressants can be challenging. Many people feel anxious even thinking about changing their dose or stopping the medication.
Christine Villelongue, a leader at the France Depression association, says that patients often do not get enough support when they stop taking their medication. There are no clear rules or follow-up plans in many cases, which can make things harder.
In recent years, some doctors have started using a method called “deprescribing.” This means slowly lowering the dose of the medication over time. The goal is to reduce the chance of side effects, withdrawal symptoms, or a return of depression. But until now, there has not been strong evidence about the best way to do it.
A new study published in The Lancet Psychiatry has helped provide some answers. Researchers looked at 76 different clinical trials involving 17,000 people. They wanted to find out what works best when it comes to stopping antidepressants.
The study found that the safest and most effective way to stop taking antidepressants is to reduce the dose slowly while also getting support from a psychologist or therapist. This combination helped prevent a return of depression in about one out of every five people, compared to stopping the medication quickly or without support.
The worst choice was to stop taking the medication suddenly. This approach led to the highest risk of relapse. Study co-author Debora Zaccoletti from the University of Verona in Italy said that while antidepressants do help prevent depression from coming back, not everyone needs to take them forever.
Still, some experts say we need to be careful. Dr. Jonathan Henssler from Charité hospital in Berlin pointed out that even with slow tapering, there is still a risk that depression could return. This is why therapy and psychological support are so important.
In France, psychiatrist Maeva Musso said that the topic of how to stop antidepressants was rarely discussed during her medical training. She explained that when patients want to stop or reduce their medication, doctors sometimes misunderstand it as a sign that the person is denying their illness.
Christine Villelongue also noted that while the study recommends therapy support, this isn’t always possible in the real world. Some people cannot see a psychiatrist or therapist regularly, either because of long wait times or a lack of access. During this time, if they are reducing their medication and start to struggle, they may have no one to turn to for help.
In summary, the study confirms that the best way to stop taking antidepressants is not to go it alone. Slowly reducing the dose with professional support gives people the best chance of staying well. But real-life challenges—such as limited access to mental health care—must also be addressed to make this approach successful for everyone.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about 6 foods you can eat to improve mental health, and B vitamins could help prevent depression and anxiety.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how dairy foods may influence depression risk, and results showing Omega-3 fats may help reduce depression.
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