Re: Antidepressants?

September 1, 2007

hang in there zoloft... had surgery 5/22...... it wasn't the diagnose but the incomtenence thats got me going nutty....

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September 1, 2007

,

Depression, anger, fear ….we all

run the gamut of emotions when we hear what we believe to be the fatal word

Cancer applied to ourselves. Some of the womenfolk I have corresponded with

tell me that there is an aspect to their emotional roller coaster that many men

don’t understand - the guilt they have in worrying about THEIR future:

how they will cope without their partner – when they feel they should be

concerning themselves solely with their partner’s problems. .So in this

heady emotional mix, it is hardly surprising that there may be some frictional disagreements

between you and your wife.

My personal outlook on life is to take as

few drugs as I can, so I never went the Prozac route, but instead was able to

draw on our experiences over our thirty years of marriage when we had got

through some pretty tough times without too much scar tissue. As I learned more

about the disease, and as we discussed what I was learning, the initial fear

that we would be parted in a matter of months receded. As that fear went, many

of the other major emotions settled too and we got back onto the even keel that

we had managed to achieve over our years together.

I hope this helps some, but if you are

still finding difficulty in dealing with the issues involved in a diagnosis

like prostate cancer, can I suggest you seek counseling rather than resort to

drugs? That is the route that I took at an even more perilous time of my life

than my PCa diagnosis and I found it really helped. It is often difficult for

men to admit that they have any of these problems because it is seen as weak,

but it really isn’t.

All the best

Terry Herbert

in Melbourne Australia

Diagnosed ‘96: Age 54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason

3+3=6: No treatment. Jun '07 PSA 42.0 - Bony Metastasis: starting ADT

My site is at www.prostatecancerwatchfulwaiting.co.za

It is a tragedy of the world that no one

knows what he doesn’t know, and the less a man knows, the more sure he is

that he knows everything. Joyce Carey

From:

ProstateCancerSupport

[mailto:ProstateCancerSupport ] On Behalf Of cpcohen1945

Sent: Sunday, 2 September 2007

3:12 PM

To:

ProstateCancerSupport

Subject:

Antidepressants?

I was diagnosed with early-stage PCa about two weeks

ago. I'm

getting over the shock, and I've read enough to understand what's

going on _physically_.

My doctor has suggested that I take antidepressants. I told him:

" When I go out for a bike ride and don't enjoy it, I'll ask you for

them. "

That may be too simplistic. My wife and I are bickering more often

than normal, rather than giving each other emotional support.

Is it me, is it her, or is it a sign of depression that I refuse to

recognize?

I'd like to hear from any of you about antidepressants:

What did you take?

Why did you start?

How useful were they?

What were the side-effects?

Thanks.

I may start trolling the Prozac (et al) mailing lists, but that will

only muddy the waters.

September 2, 2007

Hi All,

I am having some severe low back problems, arthritis and

old age. I visited the doctor recently and he asked about

depression and we got to talking about my dear .

I couldn't help it, I started bawling like a baby. I admitted

that there were times when the constant continues, that

I think that maybe its not worth it.

He immediately sent me to see a counselor. We talked

for some time and offered me anti-depressants. But I

think that I can get by without them.

Suicide is a very common problem among veterans. The

American Legion has set up a hot line that anyone can

call and get help if they need it. The toll free number is:

1-.

I hope that none of you reading this needs to call this

number.

I wish you all the best

Aubrey

,

Depression, anger, fear â€¦.we all run the gamut of emotions when we hear what we believe to be the fatal word Cancer applied to ourselves. Some of the womenfolk I have corresponded with tell me that there is an aspect to their emotional roller coaster that many men donâ€™t understand - the guilt they have in worrying about THEIR future: how they will cope without their partner â€“ when they feel they should be concerning themselves solely with their partnerâ€™s problems. .So in this heady emotional mix, it is hardly surprising that there may be some frictional disagreements between you and your wife.

My personal outlook on life is to take as few drugs as I can, so I never went the Prozac route, but instead was able to draw on our experiences over our thirty years of marriage when we had got through some pretty tough times without too much scar tissue. As I learned more about the disease, and as we discussed what I was learning, the initial fear that we would be parted in a matter of months receded. As that fear went, many of the other major emotions settled too and we got back onto the even keel that we had managed to achieve over our years together.

I hope this helps some, but if you are still finding difficulty in dealing with the issues involved in a diagnosis like prostate cancer, can I suggest you seek counseling rather than resort to drugs? That is the route that I took at an even more perilous time of my life than my PCa diagnosis and I found it really helped. It is often difficult for men to admit that they have any of these problems because it is seen as weak, but it really isnâ€™t.

All the best

Terry Herbert

in Melbourne Australia

Diagnosed â€˜96: Age 54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason 3+3=6: No treatment. Jun '07 PSA 42.0 - Bony Metastasis: starting ADT

My site is at www.prostatecancerwatchfulwaiting.co.za

It is a tragedy of the world that no one knows what he doesnâ€™t know, and the less a man knows, the more sure he is that he knows everything. Joyce Carey

I wish you all the bestAubrey Pilgrim, DC (Ret.) Author ofA Revolutionary Approach to Prostate Cancer-Read the original book for FREE at: http://www.prostatepointers.org/prostate/lay/apilgrim/Read new edition for FREE at http://www.cancer.prostate-help.org/capilgr.htmDr. E. Crawford is co-author of the revisionGet a sneak peek of the all-new AOL.com.

September 2, 2007

Hi All,

I am having some severe low back problems, arthritis and

old age. I visited the doctor recently and he asked about

depression and we got to talking about my dear .

I couldn't help it, I started bawling like a baby. I admitted

that there were times when the constant pain continues,

that I think that maybe its not worth it.

He immediately sent me to see a counselor. We talked

for some time and he offered me anti-depressants. But

being the macho man I pretend to be, think that I can get

by without them.

Suicide is a very common problem among veterans. The

American Legion has set up a hot line that anyone can

call and get help if they need it. The toll free number is:

1-.

I hope that none of you reading this ever needs to call this

number.

I wish you all the best

Aubrey

on 9/2/07 12:12 AM, cpcohen1945 at cpcohen1945 wrote:> I'd like to hear from any of you about antidepressants:> > What did you take?> > Why did you start?> > How useful were they?> > What were the side-effects?> > Thanks. I'd recommend that you stay away from these evil things. Your doc has fallenunder the spell of a massive marketing campaign on the part of the immoralgreedy pill companies.I took Prozac when it first came out, BUT it was after about 8 months ofindividual and group counseling and under tight observation. I was on 'emfor only a few months and they helped pull me out of what I feel now was acorrectly diagnosed clinical depression.With the craziness that accompanies the massive life changes with the cancermy GP asked me if I wanted to try antideressants again and set me up with acounselor at an off-campus psycholgy clinic. He put me on Prozac right away(like the same day.) I think they may have also given me an MMPI(Personality Inventory), but he certainly didn¹t analyse it before he gaveme the pills. No noticable effect, so they switched me to Lexapro. Like allthese drugs, they slowly build up in the system, so are kind of sneaky. Inthis case, creepy. I became MORE despondent, to the point of being selfdestructive. I finally woke up after a particularly harrowing episode andgot rid of the pills and stopped going to the psycho-quack.Among the things that were told to me was that clinical depression isanalogous to diabetes and that FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE I would have to be onantidepressants just to maintain my existence, the same way a diabetic hasto take Insulin. What a crock of rubbish!Listen, the life changes that accompany this disease are profound andsudden. Yes they are stressful. Yes, you are in an uncomfortable placementally, and agonizing over tough decisions. And you are not your old self,even more so if you are going through androgyn deprivation treatment. Butnone of these things are depression in a clinical sense.So, yes, as you say, ³My wife and I are bickering more often than normal,rather than giving each other emotional support.² Of course! It¹s a copingmechanism (though not an especially good long-term one IMHO) in reaction tothe sudden changes in your lives... there are probably a lot of thingshappening here and you need to work on them - together. At least bickeringis communication... Better than either of you shutting down leaving youapart like oil and water.These dangerous medications-that are being pushed by the criminalbloodsuckers in the pharmaceuitical industry and prescribed by incompetent,undertrained doctors and mental health specialists- should be avoided.Your common-sense reply was the right one.

I wish you all the bestAubrey Pilgrim, DC (Ret.) Author ofA Revolutionary Approach to Prostate Cancer-Read the original book for FREE at: http://www.prostatepointers.org/prostate/lay/apilgrim/Read new edition for FREE at http://www.cancer.prostate-help.org/capilgr.htmDr. E. Crawford is co-author of the revisionGet a sneak peek of the all-new AOL.com.

September 2, 2007

on 9/2/07 12:12 AM, cpcohen1945 at cpcohen1945@... wrote:

> I'd like to hear from any of you about antidepressants:

>

> What did you take?

>

> Why did you start?

>

> How useful were they?

>

> What were the side-effects?

>

> Thanks.

I'd recommend that you stay away from these evil things. Your doc has fallen

under the spell of a massive marketing campaign on the part of the immoral

greedy pill companies.

I took Prozac when it first came out, BUT it was after about 8 months of

individual and group counseling and under tight observation. I was on 'em

for only a few months and they helped pull me out of what I feel now was a

correctly diagnosed clinical depression.

With the craziness that accompanies the massive life changes with the cancer

my GP asked me if I wanted to try antideressants again and set me up with a

counselor at an off-campus psycholgy clinic. He put me on Prozac right away

(like the same day.) I think they may have also given me an MMPI

(Personality Inventory), but he certainly didn¹t analyse it before he gave

me the pills. No noticable effect, so they switched me to Lexapro. Like all

these drugs, they slowly build up in the system, so are kind of sneaky. In

this case, creepy. I became MORE despondent, to the point of being self

destructive. I finally woke up after a particularly harrowing episode and

got rid of the pills and stopped going to the psycho-quack.

Among the things that were told to me was that clinical depression is

analogous to diabetes and that FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE I would have to be on

antidepressants just to maintain my existence, the same way a diabetic has

to take Insulin. What a crock of rubbish!

Listen, the life changes that accompany this disease are profound and

sudden. Yes they are stressful. Yes, you are in an uncomfortable place

mentally, and agonizing over tough decisions. And you are not your old self,

even more so if you are going through androgyn deprivation treatment. But

none of these things are depression in a clinical sense.

So, yes, as you say, ³My wife and I are bickering more often than normal,

rather than giving each other emotional support.² Of course! It¹s a coping

mechanism (though not an especially good long-term one IMHO) in reaction to

the sudden changes in your lives... there are probably a lot of things

happening here and you need to work on them - together. At least bickering

is communication... Better than either of you shutting down leaving you

apart like oil and water.

These dangerous medications-that are being pushed by the criminal

bloodsuckers in the pharmaceuitical industry and prescribed by incompetent,

undertrained doctors and mental health specialists- should be avoided.

Your common-sense reply was the right one.

September 2, 2007

Hey Aubrey:

Are you already using ADT? When I was suffering through the side effects of Lupron, I had such emotional episodes.