nxm parent
I keep seeing all these placebo studies regarding anti-depressants, and yet I know for a fact that SSRIs were able to get me out of 2 episodes of months long depression in life within a few days of taking them. Everybody reacts different is my only explanation
My wife is a psychiatrist. She told me I the past that anti-depressants are a bit like roulette - you have to keep trying until the right one lands. Unfortunately, that can take years as most antidepressants take 4 to 8 weeks to take full effect. Everybody’s body is just slightly differently so it can take a while to find a drug that pairs well with your body.
Further, there’s a lot of indication that antidepressants depressants are far, far more effective when paired with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). I think of this like liposuction, you can remove the weight quickly - but without sustained lifestyle and diet changes, you’ll end up being back in the same place.
It's very possible that the combination of antidepressants and CBT is superior. Antidepressants enable you to relearn faster und CBT teaches you what to learn.
What the studies say is that the placebos might have been as effective for you.