05. What is the Truth about Anxiety treatment?
A Analysis of MCT and SSRI Studies
SSRIs do not add serotonin to the brain.
Instead, they are assumed to work by making the serotonin that is already present more effective. They achieve this by trying to prevent the reuptake (reabsorption) of serotonin into neurons after it has been released into the synaptic gap (the space between neurons). This action would increase the availability of serotonin to bind to receptors on the receiving neuron, enhancing its ability to transmit signals that regulate mood, anxiety, and other functions.
So, the key point is that SSRIs try to increase the effectiveness of the body’s own serotonin by allowing it to remain active in the synaptic space longer than it would without the medication, but they do not increase the total amount of serotonin or directly add more to the system.
We have these SSRI products.
- Fluoxetine (Prozac)
- Sertraline (Zoloft)
- Paroxetine (Paxil)
- Citalopram (Celexa)
- Escitalopram (Lexapro)
Because they have different property we sometime need to try different types to find which work for us. If any.
Many times none of them work due to the complexity of our brain.
It’s of course more complex. This is just at short summarize.
And remember, it symptom medicin. Medication will never fix your anxiety problem in the long run.
Another problem is the 6 to 12 weeks waiting time for an effect.
Maybe we should look for better use of this wait time instead of just waiting for something we don’t know if will happen?
