I am  a 39 year old Englishman with a long history of depressive
illness.

I have been taking SSRI,s for the past 4 years. After a year on Prozac
; it started making me feel very edgy and extrememly "unreal" at
times.

My doctor switched me to Paxil (Seroxat in th UK) which seemed to suit
me  and enabled me to function well .

The benefits of the drug have far outweighed the drawbacks until
recently and I am left in a disturbing dillema.

I have now experienced three episodes where I have become extremely
aggressive , threatening and potentially {*filter*}. Each time the events
have escalated from arguments with other men and I have been left
feeling that I just "Flipped Out" and could not explain or justify my
behavior.

I am normally not an aggressive or {*filter*} person and these episodes
have really frightened me as my reactions came from nowhwere.

I am of the opinion that the Paxil/Seroxat although helping to control
my depression is the primary cause of this behavior in me .

Has anyone heard of any similar experiences on Paxil / Seroxat ?

I remember seeing a TV documentary   about the bad side effects that
people had suffered on Prozac . Can anyone send me references of
sites, papers, programmes or reports of the negative side effects of
SSRI's ?

I am very worried and would appreciate any help or imformation that
anyone could offer.

Thankyou   rod

Remove "darn" from my address to send mail.

Thanks,

tom

Found this on a newswire just today:

PROZAC MAY AID QUICK TEMPERS

CHICAGO - A new study finds Prozac can help people with explosive tempers.
Researchers in Allegheny University of the Health Sciences in Philadelphia
say people who explode in fits of rage may do so because of low levels of
a natural brain chemical called serotonin. Prozac helps maintain levels of
serotonin, which regulates mood. The study is in the December issue of the
"Archives of General Psychiatry," which is published by the American
Medical Association.

Talk to your dr. about a dose change...

Prozac is often effective in borderline personality disorder (one of whose
symptoms is uncontrolled or inappropriate anger), too.

On the other hand, Prozac tends to be more stimulating, while Paxil is more
likely to be sedating.  This can result in agitation for some people.

-elizabeth

For the record, the symptoms of hypomania are:

-inflated self-esteem or grandiosity
-decreased need for sleep
-more talkative than usual or pressure to keep talking
-racing thoughts
-distractibility
-increase in goal-directed activity (either socially, at work or school, or
{*filter*}ly), or psychomotor agitation
-excessive involvement in pleasurable activities that have a high potential
for painful consequences (e.g., unrestrained buying sprees, {*filter*}
indiscretions, foolish business investments)

-elizabeth

Tina

a condition marked by motor restlessness, ranging from anxiety to
inability to lie or sit quietly or to sleep, as seen in toxic
reactions to phenothiazines.

Is this what you mean?
--

I have figured out why cats often run around like they are crazy.
It is because they are crazy.