Do you remember Northern Illinois University shooting? Where
the shooter Stephen Kazmierczak shot 21 students, killed six and injured
dozens, then committed suicide. Law enforcement say that he began to act
erratically after he stopped taking the anti-depressant Prozac. But doctors say
that suspending a patient’s use of Prozac is rarely linked to violence towards
others. But stopping antidepressants suddenly can be risky if patients do not
follow a doctor’s instruction and don’t report any negative effects.

One fifth of people who stop Prozac like drugs report
symptoms associated with a condition known as discontinuation syndrome. It can
include abdominal pain, dizziness, crying spells, irritability and even a
sensation similar to an electrical shock in the patient’s arms or legs. Stephens’s
former girlfriend said that he stopped taking Prozac because it made him feel
like a zombie.

Although this is very rare it still happens. Doctors said
that last month a case study of a woman who began having symptoms of delusion
within days of halting her Prozac therapy. The patient imagined hearing her
sons voice even though he wasn’t there, had uncontrollable crying spells, and
at one point said “I am Jesus”. And in other cases of homicide Eric Harris had
been taking the antidepressant Luvox before murders and videotaped a message that
he stopped taking the pills in order to let his anger grow without the
restraint of the medication. So stopping
the medication without telling your doctor is very bad and can lead to CRAZY
things!!

I totally believe this, these drugs mess with your brain. Sure it may help you but it could also destroy you!

I remember being prescribed Prozac when I was in seventh grade.  I'm not sure why but I thought I needed them because my mom was also on them and my parents were going through a divorce.  But I kept insisting that I was depressed and my therapist gave them to me.  It was the lowest dose necessary but still, I remember it being so easy to get them. 

rainbowbright said: I remember being prescribed Prozac when I was in seventh grade.  I'm not sure why but I thought I needed them because my mom was also on them and my parents were going through a divorce.  But I kept insisting that I was depressed and my therapist gave them to me.  It was the lowest dose necessary but still, I remember it being so easy to get them. 

I got a very low dose of anti-depressants because I suffered from really bad headaches that lead from stress. I wouldn't be able to concentrate or sometimes even see because of these headaches. They perscribed me a bunch of pills. One was anti-depressant, 2 forms of vitamin B, manganese (something like that) and like 2 other vitamins I had never heard of. I felt like an old man when my mom would put a napkin with 6 colorful pills on it that I had to take every morning. I refused to take them after a week but stopped tha antidepressant after 2 days. I'd rather handle my stress and my headaches by myself rather than a bunch of pills doing it for me.

I'm not sure if I would want my son/daughter to be prescribed anti-depressants.  If it were a last resort and we had already tried counseling and therapy to treat their depression, I'd still be very cautious.  Because there's always a risk of dependency when they're older.