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From my experiences concerning my daughter, it is clear that when
anti-depressants (especially ssri's) are used for bi- polar patients
(diagnosed or not), without a mood stabiliser there is definately a much
increased risk of suicide.In my daughter's case she continually od'd
before being put on a mood stabiliser and ssri's definately made her
illness much worse. Perhaps it would be wise to screen for bi-polar when
presented with a depressed patient. Not that, in my opinion many mental
health professionals or gp's would know how to do this.
SSRI's and mood disorders
From my experiences concerning my daughter, it is clear that when
anti-depressants (especially ssri's) are used for bi- polar patients
(diagnosed or not), without a mood stabiliser there is definately a much
increased risk of suicide.In my daughter's case she continually od'd
before being put on a mood stabiliser and ssri's definately made her
illness much worse. Perhaps it would be wise to screen for bi-polar when
presented with a depressed patient. Not that, in my opinion many mental
health professionals or gp's would know how to do this.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests