Antidepressants

Lynny said:

It is interesting to think if medicines may alter a reading. If certain meds can make a reading worse, I wonder if there is something that can make a reading more accurate? Just wondering out loud. =]

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If I have to take one, I prefer the older ones like amytriptyline (sp?) which is the generic name for something I don't remember. The new ones, like Abrac said, have really nasty withdrawal symptoms and take forever to wean from.

Linny, it's not likely. When I was still drinking, I thought booze made everything about me better, but I was the only one who believed that joke! It's dangerous to think a substance can be the answer to making you better at something. It may heal something or lessen the effects of a negative condition, but no substance makes you better than who you were born to be.

I started taking an SSRI (plus another psych med) during the very same month I started reading and collecting tarot cards.

I've continued both (reading tarot and taking antidepressants) steadily for the past 4 years.

So I have to say YES, of course you can read tarot effectively while on SSRIs. Honestly, in the year right before I went on an SSRI, I couldn't do much of anything very well. Couldn't concentrate. Crying all the darned time. Seeing things. Waking up night after night screaming due to nightmares. I'm fairly certain that I'd be utterly UNABLE to read tarot very well if I weren't on the meds.

Anyway, that's my experience. Your mileage may vary.

I am currently on 30mg of Cipralex, 30mg of Remeron, 2mg of Clonazapam, and 800mg of Seroquel and I have had no problems with reading the cards. If anything, I can concentrate more now rather than when I was meds free.

If the doctor wants to put you on anti-depressants at least sit down and talk to him to make sure that you understand every reason why he thinks this may be the best course for you. Sometimes, alternative healing works well, but not always. I am a believer in meds - but it's a long road even when taking them.

I wish you luck and healing,

Zhahmi

P.S. If you want to PM me to talk more about meds, that would be fine. I have taken many roads to get where I am, and the meds work for me... not always for everyone, though.

I've been medicated on and off, even before I started reading...Of the SSRIs, I've taken citalopram (Celexa), fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Paxil), and sertraline (Zoloft). None of these ever stopped me from reading, except for the first week or two when a new med (usually accompanied by a high dose mood stabilizer) would make me too sleepy to do anything.

But after that, I've never had problems with reading. Actually, when I was on Celexa two years ago, I think I might have read better than usual....


If it doesn't work out for you, you can ask to try a different medication. You don't have to explain to your doctor that you can't read your tarot cards anymore, but there are so many different options out there, that if one pill interferes with your life, then you can usually try for another one and hope it works better.

Just from my personal experience/opinion, I would say any difference in ability comes down to if the medication is working & is the right one for you... as well as how much of a problem any side effects are.

I'm currently on medications & have been the full time I've been reading. I'm lucky that my current treatments have very minimal side-effects for me & so I don't believe that they have hindered my reading in any way. Unfortunately at this time I do need to be on the medication & if I ever miss a days dose things like readings become impossible... so I suppose if anything they are a help to my readings -- if only in managing to actually get them done!

In the past I have had bad side effects while on medications & horrible withdrawal issues... if I had been doing readings back then, I assume my readings would have suffered for it during the worst of it. (It was actually SSRI's I had these issues with -- but of course, I also know people who have had absolute wonderful luck with them.)

There's so many options out there & I think the thing is once you find what works for you & helps you that things start 'clicking' - tarot included.

I wish you the best of luck in working with your doctor. & If it's alright, I'd also like to extend the PM offer to you as well if you ever need another ear to listen or share about these matters... I've definitely been there & will send many good thoughts your way.

I agree with Fudugazi here:
"they can have a numbing effect on intuition and emotional intelligence when taken for a long periods of time."

That was definitely true for me when I took citalopram for 18 months after depression & a life crisis. I couldn't read Tarot at all for 2 years.
The adjusting periods at the beginning & end of pill-taking were horrible. The nausea, sleep-loss & general vagueness made it impossible to focus and decreased my intuitive responses.
Re-gaining them took many months - I had to learn to let myself feel and trust my instincts again.
Tarot has helped me recover & expand my consciousness a lot since.
Warm blessings to you - Starshower.

Hi Lleminawc,

I presently take zoloft and buspar and have on and off for some time. I haven't noticed any dulling of my senses or intuition at all, in fact it is easier to do things when you don't feel sick.
I can understand why it would be a concern, I was concerned about it too, but truly, it's been ok. I am sure it is different for everyone as there are many reasons to take SSRIs and everyones body reacts differently.

Good luck,
Marie

FearfulSymmetry said:

Hi Lleminawc,

I presently take zoloft and buspar and have on and off for some time. I haven't noticed any dulling of my senses or intuition at all, in fact it is easier to do things when you don't feel sick.
I can understand why it would be a concern, I was concerned about it too, but truly, it's been ok. I am sure it is different for everyone as there are many reasons to take SSRIs and everyones body reacts differently.

Good luck,
Marie

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Ha, I admire you! I had to be taken off of Buspar...I couldn't even stand up straight, much less do a reading on those. A month solid of dizzyness...but at least I wasn't anxious about it.

So, truly, everyone reacts to things differently! So I'll just echo what I said before...try it and see. If, after the side effects have worn off (or if they don't wear off) and the meds have had a chance to kick in fully...if you're not able to accomplish the other things in your life - like tarot! - that you want to attend to, then talk to your doctor and ask for a different prescription.

You be careful with drugs like citalopram and clonazepam. They raise something called "anti-nuclear antibodies" which are antibodies which attack your own healthy cells. (The only other time you have a high amount of these anti-nuclear antibodies is when you're coming down with an autoimmune disease.)

I know this because in late 2007/early 2008, I had been prescribed these medications to deal with the stress/anxiety/depression that my previous job was causing me. I had such a scare during a check up in early 2008 when my doctor had told me the results of a blood test and said that it's possible I might have lupus or schleraderma . I was referred to a rheumatologist (During this time, I had a feeling that it had something to do with the drugs I was taking and I stopped taking them.) and he asked me if I was taking any medications. When I told him what I was taking he said that drugs like citalopram and clonazepam can cause a rise in antinuclear antibodies. I told him I had stopped but he said even if I the ANA count could remain high for many years.

The rheumatologist gave me another blood test and it came back clear.

I wouldn't say that all new medications are dangerous, but you hear these commercials on TV all the time when the voice-over person reads some of the adverse side effects of these drugs... (and after my own experience...)
Also, in the case of clonazepam, eventually, you build up a tolerance to it, so the psychiatrist has to give you permission to take higher amounts (if originally prescribed in a low dosage.). I think it did have a label on the bottle (with a little stick of dynamite on it) saying it was a controlled substance or something similar.

Just thought you should know.

Lleminawc said:

Anyone ever been on SSRIs? Did it affect your ability to read the cards (for better or worse)? My doctor wants to put me on citalopram but I'm a little wary.

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I've been on that for some time for the Fybromyalgia....the docs have a thought going that it helps with some of the pain....I think not....

Anyway, I've noticed no difference at all....

Ang x