What the new research could mean for YOU

THE new research casts doubt on the official view that withdrawal symptoms from antidepressants are usually mild and short-lived, as set out in NICE guidelines and in a recent statement from the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP), which said: ‘In the vast majority of patients, any unpleasant symptoms experienced on discontinuing antidepressants have resolved within two weeks’.

In fact, as many as half of patients will experience withdrawal symptoms, with nearly half of those suffering severe effects, the new research has found. ‘We are very much hoping that our research will influence the direction of NICE’s new guidance,’ says Dr James Davies, one of the authors.

Professor John Read, a psychologist and the report’s co-author, adds: ‘We want NICE to acknowledge that antidepressant withdrawal is more common, long-lasting and severe than current guidelines state, and to oblige doctors to warn patients.’

Change may be on its way, though. In comments on the new research Professor Wendy Burn, the RCP’s president, said ‘antidepressants are an effective, evidencebased treatment’ which were ‘a life-saver for many people’.

She adds: ‘But not enough research has been done into what happens when you stop taking them. As this review shows, for many people the withdrawal effects can be severe, particularly when antidepressants are stopped abruptly.

‘We are pleased that Public Health England is prioritising dependence on, and withdrawal from, prescribed medicines as an area of review, and welcome NHS England’s referral to NICE asking that they do the same.’