Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

Training video prepared by the International Institute of Psychiatric Drug Reduction. The Institute supports the right of every person to make a conscious choice about taking psychiatric medications. The aim of the Institute is, among others, to develop knowledge based on scientific research and experience, which enable safe discontinuation of psychiatric drugs.

So in this video, we’re going to talk about how to safely come off antidepressants.

Main topics:

Symptoms of withdrawal syndrome

What are they and why do they occur? 11:58

How to distinguish them from the underlying condition? 6:38

Recognition that they may be serious and/or long lasting 25:10

How to stop taking antidepressants safely?

Stopping antidepressants more slowly reduces withdrawal symptoms 29:10

Make smaller and smaller reductions as total dose becomes smaller 31:32

The rate of dose reduction should be adapted to the capacity of the individual patient 41:17

The importance of emotional support in the withdrawal process 42:54

Need for liquid form or very small tablets 46:08

Top Tips 49:31