Not complaining, just questioning: Longterm medication use makes most patients snappish

[UglyGreed]

66. Addicted is

sometimes associated with weakness and at times criminal activity. Maybe we should use the term Discontinuation syndrome like they do for Antidepressants......

Main article: Antidepressant discontinuation syndrome
Antidepressant discontinuation symptoms were first reported with imipramine, the first tricyclic antidepressant (TCA), in the late 1950s, and each new class of antidepressants has brought reports of similar conditions, including monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), SSRIs, and SNRIs. As of 2001, at least 21 different antidepressants, covering all the major classes, were known to cause discontinuation syndromes.[125] The problem has been poorly studied, and most of the literature has been case reports or small clinical studies; incidence is hard to determine and controversial.[125]

People with discontinuation syndrome have been on an antidepressant for at least four weeks and have recently stopped taking the medication, either abruptly or after a fast taper.[126] Common symptoms include flu-like symptoms (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, sweating), sleep disturbances (insomnia, nightmares, constant sleepiness), sensory/movement disturbances (imbalance, tremors, vertigo, dizziness, electric-shock-like experiences), mood disturbances (dysphoria, anxiety, agitation) and cognitive disturbances (confusion and hyperarousal).[126][127][128] Over fifty symptoms have been reported.[129]

Most cases of discontinuation syndrome last between one and four weeks, are relatively mild, and resolve on their own; in rare cases symptoms can be severe or extended.[126] Paroxetine and venlafaxine seem to be particularly difficult to discontinue and prolonged withdrawal syndrome lasting over 18 months have been reported with paroxetine.[125][130][131]

With the explosion of use and interest in SSRIs in the late 1980s and early 1990s, focused especially on Prozac, interest grew as well in discontinuation syndromes.[132] In the late 1990s, some investigators thought that symptoms that emerged when antidepressants were discontinued, might mean that antidepressants were causing addiction, and some used the term "withdrawal syndrome" to describe the symptoms. Addictive substances cause physiological dependence, so that drug withdrawal causes suffering. These theories were abandoned, since addiction leads to drug-seeking behavior, and people taking antidepressants do not exhibit drug-seeking behavior. The term "withdrawal syndrome" is no longer used with respect to antidepressants, to avoid confusion with problems that arise from addiction.[126][133][134] There are case reports of antidepressants being abused, but these are rare and are mostly limited to antidepressants with stimulant effects and to people who already had a substance abuse disorder.[135] A 2012 comparison of the effects of stopping therapy with benzodiazepines and SSRIs argued that because the symptoms are similar, it makes no sense to say that benzodiazepines are addictive while SSRIs are not.[136] Responses to that review noted that there is no evidence that people who stop taking SSRIs exhibit drug-seeking behavior while people who stop taking benzodiazepines do, and that the drug classes should be considered differently.[137][138]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antidepressant

Just sayin"