omg t- soup from yesterday turned out yum. it's very stew-ish. I'm tempted to call it stoup.

Anecdotal evidence has its uses. If any doctor had ever even casually mentioned to me that taking Zoloft might cause me to lose my fucking hair, I'd never have taken the stuff, and that would've been good because it made my depression worse. Doesn't it occur to any doctor that sudden male-pattern baldness might exacerbate depression in a woman? It's been five years since I went off it, and the hair still hasn't all grown back. Though on the upside, it does seem to be slowly growing back.

I'm tempted to call it stoup.

Don't make me cut you.

Erk. Sorry if I shouldn't be asking. I just like to have anecdotal evidence - largely because doctors won't tell me anything about these drugs.

No, you totally should. Anecdotal evidence in addition to research and talking to my docs helped me to pinpoint many things that did and didn't work for me.

This. Totally this.

I'm assuming that, when people ask me drug information, they know that (1) I am not a doctor, (2) I am not a pharmacist, and, most importantly, (3) I'm just giving them a map, so to speak, of the direction they should look, w/r/t side effects, drug interactions, etc.

And I further assume that anyone who asks me stuff knows that it's just a "map" and not gospel truth. I figure alla y'all are smart enough to know that, or else I wouldn't dispense drug info.

And I've been helped HUGELY by being able to ask people here what their experiences were on various anti-Ds. And when, for instance, someone said that they didn't gain weight with Zoloft but I ended up gaining 2 dress sizes, I didn't react by storming in here and demanding an explanation for why I was misled into taking such a drug.

No, it's just useful anecdotal experience, and the more I can hear, the bigger "map" I have to decide if that's the way I want to go.

I totally agree--having known people who were on Topamax before I took it, and knowing it was called "Dopamax" made me wary--but didn't stop me from taking it. And made me feel better about having some but not all the side effects--I mean, reading the side effect profile tells me I could have practically ANYTHING. Knowing real people who say "Yes, I lost words"...

Oh my gosh. I don't know what I would do without the support and recommendations I get from Buffistas!

It's such a great place to begin, or enrich, a discernment process about pretty much anything. That is true precisely because I trust the intelligence and good intentions of everyone who responds to a query.

In fact, I've seen more "YMMVs" here than anywhere else, ever. That is terrifically reassuring.

Oh my gosh. I don't know what I would do without the support and recommendations I get from Buffistas!

Very much this. My previous doctor always told me not to worry about new meds, and I read all the info that came with the drugs I would probably make myself a wreck. It's good to just get a general sense from people who have btdt.

That is true precisely because I trust the intelligence and good intentions of everyone who responds to a query.

This is a very good point. People here have good sense and are lovely. It's a wonderful combination.

Hells to the yeah. I'm glad it worked for tommy, but what a clusterfuck for my life.

Man, that stuff was NASTY for me. NASTY.

I cannot fully articulate the extent of its nasty.

Heh. Have any female takers had any luck with it? Because the few people I know who it worked for were all dudes.

For people who don't venture into Natter- Wicked the miniseries. [link]