Antidepressants have helped millions of people manage their Depression so that they can live more fulfilling lives, but side effects including emotional blunting from antidepressants pose significant challenges for many patients. According to studies, about 50% of patients who take antidepressants experience emotional blunting at some point during their treatment, as these medications can create a side effect similar to the emotional hollowness they are designed to combat.
So, do antidepressants make you happy or numb—or both? Let’s take a closer look at what emotional blunting from antidepressants feels like, review the studies related to this topic, and explore treatment options for patients experiencing this challenging side effect.
What Is Emotional Blunting From Antidepressants?
Antidepressants may be able to treat the symptoms of Depression (also called Major Depressive Disorder, MDD); they can also be used to help with anxiety and other mental or behavioral health issues. Antidepressants are designed to improve feelings of intense emptiness and dispassion, and for some people undergoing Depression, they do.
However, it’s important to know that antidepressants can have side effects, including the possibility of emotional blunting. If you’ve ever wondered “do antidepressants make you feel numb,” you’re not alone. Though some symptoms of Depression may have improved after a patient has begun regularly taking their antidepressant medication(s), it may also be the case that emotional responses – such as laughing or crying – are more difficult to experience and feel muted in general. This is termed emotional blunting, which is the experience of dulled emotional states caused by an antidepressant.
Do Antidepressants Make You Happy Or Numb?: Exploring the Symptoms
When being treated with an antidepressant medication that causes feelings of hollowness, some patients find themselves wondering, “do antidepressants make you happy or numb?” It can be hard to distinguish the difference between an antidepressants’ merit and its side effects. The symptoms of emotional blunting can include the following:
- A sense that both your positive and negative emotions are numbed or repressed
- Being less able or unable to laugh or cry in appropriate situations
- Feeling less empathy for others
Emotional blunting is a side effect that’s important to discuss with your psychiatrist or doctor, as it may affect your work, your relationships, and your experience of daily life.
How Does Emotional Blunting From Antidepressants Differ From Depression?
You might be surprised if someone asks “do antidepressants make you numb,” since Depression is often described as feeling numb and its treatment should ideally mitigate that. At a glance, Depression and emotional blunting may sound similar, which is part of the reason why – until recently – not many studies looked at emotional blunting as a specific symptom on its own.
There are many key distinctions, however, between Depression and emotional blunting, mainly:
- Array of emotions: When you’re undergoing Depression, you typically experience less joy or interest in activities you used to like. With emotional blunting, all emotions feel dulled, both positive (e.g. joy or love) and negative ones (e.g. anger or sadness).
- Timing: If the emotional hollowness started after you began taking your antidepressant, then it’s likely a symptom of the medication rather than a continuation of your Depression.
- Range of symptoms: Patients who experience emotional blunting from antidepressants often report that their other Depressive symptoms, such as pervasive sadness and constant guilt, begin to get better even as they experience a new sensation of dulled emotions.
Studies Related To Emotional Blunting From Antidepressants
Do antidepressants make you feel numb? Studies have shown that around half of all people who take antidepressants experience emotional blunting. Recent evidence suggests that this is because antidepressants use a reinforcement learning model to chemically shift the brains of those who take them to have more interest in things and stabilize their moods.
However, some people experiencing Depression may not have brains that naturally respond to the retraining method used by antidepressant medications, because the antidepressant can sometimes only add chemicals to their brains rather than retraining the structure in its entirety.
In other words, for people who have more chronic cases of Depression, antidepressant treatments might act as more of a band-aid for some Depressive symptoms while also compounding them by creating new symptoms.
Emotional Blunting from Antidepressants: Correlation or Causation?
Studies have shown that nearly half of people who take antidepressants experience emotional blunting. For example, in accord with prior studies, a 2017 internet-based three-country survey was offered to 66,000 adult individuals in the U.S., 40,000 in the U.K., and 98,000 in Canada. 669 depressed patients currently taking antidepressants and 150 recovered (formerly depressed) controls participated. It was found that 46 percent of the patients who were taking an antidepressant to treat a major depressive disorder experienced dulled emotional states or at least restrictions to their range of emotions. There was no difference according to which antidepressant agent they were taking, although it appeared less frequent with bupropion.
Furthermore, the study separated the patients into two categories. The first category was made up of patients with Depression who had been taking an antidepressant for at least two months prior to the study. The second category was made up of patients who had recovered from Depression and had not taken medication for at least two months prior.
A significant difference was found between these two groups in that the only group that experienced emotional blunting was from the first group, thereby suggesting an association between emotional blunting and antidepressant treatment. The study also found that emotional blunting occurred more frequently in men (52 percent) than in women (44 percent).
Exploring Emotional Blunting with Specific Antidepressants
If you’ve ever wondered “do antidepressants make you numb,” more individuals and researchers are sharing their findings on how specific antidepressants are affecting the population at large. Findings suggest that some antidepressants may be more likely to cause emotional blunting than others. Let’s dive deeper into which types of antidepressants are more commonly associated with this particular side effect:
Zoloft Emotional Blunting
Zoloft is one of the antidepressants more correlated with emotional blunting. Antidepressants that regulate serotonin levels, such as Zoloft, are more likely to create feelings of emotional numbness. These antidepressants are called Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs). Zoloft emotional blunting occurs when the Zoloft helps you produce either too much or too little serotonin. The emotional blunting Zoloft causes is real and should not be ignored.
Does Prozac Make You Feel Numb?
Now let’s consider the answer to the question “does Prozac make you feel numb?” Like Zoloft, Prozac is a drug designed to control your serotonin levels. Serotonin is one of the chemicals inside you responsible for stable moods, so too much or too little serotonin can lead to feeling like your own emotions are at a distance from you.
Emotional Blunting and Antidepressants: Comparing Different Types
If you’re worried about Zoloft emotional blunting, emotional blunting with Prozac, or with another type of SSRI, know that it isn’t just you alone. Studies show that SSRIs are most likely to produce emotional blunting as a side effect. Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs), which similarly try to regulate serotonin levels while also increasing a chemical that helps you focus, have additionally been shown to be more correlated with emotional blunting in patients.
Beyond the emotional blunting Zoloft and Prozac might cause, here are some other of the most common SSRIs and SNRIs that may be correlated with the symptom:
- Paxil
- Celexa
- Lexapro
- Cymbalta
- Effexor XR
- Pristiq
- Fetzima
While other types of antidepressants, such as tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), do sometimes produce emotional blunting, it’s a less common side effect.
Do Antidepressants Make You Numb?: Treatment Options
If you’ve ever found yourself searching for answers to the question “does Prozac make you feel numb” you may be experiencing emotional blunting from antidepressants. In this scenario, it is best to see your psychiatrist or doctor as soon as you can to discuss alternatives which may be helpful, such as:
- Decreasing the dosage of your current antidepressant
- Switching to a different antidepressant
- Working with a therapist to figure out the psychological component of the Depression by finding ways and behaviors to elevate your mood
- Incorporating more exercise (a natural way to stimulate serotonin) into your day, eating healthier, and avoiding alcohol
- Exploring other treatment options, like TMS, that do not have the adverse effects of antidepressant medications
It’s important not to make any changes to your antidepressants without first consulting a licensed doctor or psychiatrist, even if the emotional blunting Zoloft can cause is upsetting to you. Suddenly stopping your antidepressant could cause severe withdrawal symptoms. Your doctor can work with you to develop a plan for tapering your medication off and potentially switching to another.
Additionally, if you’ve been taking your antidepressant for less than six weeks, the side effects you’re experiencing may be temporary. Ultimately, collaborating with your doctor can give you the most accurate and personalized information about your best treatment options moving forward.
Resolving Emotional Blunting From Antidepressants With Mid City TMS
Emotional blunting from antidepressants can certainly pose a challenge but you don’t need to sit around wondering, “do antidepressants make you happy or numb” without taking action. If you’re experiencing Depression and you feel the Prozac or Zoloft emotional blunting is becoming an issue, there are plenty of other treatment options to consider, including both medicative and non-medicative.
Mid City TMS provides patients with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), which has been proven to be one of the most effective procedures available for the treatment of Depression. TMS works well both in combination with and without antidepressants.
TMS is safe, effective, and noninvasive. It has helped patients experience:
- An uplifted mood
- More energy and motivation
- The ability to more effectively concentrate
- Better sleep patterns
If you have experienced emotional blunting from antidepressants and are seeking an alternative effective treatment, contact Mid City TMS today. Many of our patients appreciate that after a course of TMS, they are able to more fully experience and express their emotions, which allows them to appear brighter and be more fully engaged with friends and family.
At Mid City TMS, you will work with some of the best doctors and professionals who care deeply for their patient’s ability to live the most enjoyable life that they can. They will work every step of the way with you in order to achieve the best treatment plan possible for your individual emotional blunting situation.
Sources:
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- Machado-Vieira, R., Salvadore, G., Luckenbaugh, D. A., Manji, H. K., & Zarate, C. A. (2017). Rapid onset of antidepressant effects: Ketamine and the emerging role of AMPA receptors. Journal of Affective Disorders, 219, 1-14. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165032717308303
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- Malleza, Sebastian, M.D. Antidepressant-Induced EMotional Blunting: Diagnosis, Mechanisms and Methods. Psychopharmacology Institute. https://psychopharmacologyinstitute.com/publication/antidepressant-induced-emotional-blunting-diagnosis-mechanisms-and-management-2/