Book Rex: Drug Strugs

My antidepressant has made it really hard to focus on reading, thanks, I hate it.

Boy, would I like to have a book to recommend right now! It is not in the cards today, however, as I am wayyyy behind my usual reading pace this year. The culprit, as usual, is my depression, but it’s for a different reason this time!

I’ve been taking the antidepressant fluoxetine (brand name Prozac) for the past four months as a way to give me an extra little boost in dealing with my depression, and while it has helped in that regard, it’s also completely fucked my ability to read.

Lost focus is a normal side effect of fluoxetine, and it’s one of the things that you just kinda hope doesn’t end up materializing for you when you take it, along with insomnia, diarrhea and fewer boners. You’re making a gamble that the costs will be far outweighed by the benefits.

It’s put me in a bit of a bind, though. I read and write for a living, so anything that hampers my ability to do that needs to be nipped in the bud. One of the things that hampers my ability to read and write is depression. Another is my antidepressant.