Hi there

This is most unfortunate for your friend.  It is never a good idea to just quit an antidepressant cold turkey as there may be bad side effects.

Stay tuned for an article I will post on Monday about how to get treatment and meds without having insurance or money.

Here is some of the information I will give you now:

Walmart has a four dollar prescription program your friend may want to look into.

Here is a listing of all the prescription meds that Walmart will fill for just four dollars.

Some of the antidepressants listed include:

- Amitriptyline (Elavil)
- Citalopram (Celexa, which is the older version of Lexapro)
- Doxepin (Adapine or Sinquan)
- Fluoxetine (Prozac)
- Nortriptyline (Aventyl)
- Paroxetine (Paxil)
- Trazodone (Desyrel or Trialodine)

* There is also an organization called Needy Meds which may be able to give you assistance in obtaining your medications.  Just follow this link.

As far as over the counter treatment...he could try a natural supplement such as 5-HTP, St. John's Wort, or SAM-e.  None of these may be as effective as the anti-depressant he was taking however.  And too...these all cost money.

Hope this helps some.  Thank you for your question.