Why can't you drink well taking anti-depressants ?

My goodness you've been given some silly answers. I was on anti depressants for ten years. Alcohol, as one of your more sensible respondents said, is a depressant and once the 'high' wears off after a few drinks, usually the feelings of depression are more acute and difficult to deal with.

Many people who take Zoloft, Prozac, and other depression-related medications drink light to moderate amounts of alcohol without serious side effects, or any effects at all. However, it's important to know what the possible interactions may be so that you can be on the lookout.

When there is a noticeable reaction from mixing alcohol with anti-depressants, it's often an amplified response to the alcohol, i.e., one drink may end up feeling like two. If you usually feel tired, or even a bit depressed, after drinking, then you might feel even more so if you're on anti-depressants. They affect your brain's ability to absorb serotonin, which acts as a neurotransmitter, transmitting nerve impulses between nerve cells and affecting mood. Alcohol also affects serotonin levels in your brain by altering your brain's production of it. That's why using the two together could produce unexpected and unwanted emotions.

Similarly, the shaky motor skills and slower reaction time common for alcohol users may get even shakier when anti-depressants are present — these responses can occur suddenly and unexpectedly. Zoloft, and the other anti-depressants like it, can also produce sedative effects; since alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, lowered heart rate and blood pressure changes are possible.

I don't think it would be a good I idea. There is environment induced depression dealing with death ECT. That is normal and there is no anti-depressant to help that. There is a chemical imbalance depression which is often what anti-depressants are used to treat. Anti-depressants treat the chemicals in the brain to help make a person stable if your chemical levels are normal there is no need for any medication. They have anti-anxiety medications (also not recommended during pregnancy) and some RX sleep medications that are safe to take during pregnancy. I had a still birth with my 1st child and when I got preg. again I was totally stressed out and very worried the whole time, every time I did not feel the baby move I worried I was hospitalized for a week because I could not eat or sleep it was torture. I did not even consider taking anti-depressants and risking my baby being sick or even worse dying. I was told to try counseling and to my surprise it worked. I learned techniques to use when I started to feel anxious and it always helped I learned how to "talk myself down" lol. Anyway I recommend trying it also I got books about positive thinking like "The Secret" and "A New Earth" sounds corny but most of the time we can really let our minds carry us away and actually learning how to think positive is never a bad thing. You’re carrying a new little person and they need you to be strong and healthy from them. I know it's hard believe I know I mean I don't think I can explain with words the hell I was in when I was preg. with my son. But learning to not be a victim of my circumstances I developed a "can do" attitude and now I'm a better person and mom because of it. Please consider other methods before resorting to anti-depressants they won't fix the problem they just treat the symptoms. It's like putting a band-aid on a broken leg. If there was a magic pill to fix us when life got hard we would all be taking it unfortunately anti-depressants don't work like that.

Because alcohol is a depressant and it would work against taking the anti-depressant. If you want to start feeling better take the time you are on this medication to get things done that you never find time to do. Clean out a closet, get a bag of clothes ready for Goodwill, help a neighbor, and when you get your mind off yourself.....you will find that you ARE feeling better. Good luck.

Because if I'm right alcohol is a depressant besides that if you have stuff going on maybe alcohol is not the best for you...find other ways to get happy. Maybe its the mixture of chemicals too

The anti-depressants affect the respirtory system, and alcohol does too. Combining the two depressents together, can cause you to have shallow weak breathing.

Because your tolerance to alcohol goes waaaay down, and a drink or two will get you really drunk, as well, alcohol is a depressant, and the slight "down" feeling you usually feel after a night of drinking will be amplified.

increase heart rate.makes you restless ormake you more tired. high blood presure. the alcohol could revers the afect of the med. you are taking. and or kill you.

Because then the medication won't work.

i don't know but i do. doesn't affect me at all.