Scientists have worked out why common anti-depressants cause “emotional blunting”, experts show that the drugs affect reinforcement learning, an important behavioral process that allows us to learn from our environment.
Scientists have worked out why common anti-depressants cause “emotional blunting”, experts show that the drugs affect reinforcement learning, an important behavioral process that allows us to learn from our environment.
Scientists Explain The Effect Of Antidepressants
According to the NHS, more than 8.3 million patients in England received an antidepressant drug the year of 2021 to 2022. A popular class of antidepressants, specifically for persistent or severe cases, particular serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These antidepressants target serotonin, a chemical that carries messages between nerve cells in the brain and has been dubbed the ‘pleasure chemical’.
In the study found which was published in Neuropsychopharmacology, healthy volunteers became less responsive to positive and negative feedback after taking a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug for three weeks. The “blunting” of negative emotions could be part of how the medications help people recover from depression, but could also explain a typical side effect. A total of 66 volunteers took part in the experiment and were given either the SSRI drug, 32 volunteers were given escitalopram and 34 were given a placebo. All volunteers for at least 21 days completed cognitive tests.
The work’s senior author, Prof Barbara Sahakian of the University of Cambridge, said nearly all tests, including those assessing attention and memory, the drug made no difference. “The antidepressant drug will not bring harmful cognition, however, from that point of view it’s very good,”
Regardless, people taking the SSRI were less responsive to reinforcement learning, which needs people to respond to positive or negative feedback.
People Who Take Antidepressants Cause “Emotional Blunting”
Although “emotional blunting “may vary by an individual user of the drug.” However, scientists suggest these are the most signs that you may be experiencing emotional blunting:
- You will not react to something that you’re usually happy about.
- You don’t feel any reaction when something troubling happens.
- You don’t feel love as deeply as you once did.
- You don’t get as mad as you did in the past.
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