this post was submitted on 02 Nov 2023
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True, but mostly irrelevant. SSRIs are the first line treatment for a bunch of shit, we don't know how they work, either.
Yes we do, it's right there in the name. They inhibit reuptake of serotonin in select areas of the brain.
The drug gets onto neurotransmitters that take one chemical that signals for the brain to retake serotonin. But since those transmitters are "clogged" by the drug instead, the indicator chemical can't do it's job, so the serotonin stays in your brain longer.
No. We don't. While obviously, we know it inhibits serotonin reuptake, we do not know why that SSRI action works. They were developed based on the monoamine hypothesis - basically "too little neurotransmitter activity, better beef it up". And so it does! In a matter of days. Any actual antidepressive effect notoriously can take weeks or months, so that obviously isn't the entire mechanism.
God, that's a book and a half of neuro-interaction, isn't it?