Amoxapine Alternatives

If depression treatment isn't effective with the use of amoxapine, alternatives to the medication are available. Alternatives to amoxapine may include psychotherapy, electroconvulsive therapy, alternative therapies, and other antidepressants. Medications that are commonly used as amoxapine alternatives include SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOIs, or other tricyclic antidepressants.

 

Amoxapine Alternatives: An Overview

Amoxapine (Asendin®) is a prescription medicine used for the treatment of depression (also known as major depression or clinical depression). Amoxapine is part of a group of antidepressant medications called tricyclic antidepressants. For many people, amoxapine is effective in treating their symptoms, and most people tolerate it well. However, as with all medicines, side effects can occur or the medicine may not adequately control a patient's symptoms. Fortunately, there are several alternatives to amoxapine for depression treatment, including:
 
  • Therapy
  • Other depression medications (also known as antidepressants)
  • Electroconvulsive therapy
  • Alternative (natural) therapies.
     

Therapy as an Amoxapine Alternative

Many forms of psychotherapy, including some short-term therapies (10 to 20 weeks), can help people with depression. "Talk" therapies help patients gain insight into (and resolve) their problems through verbal exchange with the therapist and are sometimes combined with "homework" assignments between sessions. Behavioral therapists help patients learn how to obtain more satisfaction through their own actions and how to unlearn the behavioral patterns that contribute to or result from their depression.
 
(Click Psychotherapy for Depression to learn more about this depression treatment option.)
 
(Amoxapine Alternatives Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;