Originally Posted by
lliiaamm0099
There seems to be a great deal of discontent for the NHS in this forum which is quite disheartening as I am currently training to be a Doctor myself, although I am intending to specialise in Neurology not Psychiatry. There also seems to be quite a few misconceptions related to how the NHS prescribes medications and what it prescribes. One of which is that Pregabalin isn't given to patients as the brand of if by Pfizer is expensive. It's true that Lyrica is expensive somewhere in the region of £95 a month, however, there are plenty of generic versions available which can easily be found on the EMC, which will be about the same price as Vortioxetine. The more common reason that Pregabalin is unlikely to be prescribed for anxiety is because Pregabalin works by binding to what are called voltage dependent Calcium channels which when are opened on nerve cells cause positively charged Calcium ions to go into the cell which leads to neurotransmitters such as Noradrenaline and Dopamine to leave the cell. This means that Pregabalin simply stops nerves from sending these neurotransmitters out meaning that its anxiolytic effect is simply by making the patient feel drunk, drunkenness is even one of the most commonly reported side effects as is euphoria and ataxia. This why many Doctors are reluctant to prescribe it as you are essentially getting the patient drunk to treat their anxiety, not only this but prolonged use of such drugs can lead to issue with the pacemaker of the heart called the sinoatrial node.
As far as the whole Mirtazapine is prescribed alot because it is "dirt cheap" this simply isn't true it is used because it acts as a presynaptic Alpha2-Adrenoceptor antagonist meaning that it will increase nerve cell output of Noradrenaline and Serotonin and many patients don't want to get sexual dysfunction and Mirtazapine doesn't cause this, however it isn't licensed to be used in Anxiety disorders in the United Kingdom. It is also a very potent Histamine H1 receptor antagonist which means that it can sometimes be used in anxiety for its sedative effects.