I’m very sorry you are in pain LTZA, but why would antidepressants be prescribed because of chronic pain?
Aren’t antidepressants used to treat people who shouldn’t be depressed, but are anyway, due to a chemical imbalance in the brain?
Wouldn’t correcting the chronic pain lift the depression?
Innocent question. I’m just trying to understand.
Sometimes, the same alterations to the chemical balance of the brain can diminish pain perception, as well as affecting moods.
It’s probably being prescribed for an “off-label” use or even could be used for pain relief. Many “side effects” can have their own therapeutic value; I’m taking an AD for insomnia.
It is not at all unusual to prescribe SSRIs off-label for chronic idiopathic pain or even pain of known origin. The idea is that it permits the patient to handle the pain better and it sometimes works. In some cases neuropathic pain actually diminishes.