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Treatment Using SSRIs
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facturer of Prozac, decided to repackage and rename Prozac for the
women’s market. The new name, Sarafem, with its pink and purple
pills, was ready to help women who feel out of control for one to
two weeks a month bring normalcy back to their lives. In July 2000,
the FDA finally acted on the recommendation and approved Sara-
fem to treat PMDD.
Sarafem is usually taken once a day, in the morning, and should
be taken close to the same time every day. A missed pill must be
taken within a few hours or that dose should be skipped. Doses
should never be doubled to make up for a missed dose. The pre-
scription should be stored at room temperature. The patient’s doc-
tor should be kept informed of any changes—good or bad—that the
patient experiences while taking Sarafem.
Pychiatric drugs cannot be taken lightly or casually. It is impor-
tant to follow the prescribing practitioner’s instructions exactly,
in order to avoid potentially dangerous side effects.