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Over the past decade, antidepressant prescriptions have almost doubled in England, rising from 47.3 million in 2011 to 85.6 million in 2022-23. Over 8.6 million adults in England are now prescribed them annually (nearly 20% of adults), 1 with prescriptions set to rise over the next decade. In addition, the average duration of time for which a person takes an antidepressant has doubled between the mid-2000s and 2017, with around half of patients now classed as long term users. 2 Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have similar rates of antidepressant prescribing.

Rising long term use is associated with many adverse effects, including weight gain, sexual dysfunction, bleeding, falls, and poorer long term outcomes for some. Withdrawal effects are experienced by around half of patients, with up to half of those describing their symptoms as severe, and a substantial proportion experiencing withdrawal for many …