Every month I plan to discuss various aspects of psychiatric medications. We will start with an introduction.

It is useful to know the name and dose of the medication/s you are taking and which class of medication it is. The main groups of psychiatric medication include antidepressants, mood stabilizers, stimulants, sedatives and antipsychotics. Below is a diagram showing the main groups of medications.

Explaining all the different names of medications

Manufacturers assign brand names to different original medications. e.g. Prozac = Fluoxetine (ingredient), Xanor = Alprazolam (ingredient). The names in the table above are the first brand names which were ever manufactured. Once the patent on the brand i.e. Prozac runs out, generics (copies) of the original ingredient can be manufactured under a different brand name. This explains why a medication on your script may be issued by the pharmacist as a different brand. The ingredient is the same yet the brand is different.

Common brand names and generics

Prozac = Fluoxetine = Lorien
Lamicitin = Lamotrigine = Epitec
Xanor = Alzam = Alprazolam

Learn the name, dose and the group of your psychiatric medication/s. The more you are informed about your medication, the control you will have over your mental health.