Trazodone Alternatives

Other Depression Medications as Trazodone Alternatives

Fortunately, many medications are available to treat depression, although there are no other medications that work exactly like trazodone. These antidepressant medications include:

 

SSRIs are usually effective in treating depression and typically do not have many serious side effects. They work by increasing the level of serotonin that is available for cells of the brain. These antidepressant medications include:

 

These antidepressants are similar to SSRIs, except that they also affect norepinephrine (another chemical in the brain). SNRIs used to treat depression include:

 

Milnacipran (Savella™) is an SNRI that is not approved for the treatment of depression (although it may be used off-label for this purpose).

  

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors are a class of older medications used for treating depression. There are many serious food and drug interactions with MAOIs. Because of this, MAOIs are usually used only if other medications for depression have not been effective. Examples of depression medications in this class include:

 

Tricyclic antidepressants are another older class of antidepressants. Due to certain side effects, they are generally not recommended for elderly people. Medications in this class include:

 

Several other antidepressants are available, including:

 

Sometimes, stimulant medications such as methylphenidate (Ritalin^®) are used to treat depression when other medications have not helped, although stimulants are not approved for this use.