playing Chess on antidepressants

I have been taking antidepressants for anxiety and depression for 2 years, when I skip a few days I seem to play great but once I start taking them again I lose concentration and board vision, this causes my rating to seesaw 100s of points every week, does anyone else here take medication that affects your game and if so is there anyway to deal with this?

Hi @Evenflow322,

I am sorry to hear about your issues with your medication. 

It might be worth speaking to your GP about an alternative medication? What works for some, may not work for others. 

There are other ways to help manage anxiety and depression like meditation, yoga, diet etc but sometimes if there is an imbalance, medication is what we need.

I am medicated myself for ADHD, problem is I can forget to take it (cause I have ADHD!) and then when I start making silly, unthoughtful moves, I realise and it is too late and my rating is affected, I try not to think about rating anymore because there is enough stress in this world.

Good luck with your recovery.

yes,i took anti depression then it affacet my chess skill,i cant focus and i lose a lot,althogh i have a good sleep,i still play worse and wores

Yes i have this exact problem, im glad it's not just me.

I'm a retired doctor. It is important to realize that anti-depression medications (SSRIs and SNRIs) won't relieve your symptoms immediately. Think of it as a concentration problem. If you stop taking the medication for several days, the concentration of medicine in your blood drops. It can take another several days to build back up to a therapeutic level. You may be playing chess during the build-back phase, and hence, your anxiety/depression may impact your playing.

really interesting conversation, great to hear people's experiences and insights on this

super interesting! I've only started to play chess after starting antidepressants so I'm not sure if it affects my playing, maybe it has something to do with elevated dopamine or nor-epi levels when you're on the medication making it more difficult to concentrate?

Exactly the opposite. Think of it this way. Your brain loves to bathe in dopamine and norepinephrine. If the level is too low, you will experience depressive symptoms, including brain fog and a lack of concentration. When you take the meds, the levels of these hormones rise and break the fog, lack of concentration, depressed mood, hopelessness, etc. The bottom line is don't miss taking your meds every day (if that is the prescription). If you do miss several days, wait to play until you've made up the deficit. Do some puzzles instead or go argue with the crazy people in the forums.