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Comment by joe__f | Hacker News Reader

I don't think it's possible to tell if your or your partner's acclimatisation period and subsequent improvements were caused by the effect of the antidepressants or by a placebo effect

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The placebo effect is not ever that big of an effect. Similarly, the Dunning-Kruger effect is not actually very large.

1. I don’t think that the argument hinges on one single person.

2. Sure there’s a way to tell! Just have her stop taking the pills; that’d show if it really worked before. (Note: do not do this.)

Only if you don't tell her, and replace them with fake ones. Other wise the placebo effect is activ again

1. Indeed, there were serious trials before those were made available and prescribed. Those trials have to demonstrate that the medicine is better than placebo effect. I personally don't like to hand-wave away those trials to "big pharma bought them".

2. Yes, I inadvertently forgot to take a pill one day and only realized the next day. Coincidentally I felt depressed that day. It could only be a coincidence but I'm firmly convinced it's not. I'm not going to try to replicate the experiment though (especially since doing it on purpose could induce a placebo effect).

Edit: see answer, I'm probably wrong on that 2.

On your number 2: SSRIs have to build up in the system before they are effective and take a lot of time to ween off when you stop them. If you only missed one day, any change should be considered psychosomatic.

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