MAOIs and Pharmaceutical Greed: one of the greatest deceptions of our time.

First of all, just to be clear - MAOIs are not for people with mild depression and anxiety. They're for people with debilitating depression and anxiety. You know, the kind that medication should actually be used for instead of giving teenagers some prozac because they feel 'sad'.

The classical MAOIs are the only true 'antidepressants.'

I know this sub is pretty fiercely resistant to all psychiatric medication, but hear me out. I have seen more people's lives saved by Parnate (tranylcypromine) and Nardil (phenelzine) than any other SSRI/SNRI, yet there are probably 1000x as many SSRI users as there are MAOI users. r/MAOIs is just about the only AD-related subreddit that's full of success stories instead of people complaining that their 10th SSRI is doing nothing but giving them a limp dick. This is not to say SRIs never work, but...
Let's look at reviews on drugs.com. Out of all (generic) antidepressants approved for depression with more than 5 reviews, and available in more than one country, the top 10 list goes:

1. Tranylcypromine (MAOI) 8.4/10
2. Phenelzine (MAOI) 8.4/10
3. Amitriptyline (TCA) 8.1/10
4. Selegiline (MAOI) 8.1/10
5. Citalopram (SSRI) 7.2/10 (Note the sudden drop off...)
6. Escitalopram (SSRI) 7.1/10
7. Bupropion (Atypical) 7.0/10
8. Fluoxetine (SSRI) 7.0/10
9. Sertraline (SSRI) 6.9/10
10. Desvenlafaxine (SNRI) 6.8/10

Unlike the newer, patented, more profitable SRIs that 'big pharma' is pushing, MAOIs DO NOT cause anhedonia, brain fog, sexual dysfunction and PSSD. The worst that MAOIs can cause is insomnia (and weight gain for Nardil, but people often just switch to Parnate to solve this) Even so, ceasing MAOIs ends these side effects instantly, whereas the side effects of SRIs can last years after ceasing.

Yes, there are dangers in taking MAOIs such as some food and drug interactions, but they're highly overstated, especially the food interactions. Many of the lies about MAOI food interactions are due to outdated information from the 1960s. If the side effects and dangers of MAOIs were really that bad, then this would be reflected in the reviews. And if they're already reflected in the reviews, that's just a testament to how effective they are at treating depression. The opposite can be said about the other classes. Regardless, if you want something that actually works, you have to make some tiny sacrifices and be responsible about it. Who would've guessed that nothing comes free in life (looking at you SRIs...)

The fact that there is zero financial incentive to push these drugs has left education on them outdated, and only a teensy tiny fraction of (usually older) psychiatrists have ever even prescribed them. In fact, most flat out refuse to because of a lack of knowledge and an irrational fear about the dangers. Many severely depressed patients cycle through every other type of antidepressant, ECTs and Ketamine without ever being given an MAOI. This has undoubtably caused many (easily avoidable) suicides.

I highly recommend paying https://www.psychotropical.com/ a visit for more info that's backed by actual research instead of my silly reddit post.