Job Discussion Forums

philipjames · Joined: 07 Mar 2003 Posts: 37

I'm considering moving to Saudi Arabia to work. But I take Wellbrutin each day for depression. Is this drug readily available in Saudi Arabia>

Thank you,
Philip Jameson

Never Ceased To Be Amazed · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 4:22 am Post subject:

I answered the same question that you asked on GME board. It's advice to consider...

NCTBA

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

If you need alcohol and psychotropic drugs to get through the day it would be better for you, and everyone else, if you did not come to Saudi Arabia. Sorry to tell you the harsh reality about life in this country.

philipjames · Joined: 07 Mar 2003 Posts: 37

Who says I "need" alcohol to get through the day. Enjoying a pint on occasion is not the same as "needing" to drink alcohol. And what's this nonsense about "it would be better for you and for everyone else" if you didn't come to Saudi Arabia. You've quite the gall.

littleoldlady · Joined: 06 Apr 2009 Posts: 286 Location: knitting heaven

Mr Scot,
I am surprised at you! Shocked

Anti-depressants are hardly psychotropic drugs. A little seratonin booster.
I do agree though that as someone with PTSD and taking medication, I wouldn't consider KSA as helpful for my mental health.
Not that I am planning on going anywhere at all mind....

Cleopatra · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 1:58 pm Post subject:

Scot is right.

Socially and psychologically, KSA can be a difficult place to live. It's the type of place where even the most minor personality quirk which goes unnoticed elsewhere can become magnified out of all proportion. In other words, you need to be quite 'robust' to live here, psychologically speaking. If you have a pre-existing condition such as depression, you would be advised to think very carefully before taking up a job in KSA. This is in addition to any worries about the availability of medication.

Sheikh N Bake · Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 1307 Location: Dis ting of ours

Agreed.

Having agreed, I might also add that, while I am not familiar with the antidepressants scene in the Kingdom, when I was in Dubai I could get Zoloft and Prozac readily. Your particular med--I have no clue. These meds can be prescribed by a regular doc. I got mine at the American Hospital just for insomnia, not depression...but I found that Xanax works best (I use it only for travel nowadays--those 24-hour trips to Houston via Frankfurt). Xanax requires a psychiatrist's script. I know a nice Indian shrink who writes it for me.

So if the Saudi medical system should make it difficult for you, you could always zip over to Dubai for a weekend.

Cleopatra · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 2:18 pm Post subject:

I could very well be wrong but I think you can get drugs such as Xanax in KSA. However, like all narcotics they are very carefully controlled and you will probably need a prescription from a local doctor - ie a prescription from your doctor back home may not be accepted.

In any case, as I've said, the availiability or otherwise of particular medications is not the primary issue here. If you have a pre-existing psychological condition, Saudi Arabia just isn't the best place for you. You can shrug off this advice if you wish, but you do so at your own risk.

Sheikh N Bake · Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 1307 Location: Dis ting of ours

My pharmacist at Suleiman Habib hospital gave me the impression that for Xanax I'd have to see a shrink and even then it's not given out lightly. I agree, Cleo, but the OP was just asking for practical advice on availability.

balqis · Joined: 30 Jul 2006 Posts: 373

From my students in Riyadh I know it is a masssive market there, I mean antidepressants, more massive than anyone dares to think, let alone talk about in public. Mood disorders are rampant amongst Arabs, Saudi Arabs especially, Riyadh is a very decadent Saudi city, if you know the ways and alleys ...
I saw a regular Pakistani - or so - worker getting Seroxat in a pharmacy in Riyadh next to me buying a bottle of shampoo. It took me by surprise, I remember the feeling. Whether he produced a prescription or not, I don't know, though I truly doubt he did.

You can also take your pills with you to run you through a year. I knew a guy who did it - hundreds of pills fit into a regular plastic vitamin container. Next he had it delivered to his P.O. Box address through some e-pharmacy.

balgis

Cleopatra · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 2:40 pm Post subject:

007 · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 3:02 pm Post subject:

Well, I do not agree, because Sheikh Nano agrees! Laughing

Well, Statistically and Socially speaking, the depression of the Magic Kingdom is less severe compared, for example, to that of USA, Canada, or UK. The depression in USA is very high when compared to the Magic Kingdom! This is not only my view; it is also the view of WHO, DBSA, and Uncle Sam!

About 9 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older, in a given year, are affected by all types of depression, including depression from Gulf Syndrome!
WHO reported that women are more depressed than man, especially in the land of Uncle Sam (lucky you VS! Laughing

).

Of course, people who complain from certain types of depression are more likely to suffer from social phobia, regardless of the geographical location (whether be it in USA or the Magic Kingdom).

A person with high religiosity index is healthier, happier, and less depressed, than a person with zero religiosity index.

Well, you comments are welcome, but please without any depression! Laughing

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

I would not hire someone who was on medication for depression.

gibon · Joined: 22 Feb 2010 Posts: 40 Location: Warsaw

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychoactive_drug

And I can tell you now that most people recruiting teachers for KSA will have the same attitude as I have. Life is a bummer, huh ?