Mental Health Archives - The National Center for Disability, Equity, and Intersectionality

Blue background with white text that reads: What are SSRI's. Image of a brain with different colored dots behind it all connecting to each other

SSRI’s and Serotonin

Posted on March 3, 2025 | by Leah Smith | Leave a Comment

What are SSRI's (image of a bunch of dots in the background with a brain in the foreground)
What is Serotonin? (image of a person's head and brain with a gear shift) Serotonin is a chemical your body produces that helps regulate mood, sleep, appetite, and learning. For some people, their body does not produce enough serotonin and they need to take serotonin in pill form. These pills are referred to as an SSRI.
What is an SSRI? (image of three pills that are blue, orange, and white) SSRI's (which are a type of medicine) help by slowing down the brain from taking serotonin back too fast. This way, there's more serotonin hanging around to help you feel better
What is the Connection Between SSRI's and Serotonin? (image of a scale with a happy face on one side and a sad face on the other. In the middle is a brain with a heart in the middle of it.) The serotonin in your brain acts as tiny messengers that help you feel happy and calm. These messengers travel between nerve cells in your brain to keep the serotonin balanced. When unbalanced, SSRI's can help keep everything feeling good.
Why would I need SSRI's (image of a packet of pills) Normally, after serotonin does its job, your brain takes it back really quickly. But sometimes, your brain doesn't have enough of these messengers to keep you feeling good, which is why some people take SSRI's.
What Does an SSRI do? (Image of a happiness scale with one end having a red sad face and the other end having a green happy face.) SSRI's stop the brain from taking serotonin away too quickly. They can help with things like: feeling sad or depressed, feeling worried or anxious. SSRI's give you more happy messengers to help improve your mood and feel more balanced.

Blue background with white text: Sometimes, people feel unsure about starting SSRI's, but here's what some people have said after they began taking them:
"I Don't feel as worried all the time." - Sara, age 44
"I'm not as sad as I used to be." - Jing, age 18
"It was slow at first, but now I feel a lot better!" - Imani, age 23
"People have noticed that I'm not as stressed out." Shantavia, age 27
"I thought that if I started taking this I would suddenly feel really happy. It's not like that. It's more like over a few weeks, I no longer felt like I wanted to die and could care about the things that are important to me." - Sean, age 16
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