If you’re tapering an SSRI and wondering “is this withdrawal or relapse?”, the problem you’re facing is an intrinsically messy distinction.

“Withdrawal vs relapse” is often treated as two separate bins, then we act surprised when the same symptoms fit both. That category error drives a lot of bad advice. This piece sets out the clinically relevant distinctions, and why some relapse-prevention evidence can accidentally count withdrawal as relapse when withdrawal isn’t properly measured.