A WOMAN who claims her life became a "living nightmare" after she was prescribed the anti-depressant Seroxat is considering legal action against its makers.

The 39-year-old woman, who does not want to be named, said she became suicidal within days of taking the drug, which is made by the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline.

She is one of more than 4,000 people in the UK who are considering legal action against the company.

The Department of Health has confirmed that Seroxat has been linked with eight suicides and it believes there could be many more unreported cases.

The mother, who lives in a village outside Worcester, said she was prescribed the drug by her GP when she developed post-natal depression last spring.

The anti-depressant is meant to boost the levels of serotonin in the brain, which creates a feeling of happiness.

However, she said she quickly became more seriously ill.

"Within a couple of days of taking it, I became dramatically more depressed," she said. "I felt suicidal - it was really traumatic.

"I had a compulsion to stab myself, and visions of knives. It was like a living nightmare."

She said she went back to her GP, but was told to double the dosage. She said it was only when she was referred to a psychiatrist that she was thought to be suffering side-effects from the drug.

She claimed she only returned to normal recently after taking the natural remedy, St John's Wort.

"It was the most scary experience of my life," she said. "I wasn't told about the side effects at the time."

She does not want Seroxat to be withdrawn, but feels GPs and patients need to know more about its potential dangers.

"If GPs were more clued up, it would save lives," she said. "Maybe if I had been told by my GP to stop taking it, I wouldn't have suffered so much."

Dr Bob Ingles, chairman of Worcestershire Local Medical Committee, said he would be stunned if there were any GPs in the county who were not aware of the drug's side effects.

"Almost every drug has side effects," he said. "Modern drugs are good but powerful.

"Most primary care trusts would recommend this sort of drug as their first line of treatment for depression, but it can have horrible side effects."

A spokesman for GlaxoSmithKline said Seroxat was an effective treatment that has helped millions of patients worldwide lead fuller and more productive lives.

"The majority of people do not get side effects on either taking Seroxat or on stopping, but some people do," she said.

"We have been advising patients and doctors on what to expect when taking or stopping treatment for many years."