Poll: Antidepressants, do people really want these?

[RhombusHatesYou]

BTW, most doctors in my area are now very cautious about perscribing anti depressants to teenagers. A number of studies have shown a that the drugs may not be effective, or may even make things worse, for a significant proportion of teens. Something about the incomplete brain chem causes a problem - these drugs, like most drugs, were tested primarily on otherwise healthy adult males.

It's not really 'incomplete brain chem' it's that in pre-adult brains the neurochemical system isn't as rigidly 'structured' so it's more adaptable, which sounds good at first until you realise you don't want it adapting to changes and making adjustments so it can settle into it's default state if that default state is the problem in the first place. Then you get a 2 fold problem, not only are the meds not working by the neurochemical system has adjusted for it's presence so without the meds the imbalance is even worse than it was.

Oh yeah, and for anyone under 18, if your doc tries to prescribe you paroxetine punch them in the face. In tests it's shown to have near to zero effectiveness while piling on the side effects AND more than doubling the incidence of suicidality (suicide, attempted suicide or suicide ideation).

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

pure anger. Without reason to. I'd just get pissed off and want to hurt something.

That's me when I'm off my meds.

 

[crudus]

I have always felt that (most) drugs treat the symptoms rather than the problems. I am wholeheartedly against taking drugs consistently to treat a problem. As it stands I will only take drugs if there is literally no other way.

I'm on antidepressants because it's illegal for me to truly get help for my real problem untill I'm 18 for some reason.

Something is happening wrong there. That should totally be the other way around.

They're not meant to cure pain. They're mean to fix the chemical imbalance in your brain during a depression. People want them because without them they want to kill themselves. Take it from someone who knows it.

I have been there. Sure sometimes you just need to take medication like with Bi-polar disorder. I disagree with general depression though. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy has done magnitudes more for me than anti-depressants.

 

[ajemas]

I never had any of those side effects, and I have been on many antidepressants over the years. I don't really take them for depression, but for my OCD.
You see, depression and OCD are partly caused by a serotonin imbalance. What SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors)do is bock serotonin from being re-absorbed into the cortex, helping with the symptoms. They've really helped me get my life back in order, but I see why others wouldn't want to take them.
As a side note: to those who say that depression isn't a "real" disorder, or that it is a "problem of the month" type thing, I encourage you to do some real reading on the disease. It is extremely serious, and I can personally attest to the positive effects of certain medications.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Sure sometimes you just need to take medication like with Bi-polar disorder. I disagree with general depression though. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy has done magnitudes more for me than anti-depressants.

In most cases medication is meant to get you psychologically stable enough to be able to undergo treaments like CBT. It's supposed to be a short-term proposition.

 

[smurf_you]

I'm on antidepressants right now... pretty much because any time I looked at a sharp object I wanted to jab it into my arm and bleed out everywhere just to get out of my own head.... so for me they are a very very very VERY good thing, and I've hardly had any side effects, at least nothing like what you described

 

[crudus]

Sure sometimes you just need to take medication like with Bi-polar disorder. I disagree with general depression though. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy has done magnitudes more for me than anti-depressants.

In most cases medication is meant to get you psychologically stable enough to be able to undergo treaments like CBT. It's supposed to be a short-term proposition.

I am well aware. I know people who have been on anti-depressants for years. They don't do anything else about it. They just pop pills. When I was on anti-depressants I always felt like I really didn't have any free will and wanted off of them asap.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Sure sometimes you just need to take medication like with Bi-polar disorder. I disagree with general depression though. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy has done magnitudes more for me than anti-depressants.

In most cases medication is meant to get you psychologically stable enough to be able to undergo treaments like CBT. It's supposed to be a short-term proposition.

I am well aware. I know people who have been on anti-depressants for years. They don't do anything else about it. They just pop pills. When I was on anti-depressants I always felt like I really didn't have any free will and wanted off of them asap.

Which is probably why CBT worked so well for you.

However, some people are just happy to settle for a 'good enough' approach and just treat the symptoms with pills OR, and this is a pretty sad scenario, they integrate the depression into their self identity.

Then, of course, there are the few people for whom medication has proven to be the only effective treatment, often because of other mental health issues.