“They have a pill for that”

I mean for this to be a two-parter on psychiatric meds. The second will focus on what a person might expect after starting meds for the first time, among other things, and this one about a more fundamental question: do you, specifically, need to take them? Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, these are just a few issues that I believe are important to consider before seeking medications. 

I got the idea for this post while thinking about the post I did several months ago about Tourette Syndrome. While drugs do exist for Tourettes, the go-to solution for tic symptoms? Deal with it. This is so different than the mindset when faced with many other mental illnesses. Unfortunately, most patients, especially those in mental hospitals, won't question any meds a doctor prescribes and not all doctors give unsolicited warnings about the meds they prescribe. Obviously this is a very real problem.

Question 1: Do I need to take medication?

This is a question with many little sub-questions. How affected is my life: Is my anxiety so bad that I can't go a few days without panic attacks? Suicidal? Am I lashing out at people I like for no reason? How bothered am I by my symptoms? Obviously a person who can't muster up the energy to leave their room for weeks on end and regularly plans suicide should seek serious treatment. If a person has a panic attack when they see a birthday clown, then the answer is less clear cut and requires more consideration.

Question 2: What are the risks and benefits?

Do your research before seeking treatment. If you go in to see a psychiatrist with depression complaints, they will give you meds for depression. Often, they are not trained therapists, and have studied extensively all the psychiatric meds and that's about it. Check out commonly prescribed meds for your complaint and see what others have said that have taken them. 

One medication that I take currently is extremely addictive physiologically and you could be stuck taking it or another SSRI for the rest of your life, even if it doesn't help your depression. The doctor who prescribed it never once mentioned this. Fortunately it works for me, but only in conjunction with another antidepressant drug which I later learned can be fatal if the two are taken together. Again, I didn't learn this until after I took the morning and evening meds together before bed, since I'd forgotten to take them that morning. It was so scary because I struggled to breathe all night and was too weak to move or wake my roommate.

One doctor prescribed an anti-anxiety pill which can also help depression for me when I knew nothing about mental illness or the medications, just as a temporary solution until I could get a full diagnosis, but didn't help me understand how to use it. The bottle said, "Take 1-2 pills at morning and bedtime," so I took two every day and after my diagnosis the doctors at the hospital decided to leave me on that one for the anxiety instead of starting me on a different one. Well, eventually that first prescription ran out and I had no refills on it. For several days my whole body shook violently from sun up to sun down. Turns out nearly all anti-anxiety meds are extremely addictive. Almost a year went by before a psychiatrist sat me down and said not to take more than one a week to prevent a dependency. 

Question 3: Are there feasible and healthy alternatives?

Therapy can work wonders to help learn better coping methods and, for some disorders like severe anxiety, can be more useful in the long run than medication. Working on the cause rather than the symptoms, so to speak. Not everyone can fully control their illness with therapy, but it is a good first step (or concurrently depending on the severity). Available options vary depending on the specific disorder, so this is something else to check out while researching.

Question 4: Is it worth the risks?

I take three daily meds and two PRN (as-needed) drugs. I face near constant tremors, dry mouth (and related dental issues) and have to be extra careful that I don't take them too close together (or too frequently in the case of the anti-anxiety). Despite this, I feel that it is worth it because it has helped to improve my quality of life. I do however have moments where I realize that no matter how healthy I am on my meds, I will have to be on them forever, and this is very sad to me. If I could, I'd love to be a person who could function normally by means other than medication. I can't tell you whether it will be worth it for you, only you can do that.

Resource: Crazy Meds is an excellent resource for researching the side effects of specific medications. Not only written in plain English by someone who takes meds themselves, there is a lot of humor in it!


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