What is your opinion on depression medication?

True depression is a problem with brain chemistry, and not something that can always be overcome or grown out of. Some people’s level of “naturally happy” isn’t good enough to lead a functioning life. Before getting on meds though, it’s important to try other changes, imho- diet, exercise, counseling, and other life style switches. When that’s not enough, why not take a pill?

I think depression meds saved my life. I probably will be on them for the rest of my life. My options are likely be on them forever, or spend my life not wanting to do something as simple as getting out of bed. It’s a clear decision. Some people however, have situational depression and meds can be temporary.

Emotionally, meds help me have motivation to do simple everyday activities most people take for granted- getting out of bed, showering, taking a walk, and bigger activities like going to school. They also make me much more pleasant to be around.

The right dosage of meds don’t take away normal moods. People can still cry, have bad days, feel elated when something really awesome happens. Physically, they can subdue an appetite just a little (or a lot for some people).

I can understand your parents’ concerns, and would recommend anyone get a second opinion before taking a drug that plays with brain chemistry. But when it comes down to it, true depression is an illness just like any other, and we are lucky enough to live in a time where it doesn’t have to be debilitating.

@Likeradar GA!

They’re not addictive.

There’s more I can tell you, but its bedtime now. Catch ya tomorrow. :)

It’s better than dead.

I second @Likeradar ‘s second opinion advice.

I agree meds save lives but sometimes should not necessarily be the first option.

Said it once say I will say it again- they are great, super necessary for some.
Me, no I like erections, sex drive, not getting fat as a pig and not feeling like a zombie. I have much better results with alternative natural supplements.

@Likeradar Said everything I would have said, and better than I would have said it. Listen to her.

@augustlan; I can’t disagree with you there, that’s her life experience, and that is mine. I am very happy meds help her, and i know how important they are for many. I have argued extensively with my brother in law on the subject who is a psyche nurse at a major hospital and has adjusted my thinking to their necessity. Still they are over prescribed.

Prescriptions work best when the core issues of depression are actively being addressed.

Self medication is a crutch at best. Pharmaceutical companies probably don’t mind people self medicating though. With self medication, the underlying problems never get resolved and they have a customer who is dependent on their product. There are a lot of people who only see a psychiatrist only as often as they need to in order to get a prescription.

However, the psychoactive medications are a proven help for a lot of people.

The opinions of your parents are not based on any solid evidence. Medication does help people. It doesn’t make them addicts.

If you do start taking meds, it is very important that you follow your doctor’s advice and under no circumstances, just stop taking it cold turkey.

Depression meds were that last thing that I thought I would ever be on, but it took me a while, or till I got sick to figure out, that what I was doing, wasn’t helping. I have been on them I think for a month, and yes, I tried to avoid them at all cost, but now, I am a just me, happy, and carefree, for the most part. I do however think you should get a second opinion.

It is possible that you have a chemical imbalance. But I am a believer in trying to understand what might be making you depressed. Usually depression is caused by anger that you are not able to express outright. It is often very hard to face what you might be angry about, and easier to get depressed than face what you are trying to hide from yourself. Have you been to counseling with a person who has training in this kind of thing—and not only a pill distributor? That would be a first choice for a 17 year old.

Depression meds, whatever your parents think, are not addictive.

A competent therapist can not only help to relieve your depression, he or she can help you decide if drugs are necessary as an adjunct to treatment. I don’t advocate drugs alone; I do know that therapy (counseling) along with exercise can be effective without drugs, but not for everyone. That being said, drugs for depression are not addictive. They do have side effects, sometimes quite mild, sometimes more obvious. Sometimes these subside, sometimes they don’t.

I hope that you will have the time to look through the Fluther archives, as depression and mental health services are discussed frequently, and you will find much food for thought and learn that many people have dealt with depression and related Mental Heath disorders.

Depression medications are controversial because what works for one person will be ineffective for another, or worse – might exacerbate their symptoms. It requires close monitoring by the physician, and full disclosure of any symptoms or side-effects by the patient.

I personally have tried medications for my chronic depression and have not done well with them, but that did not prevent me from permitting my son to take them for his anxiety/depression. My son is now 18, but he first was on medication in Junior High School. Earlier this year, he went through a major depressive episode and was hospitalized for a few days. He was reluctant to take medication, and I understood his concern… but here is how I explained it to him:
Some people have biochemical disorders, such as Diabetes, from birth due to genetics; others develop some biochemical disorders through life experiences. In both cases, medication can help regulate those chemicals, and both people will benefit from lifestyle changes and choosing healthier options for themselves. However, for one the medication will be needed always; while for the other, once the lifestyle changes have had time to impact their biochemistry, the medication may no longer be needed. The same statement is true for mental health disorders like anxiety and depression.

My ex-husband’s family history is riddled with anxiety, depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide and overdoses (I don’t know which, if any, were intentional). So in his case, I believe that the disorder is genetic, and that alcoholism and drug abuse came about as a means to ‘self-medicate’. My son agreed to medication and did feel that even a low dose helped him feel better balanced. He chooses not to take it all the time, but now he has a better understanding of his symptoms and the warning signs. He and I talk regularly about how he’s feeling and coping with the stress in his life. At the moment he is doing well, but I know that he won’t always… so I keep a sharp eye on him.

Here’s one earlier post about depression that you might find helpful:
http://www.fluther.com/disc/9545/have-you-ever-battled-on-going-depression-and-if-so-how/

I hope that you will soon find an effective way to handle your depression and to help your parents open their minds to understanding that it is a chemical disorder… I hope the Diabetes analogy helps. Know that you have support here in the Jelly collective, and reach out to us via Questions or Private Messages whenever. Best wishes to you!

@hearkat How did you get to be so wise?

I used Prozac for a few weeks, but had a bad allergic reaction, so they moved me to Paxel. Both of these completely blanked my emotions, unless I hit an extreme.
Let me try to explain this another way.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

You are N when you have no emotion. A is great happiness, Z is great sadness.
Paxel takes away C thru W, but leaves N, so now you are
ABCNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNXYZ
This is cool if you are constantly at W, but you can’t feel simple happiness.
While I was on Paxel, I walked out of watching Shindlers List wondering why everyone was crying. But when you suddenly move to X, it’s crushing!
I will tell you that Paxel saved my life. I couldn’t have made it thru that year and a half without it.

@janbb: Thanks! That means a lot coming from you. I just chalk it up to life experience and a knack for relating and explaining things.

each to their own

I was on and off antidepressants for 15 years.. I finally decided that after all those years, still being depressed and like others have said numb to even happiness… that I would come off them and go for counselling

I experienced severe withdrawal…physical ..not mental… I actually was quite joyous that I could actually experience happiness and sadness again…. I wanted to be awake… even if it was painful, I had to work through it.

I’m still working through it and I believe it’s doing me the world of good even though it’s hard and takes dedication and courage to confront the pain.

But I am aware that there are kinds of depression that might really need meds. I’m just grateful that I have the choice still; not to take them.

I would actually argue that some medication is addictive in a physical sense..the electric shock tremors and other symptoms i experienced would suggest so anyway

It’s your choice though of course and you have to try and do what is right for you

I was prescribed medication for clinical depression and OCD at the age of 15. At the time, I was adamantly opposed to being on it but my parents made the call and on Prozac I went. At first, Prozac did absolutely nothing for my issues. After weeks of toying with my dosage, I began seeing results. Once this happened, they became an overwhelmingly positive experience. As @Likeradar mentioned, you can still have bad days- I had days where I dealt with anxiety, where I knew things were going to be shitty, where I wanted to cry. The difference was, I was able to deal with these issues and see them in a clearer light- it wasn’t the end of the world, I’d be able to make it through these issues. Prior to Prozac, I was spending hours completing OCD rituals that could make a simple task like brushing my teeth overwhelming.

I was on Prozac for over seven years, and eventually I started forgetting to take it when I moved back home after college and started a new job. When weeks went by without it, I decided I didn’t need it anymore and stopped taking it. While I definitely feel like I will be back on it at some point in my life- even now I think I’d be doing a lot better if I could afford to go back on it! – I don’t think everyone needs to be on antidepressants forever. I also think it would be good for you to get a second opinion and understand that what works for some people doesn’t work for others.

Here’s more information about depression and depression medications. This place suggests that a second opinion should be from a psychiatrist, not a family doctor.

I would suggest you educate yourself about depression and depression treatments, and then get your parents to read the same materials, or explain it to them. You may even want them to come with you if you go to a psychiatrist, so they can ask questions.

Depression is a biochemical problem in your brain. Medications can help, but the do have side effects. Not all have the same side effects, and not all work the same on different people. In fact, they almost always work somewhat differently on different people.

If you do go on these meds, you are not condemned to stay on them permanently. However, if it keeps you from killing yourself, it seems worth it. Do your parents know how big a risk suicide is for the depressed? Do they want to take that chance by forbidding you medications? Although medications can also increase the risk of suicide, if you get the wrong ones.

Your parents clearly have much to learn about depression. If they are educated, they may change their minds. So that is what I would do first—educate all of you.

I have been on anti-depressants for more years than I can count. The last couple years have been the best of my life. One thing your parents said really bothered me. They are concerned that on anti-depressants you will not feel natural happiness. Most of us suffering from depression and/or anxiety don’t feel natural happiness OR natural sadness WITHOUT psych meds. With Paxil, Celexa, and Elavil I’m finally able to feel all levels of emotions and I believe they are all natural feelings. I still have good days and bad days. But the bad days don’t last months and suicide is no longer my main concentration of the day. I can say very emphatically that I would be dead without mine.

My personal opinion is they save many lives. I believe Zoloft saved mine when I had an insane few years after my divorce. At first I was terrified to try my prescription, wouldn’t believe what anyone told me about not losing my identity, zombiefying and such. My boss threatened me with my job if I didn’t do as I was prescribed, he saw me increasingly stressed, in constant pain from a car accident, abusing my prescription meds and also abusing alcohol and in a destructive new relationship so I don’t fault him for pushing. The best thing I did was open the bottle and give my “little blue buddy” a chance to even my moods out to where I could not only look at reason but take it to heart and save myself.

@skfinkel I’ve been to a therapist. I saw her for about 10 sessions and found that she didnt help much. To be honest, she made me feel worse.

@naivete Try a new therapist. And then another if that one doesn’t work out. Don’t judge them all because there was one you didn’t click with.

Get a few more medical advice and take the medication if medically needed. It is possible you could never be happy without them.

A blessing for some patients.

When used correctly, they are just like any other medication. If you were diabetic, you’d take insulin. People who are depressed, (bipolar) need their antidepressants.