Medication vs no medication

Hi @2angels

That's a great question to ask - I am glad you did.

It depends what kind of depression you have for taking or not taking Antidepressents - I was put on them when I first burned out with my son's MI - and it wasn't called that at first - and it didn't work out

Long story short - I found a psychiatrist who was more understanding - and he didn't give me antidepressents - they are given to people with endogenous depression and I had reactive depression. I had a problem to deal with - my son's behaviour became worse the longer he lived and I needed manage that - but when I was overcome I was put into hospital for a few days and sedated and returned home to get on with my life - which was anything but easy

So - endogenous depression is a problem with brain chemistry and AD's a meant to balance that out - and reactive depression is caused by having to cope with a difficult situation - and basically - we have to be alert for that - and no pills can fix a problem that is outside the patient - the patient has to fix it

That doesn't mean that AD's a never appropriate for people with reactive depression - but for me what this very understanding psychiatrist said and did - and for me - through several disastrous years - it worked

When it comes to more severe forms of MI I have little to add - I don't know - however when it comes to treating children with ADHD and ADD and other forms of maladaptive behaviours then I know there is a lot of contradictory arguments presented and my opinion is that if the medication works - treat the child -

So - my son was given medication and I was only to give him this when I reached the end of my tether - and this was over 40 years ago - things have to be different now - but the argument seems to be the same

On the bad days I would give my son - who was 3-4 years old - one tablet - and it worked and it would have been great if I could have given him more - but that was not prescribed

But this is all I have to say about medication - and one thing I warn about is stopping medication without medical assistance. I do know what it is like to feel as if one is living on another planet on medication - but suddenly taking anything could be counter-productive at the best and dangerous at the worst

I hope this helps - I know this whole issue is a puzzle - and taking medication does have side effects - and really - who wants them

Right now I need to take antihistamines - and I can get drowsy - I take them at night but it can be hard to wake up - the alternative is worse - I get sinusitis -

So there is a choice - if the medication helps without too many side effects then continue - but talk to your doctor before changing anything

Decadian

@Decadian you are right, there's usually a choice whether to take medication unless you are under a community order. And I think the wider community don't understand the difficulties you have for having side effects. For example my nipples leaked because of a medication I was taking and yet I couldn't feed my daughter because the fluid was toxic for her. Breast-feeding was something that was fundamental to my understanding of mothering my newborn, and yet I had to refocus on my stability and health and other ways to bond with my darling. Weight gain has been the bane of my life with most of the drugs I have taken being prone to add weight/make me feel hungry all the time. Believe me drinking water doesn't help much.

Only now am I changing tablets. I feel in a space safe enough to experiment with another medication.

For me, with bipolar, with a young dependent child, there is no question: I want my sanity. My insanity scares me senseless and there is nothing that would induce me to battle that beast on my own. Tablets are my shield and I forgive them their limitations. Hopefully as science learns more better drugs will follow.

I suppose I feel weak when I hear of people who have schizophrenia and bipolar can battle their demons without drugs. Why can't I do it? Is mental health something different from a physical illness afterall?

@Kurra Thanks for your response. I'm glad you've experienced symptom free so long. Despite break thru symptoms every so often I have a great life where I am chasing my dreams not the ones imposed upon me. I have my darling daughter who makes me always look to the future with hope.

Thanks for your comments @2angels and @Kurra

I really have no experience of serious mental disorders - only emotional chaos - which can be controled - dbut ino no one is weak or strong or better or worse because they need medication or find they can get by without it

It all depends on the condition and what else is happening - not what a fantastic person we are because we manage without it - I have not been in that position - though emotional disorders are just as challenging and confusing - they are different

The aim has to be how well we manage with or without - for me - it was not a solution - for otherers - it is a solution -

I find it painful in the extreme when I read about the stigmatization of people with MI and mental disorders - it is bad enough to be ill without being held guilty of something and weak

Dec

@Decadian yes someone told me I had to breathe. Honestly! Would you tell someone who had a broken leg to drink filtered water?

hmmm..

A. FANTASTIC thread

2. My experience with medication vs. no medication is this.

I went to a talk spoken by Peter Bullimore. He is diagnosed Chronic Paranoid Schitophrenia. He has a wondeful story and flies around the world training nurses, police, Public System .....how to be with MI. His second part of the talk were of his own experiences but I did'nt stay because I was crying too hard. Hecame outside and stayed with me for a while.......wow. His wife also told me that he is'nt on medication but he has delusions and hallucionstions throughout the day, he has learned to manage them.

for me, that is juat.......I'm speachless with thinking of his strength.

I could'nt stop medication and neither could my husband. My husband's condition is genetic.......

similar to Bullimore. But what he's done is AMAZING.

I HATE weight gain. But there must be answers........Husband gained lots. After many years of struggling with weight gain I chose to get a lapband.................

are you on meds or not ?

PP

@2angels

Thankyou, I have beenr eading you but I have just not being able to write to you because I've had so much happening in my life. Sorry......your message is just lovely, thank you.

I think a long time ago, I uded to read books about toxic relationships by a lady called Pia Mellody.......

If I remembered correctly, she wrote about making an agreement with people you are close with about keeping on her case about falling into self defeating attitudes.....

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My son falls into bad relationships. Hr has a diagnosis of spending times with Psychosis.....my poor darling son, he's a wonderful man but piont blank refuses to take medication.

He is seeing a Psychotherapist once a fortnight. This will be what he does throughout his iife I think because seeing a Psychotherapist has been such a big thing in his life since the age of 4 years old. He then quit seeing a Psy at 6 and then saw a really really good PSychotherpist at 8 to 12 then again at 14 to 16 years old.

He gets into these bad relationships, I wish that he would go onto medication but he's over 18, he's 25 and in one week is 26.....