Voices pt2

[Andara Bledin]

to be honest, the way I always understood it is that mental health medication is not actually supposed to be a long-term fix on it's own. I always understood is as the medication being taken to allow the person to function enough to allow things like therapy to help bring the issues under control, and when you no longer need the medication, you are eased off it.

That depends on the reason for prescribing the medication.

In cases where there is a chemical imbalance due to errors in the way the person's body produces what it needs to function, then the medication is like a type 1 diabetic taking insulin. It's a lifelong course merely there to correct an issue with the body not producing on it's own what is necessary for proper function.

In the case of issues where the stress of the condition is leading to further issues and/or obscuring the possible cause for the stress in the first place, then it's a temporary remedy for use in the treatment of complications so that the underlying causes can be identified and treated themselves. For medication that is merely treating symptoms, it's generally intended to be a temporary situation with the medication eventually no longer being required. However, that is often dependent on the cause being able to be diagnosed and also treatable. Some situations are such that there is no treatment available and the best you can do is mitigate the symptoms to give the patient as decent a quality of life as possible.

[NecCat]

Thank you, Andara. I tried to explain the difference but my words weren't working. You summed it up perfectly. Unless radically new treatments are found I will be on medication daily for the rest of my life, that is what the majority of my treatment consists of.

[Kuari]

Thank you very much, Andara. You put it into works much better than I can. Sometimes depression is temporary and a person may need medication to help them get through a period of time, but for some meds will always be a lifetime thing due to their brain chemistry being out of whack.

For myself, I know that not everything going on with me can be fixed by just swallowing whatever pills my doctor prescribes. I absolutely need therapy for some underlying issues that can trigger certain behaviours, and I'm fortunate enough to have finally found that through a supportive friend with extensive training in mental illness and trauma. It's way more effective than just popping pills for when I'm in an extreme emotional low and thinking about offing myself or simply cannot function due to anxiety, and it helps me to work out coping strategies for dealing with triggers that used to leave me a gibbering mess on the floor or hiding in my closet. Why yes, I do have PTSD on top of everything else...pills don't really do shit for that, not that my PCP understands any of that. But then he's the same idiot who blames everything wrong with me on being overweight. Thank goodness for that friend of mine, I tell you.

[cewfa]

But then he's the same idiot who blames everything wrong with me on being overweight. Thank goodness for that friend of mine, I tell you.

Ugh, my internal medicine doctor is like that. My testosterone level has been steadily dropping for a couple of years now, and I have asked him for treatments for a year now, but he won't do it because he thinks it is a weight issue. I have news for him tomorrow, because I am going to insist that he find out what the real issue is and start testosterone treatments. My last lab, my testosterone level was down to 86 . He will either start treating it and investigating it, or else I will insist on talking to a doctor that will.

[Aragarthiel]

I used to have a doctor that diagnosed EVERYTHING as allergies, except the one time she claimed I had mono and it turned out to be tonsillitis.

I really wish I could have found a good therapist while I still had the resources. I was on meds that didn't help for a diagnosis that didn't seem right, and I'm tired of people thinking I'm just using my past as an excuse for my behavior. While none of it is actually debilitating, there are things that I have been conditioned to do or feel that I can't fix on my own. The one therapist I actually did go to insisted on blaming all of my problems on me, saying "You need to look at the bright side of things," or "Be more patient with others." While that may help in some situations, if I need a therapist, I'm beyond that kind of advice.

[KabeRinnaul]

I used to have a doctor that diagnosed EVERYTHING as allergies, except the one time she claimed I had mono and it turned out to be tonsillitis.

Reminds me of the doctor at the campus clinic when I was in college. Had a friend who was having trouble breathing and swallowing after trying Red Bull the first time. The doctor said she had a mild case of strep and wrote a prescription for something. She didn't think that was right, so rather than get that filled, she just took a Benadryl on a hunch. Cleared it right up. As far as we could tell, she's allergic to something in the drink.

For myself, I went in after I started getting severe rashes on my neck, arms, and face, including a spot near my elbow that was so severe it would often break the skin and start bleeding. Doctor looked at the arm only, said it was probably a fungal infection, and prescribed Lotrimin. Dried out the skin and kept making it worse and worse. Of course, once I got to a competent doctor, I was told it was eczema (as a friend predicted), which is best treated with moisturizers. Lotrimin was quite possibly the worst thing he could give me.

[Gilhelmi]

(I apologize in advance if this becomes a mini-novel, because I have a tendency to be long-winded. . .what can I say, I'm a teacher ;-) )

snip

And yep, I'm long-winded. . .ending it there. :-)

I like long winded and did enjoy reading that case. As a Chaplains Assitant I read a number of books on about Mental health related to Combat. ("On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society" is one of my favorite books on the subject. Sargent did tell me not to read that on in the airport onetime )

I am not totally opposed to medication. I sided with Brook Sheilds about needing medication to deal with postpartum depression. I was even properly diagnosed with ADD as a child and still take Adderall. I have a love/hate relationship with Adderall, but without it there would be no way I could do my job safely (I work in Manufacturing using CNC Mills and Lathes, if I do not focus I could destroy Thousands in equipment or worse lose a limb).

The thought of losing myself and my personality (like that child) has always scared me.

I do wish more Doctors would be like you and actually look at the root cause of the problems.

[shadowmaster]

I like long winded and did enjoy reading that case.

*snip*

I am not totally opposed to medication

*snip*

The thought of losing myself and my personality (like that child) has always scared me.

I do wish more Doctors would be like you and actually look at the root cause of the problems.

*chuckles* Now just visit my college and convince a good portion of my students that long winded can be a good thing! ;-)

Medication: It is a balancing game - as I mentioned (And Andara did a much better job of explaining fully) I'm not "opposed" to medication and do realize that it is absolutely necessary sometimes; I'm just opposed to it as the default, kneejerk, solution to all of one's problems. In SOME cases - yep that's going to be the solution and really the only solution (as I mentioned in organic depression - by that I'm talking about what Andara explained - when there is a chemical imbalance causing the depressive symptomatology and not maladaptive coping, trauma, acute stress or other learned/life factors. NO amount of "talking it out" is going to fix a chemical imbalance) - but there are far too many cases (in my opinion) where medication is inappropriately used to mask the symptoms instead of trying to actually deal with things that aren't the result of a medical condition. It can be hard to distinguish sometimes and can take a lot of work to determine the difference - but it's an effort that needs to be made (again, in my opinion).

I'm also not opposed to the "stopgap" method that was mentioned here too (it's on this page - I momentarily forget by who and I can't look while I'm typing a reply) of when we know that whatever is going on IS a result of maladaptive coping, trauma, acute stress, or other learned/life factors but the result of that (the symptoms) are to the point that the individual can't currently cope, is in need of immediate relief/intervention, or is is severe distress. In those cases, then yeah, one would need to focus of immediate intervention to reduce symptomatology and bring the individual back to a place where they can then deal with the underlying issue. So in that case, I'd be all for medication to bring back that stability, but not as the only intervention - the mediation would be a temporary thing while the underlying issues are worked through.

The state I was trained in had laws in place that allowed psychologists (what my background is based in) prescriptive powers if they had an additional 6 months in intensive psychopharmacology (I took some of those classes, but not the entire 6 months and have forgotten A LOT of it in the intervening 12 years), but that's kind of unique. Generally since psychologists don't go to medical school, we don't get those powers - that's left up to the medical doctors or the psychiatrists (which are medical doctors, that have gone to medical school, but also have psychological training - just not always to the same extent as someone that is completely specialized on my side of the field). . .and again, with a psychiatrist it really depends (in my experience). Most of the psychiatrists I've met/worked with tend to lean much more heavily on their medical experience (and the prescription pad) than their psychological training. . . .but that could also be because of the state that I worked/practiced in and the differences in the training models common between schools in different areas. I teach in a third state (which is actually my "home" state where I grew up) and we're so rural where I live now that I honestly couldn't tell you about the prevailing mindset because the closest doctorate-level, actual practicing psychologist is about 2 hours away (I stopped "practicing" about 5 years ago and no longer keep my license current as I prefer to teach) and our local hospital, while fairly large, does not have psychiatrists on staff.