Marlowe said:
Oh man, that explains a lot. They tried to get me to take that shit when I was younger. Luckily I didn't take what they gave me. Yeah, people want pills for everything these days. If you can't fix your problems yourself, what makes you think a pill will help you?
"If you can't heal your bones yourself, what makes you think a plaster cast will help you?"
"If you can't cure an ear-infection yourself, what makes you think an anti-biotic will help you?"
I agree, some people are given meds and they don't need it. Especially young people. But mny people would benefit from taking meds and they've been scared off them.
What he said. There's no stigma for taking insulin to help diabetes, but as soon as someone takes an anti-depressant to balance their seratonin levels, BAM! It's bad. The social stigma will, hopefully, go away as soon as people realize these medications are as much a maintenance medication as Lipitor and Prilosec.
I agree that medication is sometimes prescribed too quickly and that it should be a last resort when dealing with children (if at all), but the medication and its intended use are not inherently bad.
I do, however, agree that I'd be hesitant to medicate my child. I'd first look to see if they're getting too much sugar and caffeine and try to adjust their diet and exercise before rushing toward medication. Sometimes it boils down to cognition and temperament. They're still developing, for crying out loud. A seven-year old is nowhere near a thirteen-year old's level, and a thirteen-year old is nothing like a thirty-year old.
[Edited on Sep 06, 2004 by Sorcha]
27
royaljack
Brooklyn, NY
OLD SKOOL
SEP 06, 2004 07:58 PM
Sorcha said:
What he said. There's no stigma for taking insulin to help diabetes, but as soon as someone takes an anti-depressant to balance their seratonin levels, BAM! It's bad. The social stigma will, hopefully, go away as soon as people realize these medications are as much a maintenance medication as Lipitor and Prilosec.
I agree that medication is sometimes prescribed too quickly and that it should be a last resort when dealing with children (if at all), but the medication and its intended use are not inherently bad.
Nobody prescribes insulin as freely as people to psychicatric drugs. It's as bad as antibiotics nowadays. And if you have ever tried to explain to someone why antibiotics should be only used as a last resport, their eyes glaze over.
It's all a matter of extremes and people are too dumb to realize that just because something is prescribed does not mean it's good.
The problem is saying "No..." to a doctor is something most people won't do. And when they do say "No..." the doctor will often make it an uphll battle to deal with alternatives.
demetrius_z said:
Most anti depressants are not advised for use with children.
I know a ton of people who as adolescents were prescribed paxil to deal with their "depresson" by their psychiatrists. Its not rare at all. I can't really give you an adequate example of how paxil made their depression worse but I do know that alot of them said that it didn't do anything for them at all. Perhaps thats what causes the suicidal tendencies? The kids are giving an experimental wonder drug and when it doesn't work they get depressed thinking that nothing will work? Just a theory.
_Sarah_
Kalamazoo, MI
January 2003
SEP 06, 2004 07:49 PM