When I suggest to a new patient
that they consider antidepressant medication, I get a picture of
all the misconceptions people have about what these medications
do. First of all, they are not happy pills; they don't artificially
induce a feeling of bliss or unrealistic well-being. No medication
can do that, except for alcohol and some illegal drugs, and their
effects don't last. Nor do antidepressants insulate you from life,
make you not care about important things, or insensitive to pain
or loss. Tranquilizers can do that, for a while, but antidepressants
can't. Also, antidepressants aren't addictive, nor does their effect
diminish so that you will have to increase your dosage later on.
What antidepressants do is somehow prevent us from sliding down
the chute into the blackest depths of depression when something
bad happens. We still can feel hurt, pain, worry, but we feel these
like normal people do, without depression.
These medications also can
help us sleep better, give us more energy, and greater ability to
concentrate. They seem to help us change our perspective or sense
of proportion, so that we can appreciate better the good side of
life and not be overwhelmed by the negative.
The way antidepressants work
is interesting. There are two chemicals that have to do with the
transmission of impulses between nerve cells in the brain and seem
to be associated with depression. It seems as if depressed people
burn up these chemicals more quickly than other people. Antidepressants
help to maintain these chemicals at more stable levels in the brain.
Antidepressant medication is
an important aid that should be considered by anyone who feels they
are suffering from depression. But because their use requires close
observation and more training than most physicians have, I don't
recommend you ask your general practitioner to give you a trial
run. Instead, see a psychiatrist who is experienced in the administration
of these potent and helpful medicines.
If you, or someone you love,
might be suffering from depression, get help right away. Treatment
is effective and affordable. Talk to your health care provider or
call your local mental health clinic before a bad situation becomes
worse.