Should I Take Medication For My Mental Health?

Depending on who you talk to, this question could have a lot of different answers.  While some folks can answer this question for themselves with a very easy yes or a very easy no, others find themselves somewhere in between, and are not so sure about what path they want to take.  While this article will in no way attempt to answer that question for you and your unique circumstances, it will give you a few things to think about as you are making this very important decision for your mental health.

What is psychotropic medication?

Firstly, when we talk about medication for your mental health, we are usually referring to psychotropics, which are medications that affect your mind, and can include anti-anxiety medications, antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, and stimulants.  To be clear, this article is sticking with legal psychotropics.

A 2005 survey conducted by the pharmaceutical company Martin Akel & Associates found that a majority of people (who actually answered the survey) found that psychotropic medications were a helpful adjunct to psychotherapy.  It’s important to note here that this has nothing to do with the medications being helpful in and of themselves; when it was combined with therapy, these folks felt it helped do the job.

Why not take medication?

So, if it appears to be so helpful, why would anyone not want to take them?  There are a variety of reasons why someone might want to shy away from medication for their mental health, including–but definitely not limited to–a desire to not experience an array of potential side effects, many of which may even seem to exacerbate the symptoms or even feel worse than the issue being treated; personal or religious values and beliefs; lack of support from one’s family; in some cases, a fear of long-term tolerance or dependency.  All of these reasons may be very real for you, and warrant an open and honest discussion with yourself, your family, your doctor, your mental health professional, and/or the people in your life you trust the most.

These reasons become even more confusing when one considers that medication may not in every case be the silver bullet one had hoped for.  One study suggests that one-third the number of people taking medication for depression were considered treatment-resistant, which simply means that the medication didn’t work.  Another study found similar results for folks with anxiety; medication didn’t seem to work for a full 40% of people receiving treatment.

Whatever the reason may be, if you are finding yourself on the fence when it comes to taking medication to promote your mental health, there are a few questions you may want to ask yourself in this decision making process. 

Are you functioning?

If you are finding significant difficulty in moving through your normal daily routine–to the point that work, life, and family are completely beyond your energy level–then your decision about whether or not to take medication for your mental health may need to be a more serious consideration than if you find that you are generally moving throughout your day without issue.  Talk with your doctor if you have concerns about your ability to function on a day-to-day basis.

Are you grieving?

If you have recently experienced a significant loss, then all kinds of very strong emotions may surface, from sadness to anger to resentment to fear to sadness all over again.  In this case, these acute emotions are usually a very normal part of the grieving process.  Your allowing yourself to fully experience these emotions is exactly the thing that will help you grow and heal through this difficult loss.  Starting medication at this time for your mental health, however, could potentially hinder you in the long term, as it may keep you numb to your natural emotional responses.  If you don’t allow yourself to experience them now, there may be a part of you that stays forever stuck in that loss, always wanting to grieve, but not being allowed to do so.  If you are grieving a loss, honor that experience by allowing yourself to grieve.

Are you in safe, loving, nurturing relationships?

If you are finding yourself in a relationship with a partner, significant other, or even a parent who suggests that you address your mental health, and possibly even take psychotropic medication, it is worth asking if this is a person in your life who feels emotionally (and physically) safe, who feels supportive and loving, and who cares about your values and experiences.  On the other hand, if this is a person who feels controlling, shaming, angry, confusing, emotionally or physically unsafe, non-validating of your experiences and values, or otherwise not supportive, and yet they are telling you that you need to take medication; then you may want to consider talking with someone you know and trust about your relationships, as well as your mental health.

Are you communicating?

Many of our extreme emotions that we might categorize into a mental health disorder are often pain or suffering in some form that is not being allowed the opportunity to be felt, expressed, and communicated.  For example, a woman feels anger as a natural response to the way she has been treated by a loved one.  However, she has learned from her family and culture that being direct, honest, open, and assertive about her needs is actually “being mean”.  She therefore suppresses the anger, which festers over time and eventually explodes as depression.  Or, a man feels hurt and sad over an ended relationship, but learned early on that men don’t express emotions.  He stuffs away the hurt and sadness, which (you guessed it!) festers over time and explodes into anger.  While there may be a lot of factors involved in each particular circumstance, the fact is that emotions that are allowed to be felt, expressed, and communicated can often naturally fall into balance with all of our other emotions and experiences.  Find supportive people that you can feel, express, and communicate your emotions and experiences with so that your whole being can feel more naturally balanced.

Are you feeding your brain?

No, I did not just say that you need to go on a diet.  What I did say is that your gut is your second brain.  Your brain and your gut are so intimately connected, that most of the hormones your body needs to regulate your daily processes are created in your gut.  This includes hormones you need to sleep, to relax, to think clearly, to feel emotionally regulated, and to just feel happy.  For example, your gut microbiome is mostly responsible for taking in good nutrition and turning some of it into serotonin, which you might notice is exactly the process that most prescription anti-depressants are also trying to create.  While it is very true that your individual, unique, personal makeup might need a prescribed antidepressant to help out with this process; it is also true that if you are not giving your gut what it needs to stay healthy, then you are not really giving your body a fighting chance to do what it can naturally to support your mental health. Protecting your gut microbiome goes far beyond simply eating a nutritious diet.  So talk with your doctor about how you can promote your gut health in a way that supports your mental health.

Are you healing the hurt?

Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, explosive anger, acute stress, and a host of other mental health issues are often hurt and pain being discharged from the body.  And what you may have noticed somewhere along the way when you find yourself in a difficult place, is that often the hurt and pain–and definitely your response–really have nothing to do with what’s actually happening in the moment.  They are echoes of a pain that happened at some other point in time, triggered by something in the present, that makes the pain real and present all over again.  While medication can certainly help the hurt, it cannot make a hurt go away.  Talk with a therapist about hurts that may be there for you, and how you can compassionately help those hurt places in your life, so that you can fully live in the present.

Taking medication to promote your mental health is a highly individual matter that is unique to your personal makeup.  Take time to notice your personal values and your reactions to the idea of psychotropic medication.  Talk with your family, friends, doctor, therapist and/or trusted, supportive people in your life.  Allow yourself to grieve losses, to communicate with others your experiences, to surround yourself with loving and supportive relationships.  Give your body the tools it needs to tap into your own natural resources.  Find help to heal hurts from the past.  Honor your own values, your natural wisdom and intuition, and let them be a guide as you make this important decision for your mental health.

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