antidepressants

 

I personally believe antidepressants get a bad name when brought up in conversations regarding mental health. 

whenever i speak to anyone regarding treatments they have tried for their mental well-being regarding antidepressants, most of the responses seem to be a hard no. And to a degree I do understand the responses, not wanting to be reliant on tablets "for the rest of my life", most people would rather rely on and try natural methods to help with their mental well-being. 

The general view seems to include a change of personality caused by the antidepressants, and the stigma attached to being someone to takes them or is reliant on taking them.

My counter argument to this is, would you take pain killers if you had a headache ? would you take medicine if you had another illness ? would you take antibiotics if you had an infection ? the answer is yes, so why would you not take something that is going to help you with your mental well-being ? 

I want to clarify that antidepressants would not be my first port of call in regards to treatment, I do believe in trying to combat mental well-being first with regular exercise, a good diet, CBT techniques, lifestyle changes and so forth, but if you have gone down the natural path and are still struggling why would you not try antidepressants ?

Antidepressants do not change your personality, they do not change who you are, and in all honesty they do not treat the root cause of mental health (mainly because the root cause of what causes mental health is't still truly known), but what they do do is help to deal with your symptoms. 

They help increase your mood, they help to take the "edge off" and they help you to feel calmer.

* they work by increasing levels of chemicals in your brain called neurotransmitters, which help to regulate mood and emotion. 

I am currently taking antidepressants myself and have done many times throughout my life, but I also combine this with getting plenty of exercise, a good diet and and mindfulness techniques, including reading, listening to music and study (learning more about mental health mainly), but when life gets tough and i go through bad spells, i am strong enough to know when i need a little extra support. 

I try to be the best advocate i can be, and will always advocate for treatments that help people, whether this is through natural practices or through medication. 

in closing, those who believe they have tried everything to help themselves and are still struggling, those who may have shut down the idea of antidepressants before or have never thought about trying them. i highly recommend you do so, there is no shame in it, and if the are going to help you live a better live, isn't that a good thing ? surely the answer is yes ?

I will also say this, there are many many different antidepressants out there, do your research on which ones there are and the side affects, like with any medication you take there will be side affects. These generally pass within a week or two, and once again there will be many different side affects with each different one, ranging from a feeling of being "spaced out" to tiredness, trouble sleeping and feeling sick. You maybe asking yourself at this point, well why would i take them and add those to how i am already feeling ? because these are initial side affects that will pass within a couple of weeks.

I hope this post has helped in some little way ?

please feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have or any support you need, i am always on hand for a chat.

pt.sayer24@gmail.com

thanks for taking the time to read this post 

kind regards