Mental health continues to be a growing concern in the United States, with 1 in 6 Americans taking some sort of psychotropic drug. Out of those 50 something million people, though, many are not properly evaluated for mental illness before receiving a prescription. Medication is often cited as an “easy” fix for things like anxiety and depression, but while it can be effective for certain individuals, it often opens the door for adverse, unnecessary side effects that could be avoided with the implementation of other treatments.
Not everyone who is struggling with mental health needs medication. While every mental health concern deserves to be addressed and treated, medication is not the only option. For example, cognitive behavioral therapy has been proven to improve symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients without the risks of psychotropic drugs.
The issue with overmedicating is dependency. For those who may benefit from just a few sessions with a mental health professional but instead receive an SSRI (selective serotonin uptake inhibitor) prescription, there’s a chance of becoming overly dependent on a medication that may not have been necessary in the first place. Medication ought to be thought of as a last resort, that way any potential negative experiences are mitigated before the risks are even posed.
That’s not to say that prescription drugs aren’t helpful for mental health. Over the course of my time on anti-anxiety medication, I can attest to its alleviation of what used to be very debilitating symptoms. However, it’s not the be-all and end-all. The mental health of an individual deserves to be evaluated and treated specifically for that person, not written off with a messy signature and a trip to the pharmacist. I feel very lucky to have access to medication and believe in broadening its accessibility and destigmatizing it, as well as training primary care physicians on how to assess mental health so they can appropriately prescribe it if deemed necessary.
Medication can have a really impactful effect on a person’s mental health, but it’s important that both the general public and health care professionals alike don’t abuse their access to it. Psychosocial interventions may take more time to implement, but this sort of treatment is just as effective at preventing relapse, minimizing depressive episodes and may even be better at reinforcing coping skills, changing negative thought patterns and overall promoting a healthy relationship between an individual and their mental well-being.