Disclaimer: This article serves merely as a conversation starter and a thought provoker. In no way do I wish to offend anyone who is working through anxiety, depression, or stress, or is using chemical substances to assist them in taking back control over their life.
In a recent conversation with my mother, we discussed the alarming and rapidly rising rate of college students that are on antidepressants. Just like a mom, she knew all of the statistics, ratios, and facts. Informing me of every side effect and even providing a few anecdotes, my mom tried to scare me away from following the crowd.
I left the conversation feeling drawn to these young people that she told me about. I formed a question that stayed with me long after our talk ended.
Is it really anxiety?
And that question led to various others…
Are antidepressants and sedatives the answer or are they creating a larger issue? Are claims like depression and anxiety making it easier for youth to obtain these clinical drugs?
When you consider the veil of gloom that seems to have fallen over youth in the past few years, one notices just how thick and heavy it is. Apparently, there is an entire culture/medium for being open and candid about issues such as depression, anxiety, stress, and high irritability. From people’s personal choices to post about these touchy topics on their social media to artists fetishizing the mental health problems in a haze of drug abuse and alcoholism, a red flag has been raised and it needs to be acknowledged.
Many musical artists incorporate the subculture of “popping pills” in their lyrics and lifestyles:
“Pop a Xanny, make your problems go away, yeah uh” – Isaiah Rashad (‘Stuck in The Mud’)
“Feeling like I’m stranded in a mob, scrambling for Xanax out the canister to pop, never getting out of hand, steady handling my job” – Earl Sweatshirt (‘Grief’)
“First dealer was his mom’s medicine cabinet, got anxiety, better go and give him a Xanax” – Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (‘Kevin’)
“Calamity, goddamn insanity, fanny pack filled with Xanax” – Eminem (‘Underground’)
While it is very real to battle internally with mental health problems, it is also very real to need rest, recuperation, and other holistic healing methods instead of resorting to clinical antidepressants–and abusing their power. The struggle of finding your balance on the spectrum of emotions, remaining interested in your daily life, keeping your smile and positive outlook, and of being present in the lives of the people you care about, is a tough struggle. Additionally, heavy college course loads do not help. Pressing deadlines, early morning classes, demanding rehearsals, meetings, and practices all alike add to the strains that pull college students in every direction. It is way too easy for young people to fall into the miasma of poor mental health and eventually poor physical health once diet and sleep are affected.
Due to musical artists glamorizing ‘Xans’ and the lifestyle of ‘popping pills’, people are incorporating these drugs into their lives as well. At parties, kickbacks, and clubs, it is nearly inevitable for college students to encounter the indirect implications of these powerful pills. Just seeing someone or babysitting someone “off a Xan” are experiences.
When combined with alcohol, a Xanax pill (over the course of 20 to 30 minutes) has the incredible ability of completely befuddling a user and inebriating them beyond consciousness. A user can become so intoxicated that they black out and remember absolutely nothing. Stumbling and unable to walk, incoherent and unable to hold a conversation or their own body weight, and not to mention ridiculously tired, a pill popper that mixes their meds with liquor, is in for a rough night and even worse morning. The hypnosis of being that tranquil can last for hours. It can last even after the user has slept and they are up the next day.
Ultimately, it is dangerous – this new wave of taking sedatives and antidepressants “just because”. It is especially dangerous when people are pairing these pills with alcohol on the party scene. If you are working through depression, anxiety, or stress, I wish you well with getting back to your happy place, so that you will be one-hundred percent self-reliant once again.