Disclaimer: I am not a medical or mental health professional. All content is based solely on my personal experience.
I was 15 when I first started taking antidepressants for depression and anxiety. The road to learning to treat my brain has felt like a Michigan one – full of potholes, no shoulder to pull off onto, a lot of gravel, will possibly damage your car. Despite this, antidepressants have played a vital role in the slow, steady, seasonal process of filling in and repaving rocky neural pathways. For me, antidepressants mean that I have enough good days to learn how to cope with the bad ones. They aren’t right for everyone – but if you’re just starting out on your own medication road trip to better mental health, here are the top five things I wish someone had told me.
- Ask your prescriber a lot of questions. Don’t be afraid to ask why they prescribe something, what they are hoping it will do, what the alternatives are, what the most common side effects are, or what the next steps will be. Just because they’re the doctor doesn’t mean you can’t ask them to explain their thought process – don’t be afraid to take as much time as you need at appointments, because leaving with questions is a recipe for confusion, mistakes, and distrust.Finding the right prescriber is worth the time and effort.
- Being able to trust and communicate openly with your doctor is extremely important to feeling safe and getting the right care. If you feel like you can’t ask questions, that you’re not treated with respect, or that you can’t be honest, don’t compromise. Talk the issues out, and change prescribers if you need to.
- You do not need to do this alone. While society in general comes around to depression as a health problem, I don’t think people realize that experimenting and working towards the right medication for your brain and body is a whole separate process. It has its own unique emotional and physical challenges. You may feel guilty, embarrassed or awkward about talking about those challenges, but you deserve to complain and ask for support when you need it. Try looking for friends, family, or others who have experience with the same things.
- People will have a lot of opinions. Opening up about taking antidepressants will make some people feel entitled to judging or criticizing you. People may tell you that you don’t need them, make uncomfortable comments, and ask any number of intrusive questions.
- But, finally and most importantly, this is your life. It’s your body, your brain, and your feelings. At the end of the day, this is about making your symptoms more manageable – you don’t need to be ashamed of wanting to improve your quality of life. So no matter what obstacles are put in your way, put your safety and your long-term happiness first.
You’ve got this.