Antidepressants (and other mental disorder medication)

Hiya for the third time today!

Right now I'm here to talk to you guys about medicine. Ew, I know right?

But medicine isn't always as bad as it seems.

I'm talking mainly about antidepressants in this article. If you want me to go into more depth in anything, just ask. Comment on this post or check out the link under 'about us'. ;)

There are a lot of myths surrounding the issue of medication against mental disorders. I have heard a lot of untrue 'facts' about antidepressants, for example.

Let me first of all state what I know is actually true:

• Antidepressants and antianxiety can work in reverse - there are many of them out there so the one(s) you first try might not be the right one(s) for you,
• There are over 200 types of medicine. It's not only prozac and xanax.
• The first 2 weeks taking antidepressants are the hardest usually because your body needs to adjust its chemicals in your brain so it might work in reverse at first, and get a lot better steadily later.
• If you suddenly stop taking your medicine because you don't feel like you need them anymore and your doctor hasn't told you to, you will sufffer the consequences.
• There are always side effects. They won't necessarily be very big but if you don't like them you can always change your medication (e.g. I was gaining weight with Lexapro so I stopped taking that (with the permission of my psychiatrist) and I started taking something that focusses on hormones more instead).

But what I've also experienced is that:

• They help. They really do. Without them, I probably wouldn't be alive to tell you this right now.
• Psychiatrists are there to help you. They won't judge you. They'll try their best to find something that suits your situation and will not give up.
• After 1-2 weeks the effects of you getting better will (most likely) start to show - this feels great.

Don't expect medicine to make it all better though; it's not some miracle cure. It's to help you be stable enough to undergo therapy without the strong suicidal ideation and/or self-harm urges, etc.

Be strong! <3

-Dani

Getting Help

Hiya!

I think that's going to be my opening for now haha.

Well, I'm going to move on to a more serious topic now. Getting help. Dun dun dunnn.

Okay Dani, no more joking around. This is serious.

So, how do I start this? Well, first of all, if you feel something is mentally or psychologically wrong with you don't be afraid to get help. You might be rejected a few times at first. That happened to me, too. But there are people out there who want to help you and will help you.

Some people judge others. However, there are people you can trust your life with. And it's your job to find those people. But I'm here to hopefully make that task a bit easier for you. ;)

So first resource there is is the hotlines page. However, it's not the best place to go for help - it's a one time thing. You can call back, sure, but another person will answer the phone everytime.

Let me talk about my experience a bit.

I did what was adviced on every website I went on. I talked to my parents.

Now since my dad is barely ever home and when he is I don't want to ruin the mood I went to my mum instead. I'm also a bit of a mummy's little girl at times...

In the end, she said she couldn't help me and that I should visit the school counsellor.

DON'T EVER BE AFRAID OF SCHOOL COUNSELLORS. THEY WILL NOT CONTACT YOUR PARENTS UNLESS THEY HAVE YOUR PERMISSION, AND INFORMATION DOESN'T GET PASSED ONTO OTHER TEACHERS.

I got told by the counsellor that she thought I probably suffer from a form of depression (I had suicidal thoughts). In that case, I had to go to a doctor. She asked me if I wanted her to tell my parents or get a teacher involved, and I said no. What I heard was enough.

If you don't have a school counsellor, you can skip straight to the next step: see your local doctor. My local doctor was very kind, however I know that Eleanora didn't have the same experience as me. Find the right doctor for you.

My doctor referred me to a hospital since they didn't specialise in the kind of treatment I needed. They asked if they should make an appointment, and my mum and I agreed.

At this point, my parents were involved and knew about my situation. I'm not sure if it's always this way, because I told them myself. However, if you have a specific situation you want advice on, you can ask me (check the about us page for links to the sites I'm on or just comment on this post).

In the hospital I got diagnosed with several mental disorders. They then asked me if I wanted medicine. My mum didn't want me on medication, so she said no. (I will write a seperate post on antidepressants.)

They also said that I needed therapy. I have therapy for two years now, and I can honestly say my life has improved loads.

Getting help, if you continue fighting for it, is always a good thing.

Fight for what you believe in and fight for what you need!

-Dani