Medication. Some people are for it; others against it. Simply put, it depends who you ask.
Meds are a slippery slope when it comes to mental illness. Just like any other condition, such as diabetes or thyroid for instance, depression is a serious illness that often requires a little extra boost. That little extra boost is often in the form of a pill; contrary to popular belief that it can be "cured" by prayer or exercise.
These pills sometimes have unpleasant side effects ranging from mild to severe. Chances are -- if you ask 50 people about their experiences with anti-depressants, you'd get a wide range of responses. People who stopped taking them, as well as those who are currently taking them but dislike them, have their reasons; all of which are 100% OK and 100% valid.
Is taking meds good or bad for mental illness? Trick question; there is no right or wrong. You won't get a black-and-white answer. It is neither black nor white.
Many, do however, need meds to balance themselves out. Natural remedies don't always work. For some, meds serve as a life jacket that keeps them from drowning in a sea of depression. It saves their life. It's the last resort before the last-last resort; death. Anti-depressants give them that push toward recovery instead of continuing on a downward spiral. It's the difference between life or death.
However, meds don't always work or they work but not well enough. That's absolutely OK. Why would you keep doing something that doesn't work for you? It's not OK, however, to potentially keep others from trying something that may save their lives.
I get it. Naturally, people want to share their experiences with others and prevent them from making the same mistakes. We might think we're helping by sharing our bad experiences, but we might actually be doing the polar opposite. No two people have the exact same experience. Meds might not work for you, but they might work for someone else. It's not one-size-fits-all. The problem is that bad reviews push others away. When someone's review is not so favorable, less people want to try it. What happens when someone hears a negative experience about meds? They're less likely to try something that they might desperately be needing. The outcome could be devestating. Why take that risk? Hearing one bad experience could diminish what little hope that person has left.
For many, anti-depressants are that hope; hope that recovery is possible and there's more to life than pain.
Let others have a chance at experiencing that.
