Posted by Mark H. on March 16, 2000, at 21:42:24
In reply to Brain Cell Damage, posted by Lurker on March 16, 2000, at 12:49:02
Dear Lurker,
I think it is a good idea to put potential damage from psy-meds into perspective with the severity of the illnesses they are treating. Depression and schizophrenia are two diseases that lead to death (by suicide) with alarming frequency when untreated. Other illnesses disrupt the ability to earn a living or to sustain a mutually supportive relationship. For some people, medication may be the only way to stay out of the hospital or out of prison. Each person must decide where to draw the line in consultation with a competent medical advisor.
There are psychiatrists who refuse to use medications at all and who, for that matter, insist there is no such thing as mental illness. There is an entire Church (the Church of Scientology) which teaches that all psychiatry and all psychiatric medications are harmful. Several well known celebrities, including John Travolta, belong to this Church. The existence of such opinions, however, should not keep you from making a decision for yourself, based on your own best understanding of benefit versus risk.
Last season one pharmaceutical company came out with a pill that takes a year to clear up the mild discoloration that foot fungus can cause under the nail of one's big toe. It might be fair to ask who in their right mind would take a systemic poison for a year to have prettier toe-nails at the beach?
On the subjective level, while we should all be as conscientious as possible about our treatment choices and their effects, many of us are often just trying to get through the day, week, month or year without hurting ourselves or anyone else, and the medications we take, however harmful they may turn out to be in the long run, are making that possible.
I hope you reach a place of peace and reasonable comfort with your decision, whichever way you go. Whether you choose to take medication or not, there are plenty of people who will support you in your decision.
poster:Mark H.
thread:27200
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000312/msgs/27260.html