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Originally Posted by I.A.S.K.
So, for the people who are depressed or have been did any of you consider not taking any meds? Did you not take them and then later decide to take them? I've never been depressed so I don't know as much about the feeling and the need for or dislike of meds.
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I've been depressed two other times, once in HS and once in college. I didn't take meds either time.
I felt like taking medication would be just numbing myself to my own problems. I didn't want to take a drug that altered the way my brain worked. I didn't want to OFFICIALLY be labeled as "depressed". I felt that if I tried hard enough, I could will myself out of depression.
Therapists will work with you if you choose not to use medication to control your depression. Mine says she has a couple patients like that - they've decided drugs aren't for them (one of them is pregnant, the others have their own reasons) and the therapist is helping them do the best they can with what they've got.
This time, I tried therapy alone before I resorted to antidepressants. It didn't help much. I couldn't fix things by myself. I let my doctor talk me into antidepressants because my depression was taking over my whole life, and nothing I did (therapy, extra exercise, talking with friends) helped.
Depression is a chemical imbalance, and the chemicals in my brain were so out of whack I didn't have a chance at getting better by myself. Kind of like when you take an antibiotic - it kills most of the germs, but in the end, your body has to heal itself. But taking penicillin (or whatever) puts you on a level playing field. I needed help getting to a level playing field so I could fight the depression off by myself.
There's also herbal remedies for depression, which have varying degrees of effectiveness. St. John's Wart is one of them, fish oil capsules are another, but I can't think of any others right now. I tried St. John's Wart before I tried prescription drugs and I didn't think it worked at all - but it must work for somebody. (Sidenote: St. John's Wart makes birth control pills less effective. Just FYI.)
Thanks for asking.