The Effects Of Antidepressant Pills On Teenagers And Antidepressants Essay

Over the years the “rate of antidepressant use among all ages [have] seen an increase by nearly 400%...” even though deemed ineffective (Smith). This increase came about after more doctors were given a wider range of prescription rights; this allowed them to access a wider range of drugs, capable of delivering a greater level of high if misused. Patients are often prescribed medications without being fully evaluated, leading to treatments which might not be needed. As a result “‘… at least half the folks who are being treated with antidepressants aren't benefiting from the active pharmacological effects of the drugs themselves but from a placebo effect’ " (Hollon, Smith)which affects a person’s state of mind. The Placebo Effect creates the feeling that an ineffective drug is working because it is supposed to work even if the prescribed medication was a simple sugar-water mixture. The efficiency of antidepressants decrease as the prescriber moves across the classes. They are especially less effective when used to treat serious medical conditions but are often used instead of more serious

Antidepressants are a prescription drug now used by people of all ages. They have become a part of society, therefore, taking antidepressants is not frowned upon. Antidepressants are used to make people feel “happier” and not to feel sadness. This is shown in the dystopian society in the book Brave New World written by Aldous Huxley in 1932. In that society the people use soma, a well-known drug, to make them feel no pain and are conditioned to think soma fixes everything. Helmholtz and Bernard two main characters, do not take it because they want to be able to see the world for what it is. They also do not want soma to change how they feel; they want to appreciate nature. In addition Lenina and Henry love taking soma because then they

There are still several options for treatment that you must choose from, as well as having to deal with side effects that accompany each treatment. Of all the treatments, antidepressants tend to have the most side effects. Some of the side effects common to all three types of antidepressants are: anxiety, vomiting, confusion, chest pain, blurred vision, irritability, insomnia, sexual dysfunction, weight gain, headache, and nervousness (Cheung et al. 2003, Vanderkooy et al. 2002). Some other, more severe, side effects are difficulty urinating, decreased appetite, heart complications, and suicide (Simon and Stern 2003 - Review). It is the last side effect, suicide, which has recently caused some controversy within the medical field. With recent research showing a correlation between antidepressants and suicide, as well as the FDA ordering warning labels for suicide on antidepressant medication, physicians have to be careful prescribing the drugs, especially to children and adolescents.

In this paragraph, I will be presenting a counter argument as if antidepressants are really helping our culture. I will be using Robert Whitaker's point of view of how our society is overmedicating mental illness. I am using Whitaker as source of information because source is well-written and organized. Robert Whitaker is a journalist and author of Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America. Whitaker states that antidepressants are overprescribed in America, harming those who do not need them. In fact, Researchers have proven that using medical substance don't improve behaviors. In the long run, using some sort of antidepressant can worsen the disease. Whitaker quotes "If 'wonder drugs'

Depression is a treatable condition by the use of psychotherapy or counseling, drug therapy, and other measures can alleviate symptoms and help teenagers to succeed in school, develop and maintain healthy relationships and feel more self-confident. However depression in teenagers can be a very devastating problem for both the child and the parent. In most cases they both want to get back to the “normal” life that the teen had lead before. In many instances, the parents want to have the child on antidepressant in that it helps to reestablish the normal balance of chemicals in the brain. There are various classes of antidepressants used to treat depression in teenagers they include: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or other atypical antidepressants and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) (Goodyer et al., 2007)

Lastly, what effects to antidepressants have on mood, behavior, and suicidal tendencies? In her article, ‘The Hidden Harm of Antidepressants’, Diana Kwon, a science writer with a Master’s degree for McGill University in neuroscience, she reviews several studies about the use of antidepressants, and had found the safety data on some of these drugs have been withheld from the public. She mentions research done in Copenhagen by some researchers at the Nordic Cochrane Center, and how they discovered that “pharmaceutical companies were not presenting the full extent of serious harm in clinical study reports…” (Kwon para 2). These clinical study reports are then used by people at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve or deny new

“About 150 studies in seventeen countries say that antidepressants have side effects”(cchr International). One of the most used antidepressant would be zoloft or lexapro. Even these two medications have side effects. Before they figured out they had side effects, people believed that they all worked the same. Some of the side effects are heart problems, suicide risks or attempts, causes anxiety, aggression, urges to self harm, and suicidal thoughts. If any of these are happening you can go talk to your doctor or just continue taking them. They have about 26 different types of medication that people can try. By taking antidepressants they will work by balancing chemicals in your brain. They can help with your mood, with sleeping better, and help with concentrating. The antidepressants can help sustain your nerve cells. Also some of the drugs that people take can cause depression. So be careful about what you are taking.

Certain antidepressants led patients to have more suicidal thoughts and attempts. The antidepressant, Effexor, was linked to increased suicide attempts and thoughts (Cheng). An example would be, a patient in a group study got into an argument with her mother and attempted to overdose on Paxil and Effexor (Carey). Experts argue that antidepressants have little to no effect on patients anyway. If they do happen to work, antidepressants help those who truly need them, but as stated earlier, misdiagnosis can cause worse symptoms and

The bottom line is, antidepressants work. I was clinically diagnosed with depression four years ago. I went my leading two years without taking any medication. In effect, those two

Jennifer Garam started taking antidepressants in hope that they would work on her depression. In 2010 Jennifer went to the psychiatric for the first time because she was sick and tired of constantly getting knocked down by depression and anxiety, on top of that she had “a few small OCD tendencies” that turned into an everyday ritual. The psychiatric recommended for her to be on a medication. That night she swallowed the pill. She woke up in the morning, she felt 10 times better, she couldn’t believe it. Day 2 it got worse, she couldn’t sleep, she didn’t have an appetite. Day 3 she wasn’t her normal self. Day 4 she felt like she was trapped in a bubble, she was spaced-out and numb. Day 5 she called the psychiatric, she told her she wanted to be taken off of the medication. Off the medication she felt better then when she was taking it, as the medication left her body she felt better then ever. Research has confirmed that antidepressant drugs are no more effective than sugar pills. In some studies sugar pills may have better results than antidepressants. The best known psychological side effect of SSRIs is “amotivational syndrome”, that syndrome is a condition in where your inspiration diminishes to do anything. When Yale University's Department of Psychiatry analyzed the admissions to their hospital’s psychiatric unit, they found out that 8.1% of their patients were “found to have been admitted owing the antidepressant mania or

Scientists and Doctors studies’ show that 4 percent of those taking antidepressants had an increase in suicidal thoughts, compared with 2 percent of those taking sugar pills. After seeing those studies, the FDA (Food

brain, would be your sleeping and eating habits. Getting a good night’s rest can become a thing

One in ten Americans are prescribed an antidepressant that they are told to take daily. Ronald Elson, a psychiatrist at the University of California stated that the use of antidepressants have increased 400% since the 1980s (Lancet, 2004). So what are antidepressants? Antidepressants are a class of drugs to diminish symptoms of depressive disorders, and other conditions such as: Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), bulimia nervosa, and many more. Antidepressants also come in multiple differents forms (Kwon, 2013). There is the most commonly prescribed class called, SSRI (Selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors), and others being, NDRI (Norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitors), TCA (Tricyclic antidepressants),

Antidepressants increased the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in children, teens, and young adults. Depression and certain other psychiatric disorders are themselves associated with increases in the risk of suicide. Patients of all ages who are started on antidepressant therapy or when the dose is changed should be monitored appropriately and observed closely for clinical worsening, suicidality, or unusual changes in behavior such as becoming agitated, irritable, hostile, aggressive, impulsive, or restless. Should these occur, report them to a doctor right

Herng wad Sworth Longfellow once said that “Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad”.Unfortuately, over 50% people are depressed due to circumstances happening around them. Consequently most of them takes these drug called antidepressant which is used to relieve or prevent depression. However, I strongly agree those antidepressants are dangers to human health and society.