Sometimes I feel like a broken record…and when it's about drugs, that's sad.
We are are a "take a pill for that" kind of culture.
Look at all the ads on TV: "Ask you doctor if X is right for you."
Pills will [allegedly] make us, the adults, more beautiful, thin, happy, able to have sex at any moment, rosy cheeked, less leaky and more physically active.
And we have pills for our kids. And more sadly, our kids tend to go into the medicine cabinets and do take those adult pills.
Recent surveys now show that the use of antidepressants has increased almost 400% since 1988. These are now among the most frequently used "pills" among people ages 18-44.
BUT – nearly 25% of women aged 40 to 59 are taking antidepressants!
And many people take more than one kind!
And worse yet – fewer than 1/2 of people taking multiple antidepressants saw a mental-health professional in the year prior to the survey!!
So – what does this say?
- That we really are more depressed?
- That we are more affected by those ads on TV?
- We really think older women are depressed?
- That it's ok to take a mix of medications without appropriate medical oversight?
These are very serious questions that need serious answers…
Comments? Thoughts? Thank you.