I have been living with depression since a teenager and after so many years, I recently finally started receiving psychotherapy (CBT). While I’m already seeing some modest changes in my thinking patterns, my therapist noted that in the last few weeks the severity of the condition is worsening and it might be a good time to talk with my primary care provider about antidepressants as a combination therapy.

This got a reaction out of me, specifically that I don’t like the idea of chemically altering my mental state and losing access to what “I really feel” (as I perceive it).

I know that the logic behind this sentiment is not very solid, but we can’t reason ourselves out of our feelings that easily. For me this is also challenging because I don’t take any recreational substances that affect my mental state, so I can’t tell to myself that it’s like e.g. smoking weed only more targeted and supervised.

I’m curious if this sentiment is familiar to anyone else, and how you dealt with it (whether you decided for or against medication).

  • @dergEnglish
    5•1 year ago

    That did happen to me, and I didn’t end up taking the medication thinking I’d try my luck treating it just with therapy and improving my health in other ways. While I found the therapy extremely helpful and well worth it, I really really regret not trying the medicine in hindsight. Because of life complications and my employment situation, I haven’t had the opportunity to try it since and can’t shake the feeling this would be much much easier to tackle with it if one of my main problems is a chemical imbalance. For context: mental health issues run on both sides of the family.

    If I get good healthcare again, I’m immediately going to go back to get some proper care.