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Politics: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2) |
Posted by
tallidaho on Friday, September 26, 2003 - 04:04 AM PST
No, it's not about sex. It's not about religion. It's not even about ghosts. Today's episode of Adventures at a Catholic College involves something much more personal- depression and medication!
Sure, anymore "depression" is a term, and medical condition, that is over-diagnosed, over-medicated, and latched onto way too quickly. However, this does not diminish the fact that there are those that are truly clinically depressed, that truly need help, and that can still be functioning individuals. I've been depressed since about 7th grade. My family history lends itself all too well to major mental illness (as well as physical illness that I have already been diagnosed as inhereting)- my great-grandmother, grandfather, grandmother, and mother all share some truly wonderful (a term used VERY loosely) disorders. So after 8 years of "working through it" and "surviving", a very stressful summer, and a darkness decending upon myself that I couldn't lift no matter what I tried, I decided / was convinced to go see a professional. Being the poor college student that I am, I try the on-campus counciling center first. I set an appointment and visit with the psychiatrist. I go into his office with total openness and honesty (well, I did omit certain all-night orgy facts- had to save SOMETHING for my second visit! ;-) ) and within 10 minutes, he was asking me if I would be willing to take drugs to "help with my problems." He also set up a time for me to get my bloodwork done and the nurse to double-check my other medications. I did agree that, after a while, I may consider drugs as a PART of treatment. But never did I commit to a daily pill. So the next day I go into the Wellness center with a friend to hold my hand (I really HATE having blood drawn). After filling out all the paperwork and waiting the usual amount of time, my vitals and blood are taken. I am then handed by someone I have never seen before a month-supply of Paxil CR, with very little discussion of side effects or dosage; just a mandate to start taking them the next morning (before my bloodwork had even been seen) There are many inherent problems here. First of all, this school is handing out psychotropic drugs like they are fucking candy. To college students. After talking to them for 10 minutes. Forgoing the possibility that some pseudo-educated second semester freshman fresh out of Basic Psycology 101 could fake every symptom I presented, and more to get these drugs, they totally ignored the fact that I know Paxil will/would screw with my body chemistry in ways that would make the situation worse. How do I know this? My mother was put on Paxil. A good friend was as well. This drug causes one to gain quite a bit of weight (when body image issues are probably one of the things that at least 3 hours should be devoted to.) It also causes many morning ups and evening downs. I'm a night person. That means when I'm truly awake and most functioning, the "happy pills" would be wearing off. Had they spent a few more minutes just talking, these things could have been explained. I also have an aversion to random pills. Yes, I have medication I take. Yes, I will take Advil when my cramps are debilitating. This does not mean, however, that I want to "pop a pill" for everything- if nothing else, because taking a pill doesn't make everything better- it hides the problem. Hide something long enough, and when it eventually sees the light it will be exponentally worse. Perhaps it's a brainwashing technique-- and the fact that I told the school psychiatrist flat-out that I wasn't religious and that I am slightly bisexual-- scared him into thinking I needed to be brought back "in line" with brainwashing and medicating me into a passive, noncreative, zombie of a follower. Because of this extreme discomfort, and several suggestions to go outside campus, I have made appointments with an outside person who is much better qualified than the school doctors. Hopefully it will go better. I swear, it's all a conspiricy to keep free thinkers off campus.
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Average Rating : 3.3
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Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2) | Login/Create an account | 6 Comments |
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Re: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2)
by Geist (tattooedslacker@yahoo.com)
on Sep 26, 2003 - 08:46 AM
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I went through a very similar situation when I was in the military. I wish I had some answers but I don't. Alot of problems can be solved with out medication... its just that most doctors aren't willing to take the time. Its easier to just give em a pill and send em on their way. Especially when its a school or military psychiatrist that isn't getting paid by the hour to see you... Oh, and just a bit of warning. Stay away from mixing the happy pills and alcohol. You forget every thing that happened and wake up the next morning half naked 30 miles away from the last place you remember and no idea how you got there. Not the best of experiences...
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Re: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2)
by Merry_Widow on Sep 26, 2003 - 04:03 PM
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Yeah, I had my stint with hospitialzation and pills when I was much younger... Good in that I was taken care of before I really put effort into some of the stunts I was pulling, bad in that I wasn't knowledgeble or aware enough to question things like side effects. It's when you get shit like this that you have to really open your mouth and start squawking. The center we have on my campus does the same thing, unless the student really gets on them to do more. They always do the minimal amount whenever possible. I would say go back, sit down again, and really go over your concerns. Don't think that you are whining, don't think that you are bothering them. Their job is to take care of you. Make them do it and do it well. I really hope you get everything taken care of. Depression isn't fun, no matter how old you are or aren't. Be well, yeah?
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Re: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2)
by AloneSoul (Fakeemailatdontspamme.com)
on Sep 27, 2003 - 03:25 PM
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Paxil. That’s just a "trigger word" for me. Let me elaborate a little with my Paxil experience: The doctors and shrinks got their greedy hands on my head, drained half my body weight in blood from "tests" and pumped me full of medication which didn’t do anything positive...keep in mind that I didn't have any chemical imbalance. Paxil was one of the worst things that happened in my life, I’ll tell you that. I gave the pill a chance to kick in, to give me a opiated boost like it was supposed to do. The thing didn’t work too well though. It never even made me content. While just on Paxil I couldn’t think straight for one second. I was extremely paranoid, agoraphobic etc. Walking outside was one problem but staying inside was just as bad, I couldn’t even walk into a room without feeling the walls closing in, having my vision blurred, hearing my head throbbing etc. To top it all off, I was perpetually sweating/ naucious, losing weight rather than gaining, breaking out constantly, babbling incoherently...just a complete mess...and that was before I started to drink while popping those pills...among others. I took myself off of Paxil and stopped seeing the shrinks. - They wanted to get me on Lithium and then something much stronger after that. They had me planned out like a roadmap. I realized that even if the medications worked I still wouldn’t have found a exit from my problems in life, I’d just be a thoughtless junkie on legal drugs...and from that I’d end up "finding a escape" from everything much sooner than I’d expected. Getting on topic: Those opiates are a suppressor to a different mode of thought. I really hated how most doctors and shrinks try to provide a opiate in a pill for every problem...how thinking in a "nihilistic" manner is a "problem" which only medication can "fix." I honestly cannot believe that any responsible educational organization would be handing out those "medications" to the public. I am chagrined, absolutely shocked and godsmacked. FUBAR. ...I certainly hope the people who get those pills will take good care of themselves, I really do.
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Re: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2)
by Catiana on Sep 28, 2003 - 03:12 PM
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gah. it sounds like most doctors are all to eager to assimilate everyone, and bring your down to everyone else. I had a similar experience in highschool, as did a few of my friends.. I was also given medication (no-name brand pro-zac basically) after one conversation, and it certainly did not work out for me. and this was with my family doctor who was supposed to know me, handing out medications like that to people you dont know is the stupidest thing they could do.
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Re: Depression (Adventures at a Catholic College Part 2)
by bettie_x (strangersangel@hotmail.com)
on Sep 28, 2003 - 10:28 PM
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I've seen a few people on paxil and I'm not joking when I say it doesn't HELP anything, it just shuts you up. That is their goal. Psychoactive drugs I believe are GOOD things, a sort of helping hand for the temporarily lost to get your marbles in the bag and figure out what you're doing.
I have a serious gripe with the pharmie companies and their mass marketing of drugs to people who don't fully understand their conditions or the risks of taking medication. And the fact that without learning to deal with your problems you will be on pills your whole life. I see adds for powerful antidepressants (that can cause mood swings), powerful weight loss drugs (that can cause heart attacks), stronger than before acid reflux drugs (that can cause serious stomach aches). All in soft tones, concerned voices, all hinting to go and tell your doctor what's wrong with you and demand their product. And if he doesn't he's a quack.
I especially have MASSIVE issues with ritalin and it's like. Did you know that schools are FORCING kids to take it? They call in their parents and TELL their parents to take them to a doctor and DEMAND it because "they're squirmy/loud/don't pay attention." HELLOO ASSHOLES. THAT IS WHAT KIDS ARE LIKE. There are some kids that NEED it, BENIFIT from it, but most of them are just the average boisterous child that nobody seems capable of dealing with anymore. Never mind that the schools are outdated, booring, and unchallenging...to fix that takes too much money and puts blame in an unfavored lap. It's cheaper to let the parents pay to drug them.
It's easier for everyone to just pop a pill, mellow out, and get along. What's all this nonsense with "talking" and "reasoning" and "understanding". You don't need that, you need today's purple pill...I mean afterall, it's PURPLE kids! YOU like purple don't you? (and I realise "today's purple pill" is an acid reflux drug, but bear with me). Learn to cope and deal with your problems? No no no, that will never work, because I have happy and comfortable in a tidy little capsule. For $100 bucks a bottle. Does it sound to anyone like those crack dealers who'd dye the drug pink and blue and green to appeal to younger children?
People wonder why there are so many drug addicted teenagers and adults...it's because most of us have BEEN drug addicts, since about 1st grade when we decided flicking spitwads at the projector screen was much more interesting than listening to the teacher drone on about numbers or vocabulary. Drug addicts, of course, with a doctor's careful permission. whatEVER.
I'll stick to the occasional asperin, thank you very much. I'd rather drink my way to dreamland or happiness than take their media friendly fucker-uppers.
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