If you have mental illness do therapy & drugs help?

[m18pak]

I would like to know what sort of experience you guys have with traditional therapy and meds.

[Chado2423]

It depends on the person really. My step-sister did well with therapy... I didn't... but she also had more support than I do. I seem to be stigmatized by the people around me. Medication works, if you use the right medication, but with the fifty or more types of medicine out there how will you know which is the right one for you?

[Erebos]

It really depends on luck. You have to choose the right medication and/or the right therapist. Different people respond differently to certain medications and only certain types will work for them. Different people will connect with different therapists. It's like meeting new people. There are people who just don't connect and you just carry a deep conversation with. In all, it comes down to a bit of trial and error. However, if you really want to get treated, then it's worth it to take time and find the right combination for you.

[MSC2471]

I can only answer this from an outside perspective, having worked in the mental health field with MR/MH clients in group homes, as well as taking care of a bi-polar daughter who is on medication. I agree with Erebos that the right team of therapy, psychiatrist and medication can do wonders in treating mental illness. You have to monitor all aspects to see improvements, and they may not be day to day but happen over the course of months and years. With my oldest daughter a mix of prescription mood medication along with natural supplements seems to have lessened the intensity and severity of her manic/ mania episodes that occur in her life. Early on when she was under our care we monitored medication changes made by her new psychiatrist and we determined that one mood medication was now ineffective, but the current one she's on (and has been on for 2 years) seems to be working very well for her life.

The consensus I see when it comes to therapy is you have to want to change in order for changes to occur. If you don't believe in the information and exercises you are given, the best team in the world won't aid you in making the changes you wish to see in your life.

Matt

[uberinquisitive]

In my personal experience - yes, medication and therapy have been useful. However, as my needs changed, I outgrew medication and some therapists. This is natural. This doesn't mean that the medicine or therapist was not helpful - in fact, it may be a sign that they did a great job.

I will say this - I went through maybe 5 therapists before I found a great match for me. I also went through tons of medication before finding something helpful.

Medication and therapy are helpful but require patience, a certain burning motivation to become better, and the right match in personalities.

[Logodae]

Traditional talk therapy didn't do anything for me. I was depressed. I was miserable. It wasn't situational -- even when I felt like I was unhappy "about" something, I could tell it was out of any sane proportion. And talking about being miserable did not make me less miserable.

Drugs, on the other hand? Worked. It took a little experimentation to find the right med (citalopram, an SSRI) and the right dose (10 mg, actually less than standard), but yeah. I feel infinitely better. I can feel happy, as appropriate (instead of, y'know, never) -- and sad, as appropriate (and not, say, all the time.)

I still have low energy, and trouble moving -- not physically, but as if my will is disconnected from my body. And it seems to be slowly getting worse. Maybe a separate issue, maybe not... I have some appointments coming up, and I'm doing my own research in the meantime. I'm still a hell of a lot better off than I was.

Depression makes you feel like there's no hope. But there is, if you can just get out of the depression. If my movement problems turn out to be the first symptoms of a progressive neurological disorder (unlikely, really, but it's certainly something I've thought about)... well, that's still better than being depressed.

My biggest regret is that I wasted as much time as I did before getting to a psychiatrist. So, if you think you might need to see one... then yes. You do. Make an appointment. Also, since I know some people do have good results with therapy... if you're trying to choose between them, "both" is a perfectly good option.

Good luck.