Hey y’all! I’m back again for Mental Health Awareness Month to talk about finding the right pysch meds. Psych meds are like any meds- they come with a long list of do’s and don’ts and plenty of side effects that may or may not occur in your body. The difference is that psych meds, of course, influence your mind. There are SSRI’s and SNRI’s which are antidepressants, benzodiazepines and beta-blockers which are anti-anxiety, and new age and older antipsychotics.
The first thing to do when starting on a psych med is to talk to a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist is the doctor who prescribes these medications. When you're talking to your doctor make sure to ask plenty of questions and be honest about what other medications you may be taking, if you drink alcohol, what physical health problems you may have, any allergies you have, and if you use any drugs because they use all your information to determine which medicine is best and safest to put you on.
Now it will likely take a while to find the right med for you because some meds stop working after a while, some side effects are too much for you, or some just make things worse. Always make sure to communicate with your doctor about what's going on and answer their questions as truthfully as you can so they can decide whether to start you on a new medication.
What you should know about antidepressants!
They often list suicidal ideation as a side effect on these drugs because your energy level increases so you're more likely to try and go through with suicide if you were having suicidal thoughts previously. The med only makes you more likely to attempt it because of that energy boost. For example, back in April of 2017 I was on an SSRI which was helping me except when I started thinking about killing myself. I wrote my family a suicide note because I was so sure I was going to do it. I realized the med I was on was causing me to want to do it whereas when I wasn't on the med I was too depressed to actually do anything. Always tell your doctor when you start having suicidal thoughts so they can help you!
What you should know about anti-anxiety meds!
You can build up a tolerance to benzodiazepines so you'll need an increased dosage as time goes on. Beta-blockers help manage physical symptoms of anxiety such as tremors or rapid heartbeat. They should not be taken if you have asthma or diabetes because they can worsen your condition.
What you should know about antipsychotics!
There are two generations of antipsychotics- the first generation is the conventional "typical" antipsychotics or "neuroleptics" and the second generation is called "atypical" antipsychotics. The second generation covers more than just dealing with psychosis but also deals with bipolar depression and depression that hasn't responded to any other medication. A side effect that I have personally dealt with taking an antipsychotic is weight gain which is more likely to happen with atypical antipsychotic medicines. Another side effect is uncontrollable movements such as tics and tremors which are at higher risk with typical antipsychotic medicines. Typical antipsychotic medications can also cause tardive diskinesia (TD), which are muscle movements mainly around the mouth, if used for a long period of time. TD can be mild to severe and in some people it cannot be cured.
So how exactly do you find the right medication? You and your doctor have to consider you're allergies, physical health, and other factors before starting you on a medication. Then you try it and if it doesn't work you cross that one off the list and try another that might work for you. Also be careful of the long term side effects.
What have we learned? Talk to your doctor! Those television ads tell you to talk to your doc for a reason and it's very important that you never abruptly stop taking a medication for whatever reason because most meds you need to taper off of. There's a list of side effects for every drug so make sure to TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR about everything. A good way to remember is by writing down your symptoms.