I'm one of those on a med cocktail. I am lucky to have a really good pdoc who listens to me. He listens to what I say about how I'm doing. He accepts what I say about how I'm doing. Yes, I'm on a cocktail of meds, but it took us a long time to find a combination that works for me. We worked together to find what works for me.
At first I was against the idea of having to be on meds the rest of my life. I've changed my mind, mainly because with the meds I have a life, without them I'd likely be dead. I tried weaning off the meds several years ago. It scared the poo out of me when I realized one day that I was back to planning different ways to kill myself. I wasn't scared about being suicidal. I was scared that the ideation didn't scare me. I called him ASAP and we got me back on meds.
I've come to accept that I need these meds to have a life I want to live. I take a medication for allergies. Without it I would be alive, but would be miserable with allergy symptoms. I take a medication for acid reflux. Again, I can live without the med, but life without it is not pleasant. Why do people have a different opinion of psych meds?
Folks mentioned potential interactions of meds. I make danged sure my pdoc knows everything I take. He will let me know if a combination is not healthy for me. My PCP once tried to prescribe me a medication that boosts serotonin for another health problem I have. Two of the antidepressants I take target serotonin. I asked pdoc about taking it. He was peeved with the PCP for what she prescribed. Could've had a major negative reaction as a result if I took it.
As for different folks reacting differently to the same meds, I can use myself as an example. I over react to most mediation side effects. A doc I used to see told me it had something to do with the way my liver processed meds. A dose of a sedative that might make someone else drowsy will knock me off my feet. The doc who told me about the liver and meds used to prescribe me pediatric doses of meds. Our bodies are not one size fits all in the way we respond to meds.
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