Do you think taking medications causes you to be addicted to medications?

I was talking to the organizer of the meeting for the mentally ill today. He is totally against medication. He believes medication changes one's brain chemistry and one becomes addicted to medication. I take medication for schizoaffective disorder with bipolar. I have been hospitalized four times when I was off meds. I was wondering if I had not initially taken medication for my psychotic disorder that would I been better off. I don't know if my brain is addicted to medication but know I am doing better overall taking medication. I was wondering how others feel about medication for mental illness.


Does taking medication make one addicted to medication? He said the theory that there is a biochemical imbalance in the brain can be alleviated through will power because the imbalance is not physical like diabetes but due to wiring of the brain that has gone awry. Thus, if one re-wires one's brain then the mental illness will be alleviated. Hmm, I did not agree with him because mental illness is multi-factorial meaning there are environmental causes and genetic causes interplaying with each other manifesting in symptoms of mental illness. I have many mentally ill relatives who have similar disorders to mine. They are taking medication but it does not help them. However, I take medication daily and it helps tremendously with my thoughts and symptoms.


He said that the medication changed my brain chemistry where I am addicted to the medication now and can't do without it. I think addiction is always considered a negative implication but in my case the being addicted to medication is helping me in a positive way. He did not seem to understand that medication for mental illness can sometimes be helpful and effective. He said all medications for mental illness are addictive and are not necessary. When someone makes such a blanket statement, it usually is not true. He said once I stop the medication, I will withdraw and be psychotic again. This is true, however, this does not mean it is bad to take medication to be stable mentally. However, the question remains is: does taking medication for mental illness make one addicted to medication?

I never saw it as an addiction but realize he may have a point. This addiction to medication is not necessarily bad if it is helping me to remain stable. What do you think?

I believe that certain disorders or symptoms of them can be alleviated through therapy or 'rewiring' as you mentioned. Medication is usually used when therapy is no good due to such intense symptoms.

Even something like a mood disorder can be somewhat managed with rewiring (in my opinion) unless so severe that medication is needed.

I do however feel that certain disorders involving psychosis, as well as above mentioned with great severity, do need medication. Without the medication, the delusions/hallucinations and other psychotic symptoms persist.

To answer your original question- I don't think that medications are addictive per say- yes, the medications may cause symptoms if you come off of them too quickly though. That is one point.

There is a difference between addiction and dependence. Addiction implies misusing substances, increasing tolerances, continued use despite negative consequences and an inability to stop. Sometimes there is also physical dependence.

With psych meds, you can become physically dependent on them, without addiction. The dependence manifests itself, when you try to come off them and get discontinuation syndrome (fancy way of saying withdrawal). All that means is you need to do a slow taper off the med, with the help of a Dr. Personally I've been told that if I want to come off one of my meds, it would take at least 18 months to taper safely.

I do believe that meds are necessary for some people - I definitely need them, so I have trouble with people who say all meds are bad. If you find meds personally helpful in making your life better, then by all means keep taking them, and don't worry about what people who aren't Dr's say.

splitimage

I'm curious about that person who was the "organizer of a meeting for the mentally ill". What is the organization to which he belongs?

He is the organizer for the depression and bipolar group here in my city. I don't know what to make of him but he is anti-medication. I will continue taking my medication daily because it helps me to stay out of the hospital. I'd rather take medication than be in the hospital.

Honestly, I’m more alarmed by how much Coke a Cola I’m consuming daily, then how much Ativan I’m taking. Which is hardly any.

Yikes. I'm all for everyone having their own beliefs, but that's scary to think this person is involved in mental health in some way and preaching what is essentially poison to people — people who may not know what to think or understand that this person may, in fact, not have enough training (or training of any kind) to be making those kinds of arguments.

That being said, are medications for everyone? No. Definitely not. Some people do just fine with therapy alone and it's more a matter of preference for one treatment over another. But having worked with hundreds of people with various flavors of psychotic illnesses over the past eight years, there are very few people who didn't benefit from medication on some level.

Does everyone who has some form of psychotic disorder need to be on a ton of meds? No. Or even some of the heavier duty meds like clozapine? No. Every case is different and a lot is trial and error, but good pdocs generally try to treat conservatively, not throw every class of med out there and see what sticks.

As for whether people become "addicted" to a medication or not, I think you have to be careful. Most people — even those that work in psych — use that term very broadly when it should really only be used for illicit substances and certain habit-forming prescription meds like opiates, benzos and stimulants. But even with those, you have to be careful because whether a drug/med can cause physical dependence doesn't mean they're addicted.

If people take a blood pressure med for hypertension — or an anticonvulsant for seizures — if they lose access to the meds, a lot of people can die. Does that mean they're addicted to a beta blocker or Keppra? No. Not really. But they've become dependent on it to stay alive and function. That's pretty much the same case with psych meds, whether they're antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, etc.