Antidepressants Versus Natural Healing

Severe anxiety and depression is what made me call for the help of a professional. It was not getting any better and I needed help desperately. The anxiety was ruining my life and taking all of the joy out of it and replacing it with fear and worry.

The first doctor was a medical doctor who referred me to a psychologist. The psychologist, after only one session, referred me back to my medical doctor to prescribe me an antidepressant. She said that I was depressed and needed to be on this medication to help me.

I was on the medication for about six months when I started noticing that I had become very irritable. I also felt like there was electric shocks going through my body and I had a feeling of nausea that would come and go each day. I also felt very tired while taking the antidepressant.

Finally, after the six months, I told the psychologist my symptoms and she told me that I should see a psychiatrist also, someone who has experience with mental disorders and that he could prescribe me another medication. After tapering off of the first medication, I went to see a psychiatrist and was prescribed another medication a few weeks later.

The new medication took awhile to get used to. I felt lightheaded and dizzy. I felt out of sorts, like a different person. It was like I almost felt numb. I mentioned these side effects to the psychiatrist and he said that I should continue taking the medication because the side effects may wear off with extended use.

I took the medication for a year and a half and put up with all of the side effects, including new ones that started to appear. The new side effects were a feeling of fatigue, illness and a spasm feeling in my hands. I also felt very angry and almost in a complete rage a lot. This medication did not help me with depression or anxiety, it only added more problems to the problems I already had.

I tapered off of this medication and experienced horrible withdrawal side effects, even after slowly tapering off. The withdrawal effects were terrible. I felt as if I was dying. I just felt very ill, very irritated and I didn't want to do anything except lay around the house.

Finally after a few months, I was back to myself again. Within a span of a few years, I tried a few more medications, two of them being an anti anxiety drugs. These drug made my depression worse. They slowed me down. I had no energy. All I wanted to do was sleep. I finally tapered off of it and started feeling some energy come back again.

All in all, my experience with antidepressant and anti anxiety drugs was not good. They did nothing to help me at all. In fact, it just made my problems worse. I know of other people who have had similar experiences, whether it be on the actual medication or from withdrawal side effects. These are some things that doctors do not always tell their patients about.

My friend's mother took antidepressants and anti anxiety medication for panic attacks. The side effects and withdrawal were so horrible that it destroyed her marriage and her relationship with her two other children. She became extremely irritable, moody and would even have periods of extreme rage. She said she felt out of control, almost like a screaming monster. She went from being a rather mellow person to this person that she or no one else could recognize. Unfortunately, some people who are not very knowledgeable or have no personal experience with mental illness or how medication can do this to a person, will usually not be able to understand and it can ruin relationships.

Some people may respond well to the medication and find that it helps them. Everyone is different. I just feel that in my experience, I would much rather try another approach to healing. That is why I chose to heal myself naturally. I feel better when I'm not putting chemicals in my body everyday that could be causing me physical harm as well.

Some natural healing treatments are yoga, meditation, a healthier diet, exercise, positive affirmations, EFT also known as Emotional Freedom Technique, visualization and talk therapy.

Seeing commercials for anti depressants recently, it seems that the possible side effects outweigh the benefits to me. One of the possible side effects is risk of suicide or that suicidal thoughts may increase due to the use of the drug they are marketing. That does not sound like a risk I would like to take. The side effects that I get from my natural remedies are an increase in health, happiness, energy and a more stable life. The risks I have experienced as a result of my natural remedies are a decrease in suicidal thoughts, lower anxiety, no more isolation or depression. Now they are the risks that I'm most willing to take.