In my time being a therapist, I’ve worked with many people who struggle with symptoms of anxiety and depression, as they are the common cold and the flu of the mental health world. Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder have long been two of the most common mental disorders, and several other anxiety and depressive disorders are widely prevalent as well.

So, given how many people struggle with anxiety and depression, the question of whether to take medication or go to therapy has remained a frequent debate both in and outside the world of mental health professionals.

Many people are cautious to take medication, and their concerns are justified. Medication often takes at least six weeks (and sometimes several months more) to take effect, and it’s not a miracle cure for anything. Medications often bring unwanted side effects with them, such as large weight gains or losses, changes in sleep or appetite, sexual dysfunction, increased suicidal thoughts, and many others. Not everyone experiences these side effects, but when we use a medication to alter the chemical makeup of our brains, it’s no surprise when we affect several different areas of our brain besides the ones we want to help.

Now I am not a medical doctor, and I do not have the right to prescribe medicine, but every therapist I know has been educated in how anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications work. Furthermore, we all have countless experiences with clients who have used these medications, many to great success, and a few to more complicating challenges.

Unfortunately, many people view this question as a “Medication vs. Therapy” debate, when the truth is that medication and therapy can work in tandem with each other very well.

As I and many others have debated this question, I have seen one common consensus from research studies emerge time and again: Medication can be a helpful tool for stabilizing a person’s mood, and therapy is an excellent way to make long-term, sustainable change.

Beyond this consensus opinion, many other questions exist such as what medications are the best, which types of therapy are the best, how long should someone take medication, and so on. To be honest, we professionals in the mental health field change our minds on these questions about every ten to fifteen years as new research emerges, so I would be wary of taking anyone’s specific opinion to be absolutely true. However, based on the most evidence-based theories and research available, I believe there are three basic takeaways that can help anyone today:

1. Takeaway #1: If you struggle with a low to medium level of anxiety or depression, it would be an unnecessary risk to start taking medication. This medication can only help a moderate amount since you aren’t overwhelmed by your anxiety or depression, and it puts you at risk of suffering side effects of these medications.
2. Takeaway #2: If you struggle with a high level of anxiety of depression, it could be very helpful to address your mental health challenges with medication and therapy. The medication can help you stabilize your moods so that you can maintain some continuity in your job, your relationships, the things you do for fun, and so on. And, you can address the feelings of anxiety and depression that you’ve struggled with for so long by working with a therapist. Hopefully, you will see steady progress coming from both these areas, and you won’t have to have either medication or therapy in time.
3. Takeaway #3: Taking medication without working on yourself in therapy is not a long-term solution, as medication is only able to address your symptoms of anxiety or depression. Medication is not designed to fix your anxious thoughts or your depressive feelings, it only suppresses them for a time. And, over time, medication may produce more side effects, and you may require a higher dose of the same medication in order to continue suppressing your anxiety or depression. However, you can work with a therapist without taking medication, because therapy does not pose the same biological risks that medication does, and therapy seeks to address the root of the issue.

Whether you need to work on yourself in therapy, or use therapy with medication to address your challenges, you’re in the right place. I’d be glad to work with you in therapy, as would many of the professionals I work with here in Columbia. Whatever you need, don’t wait any longer to improve your quality of life; take a positive step towards a better life today.

  

Thank you for reading my practice’s blog, my library of all the random thoughts that would make a terrible book but make a halfway-decent blog. To request a session or contact me, head to my Scheduling page to get in touch with me today!