Medication for Mental Health

It’s important to know the good and bad,

But, you can do what’s best for you.

I couldn’t leave this blog series without going over the giant overhang shadowing conversations about mental health. Medication. There are many arguments that can be made for or against taking medication to help with mental health. The stigma is large and aggressive, but in reality, medication truly helps a lot of people, and medication is also not the right fit for others. Every situation is different. If medication is a good option for you, you should embrace that.

Here are some things I would keep in mind when thinking about going the medication route for your mental health needs.

Medication is not a bad word

Do what you have to do

Despite arguments about doctor’s intentions and the pharmaceutical industry, mental health medications change people’s life. Some compare the experience to wearing glasses for astigmatism after only having average. It corrected the skew in their world, and they could see clearly for the first time.

The road to finding the right medication may be a long one. I know people who spent years finding the right one to fit their particular illness, and even then have to change things up when life happens. It can be tough. The National Alliance on Mental Illness recommends:

Be persistent until you find the medication (or combination of medications) that works for you. A few psychiatric medications work quickly, and you will see improvements within days, but most work more slowly. You may need to take a medication for several weeks or months before you see improvement.

NAMI

Be patient and gentle with yourself. You may have to work to find what is right for you, and that’s okay. Be honest with yourself as well. If something isn’t working, speak up and tell your doctor. The whole point of the medication is to make your life better, and if it’s not doing that, it’s not the right solution.

Know Your Options

Medication may not be the only option

There are many alternative health options out there that may work well for you. In many cases, changing up diet can have a big improvement on mood, as expressed in my last post, Five Self-Care Essentials. There is also

• Counseling – Sometimes just talking through something with a counselor helps to push you past your current struggles.
• Vitamin Supplements – There are certain vitamin supplements that have been known to help with mood and relaxation. Most vitamin supplements on the shelf have not been FDA approved, though, so you should definitely be wary if you go this route.
• Regular Exercise – There’s a lot of hype centered around exercise, and there’s a reason for it. Our species were made to move. Technology has made us desk monkeys, and taking some time and energy to get some extra movement in the day could be a great solution.

Take the time to research alternatives. But if you try these things and they don’t help or it’s not enough, it’s okay, great even, to have medication as a solution. Mental illness is real, and sometimes there’s no other thing for it.

Thank You

Thank you for joining me on this blog series on Mental Health for Students. I hope this has been informative and helpful.