HERE is an article reiterating what I already knew after working as a psychiatric nurse: Antidepressants are NOT effective in treating depression.
Antidepressants have been shown in several studies to have equal efficacy to a placebo, meaning that it is more the idea of the antidepressant helping people rather than the pill itself. Perhaps short-term, in a crisis, adding an antidepressant to an overall treatment plan may yield some benefits, but for long-term treatment, I have seen antidepressants cause more harm than good. ECT (electro-convulsive therapy) is still by far a better treatment than medication.
The main flaw in antidepressants is the pill itself: it isn't really effective. Why, you may be asking? Because no matter how much you alter brain chemistry, if you do not alter the way you react to negative emotions and life events you will never free yourself from the grips of depression. Not to mention the side effects many antidepressants have on your sex life...
It is the way we interpret our world that has the biggest effect on mood and as far as altering your responses, therapy with someone OTHER THAN a psychiatrist (ie: a psychologist, a social worker, an MFT, etc.) is the most effective since psychiatrists tend to push medication rather than treating the underlying issues. DBT (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy) and CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) are some of the treatment approaches that I have seen work best, and neither one comes in a pill.
And that is where the second half of the problem arises: we as consumers crave a quick fix. We want to just take a pill and be better. The prospect of instant gratification is intoxicating! Unfortunately, battling depression takes hard work and time, just like effective treatment of high blood pressure takes a commitment to long-term behavioral changes. We are only lying to ourselves and setting ourselves up for more disappointment (and deeper depression) when we pin our hopes on a pill.
The upside of pills as treatment in the field of psychiatry? It's a quick way to treat a patient and get them out the door while covering your ass legally. You have concrete proof that you did something to treat the person without wasting the time treating them (doctors are pressured to see as many patients as possible, since reimbursement to the hospital and payment to the doctor increase with each additional patient cared for). Psychiatrists and NP's are the only mental health professionals who are licensed to prescribe medication, making those who are trained instead solely in actual therapy/psychology much better long-term therapists.
It takes hard work, but if you (sometimes with the aid of a friend or family member) can just drag yourself to see a therapist consistently, there is still hope in the treatment of depression. :)
