Why sometimes do we need psychotherapeutic medication?

There is often resistance against psychotherapeutic medications. The reason for this problem is the bad cultural cliches and unrealistic, exaggerated concerns about the side effects. Throughout this article, we address these issues and answer the most frequent questions on this subject, so we understand why sometimes these medications are not only helpful but vital and why we need to overcome the residence towards them.

1. Why do we need medications?

a. Your problem has solid physiological and biological roots.

In such cases (most often inherited by genetics), natural causes such as mental or hormonal malfunctions can easily influence our thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. It is not only the case in more severe problems such as schizophrenia. Even in mild depression or OCD, the natural causes show themselves as reasons. Therefore, medications help the body so that the hormonal and mental functions are modified in aspects such as happiness, satisfaction, stable mood, and keeping in touch with reality. In these cases, medical therapy is prescribed parallel to the behavioural and conversation sessions to solve the problem from different points of view.

b. Your mental problem harms your body or involves you in troublesome physical symptoms.

It is not that only physical circumstances can influence our mind, but the link between body and mind is a tangled-up and two-way road. Mental settings can also affect our bodies. There are cases where the psychological problem did not occur due to a robust physical reason. It involved intense experiences or stressful situations for which you were not ready. Therefore, both your body and your mind got under pressure. This problem ends in a problematic loop between body and mind. The medications can break this loop or help it slow down. In addition, sometimes the physiological symptoms of a damaged mental situation are too strong, which makes you exhausted, like when you cannot keep yourself awake and conscious due to the severity of depression.

c. Medications can increase the effect of other types of treatments.

Sometimes, you are in such problematic circumstances that your mind cannot find healthy solutions. In these cases, the medications are prescribed temporarily. Together with other treatment methods, they help speed up the well-being process.

2. Will I get addicted to psychotherapeutic medications?

This is an important and understandable question and one of the important reasons to refuse to take medications. The fact that is necessary to consider is that the addictiveness of the medication is related to the type, severity and duration of your problem. Usually, the medications can be temporary because you learn healthy methods to control your emotions, thoughts, and behaviours. Then, there would be no need to continue using the medicine. In such cases, the psychiatrist will decrease the dose, and eventually, there will be no prescription for you. However, there are a few cases when medications are to be used for a long time or even forever:

• When the issue has connate or strong roots.
• When the problem is deep and long-term, the brain cannot cope with the circumstances alone.
• When the precise issues are stressful and out of control

3. How long does it take for the medications to be effective?

The answer to this question entirely depends on your specific situation and the medication itself. Some of them, such as sedative drugs, can show effects in less than an hour. On the other hand, some of them on the other hand, such as antidepressants, need some days to show their influence. You can ask your psychiatrist about the process and time of the effect of the medication. This way, you will have a better understanding to be ready for the impact of the medicines. Additionally, the functional mechanism of the medication is not the same. Therefore, it is possible that you need to talk with your psychiatrist after a few days because you might need a change in the prescription.

4. Do medications have side effects?

Every medication, psychotherapeutic or not, has its side effects. These side effects are short-term, such as nausea or headache, most of the time. The best option for you is to read the brochure inside the box of the medications to acknowledge the possible short-term or long-term side effects. Also, you should know that the medication can be helpful at certain times and dangerous at other times. For example, using sedatives before driving is risky behaviour. You have the right to ask the psychiatrist about these side effects to know which are natural and which are problematic. And after using a particular medication, it is always the best option for you to inform the psychiatrist about any side effects that you might be experiencing.

Remember that medicine can have the license only after reassuring that the adverse effects of mental problems on your life quality and even physical health are much more than the medications’ side-effect.
Don’t forget that usually, the negative effect of mental problems on the quality of your life and your body’s wellness is way less than the medications. Additionally, nothing is more important than your mental health and peacefulness. So, by improving your knowledge of yourself and society, you can make a big step towards increasing the quality of your life and others.