Seek help, get opinions from the right people

I’d like to start a #stopthestigma series. This post would actually be continuing it, as my other psychiatry related posts have been in an effort to stop the sigma. This post is about seeking help. I started thinking about this post a few days ago, when a friend of mine was talking about the possibility of starting medication. I’ve known this friend for a long time, and over the past few years I’ve noticed increasingly levels of anxiety in her. I’ve casually mentioned medication and therapy to her before, but more recently she told me she was thinking about medications. She talked to a therapist, who reached out to her doctor, who recommended a trial of an antidepressant. We were chatting about it and she said “I was talking to my other friend, and she was telling me how I don’t need medications. I just need to exercise and eat better and blah blah blah.” I’ve heard this a million times from a million people. Everyone is making suggestions about why you don’t need psychiatric medications. And it’s always bothered me a bit, but for some reason, this time it really pissed me off. It was the first time that I was able to process through the reason I get so upset. It’s because people shouldn’t be offering medical advice if they didn’t go through the schooling and training that’s necessary to understand and make these decisions. Think about it. You probably don’t have a lot of friends who would tell you not to take medicine for your diabetes if your doctor recommended it. Or that you don’t need an inhaler for your asthma if you just take deeper breathes. But everyone feels like they can tell friends and loved ones that they don’t need psychiatric care. What makes you an expert on psychiatric medications? I can tell you what makes me an expert: four years of medical school, five years of post-graduate training (residency), and almost 3 years of independent practice. I’ve got a medical school diploma, my residency certificates, and board certification in both adult and child/adolescent psychiatry The stigma around mental health is so strong that people spend years of their lives in misery so that they don’t get “shamed” for accepting care. Why are we so willing to allow this to continue? Even as a psychiatrist it took me years to accept my own need for medication. Accepting help doesn’t make us weak. Having a psychiatric disorder doesn’t make us weak. Don’t accept medical opinions from non-medical people. Take care of yourself out there.