Anti-Depressants in the news again

Suicide and anti-depressant use seem inextricably linked together. We know learn from Peter Hitchens of the Daily Mail, that Film Director Tony Scott was taking them prior to committing suicide. On the Mail web site he wrote;

When I read in August that the talented Hollywood film director Tony Scott had killed himself without any apparent good reason, I was fairly sure that pretty soon  we would find that the poor man had been taking ‘antidepressants’.
Well, a preliminary autopsy has found ‘therapeutic’ levels of an ‘antidepressant’ in his system. I take no pleasure in being right, but as the scale of this scandal has become clear to me, I have learned to look out for the words ‘antidepressant’ or ‘being treated for depression’ in almost any case of suicide and violent, bizarre behaviour. And I generally find it.
The science behind these pills is extremely dubious. Their risks are only just beginning to emerge. It is time for an inquiry.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2224255/Enter-church-hear-echoes-eternity--Sugababes.html#ixzz2AfPCGnR8

This is not proof of a cause and effect link (yet), but yet another indicator that far more care should be taken by GPs and patients before prescribing and taking these drugs.

There are so many people taking them (possibly 7-8 million adults in the UK alone) that it can seem normal; it's not. At best they mask some unwanted emotional symptoms, at worst they are implicated in the suicide of those that take them.

If you are feeling depressed, a talking therapy will generally help you to resolve the underlying issue, rather than simply deal with the symptoms.

What is vital to know is however is that not all therapists and styles of therapy will suit you. Don't write off the idea of a therapist because you had one bad or even ineffective past experience.

Work with someone else, and/or work in a different style this time. From simple Rogerian counselling to analytical hypnotherapy, something will work for you, to resolve old issues. Drugs will only mask the feelings and potentially lead to worse situations (read the warnings on the leaflet inside the box!).