Hello kittens! This week we’ll be tackling the topic of drugs in the mental health community, particularly, the stigma that hovers over taking psychiatric medications and ways we should try to overcome that stigma. I’ve been taking medication since I was a junior in high school, so about 7 years now. Currently, I take medications for my bipolar disorder and I’m lucky that I haven’t ever really felt too much shame as an adult to take my medications when need be. I will admit that when I was younger and in high school, I tried to be discreet about it, in order to avoid possible cruel judgement. I wouldn’t say I was feeling shame in those moments but rather I was acting in self-preservation. What was I preserving? I suppose I was trying to maintain a facade of normalcy. With the prevalence of bullying in schools, I did not want to make myself a target, but it shouldn’t have to be like this. In his article “Overcoming the Stigma of Psychiatric Medication” Dr. Alex Dimitriu wrote, “Various studies have estimated that 10% of American adults had taken an anti-depressant, anti-anxiety, or anti-psychotic drug in the previous thirty days and that as many as 17% filled a prescription for a psychiatric medication in the previous year.” According to the studies that Dr. Dimitriu mentioned, it’s not uncommon for some adults in America to be taking medications for mental disabilities that they are dealing with. Yet due to misconceptions on medications from the media i.e. films and television shows and also throughout history i.e. the mistreatment of the mentally disabled a stigma has been created and what is actually common is seen as something “abnormal”. 

Charles Herrick, M.D., Chairman of Psychiatry for Danbury Hospital, New Milford Hospital, and Norwalk Hospital in Connecticut was quoted in an article for Shape entitled “The Stigma Around Psychiatric Medication Is Forcing People to Suffer In Silence” saying, “Why is the need for insulin acceptable, while the need for Prozac a form of dependency? Both conditions, it can be argued, are a result of a mismatch between our genes and our current environment—the one by our dependence on food, the other on people. Both affect the body. So there is the added pejorative sense of being ‘dependent on Prozac’ as opposed to ‘requiring insulin’ in order to function. These views are embedded in our culture and have nothing to do with science or medicine.” This really sticks a pin in the argument that medications should be for physical ailments rather than mental. To say that one is a real and serious condition and the other is not just doesn’t lie in any kind of truth. The science shows that we can be predisposed mentally, the same way a person can be predisposed to have diabetes, so we shouldn’t have any reservations about whether a person should or should not take medications for their mental disability. Like Dr. Herrick says, it’s needed to function, it just happens to be for something mental, which can be kind of a taboo for people. 

In a Healthline article, Kimberly Holland, referred to two very revealing studies, “A 2015 study found that only 50 percent of people diagnosed with schizophrenia actually followed their treatment regimen and took medication as it’s prescribed to them. Another study, this one from 2016, found that between 10 and 60 percent of patients didn‘t take their antidepressant medications regularly.” Although issues like this can happen for a multitude of reasons like personal choice not to take medications and the person’s mental disability itself, it does not aid the issue when people continue to place a stigma on taking pills. For some people, they’ve taken years to find the right mix and when they do, they finally feel like themselves. For some people, when they’re not on their meds, they might actually feel like a zombie rather when they’re not. The world is not a perfect place. There are social and racial barriers that are also involved in the world of medicine and the mental health community, which add to stigma, but this is why we must do what we can to recognize this and take action against it.

Kate Dolan, in an article for Psychology Today, wrote about her take on the stigma on medication and advises “There’s no need to suffer in silence. If you’re taking medication and something isn’t working, tell your doctor. If you think you might need medication, talk to your primary care physician about finding a psychiatrist. It’s amazing how medication can change your life and there’s no reason to feel ashamed that you need to take a pill (or two) to feel like yourself. I’m trying to erase “feeling normal” from my vocabulary because what does feeling normal even mean?” This nicely wraps up what one should do if you have a mental disability: go forth, consult a professional, and if need be, take those pills! As for those who want to contribute to the destigmatization, whether you have a disability or not, here is a list of things you can do:

1. Talk about your medication (if you feel comfortable) 

Talking about what you take and why, openly, will help to educate those who may not know how to approach the subject and may lead them and others to be more informed and sensitive going forth.

2. Correct someone when they are spreading misinformation

Stop the viral spread of misinformation and you could save the person spreading it and the people they are trying to spread it to. If someone wants to impose their non-scientifically based opinion on treatment efforts for mental disabilities, shut them down real quick and let them know that “Hey, maybe don’t do that because it perpetuates a false dialogue that the mental health community is trying to stop,  so they can educate and share the facts.”

3. Reassure others who do take meds that it’s okay to take them

Let your friends and loved ones know that you aren’t here to judge, but rather, to contribute to creating an accepting environment for those who want to simply be the best, stable, and happy version of themselves as they can be.

We need to destigmatize psychiatric medication and I hope we will eventually get to a place where the world can look at psychiatric meds as a strength and not a weakness. See you next week, kittens, have a great week~

Resources:

1. https://siliconpsych.com/overcoming-stigma-psychiatric-medication/  

2. https://www.shape.com/lifestyle/mind-and-body/stigma-psychiatric-medication 

3. https://www.healthline.com/health-news/why-do-people-mental-health-disorders-stop-taking-their-medications 

4. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-internal-debate/201812/breaking-the-stigma-taking-meds