Blog 4 Week 4

1.             I was so interested in the article this week, “Medicating Young Minds”.  I have ADD, anxiety/depression and a touch of OCD.  I wasn’t diagnosed until my mid-twenties and have just recently found a medication that seems to help me be my best, and I am 31 now.  This particular article is so interesting because it emphasizes how difficult a decision it can be to put your child on medication, and also to find the right mix of medications, especially for those who suffer from bipolar or manic disorders. 
               I never knew just how plastic our brains were when we were children and adolescents.  There haven’t been any studies on long-term effects on our brains when we medicate at such a young age.  Credible studies need a control group and an experimental group.  This means that in order for any long term studies to happen, some children who really need medication might not receive it (control group receives the placebo) and this is a risk that is seemingly not worth taking.  But isn’t that the sacrifice we make to improve and further science?  Tough decisions, and not all who deserve the trial medications will receive them.  These hard decisions improve the data, which in turn helps the medication receive FDA approval that can help millions. 
               There is controversy behind medicating children who show syptoms: are we hindering them from learning how to cope with the stresses of daily living and normal childhood issues such as self-esteem or peer pressure?  Is it better to allow them to fully show symptoms before administering medication?  All the experts agree that medication alone should not be the only solution.  Talk therapy or other counseling while taking medications will maximize effectiveness. 
    
2.             This week’s material has simultaneously been the most interesting and the most challenging for me thus far.  For years I suffered through getting in trouble for talking out of turn, talking too much, trouble paying attention, procrastination…..the list really could go on and on.  I somehow made it through college with a bachelor’s degree (though it took me 8 years going part-time and not every quarter).  I came from a family that expected you to attend a four year university right after high school, and if you didn’t then you were considered the rebel or black sheep of the family. 
               In my years at the university, I never knew why I was unable to focus, study or do homework.  I began drinking and smoking pot (what I now know to be self-medicating) to bare the pain I was in.  When I was almost done with college my mother revealed to me my aunt (her sister) tried to commit suicide and was starting medication for depression.  A few years after I graduated, I finally found out what I was going through was something that could benefit from professional help.  I saw a therapist for several years, and only then was I aware of my condition(s).  I was on and off different medications for a few more years, until I found that a low dose of Sertraline HCL (basically Zoloft) that helped me feel like I was myself.  I still question sometimes whether I need an increased dose, or if I am just having one of those days, but I do know that being on medication, for me, helps me cope (with life) better.  It basically feels like my highs and lows are more stable, (less “high” and “low”).
              
3.             I would like to know why regular M.D.s are allowed to prescribe these drugs.  Most doctors are in and out of the room in 5 to 10 minutes (not necessarily their fault, they usually work for a corporation which emphasizes quick turn-around).  How can they possibly evaluate and diagnose properly?  Should this even be legal?  I currently see a nurse practitioner every six months to get a refill on my medications, and appointments are minimum 30 minutes!!  When you first are being diagnosed, it is an hour to hour and a half appointments, and you check in at three months.  There is so much information out there and yet so little regarding this particular issue, so I really need to emphasize my question earlier: why are regular M.D.s allowed to prescribe psych medications?