Help Why Do Meds Never Help?

[Voidad]

I've been prescribed countless medications, over the decade. They do not help... in fact, they make me feel infinitely worse. My panic attacks get a lot worse and happen a lot more often, they give me suicidal thoughts, they completely destroy my ability to communicate with people (as if I have a lot of that), long story short they absolutely ruin me.
I remember once, I wanted to try seeing my therapist while also taking meds cuz y'know, apparently doing both at the same time is the optimal way... as a result, I spent a whole session looking down on the floor, not being able to utter a single goddamn word.

I was just wondering, if anyone has any clue... what the fuck is wrong with me? Am I like... I don't know... maybe hypochondriac or something? Like, my subconscious purposefully tries to stay sick in order to avoid responsibilities or something like that?

Thank you in advance.

 

[timf]

There was a documentary called "Medicating Normal" that showed the damage that can be caused to some by prescribing medication ill-advisedly.

A lot of medical practice (especially psychiatric medicine) has an experimental component. Their experiments are often limited to various medicines. You might find some efficacy experimenting in a wider arena such as diet, exercise, supplements, vitamins, sleep schedule, or other area over which you might have control. For example, swimming or visiting a sauna might be helpful. If you cast a wide enough net, you might find something effective.

 

[Jdieiejdjaow]

If you're treatment resistant with psychiatry, give body based treatments a try with a trauma therapist. Just to add to what @timf said.

 

[Hollowman]

Because the brain is too complicated. They don't have it figured out like they claim.

 

[Fresh Soju]

Depending on the condition, a lot of the time the drug is just a bandaid for some bigger underlying issue(s), and if they diagnose you wrongly they'll be trying to treat something you don't have, which can also lead to more issues than you had at first, and they'll often just add on more drugs instead of reducing whatever it is you're prescribed.

Ideally you should try to do the adjustments in your life that you are capable of at first, e.g. lifestyle, environment, dietary-related adjustments then go over towards looking at perhaps past traumas or if you have any genetic defects or things from birth such as autism causing certain issues, then if all of that doesn't help enough you should finally opt for drugs long term to manage things, imo.

Even worst case, by adjusting for everything else, what would've been a full dose drug and/or multiple drugs, might be enough at a lower dose instead, reducing potential bad side effect that would've been overwhelming otherwise.

 

[bieatmania]

I don't know what meds you're talking about.
I personally believe that Anti-psychotics and benzodiazepine(taken as needed) and it's constant withdrawal caused me to become bipolar.
I was having difficult childhood and I was just being anxious about it as I should be, It's a shame that doctor ruined my chance to figure out for myself and put me on brain damaging medication for years.
It never got better until I started self-medicating. my family hated it because I once overdosed on antihistamine in attempt to CTB while being psychotic.
My family would prevent me from taking NSAID for headache because they somehow thought I was going to abuse it, I tried to explain to them why NSAID are not abusable and my brother ended up beating me. Then they said "doctor must know better because they're professionals".
Now I use tramadol and pregabalin while not telling my parents.

All I can say is that psychiatric meds are cancerous most of time, but you should look up what you're taking. if it's stimulants for ADHD then it might actually have effect on you but it can also directly cause anxiety and panic attack. If it's benzo then you can be physically addicted and have worst withdrawal. If it's anti psychotics then it will rot your brain.

 

[rs929]

I don't generally agree with the anti-psychiatry orientation of this forum.
Meds CAN harm you, but many people reported that it saved their lives as well.
Some of them tried a lot of things until they found the right treatment.
I know antipsychotics are strong medication, but it you're psychotic then you probably need them. (not saying YOU are, just a general thing).
I don't know what your illness is, and I understand you might be hopeless. But, since we are in the recovery section, I'd say keep trying. Maybe the right treatment is still there waiting for you.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

Do you have an idea what triggered your mental health problems (depression etc.)? If that was triggered by external factors and those haven't been eliminated then how can meds cure the "illness"? This is just a thought and an example - I'm well aware that this is a far more complex topic.

For some meds are a solution for others they aren't. Brain and mental health is just too complex and by far not understood. Unfortunately, it's trial and error.

 

[JoysoftheEmptiness]

I've been on so many meds, I've lost count, I remember being on Diazepam, Zopiclone, and Lorazepam at some point, they worked, many others didn't, sadly, its the luck of the draw when it comes to meds, some work, some don't.

 

[iji]

Science has found no biological/biomedical process underlying any psychiatric classification. Rather, they found that underlying causes are psychosocial (psychological trauma, poverty, unhealthy living environment and lifestyle, etc). That is, there is nothing to biomedically address because there's nothing biologically wrong with people only diagnosed with psychiatric classification. Psych drugs will work all the same regardless of who is taking them. Look into drug model vs disease model by Joanna moncrieff: https://joannamoncrieff.com/2013/11/21/models-of-drug-action/

 

[dontletthembribeyou]

There was a documentary called "Medicating Normal" that showed the damage that can be caused to some by prescribing medication ill-advisedly.

A lot of medical practice (especially psychiatric medicine) has an experimental component. Their experiments are often limited to various medicines. You might find some efficacy experimenting in a wider arena such as diet, exercise, supplements, vitamins, sleep schedule, or other area over which you might have control. For example, swimming or visiting a sauna might be helpful. If you cast a wide enough net, you might find something effective.

2nd this. Things have gotten marginally better for me after I fixed my diet and began exercising regularly.

 

[hang in there]

It always depends, there are so many factors going into it that trial and error (mostly error) is really the only thing they try.
For instance it really depends on what the underlying condition really is. For example, panic attacks could be due to an unrecognized medical (e.g. cardiac, endocrine, or neurological) condition, toxic effects of stimulants (including caffeine/nicotine), the result of extreme external stressors, a personality problem causing a person to overreact to a normal amount of stress, an anxiety or mood disorder... what I'm trying to get at is that each of those separate causes has its own "cure" and will respond to different approaches very differently.
The way doctors are supposed to suss out causes is called "differential diagnosis" and involves taking ALL possibilities into account and not assuming one specific thing in the face of conflicting evidence. However for the past 30 years or so medicine has taken a nosedive and differentials are no longer really thoroughly considered. So you can be misdiagnosed with something in a hurry and mis-treated for that with things that won't help, over and over. Differential testing doesn't happen as thoroughly as it should, so conditions are not accurately diagnosed.
If you don't mind me asking, what are you diagnosed with? Was it a physician/psychiatrist that diagnosed you or a counselor/psychologist? What drugs have you tried and for how long? Does anyone in your family have any kinds of problems like you have? When did it start and does any activity or life change help?

 

[Apokryphiel]

Drugs can never take away real problems, only mask them. But not even that is certain.

 

[Quietist]

I really lowkey believe that the reason many meds don't work is because many our emotional/psychological/mental/thought ailments are spiritual in causation.

That being said, I haven't found any spiritual remedies that worked for my rage, grief, depression, anxiety.

So take my opinion with a grain of salt.

But.. I do believe in parasitic entities who can attach to humans and stimulate certain thoughts and emotions.