Do you think it is ethical for doctors to prescribe drugs for depressive illness?

Question

Isn't therapy and councelling a better way to go...it's out there, so why do doctors almost always resort to drugs??

Answer 1

Sigh, I hear this one a lot.

Most people get a little bit depressed many times during their lives--often many times a year. This is a normal thing, and although annoying, it doesn't impair function all that much. Counseling is helpful, here, but not always needed.

Not all depression is as simple as that, however--and your question implies that you've not met the really major depressions, where individuals are plagued by thoughts of suicide, and where their ability to take care of their most basic needs are impaired by the severity of the depression. No counselor would claim that counselling alone is appropriate there: the research clearly indicates that the return to normal function is fastest with BOTH medication and behavioral therapy.

To put it in a simplistic way... Wounds heal on their own. Is it, then, unethical for a doctor to stitch a six inch gash? And a broken arm will heal on its own, too; is a cast therefore unethical? Good heavens, no to both! The wound closure speeds the healing, and improves the quality of the resultant healing. Setting that broken bone and immobilizing it in place makes it heal correctly, not incorrectly. It's the same with antidepressants--and other psychoactive drugs for other conditions.

This is, again, a rather simplistic analysis--I've neglected the issue of the hereditary syndromes that can generate depression, for instance--but I hope I've given you the flavor of the reasoning for the medical decisions in this area...

Answer 2

Yes it is ethical and very necessary in some cases. Therapy and counseling are helpful but not always enough of a solution. Prescription medications make everyday living easier for some mentally ill people. I do believe that sometimes people are overmedicated but that is not always the case. Some doctors resort to drugs because they can be a quick fix. If this is something in your personal life and you are not happy with the doctor, switch. Go see a new doctor and get a second opinion about the medication.

Answer 3

Yes, prescribing drugs for a depressive illness as an immediate response is ethical however, therapy should be required in order for medication to be refilled. The problem is that in America it is MUCH easier to get scrips than an appointment with a therapist. In addition, most health care plans only offer limited therapy sessions however unlimited prescription coverage.

Answer 4

NO. It is unethical to prescribe potentially harmful and addicting drugs to a patient for a mental disease without proof of the disease. These doctors are prescribing these medications without doing a blood test or biopsy. It's only their "opinion" that you have this condition. The doctor can not prove that you actually have the illness. It's all about money. Governments need to step up and put an end to this now.

Answer 5

Well, if you have a patient that has a chemical imbalance that can only be fixed by giving drugs, then why not help that person?

I have seen so many women who have post-partum depression so bad that they can't get out of bed, can't take care of their babies, can't take care of themselves. They don't have the ability to help themselves. They have a chemical problem due to changing hormone levels and changes in their bodies that they can't do anything to help them feel better short of drugs.

I always recommend counseling to my patients, and sometimes it works for them. Sometimes medication is required to help stabilize their hormone levels and their other chemicals so they are even able to function.

My sister also has severe depression due to chemical imbalance. Without drugs she can't even lift her head off her pillow some mornings.

Depression isn't only mental. It's also physical. It can make you hurt from head to toe, make your brain unable to recognize or transmit responses, even make it unable to send electrical impulses right.

Sometimes, a doctor will prescribe anti-depressants to someone until they can get to counseling, or can find other alternatives to help them. It will help at least stabilize their minds until they can get other help. Anti-depressants aren't a bad thing, but just like any medication, you have to be careful with how you take them, and if you question what your doctor is giving you, ask them!!

Also, anyone who has never suffered from depression, or been around someone who suffers from it, has no right to suggest that the way they are feeling could be fixed by exercise or counseling. Until you have felt the emotions, lived the life, and dealt with the everyday problems that depression can cause, you have no right to say anything about the treatment of it.

Answer 6

Sometimes counseling and therapy are just not enough to help some people that are affected by depression/mental illness. Psychiatric Medications do work and help millions lead normal, happy lives. A patient can always object and request another opinion or another form of treatment.

Answer 7

I think its impossible to live in this world without feeling blue or depressed sometimes, but a chemical inbalance can cause manic depression, if this is the case, some medicines can fix that. And its a good thing. If its just on and off depression, try excersize meditation, or something fun to get you out of the funk! I think its personal choice and whether or not you trust western modern medicine, you can also take herbal remedies for depression but they take 2-3 weeks to work....

Answer 8

The effects of depression or bipolar disorder (which has a depressive side) are such that without medication often people with these disorders would not make it to appointments for therapy or counseling. Either their thinking would be so muddled that they would not benefit from such talk therapy, or they would be victims of suicide. Seems to me it is unethical for doctors not to prescribe drugs to help such people--considering those scenarios.

Answer 9

It depends on what kind of illness we're talking about here.

Depression and related disorders aren't always purely psychological. More often than not, there are underlying organic disorders, namely neurotransmitter/hormonal imbalances. Those cannot be treated effectively with counselling. Hence, drugs are prescribed.

I do agree, however, that all efforts should be made to distinguish between psychological and psychiatric diseases.

Answer 10

I think general practioners should refer their patients to a therapist unless its only a temporary situation like say right after the loss of a loved one or something. However the most benefical treatment for many is a combination of therapy and anti depressant drugs