I first got the feeling that the whole subject of depression in the medical field had gone awry when I sought the help of a psychologist to help me cope with the sudden deaths of some close family members.
The psychologist listened to me for roughly five minutes before nodding her head, scribbling on a piece of paper and handing it to me before smiling and showing me the door. I believe she was the Olympian of psychologists; she had her routine down pat. The only thing that was missing was a big "9.5" for her secretary to hold up. Points reduced for letting me ramble.
She gave me a prescription for Prozac. I was shocked.
After a few days of confusion, I called the doctor's office to inquire whether there had been a mistake. I explained our family situation and expressed my desire to just talk to a professional; perhaps see if there was a "best" way to deal with death. Was she the right doctor to go to? Did I make a mistake? No, the secretary confirmed that everything was fine. I decided to try again. The Prozac had been just a misunderstanding.
The next appointment the doctor was back on her game, and it was only a few minutes of me pouring my heart out before, cha-ching! A prescription of Wellbutrin fell into my hot, little hand. I was to be medicated if it killed this woman. I always wondered whether I was keeping her from something.
The careless prescribing of antidepressants has garnered attention from people in the medical field and beyond for some time now. Just last week, an article printed by The Arizona Republic, stated that the government issued a warning and a request that patients taking antidepressants be closely monitored in light of the alarming number of suicides that occur in people, especially young people, shortly after being prescribed antidepressant medications such as Prozac, Serzone, Zoloft, Celexa, Remeron, Effexor, Lexapro, Luvox, Wellbutrin and Paxil.
This zealous over-prescribing of medications is so dangerous because the effects can clearly cause psychotic behaviors in someone who would have otherwise led a normal life.
A study from the National Mental Health Association says that 30 percent of college freshmen and 38 percent of college women experience feeling overwhelmed.
In a study performed by the American College Health Association in 2000, it was found that 10 percent of college students have been diagnosed with depression. While there are undoubtedly some students that do legitimately suffer from depression, I feel that these studies are simply proof of the fact that psychologists are dangerously detached from real society. I am a college student and have made the acquaintance of a countless number of my fellow college students, and I have never once come into contact with a student who expressed to me feelings of depression. On the contrary, college students are some of the happiest people I have ever met.
People in Western society have their lives virtually dictated up to the point they graduate high school. The years in limbo following that can be unsettling depending on how sensitive and how in tune they are with society's undercurrents. These feelings and observations, which are healthy, are often mistakenly and neatly defined as depression, when they may not be. Just because people experience something that is foreign and unpleasant does not mean they are depressed -- it means they are alive.
Nicole is a journalism graduate student. Reach her at nicole.girard@arizonarepublic.com.
