Views on Meds

What are your views on psychiatric medication?

I think they can be helpful, but I also think there are things that should be tried first.  There are a lot of coping skills that could help with things like anxiety, maybe not so much for psychotic disorders though.  There's also life changes you could make, improve your eating habits and stay on a good sleep schedule and have things to do during the day.  I'm not sure which comes first, the lack of sleep then the instability, or the instability causing lack of sleep.  I think it can possibly happen both ways.  One thing that I don't think is good, is that psychiatrists seem to throw anti-psychotics and anyone they talk to for 5 minutes.  I really think they are more heavy duty meds and should be used less often.  I'm on them, but I have to be.  They literally saved my life.  Doctors also seem to over medicate people, especially with Bipolar and Schizophrenia.  I am on quite a few meds, but they each serve a specific purpose, my doctor isn't piling on meds to counteract side effects from the actual meds for treatment of the disorder.  For example, someone may be on Effexor and it causes them anxiety, so the doctor adds a low dose Antipsychotic like Seroquel or Abilify, then they get akithisia which can be described as an inner feeling of restlessness so they prescribe Cogentin for that side effect and so on and so forth.

Welcome To My Blog

Hello to anyone reading, I go by the name Bluebird and this is my first time blogging.  I'm not 100% sure yet what I'm going to post, I just know that it will focus (mostly) on mental illness.  I am a college student living with Schizoaffective Disorder.  At 14, I was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder.  I have attempted suicide before and have been hospitalized several times  I didn't have any other symptoms besides depression and anxiety until I got older.  At age 19 I was diagnosed as having Bipolar 1 Disorder.   Fast forward to about 6 months ago, I my diagnosis was changed to Schizoaffective Disorder: Bipolar Type, which means there's symptoms of Schizophrenia and of Bipolar Disorder that I experience.  It seems like a short period of time, but it has felt like it's been going on forever.  With this blog, I hope to discuss medication, coping skills, and just general stuff dealing with mental illness.  Thanks for stopping by!