One of the pharmacy facts I am passionate about getting people to understand is this: EVERY medication out there only addresses symptoms… not root cause. And only addressing symptoms without addressing the cause would be like continuously patching cracks in a wall without addressing the shifting cracked foundation of a house.
We are so unique. Each one of us. In mind, body, spirit, soul, emotions, experiences. Mental health medications aren’t about “fixing” the problem….. they are the patch on the crack-y wall without addressing the foundational problem (which could be something as complex as a childhood trauma, lack of community, a toxicity, or something as seemingly simple as a nutrient deficiency).
To be clear, in my opinion, most mental health drugs should be listed as a type of drug very similar to drugs with addictive potential. No, your body will not ever “crave” Prozac, Lexapro or anything else in the SSRI or other psych med categories, but once you’ve been on them for a period of time, it can be incredibly hard to get off of them because your body and brain become rewired to depend on the medication. It then takes a fierce desire to correct that dependency, and that fierce desire includes working on oneself in all the areas ….mind, body, and spirit.
SSRI’s are by far the most common class of mental health meds. Roughly 1 in 6 people in the USA take them not knowing or understanding the ramifications of taking them long term. Informed Consent is so very important (and required by law, but rarely enforced 
even if something goes really wrong… part of our broken medical system). How often does a doctor tell their patients what I just said above? How often does a doctor explain that what they’d like to do, with the patient’s cooperation, is to give them an opportunity to get to the root cause of mental health issues (with help from avenues of mind, body, and spirit professionals), perhaps agreeing to use medication on the short term to get over a hump but with the understanding that the medication would be used as a short term tool to be used while discovering the root cause and then healing from the traumas, toxicities, and/or deficiencies the body is experiencing. (I have much much more to say about this, but I would be writing a novel).
even if something goes really wrong… part of our broken medical system). How often does a doctor tell their patients what I just said above? 
How often does a doctor explain that what they’d like to do, with the patient’s cooperation, is to give them an opportunity to get to the root cause of mental health issues (with help from avenues of mind, body, and spirit professionals), perhaps agreeing to use medication on the short term to get over a hump but with the understanding that the medication would be used as a short term tool to be used while discovering the root cause and then healing from the traumas, toxicities, and/or deficiencies the body is experiencing. (I have much much more to say about this, but I would be writing a novel).I have so much compassion for people walking through mental health crises, coupled with a desire to see people truly healed and walking in freedom….. and that won’t happen with long term use of these meds. In fact, over time, studies have repeatedly shown that one med will translate to multiple medications because of the side effect profiles.
You are worth doing the behind the scenes work. We all are .
.xoxo~ liz
(Please read this article written by a medical doctor for a better understanding. I don’t encourage anyone to cold turkey stop their medications, or to do so without the help of their preferred medical professional)
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