Why the JoyIAm Process Far Surpasses Medications

The primary method that has been utilized by mental health professionals to treat anxiety and depression since the 1980s has been prescription medication. These prescriptions include antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications and other psychotropic drugs.

For many years we, as consumers, have been programmed through TV and media that if we had anxiety or depression, it meant that there was a ‘chemical imbalance’ in our brain. Although researchers have recently found that the chemical imbalance theory was never based on factual evidence, these repetitive TV and media commercials have greatly affected our American culture.

The Rising Use of Antidepressants

There were alarming statistics released recently on the rising use of antidepressant drugs. According to a report by the National Center for Health Statistics, the rate of antidepressant use in this country by people ages 12 and older increased by an unbelievable 400% between 1988 and 2008 (http://www.health.harvard.edu/).

A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics found that 11 percent of Americans over the age of 12 takes an antidepressant, with about 14 percent taking the medication for more than 10 years.

A $9.9 Billion Dollar Industry

Researchers have found that there are 230 million prescriptions for antidepressants now filled every year, making them the third most common prescription medication taken in the United States.

The treatment of anxiety and depression is now a $9.9 billion dollar industry.

With statistics like this, one has to question the true motives of the corporations who are promoting antidepressants. Has corporate greed become more important than actually helping people who are struggling? This is a very important issue that many physicians are now considering.

The Serious Side Effects of Medications

There are many adverse side-effects with taking medications. Some of the long-term side effects that have been reported with antidepressants include mental numbness, agitation, insomnia, sexual dysfunction, weight gain, esophageal and stomach bleeding, movement disorders, improper bone development, heart attacks, breast cancer and even dental cavities.

With anti-anxiety medications, there are also substantial risks with regular use. Some of these include drowsiness, clumsiness, slow reflexes, lack of energy, slurred speech, confusion and disorientation, dizziness and light-headedness, impaired thinking and judgment, memory loss and forgetfulness, nausea and upset stomach, blurred or double vision, depression, higher suicide risk, risk of more driving accidents, increased drug dependence and problems with drug withdrawal (http://www.helpguide.org).

Any of these side-effects could negatively affect your health. Although there have been many research studies done in an effort to promote medications, we have not done enough long-term studies to determine the long-term effects of these medications on your future well-being.

Greater Risks Recently Found

Antidepressants known as SSRI’s (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) have recently been shown to increase your risk of developing bipolar depression, according to the medical journalist and Pulitzer Prize nominee Robert Whittager.

Whittager reports that anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of children who take an antidepressant for five years convert to having bipolar illness. This is a huge issue and one that has clearly not been addressed by most physicians and psychiatrists.

Long-term studies also indicate that of people with major depression, only about 15 percent that are treated with an antidepressant go into remission and stay well for a long period of time. The remaining 85 percent start having continuing relapses and become chronically depressed (www.mercola.com).