If you are reaching out to a psychiatrist for help, you likely experience persistent and bothersome symptoms. Problems such as depression, anxiety, mood swings, difficulty with concentration, low self-esteem, interpersonal aggression, appetite, and sleep disturbances are common. These do not necessarily mean you indeed suffer from a psychiatric disease. And they do not always need treatment with medications.
Some psychiatrists treat symptoms routinely with medications, commonly following what is generally practiced or believed to work. This process takes place without always having established if a psychiatric illness is present in the first place as the cause of symptoms. Such practice is at risk of being unscientific and potentially harmful.
My general approach is to look at your symptoms, consider broader factors such as family genetics and the course of your illness, and establish if a psychiatric illness is indeed present. If so, I will find out if an effective treatment for it is available, as supported by evidence. If the treatment exists, I will then recommend the medication to you.
There are times when the psychiatric disease is not present, yet debilitating symptoms appear because of other reasons, such as high emotional stress or physical illness. In these situations, I will prescribe medication treatment when needed. At other times psychiatric illness might exist but only in a self-limiting form or one that naturally leads to recovery. This is when I might not recommend using medications. Finally, the current state of medication sciences is such that for some diseases, no effective treatments exist.
Federal Government Medication Guide HOME
Federal Government Medication Guide (Listing)
This resource provides documents that address issues that are specific to particular drugs, and can help patients avoid serious adverse events (side effects).
This federal government website provides a standard, comprehensive, up-to-date, look-up and download resource of medication content and labeling found in medication package inserts.
World’s largest, free medical library. Federal government project whose mission is to present high-quality, relevant health and wellness information that is trusted, easy to understand, and free of advertising, in both English and Spanish.
This non-profit organization provides access to expert, independent second opinions on more than 1,800 prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, and supplements (by low-cost subscription).