Psychotropic Drugs Pros And Cons

For thousands of years, in order to ensure their longevity, mankind has had to find the cures to their diseases and illnesses within the world around them. For most of human existence, we did not have doctors and pharmacies as we know them today. Cures and therapies were made from plants and animals found around people’s native environments. As mankind progressed and industrialized the world, we learned how to control the world around us, how to manipulate it on an atomic and molecular level. From this manipulation we have seen a rise in manmade chemicals replacing nature-based remedies. One group of chemicals that has stirred much controversy in recent years is known as psychotropic drugs. These drugs are synthesized with the purpose …show more content…
Because these psychotropic drugs work by altering chemicals and their transmission in our bodies, it’s no wonder that new uses for anti-depressant medication have been discovered. In other words, some side effects of these drugs are showing promise in treating other illnesses. Wellbutrin (Buproprion) is an anti-depressant that also works to aid in smoking cessation (Hughes); in the UK and Australia buproprion is only licensed to be prescribed for smoking cessation. According to a report by Mayo Clinic staff, anti-depressants have been found to effectively help manage chronic pain, even when depressive symptoms do not exist in the patient. These drugs have been shown to aid in managing pain caused by arthritis, nerve damage, tension headaches, migraines and even back pain. The majority of antidepressants used in this manner are from the Tricyclic family, which is still part of the overall psychotropic family. Though the painkilling mechanism is not fully understood, results have been seen in long-term pain management after several weeks of …show more content…
The rationale is that if an individual has a slow response to psychiatric treatment, the use of an anti-depressant may kick start the chemical processes to relieve the symptoms that are causing the depressive moods. While this is a valid argument, it is a shallow one at best. According to Dr. Ronald W. Pies, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, the majority of anti-depressants prescribed are from primary care physicians and not psychiatrists or other mental health professionals. More recent National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) data has shown an increase in anti-depressant prescription for self-reported severity of depression; this helps support Brendan Smith’s assertion that an individual is 17 times more likely to receive a prescription just by asking for it by name. Also, take into consideration that with the exception of the institutionalized, the everyday citizen is more likely to see their primary care physician than they are a mental health professional. In regards to the institutionalized, they can at times represent the most extreme cases of psychosis and therefore present ideal situations to show the efficacy of these; however, this is not a fair representation of the entire population. With the ease of access to prescriptions over psychiatric treatment, it’s easy