<p>I took an anti-depressant for a short time for sleep issues I was having while I had mono. When my husband lost his job and later started his own business and we had to buy private health insurance, it became very clear that they were only willing to cover me because I was NOT being specifically treated for depression, and I was no longer on the medicine. It really outraged me, because what if I was? What would I have done? We currently have group insurance and I’d love to see a therapist, but I’m afraid down the road we might be in the same position again and then I’ll have no way to get insurance. It’s ridiculous!</p>
<p>But here is a secondary issue that might play into the surge in meds and decline in therapy–imo, we are a society that would much rather take a pill than take the time and make the effort required in therapy. If I can take a pill to manage my depression symptoms then that’s much easier than going to a weekly appointment and delving into the stuff that’s depressing me. We’re an instant gratification society. As Carrie Fisher said,“Instant gratification takes too long.”</p>
<p>dancersmom…interesting to read about your trajectory and your good outcome with Cymbalta…I think your restistance to using meds is a very understandable position re our cultural mores and the stigma associated with biological tendencies to a collection of mental disorders. Thanks for sharing your story re the negative experiences that result from a sleep disorder and chronic joint pain…very interesting to me.</p>
<p>Hope that you continue to feel more vibrant and more rested!</p>
<p>"U.S. spending on mental illness is soaring at a faster pace than spending on any other health care category, new government data released Wednesday shows.</p>
<p>The cost of treating mental disorders
rose sharply between 1996 and 2006, from $35 billion (in 2006 dollars) to almost $58 billion, according to the report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.</p>
<p>At the same time, the report showed, the number of Americans who sought treatment for depression
, bipolar disorder and other mental health woes almost doubled, from 19 million to 36 million.</p>
<p>The new statistics come on the heels of a study, released Monday, that found antidepressant use among U.S. residents almost doubled between a similar time frame, 1996 and 2005.</p>
<p>Spending on mental illness showed a faster rate of growth over the 10-year period analyzed than costs for heart disease, cancer, trauma-linked disorders, and asthma.</p>
<p>According to the report, spending on heart disease rose from $72 billion in 1996 to $78 billion in 2006; cancer care rose from $47 billion to $58 billion; asthma costs climbed from $36 billion to $51 billion, and expenditures for trauma-related care rose from $46 billion to $68 billion. "</p>
<p>^^^
Hey, 1996 - 2006…on balance, those were good prosperous years. Full employment. Rising home values. Few worries. So what kind of spending are we looking at now that things are miserable? Maybe less because some folks have lost health insurance, even though the misery index is likely much higher.
I think we have gone in a crazy direction in this country. We rely on quick fixes to our problems…including drugs. We get bombarded with stupid advertising from drug companies, making us think we need pills to keep us healthy, young, skinny, sexy, sans hotflahes, …whatever. For many, it’s the easy way out and it also doesn’t cost much (drug co pays are pretty reasonable). Why exercise and lose weight when you can just pop a pill? Why waste time talking when a bottle of pills can do the trick?<br>
Granted there are those that depend on drugs and NEED them to live. That includes those who suffer from debilitating depression and other mental disorders. No doubt. But the balance has tipped…and the drug industry has a big role in it. I read recently that Wyeth was “ghostwriting” articles touting the benefits of its hormone drugs. Paying docs to put their names on the articles. And having their reps hand the articles out to the practicing docs. Unbelievable. Probably happens all the time but this time they were caught!
End of rant. I don’t know about National Healthcare but the current system…well, I have to watch my language…</p>
<p>This is an excellent example of the ignorance that still surrounds this issue. </p>
<p>In my family, we used to drink ourselves to an early death to numb the pain. Now most of us take anti-depressants and lead healthy lives with long careers and intact families. I’m very thankful to be around for this change, for this alternative.</p>
<p>I’ve been in talk therapy many times through out my life and have often found it to be tremendously helpful. </p>
<p>Having said that, I have also been forced to conclude that the chemistry in my brain does not respond to talk therapy. It responds to medication.</p>