pegkerr: (Default)
pegkerr ([personal profile] pegkerr) wrote2012-03-14 03:47 pm

The end of depression

As I've mentioned before, I've really detected a lifting of my years-long chronic depression. I talked with my psychiatrist at my last med check about this, last October. Could I decrease my medication? He suggested that since I'm prone to seasonal affective disorder, I wait until the light starts increasing.

This seemed reasonable to me. Despite a lot of stress that Elinor Dashwood is not talking about publicly, my mood continued to be, well, not exactly burbly/cheerful. But neutral. Even good.

Wow. Is this what most people feel like all the time?

Now I've started to decrease the antidepressant. Interestingly, once Rob noticed I wasn't putting as many pills in my daily pill box, I started getting tremendous pushback. He did not approve. At all. "Why do you want to lower your medication? You tried to lower it once before and it didn't go well. You were told you'd probably be on it for the rest of your life. This is a big mistake." etc, etc.

Never mind that I consulted my doctor and I'm following his advice. Never mind that I'm not experiencing any ill effects so far from the lower dose.

After one too many carping comments about it, I finally hit back.

"I am following my doctor's advice. I have made my decision and I want you to respect that. But more than that, I have the right to imagine my life as good and to live it without depression."

That shut him up. We'll see if that will end the subject.

I certainly hope so.
wild_irises: (Default)

[personal profile] wild_irises 2012-03-14 09:55 pm (UTC)(link)
You may (or very well may not) want to look at Kate Millett's extraordinarily powerful The Loony-Bin Trip which begins with going into excruciating detail about the pushback she got from her women's community when she decided to go off her meds.

I found it one of the three or four strongest books I've ever read, and I don't take psychiatric medication. I'm not sure I could have read it if I did.
wild_irises: (Default)

[personal profile] wild_irises 2012-03-14 09:56 pm (UTC)(link)
And I forgot to say "Hooray for you!!!!"
serene: mailbox (Default)

[personal profile] serene 2012-03-15 02:39 pm (UTC)(link)
I admit that I find it confusing when people's train of thought goes "Oh, good. The meds are working. Let's go off them!" but I wanted to say how very wonderful I think it is that you found your voice in this situation. It is so easy to allow oneself to be bullied, and I do think it's bullying behavior to harangue someone about their own body choice in the way Rob did. Good going!