Posted by SLS on December 5, 2017, at 20:14:46
In reply to what is being treated?, posted by Christ_empowered on December 4, 2017, at 21:04:15
> My official label/diagnosis is (apparently...) Bipolar I. My label/social role in the community is "Schizophrenic" or "uppity mental patient," LOL>
You live in a small community?
> This raises the question...
>
> what the shrinks treating?I think that depends on how accurate the diagnosis is.
> Do the drugs really help?
Abilify seems to help you. It has been critical in keeping you stable as you have described in the past.
> Is there proof that psychiatric treatment helps individuals, families, communities, society?
Absolutely. Why are you not sure of this by now?
> I'm not trying to be obnoxious.
You don't come across as being at all obnoxious - just honest.
> I'm on 3 psych drugs now--Abilify, Wellbutrin, and trileptal.
Does Lamictal make you manic or otherwise psychotic? If not, you might consider adding it to all three of the other drugs you take - along with NAC (N-acetylcysteine).
> For this season of my life, treatment makes sense, it really does. But will it always?
With your history? Probably. Maybe someday soon, gene therapy will be used so that psychotropics can be avoided.
I don't know. Perhaps employing psychotherapy would reduce your need for medication. Psychosocial stress is damaging.
Think about it, though. How is Abilify helping you right now? What role does it play in your treatment?
> But...seriously...do you think anyone's getting better in the world of mental health?
You have never heard or read of a success story?
> And what are we treating? people? symptoms? diseases? disorders?
All of them.
-ScottSome see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1096185
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20161215/msgs/1096211.html