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A.
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It痴 good
to be ambivalent. Careful thought is better than little thought. Usually, I
will support the decision a patient makes. Occasionally, I値l lean on
someone to take something or to delay taking it. Here are guidelines I値l
often bring up in a discussion about the decision:
You may want to gather information, but you may also want to limit your
research. The more you cruise the information sources, the more you may find
that there are few established facts that aren稚 contradicted by someone. I
myself hold with the dominant view that most people who take an
antidepressant are helped, and that the benefit outweighs the consequences.
As with all health information, consider the source. Treat carefully any
testimonials, no matter how impassioned or who they are from. Take the same
care with information that comes from the pharmaceutical companies as well
as that which comes from the rabid zealots in any camp.
If you are inclined against taking medication, you should ask yourself how
much energy you are prepared to put into the alternatives. A passive
sit-and-wait strategy may or may not be a good one, whereas a reasonable
plan of action should give you more confidence. You should also ask, if I知
not doing badly enough to take a medication now, how much worse would it
have to get to change my mind? How will I know when I知 there, and can get
past my hesitation if I get there?
If you are inclined to take it, can you make a good commitment to doing it
right? This means taking it daily as prescribed, keeping in touch with the
one who prescribes it, tolerating the manageable side effects, and staying
on it for a long-enough period of time. As a general rule, eight months is
the shortest period of time anyone should be on the medication, and longer
is often better, depending on your specifics. While on it, would you enjoy
the benefit with complacency, or could you use the opportunity to learn what
got you down and what can keep you up, so that you値l be equipped to stay
off it once finished?
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