Medication – don’t judge

This post will not get into the benefits or issues of medication, as that is something that is extremely personal and should only be discussed between yourself and a doctor. This post is to discuss our judgements of it. (It is extremely important to always take these medications seriously, and to ALWAYS follow medical advice.)

On anxiety groups there are always the 3 sides. Those strongly for medication, those strongly against it and those neutral to it, some of whom take it and some who do not.

Difference in opinion is crucial in life. It is what makes life interesting. However, it seems that when it comes to medication for anxiety, there can be a lot of judgement attached. You can be judged for taking medication, for going to a psychologist or psychiatrist, or for trying natural remedies. You can be judged for not taking medication. You may hear a lot of, I get anxious and I do not take medication, or, I would never need a psychologist.

These people are allowed their opinions, however, when we are the only person talking about our treatment, the comments can start to come from all directions, and become overwhelming. “You have to take medication” or “You should never take medication” will be heard a lot.

And that is before we even include our own inner critic, who may say things like, Why can I not cope without medication? or Why does medication not work for me? We may have ingrained beliefs about medication or we may be opposed to big pharma for pushing all of these medicines onto us. One thing for sure is that it is a very complicated subject.

Having lived in different countries during my anxiety journey, I know from my own experience how some countries are very forward thinking when it comes to mental health issues and treatments, and how others are very judgemental, and that both of these situations are littered with pros and cons.

The truth is that there is no general right or wrong as anxiety is such a personal journey and experience. Only you can understand. It is very difficult when you are trying to take care of yourself, trying to cope, or you are suffering from side effects. It is such a tiring journey, so judgements, internal or external, can be extremely difficult to deal with.

One thing that we must make sure to do is to listen to our body. How do I feel? Am I exhausted? Do I feel better? What am I going through?

The decision to take or not, or stop taking medication is a very personal experience. Some people feel better not taking medication, others feel better taking it. Some people feel better with medication then it stops working and they have to change it or stop taking it. It is an extremely personal journey, so tame that inner critic. Your body is an extremely intelligent organism, which knows what is best for you, and only you. Take time every day, place your hand on your heart and ask yourself, what do I need? Make sure to relax when doing this, get your free 3 month trial of Amazon music, Click here to sign up, find some relaxing music and feel what your body is trying to tell you, and release all judgements of yourself and others. Listen to yourself.

There is a lot of noise around this topic, so clear your focus, feel what you need and trust in yourself and your health provider.

Please share your experiences and comment below.

Love, @powerofanxiety