Medication is an option that is often combined with psychotherapy. In 2020 alone, 16.5% of adults in the United States took at least one medication to help them with mental health conditions.
Despite the benefits of medications for patients dealing with substance use disorders and mental health conditions, finding the exact treatment isn’t always simple. Medication concerns can make the process of healing more complicated.
The answer is to speak with your psychiatrist, but what’s the best way of doing so? Learn more about how to address medication concerns.
Understanding Psychotropic Medications
Five major types of psychotropic medications are in use today. They work by adjusting major chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters function like messengers, allowing your brain cells to communicate with each other.¹ Having overactive or weak neurotransmitters can lead to mental health conditions.
Antidepressants
As the name suggests, antidepressants work to treat depression. Of the various antidepressants available, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the ones psychiatrists most commonly prescribe. SSRIs help to increase the amount of serotonin in your brain.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that controls your moods, sleep, blood clotting, and other functions.² Brand names of SSRIs include Zoloft, Prozac, and Paxil.
Selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are another type of antidepressant. They help to better regulate and increase the amount of norepinephrine in your brain. Norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter and hormone that keeps you alert and awake.³ Brands include Cymbalta and Effexor.
Bupropion is also an antidepressant option. It helps promote brain activity and is especially helpful for the treatment of seasonal affective disorder. Common options are Wellbutrin and Zyban.
Anti-Anxiety Medications
Anti-anxiety medications help to treat a wide variety of anxiety disorders, including panic attacks, generalized anxiety, and phobias. Beta-blockers are usually a component of these medications. Beta-blockers work to treat the physical symptoms of anxiety, like a fast heart rate, sweating, nausea, and shaking.⁴ Lopressor, Tenormin, and Sectral are common brands.
In some cases, people with anxiety may also receive sleep medications or tranquilizers. These tend to be prescribed temporarily, however, because they can cause dependence.
Stimulants
Stimulants can help manage the unorganized behavior that conditions like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can cause. They improve concentration while also causing a calming effect. Ritalin and Adderall are the most common stimulants for the treatment of ADHD.
Antipsychotics
People who have any type of psychosis can benefit from antipsychotics. Psychosis can lead you to become detached from reality and experience hallucinations or delusions. Antipsychotics can help people feel calmer, sleep better, think more clearly, and communicate better. Common antipsychotics are Haldol and Seroquel.
Mood Stabilizers
For people who struggle to manage extreme moods, like those who have bipolar disorder, mood stabilizers can help keep emotions in equilibrium. The most common brands of mood stabilizers include Lithonate and Risperdal.
Is It Time to Talk About Medication Adjustments?
Having this conversation requires understanding when the medications you’re taking just aren’t offering the results they should be.
You Experience Intolerable Side Effects
Psychiatric medications are well-known for causing side effects. These can be closely tied to the type of medication, the dosage, and other factors.
Antidepressant medications, for example, have side effects that include⁵:
- Weight gain
- Insomnia
- Dry mouth
- Tremors
- Sexual problems
Sexual side effects are particularly problematic with antidepressants. Many people find it difficult to continue taking medications with these side effects because of how they impact their relationships.
It’s important to weigh the side effects you may experience against the symptoms of your condition. Sometimes, it’s worth struggling with issues like dry mouth or an upset stomach to avoid more serious problems like hallucinations or unstable moods.
If you find the effects of the medication intolerable, however, you need to speak with your psychiatrist. Watch out for rare but possible side effects like allergic reactions or suicidal ideation, and get help immediately.
Your Symptoms Changed
Diagnosing a mental health condition is a complex process, and it’s not one that is necessarily static. Symptoms can evolve. You may experience new ones or a worsening of existing ones, which requires letting your doctor know so that they can make adjustments to your medications.
Your Medications No Longer Work
The brain is an organ that can experience neural pathway changes. This is called neuroplasticity, and while it can be a very positive thing, it can also affect how effective your medications are.⁶
If you start experiencing the same symptoms you used to have before beginning the medication or you realize you have new ones, it can mean your neural pathways have changed.
That will require that you have an honest conversation with your psychiatrist. Sometimes, the process will just require changing the dosage, while other times, it can mean searching for another medication altogether.
Speaking With Your Doctor About Medication Concerns
To have a better experience speaking with your psychiatrist about medication concerns you may have, a few strategies can make a difference.
Have a Plan About What You Want to Discuss
You don’t want to “wing” the conversation. Many people get nervous about speaking with physicians of any kind, so having a clear idea of what you want to address before you get to your session is important. If you have questions about the medications that you take, write them down.
If it’s the initial consultation, and you have worries about beginning any type of medication, you want to address them from the start. If you’re particularly worried about side effects like weight gain or sexual dysfunction, bring that up in your conversation. Your doctor can keep that in mind when they recommend medications.
Bring a Detailed List of Side Effects
If you’re on a medication and are experiencing severe side effects, it’s vital that you start writing them all down. Note the severity from day to day and, if possible, write down the exact dates of when you’ve experienced the worst effects.
Your psychiatrist can gain a lot of insight from this information. They’ll be able to notice patterns, including whether hormone fluctuations or stress levels affect the symptoms, which helps to decide whether to switch to another medication or adjust dosages. The more information you provide, the better the outcome can be.
Be Honest
Let your psychiatrist know everything that you’ve been experiencing, even if you find it embarrassing or otherwise uncomfortable. If you’ve skipped days of medications or haven’t been taking the right dosage, let them know. A patient-psychiatrist relationship can only work if you’re completely honest with them.
Remember, they’re not there to judge you but to help you find stability. If you have missed medication days or have struggled to maintain the right dosage, explain why that is. Were there side effects that led you to that decision, or were there schedule issues?
If, for example, you forget to take a medication twice a day, your doctor may prescribe something that only requires remembering one dose. If side effects are keeping you from following the prescribed dosage, your doctor can try to find alternatives. Without knowing about these issues, however, they can’t make the necessary adjustments.
Avoid Getting Defensive
Speaking about mental health concerns and medications can be upsetting. You may not be able to fully articulate the issues you’re having with the medication or could feel that you’re not being heard. You want to remember that your psychiatrist is there to help you. They’re on your side and are invested in helping you feel better.
Make your point about the medication, and allow the doctor to offer their suggestions. Sometimes, the effects that are bringing up medication concerns could be temporary.
If you’re not currently on medication and are hesitant to be on it, a psychiatrist recommending that you start can worry you. Try to be as open-minded as possible.
Do Your Research
It also helps to be informed about the medications you’re taking or planning to take. Knowing what effects to expect can take some of the stress out of the process.
Make sure to speak with your doctor about what information you should look at. They may even be able to provide you with pamphlets or literature that can lay medication concerns to rest.
Be Ready to Keep Trying
Medication management isn’t a simple or fast process. Getting the medication and dosage right on the first try can happen, but it’s not the most common outcome. For people facing complex mental health concerns and for those struggling with mental illness and substance use disorder, the process can take time.
Continue to Communicate
Make sure that the lines of communication stay open. This is particularly important when getting ready to begin a new medication. It’s helpful for both of you. Your doctor will have more information on how the dosage is helping you, and you will be able to reach out to them if you have pressing medication concerns.
Importance of Addressing Medication Concerns
If you’re not convinced your medications are helping you or if you dislike the side effects they cause, you’re less likely to take them as prescribed. This means you’ll not get the full benefit of what they could offer. That creates a vicious cycle because the medications won’t work as well as they should, leading you to trust them even less.
By addressing the medication concerns you have with your psychiatrist, you can get these issues resolved. This, too, will improve your confidence in your doctor’s knowledge and understanding of your condition. Because psychiatric care is impossible without trust, addressing all concerns you have as early as possible is essential.
Addressing medication concerns can also make it easier and faster to find the drugs that work best for your unique brain chemistry. The sooner you let your doctor know that you’re struggling with side effects or other issues, the sooner they can find an alternative and be one step closer to the stability you deserve.
Helping Yourself Heal
A combination of medication and psychotherapy is often the best option for people struggling with mental health concerns. One of the most challenging aspects of taking this approach, however, is to find the right medications and dosages.
Your brain chemistry is as unique as you are, which means that what works for someone else might not work for you. To make matters even more complex, even medications that work for a while might not work forever, requiring that you start from scratch again.
To address these issues, you need to communicate with your psychiatrist and let them know of any medication concerns you have. The right doctor will work to resolve the problem by adjusting dosages or finding another medication.
Medication Management at Plus by APN
At Plus by APN, we offer medication management services that can make this process much more straightforward. Our compassionate team will offer the support you need by getting to know you and your story. Call us at 424.644.6486 or fill out our online contact form to learn more.
References
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- Bakshi A, Tadi P. Biochemistry, Serotonin. [Updated 2022 Oct 5]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK560856/
- O’Donnell, John et al. “Norepinephrine: a neuromodulator that boosts the function of multiple cell types to optimize CNS performance.” Neurochemical research vol. 37,11 (2012): 2496-512. doi:10.1007/s11064-012-0818-x
- Szeleszczuk, Łukasz, and Dawid Frączkowski. “Propranolol versus Other Selected Drugs in the Treatment of Various Types of Anxiety or Stress, with Particular Reference to Stage Fright and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.” International journal of molecular sciences vol. 23,17 10099. 3 Sep. 2022, doi:10.3390/ijms231710099
- Saha, Koustuv et al. “Understanding Side Effects of Antidepressants: Large-scale Longitudinal Study on Social Media Data.” JMIR mental health vol. 8,3 e26589. 19 Mar. 2021, doi:10.2196/26589
- Puderbaugh M, Emmady PD. Neuroplasticity. [Updated 2023 May 1]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557811/