Recently I attended a seminar organised by Bipolar India to spread awareness of Bipolar Disorder. World Bipolar Day which falls on 31st March of every year. Of the various bits of knowledge, wisdom and inspiring stories that they shared and we will be bringing out all those bits part-by-part, one of a very relevant question asked by the participant to one of the panellists was If antipsychotic pills prescribed are addictive? Read to know how antidepressants work.
This particular question caught mine and others attention too and in a very practical way. For I know a lot of people who stop visiting their psychiatrist and stop taking their prescribed pills giving an excuse that they will become dependent on pills or that they will become addictive once they are in a habit of having them they might not be able to stop. Here is why you should not use antidepressants and painkillers together.
This lack of knowledge about the importance of medication makes one suffer despite having help at hand. However, Dr Milan Balakrishnan, psychiatrist, Mumbai addressed this concern. He mentioned that pills prescribed to treat conditions like Bipolar Disorder or depression aren t addictive, but of course, they do have side-effects and one of them is they induce sleep. When a patient starts taking the pills regularly, they help them to sleep better. Most people who suffer from severe anxiety, mood disorders and other psychiatric ailments have a disturbed sleep cycle or suffer from sleeplessness. These pills help to bring a semblance in the sleep-wake cycle. But once they give up medications their sleep and other induced habits like a sense of calm, tranquillity goes for a toss. This is when they feel that they cannot do without medications and they are being dependent on pills. Read to know how poor sleep affects moods in women.
But one should realise that this is a counter effect of stopping medications midway. To know when to stop taking your pills or lessen the dosage you should consult with your doctor. In a nutshell, pills are not addictive but they need to be monitored and titrated by your doctor so you benefit from them. Like all medications self-diagnosis and self-regulation with antipsychotic pills is not advised, he says.
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