So…
When a friend, who has just confided in you that she has been extremely crazy and anxious about her life and sad lately, says to you, “Yea, man, I think I’m depressed. I went to the doc. She suggested [antidepressant],” Is it a good idea to say, “Doctors get paid to subscribe drugs. They won’t actually help you.”
As someone mere months from receiving my MD degree, I have to say that’s an irresponsible, uninformed statement. Doctors do not get compensated for prescribing drugs. (Pharm companies do their best to wine ‘n’ dine, and thus, influence physicians prescribing choices, but that’s another issue altogether.) Secondly, there are many classes of antidepressants, and overwhelming research has demonstrated their effectiveness (plus, my own experience confirms that they work). That said, combining medication with therapy is the most effective treatment. Hopefully your friend realizes you are not a medical professional and/or has talked with other friends who had positive results with medication. (Sorry to sound harsh, but dealing with depression is challenging, and your friend deserves every benefit of the doubt… and your statement to her, besides being totally inaccurate, is totally unsupportive as a friend.)
