I understand that post partum depression is a terrible experience for a new mother, and some of my friends have come close to divorce and suicide during it....so I know it is real, I do not deny your experience was dire. And I am sorry that you had to go through it. If your situation was anything like that of my friends, you didn't have any warning or tools to deal with the depression, but it doesn't have to be that way.
Would it be possible for our government to function in an educational role for pregnant women without being prompted by the pharmaceuticals that make the drugs that they are going to recommend? Would it be possible for our communities to provide knowledge and resources to help women through post partum depression without resorting to government mandates? Is it possible for all of us to treat our depression in better ways than SSRI's? I think the answer to all three of these questions is YES and that is why I oppose this law.
The science is piling up. Depression medications increase the risk of suicide in some populations, they work about as well as sugar pills, they don't work as well as exercise, they increase liver damage in anyone who drinks, etc etc etc. There are a great many alternatives that are less destructive, less expensive, and more available to regular people. So I oppose the use of "anti-depressants" in general and not just in the case of depressed mothers.
I also see a pattern in the way pharmaceutical corporations begin to raise public awareness ("educate us") about new diseases/disorders that are characterized entirely by a set of symptoms. They do not educate us about the biochemical pathways involved because they do not know them. They do not understand why all those side effects occur. Pharmaceuticals come up with a drug that seems to work for a set of symptoms, publish biased "science", and market the drug to a malleable public. There is a lot of danger in believing what they say. We take our chances any time we believe that a drug is being sold to us in our best interests. More likely the drug is being sold to us to make money.
Have you read about the levels of pharmaceuticals in our water supply these days? The use of these drugs has increased dramatically in the last decade. Are we that much more depressed than we used to be? And if so, WHY? We certainly aren't depressed because we have a deficiency of anti-depressants.
antidepressant deficiency
Would it be possible for our government to function in an educational role for pregnant women without being prompted by the pharmaceuticals that make the drugs that they are going to recommend? Would it be possible for our communities to provide knowledge and resources to help women through post partum depression without resorting to government mandates? Is it possible for all of us to treat our depression in better ways than SSRI's? I think the answer to all three of these questions is YES and that is why I oppose this law.
The science is piling up. Depression medications increase the risk of suicide in some populations, they work about as well as sugar pills, they don't work as well as exercise, they increase liver damage in anyone who drinks, etc etc etc. There are a great many alternatives that are less destructive, less expensive, and more available to regular people. So I oppose the use of "anti-depressants" in general and not just in the case of depressed mothers.
I also see a pattern in the way pharmaceutical corporations begin to raise public awareness ("educate us") about new diseases/disorders that are characterized entirely by a set of symptoms. They do not educate us about the biochemical pathways involved because they do not know them. They do not understand why all those side effects occur. Pharmaceuticals come up with a drug that seems to work for a set of symptoms, publish biased "science", and market the drug to a malleable public. There is a lot of danger in believing what they say. We take our chances any time we believe that a drug is being sold to us in our best interests. More likely the drug is being sold to us to make money.
Have you read about the levels of pharmaceuticals in our water supply these days? The use of these drugs has increased dramatically in the last decade. Are we that much more depressed than we used to be? And if so, WHY? We certainly aren't depressed because we have a deficiency of anti-depressants.