Emotional healing without drugs

by Ann Bracken

Dr Terry Lynch author of ‘Beyond Prozac’

According to Dr. Terry Lynch author of ‘Beyond Prozac’, depression is a normal response to deep suffering, which the medical approach abnormalises. “The assumption is that emotionally distressed people have some chemical imbalance in the brain, which should be treated with medication.” He believes this to be inaccurate and also suggests that the medical profession and society reconsiders their approach to those suffering emotional distress. “The reality is that the majority of people who have been labelled with bi-polar depression, schizophrenia or obsessive compulsive disorder have not got a biochemical or hereditary imbalance, but have experienced great emotional, social, physical or sexual traumas”.

By attaching labels to those suffering with anxiety or those who feel the need to withdraw from life, the medical profession and society exacerbates the symptoms and prevents the individual from moving forward in their life. “Stigmatizing people with mental distress is hugely oppressive and the more severe the label the more enormous the impact on their life. There are few labels in life worse than schizophrenia. It has impacts all over your life, social consequences such as life insurance, employment chances, relationships. It strikes fear into the hearts of others.”

The carte blanche approach of doctors prescribing medication is short sighted according to Dr. Lynch. “Most people are diagnosed with depression after a very brief consultation with a GP. Five minutes into the consultation, the focus is changed onto what drugs are going to be prescribed. Drugs are administered too frequently, when for a lot of people counselling would be far more effective in helping them overcome the overwhelming sense of darkness and hopelessness.”

The future implications of administering drugs so frequently is cause for grave concern, he expands; “When the US Food and Drug Administration licensed Prozac in the 80’s, they did so after trials which lasted only five to six weeks, not long enough to properly assess the long-term side effects of the drug. Similarly, other drug trials on major tranquillisers and anti-psychotic drugs were authorised after short trial periods. A recent report by the Head of the World Health Organisation’s unit for monitoring drug side effects warns of an addiction risk for prozac users. Doctors should be taking note of this.” “We have a legacy in medicine from the tranquilliser era of 30 years ago, where there are a large number of people addicted to medication because mainstream medicine believed excessively in tranquillisers. I have a distinct feel that we might be revisiting this with new drugs. If this happens people will have unresolved depression and an addiction to cope with.”

“Individuals who have stumbled at the hurdles of life and cannot pick themselves up, people whose hopes and dreams have been dashed are further humiliated by labelling them as different. This adds to their self doubt and insecurity. The repercussions of this, is that many people diagnosed end up with very little money, isolated in bedsits with no hope for a positive future.”

A solution could be found in providing a more compassionate approach and a supportive environment. “We have a culture which has cultivated an idea of medication for emotional distress. One could start at home and give people far more permission to express themselves. I’m not saying it always has to be therapy. It is almost making up for a lack of openness in other people’s life. I would recommend that people you care about should be given the time and space to cry, to express themselves, to be as they are. Our society generally doesn’t accept each other’s reality.” “I think that surgeries should have psychologists, counsellors and psychotherapists. You can go to a doctor in any town in this country and get prozac or other forms of medication, but to actually get a therapist for an hour to just listen to you, can be very difficult. This has not happened by accident. The medical system is very much leaning towards drugs and if the medical system believed in therapy, it would be more freely available. What people need is time and support to work through it, not a drug to deaden the pain.”

Dr Lynch believes that it is time for a public enquiry to fully explore all the options available for those suffering with mental distress. “The public deserve the best possible care. Drugs may alleviate the symptoms for some, but they cause more problems for many. If we are to tackle the increasing suicide rates in Ireland, we must take action. The vast sums of money currently invested in psychiatry could be used to fund a caring, supportive service to help people overcome emotional distress.”
“An independent investigation into psychiatry could be similarly set up. Given that hundreds of thousands of people use the mental health service each year and that there is such disquiet among the public about mental health services, such an enquiry is long overdue. We need to establish a health care system designed to meet the true needs of the people it serves.”

In his book ‘Beyond Prozac’, the individual case studies are positive examples of individuals healing from life’s hurt. Their journeys from self hatred to self acceptance and love are insightful and brave and proof that if true emotional recovery is to be experienced, medical approaches and social attitudes need to change.

Further reading:
‘Beyond Prozac’ Dr Terry Lynch (Marino Books)
‘The Power of Negative Thinking’ Dr Tony Humphries

Further help:
The Samaritans - listen in total confidence without judgement, whatever your situation. Tel. 1850 60 90 90. Northern Ireland, Tel. 0345 90 90 90
Recovery Inc. – A community mental health organisation that offers a self-help method of will training (01) 6260775.