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Is a Pill the Answer?

A In 1997, Elizabeth Wurtzel published her memoir Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America. In it, the author talks about her bouts of depression and Prozac, the anti-depressant that she admits probably saved her life. A bright and talented child, Wurtzel was writing stories at ten and battled depression from a similarly young age. She attempted suicide for the first time at age eleven and indulged in self-destructive behavior throughout her life. Although a personal memoir, the title of the book refers to a whole generation of depressives who ultimately find solace in Prozac and other drugs of that kind. At the time Wurtzel was writing, over 6 million people were taking or had tried Prozac, a new anti-depressant that many viewed as a "miracle drug." Unlike other anti-depressants, Prozac has few side-effects and is readily available. There is a debate over whether drugs like Prozac are prescribed too often or not often enough. According to Wurtzel, they should be available as much as possible because the modern world is "too difficult to negotiate without some kind of a chemical buffer zone." Is this true? Are psychopharmaceuticals such as Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, or Xanax the best way to treat problems such as depression and social anxiety disorder? Many say yes because some kinds of depression are caused by chemical imbalances in the brain and are considered medical, not psychological, problems. So where does therapy fit in? How do you know when and if to take medication?

B Here are the stories of two young women of Wurtzel's generation. One took a prescription drug for anxiety problems; the other took Prozac for depression. They had very different experiences, and different opinions about the effectiveness of these drugs.

Susana
C A year ago, I was going through a difficult period in my life. I was living with someone who had severe depression, and having to be supportive and positive all the time took a toll on me. I constantly worried about everything, and this worry took over my life. I also started to have physical symptoms, like chest pains and difficulty breathing, which the doctor diagnosed as panic attacks caused by anxiety.

D I went to see a therapist who was very helpful. I felt guilty about bothering my family and friends with all of my problems. After a month, she suggested I take anti-anxiety medication. The medication helped me, above all, with the physical symptoms of anxiety. I stopped having chest pains and panic attacks. If something bad happened, I was aware of it and the consequences, but my body didn't react to it in the form of pain as it had before. While taking the drug, I rarely cried or had emotional outbursts. It's not that things didn't affect me―they just didn't manifest themselves in such a violent way. I don't feel the medication changed my personality. If anything, I felt I was back to the person I'd been before, only a bit more easy-going.

E My life situation has returned to normal, and I am no longer on medication. But I'd say that all in all, taking it was a positive experience. The side effects included fatigue and loss of sex drive, but the positive effects outweighed the negative ones. However, I recognize that the main reason why I feel better today is because of therapy. While a pill can help you deal with things, it does not solve the problem.

Rebecca
F I decided to start taking anti-depressants my senior year of college. For six months I had been fighting depression and general anxiety; the stress of my senior year, coupled with a messy breakup had taken its toll on my psyche. I was also exhibiting signs of obsessive-compulsive behavior (something that runs in my family). Both of my parents agreed that it was time for me to meet with a psychiatrist. My mom even suggested I get a prescription for Prozac, the anti-depressant of choice for my family. She told me that Prozac had worked wonders for both her and her sister, so I met briefly with a psychiatrist and got myself a prescription. At that point, I wasn't so interested in psychotherapy (in fact, I never returned to the psychiatrist). My goal was to start taking the medication to see if things would go back to "normal."

G My experience with Prozac can be divided up into three distinct phases:

H Phase I: Two days after beginning the medication, I had attacks of nausea and started throwing up. I was sick all night. I had to stay in bed the next day. I thought I had taken poison instead of medication. I phoned my psychiatrist and told him I thought I was dying. He said it was normal to feel sick for the first few days. Luckily, I got better quickly, as my body adjusted to the medication.

I Phase II: The second phase was ignorant bliss. As soon as my body recovered, I started to feel the real effects of the medication. I stopped worrying; I stopped biting my nails; I stopped caring what people thought about me. The numbers that used to run through my head constantly (a symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder) disappeared. I started to have fun again: I went out with my friends every night, I stayed out late―I took risks. I stopped caring about school and my daily routine. In fact, I often forgot to eat. After four months of such behavior, I had gone from a size 8 to a size 2, and my school work was suffering. This certainly wasn't "me." I felt I was watching someone else live my life, and I didn't like it.

J Phase III: The drug started to lose its effect sometime after graduation. I continued taking it―it had only been six months since I started―hoping that the positive effects were still to come. However, nothing happened. Although I felt much better than I had prior to taking the medication, I still wasn't well. I stopped the medication a couple of months later.

K Now, four years later, I am trying something new. I am seeing a therapist once a week and avoiding all medications. I have come to the realization that, although anti-depressants are beneficial to many people, they are not right for me. My depression is situational, meaning it is generated by what is going on around me—it's not chemical, like some cases are. In my case, it is much more rewarding and therapeutic to sit down with someone and discuss what I'm feeling. In the end, I believe it is better to get to the crux of the problem instead of masking it with a medication such as Prozac. This is not to say that I won't go back on anti-depressants, but I know now that the human side of therapy is what I need to achieve true balance and tranquility in my life.

Getting Meaning from Context

On the lines, write the words from the reading selection that fit these definitions. The letters in parentheses refer to the paragraphs where the words appear.


1		intelligent (A):


2		a selective account of a person's life experiences (A):


3		help and comfort (A):


4		something that protects by moderating a strong effect (A):


5		caused suffering (3 words) (C):


6		a sudden episode of intense anxiety (2 words) (C):


7		a person who provides treatment for psychological problems (D):


8		feelings of illness (D):


9		a sudden display of emotion (D):


10		relaxed (D):


11		secondary or unwanted effects of a drug or therapy (2 words) (E):


12		a doctor who treats mental illness (F):


13		stage (H):


14		the feeling of sickness to the stomach with the urge to vomit (H):


15		extreme happiness (I):


16		satisfying (K):


17		the most important part (K):

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