Posted by ShawnThomas on November 6, 2012, at 19:02:58
In reply to Re: playing chess with psychiatry » ShawnThomas, posted by phillipa on November 6, 2012, at 17:53:20
> "Shawn surprised to see you here on babble. Seems that also knowing too much about meds and side effects is detrimental at times. I see an addictions pdoc also. He is letting me continue what I'm on even though it doesn't work. Seems the trend with him is to eliminate meds. And surely not increase them." Phillipa
Hi Phillipa, I hope that you are doing well. I really should spend more time here given my extensive educational background. I have learned how to successfully deal with cyclothymia without the use of medications other than occasional herbal supplements, which has given me less of an incentive to study psychiatry. Given how much I've learned since first visiting this forum and helping friends with their problems, I really should spend more time here offering advice to others.
I can see what you mean about knowing too much about side-effects. A phenomenon called the nocebo effect can occur in some people; it's the opposite of the placebo effect and leads to negative effects because of negative expectations. Personally, I tend to assume that I will not get side effects from any medication but try to be aware of any that do occur.
If a treatment is effective and does not yield unacceptable side-effects, there often is no reason to overanalyze just how it works. I think that education can help people to make better decisions about which drugs to take in general, but it is also true that some people lack the necessary educational background to make sense of more technical information about drugs. Some people may also lack insight into their conditions, which makes it much more difficult to self-educate. In the end, it's up to the individual to decide how much self-education is ideal for enhancing the relationship with a doctor.
poster:ShawnThomas
thread:1030834
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20121029/msgs/1030843.html