Part two:

Continued from last Week

Synopsis: Some people feel there is a stigma attached to taking medication and wish instead to see themselves as heroically bearing the pain much as they imagine a sports hero or heroine might do. This attitude can be as foolish as expecting a magic potion to cure all your ills. When used well, medication can be used as a catalyst, not as a crutch. ''Toughing it out'' can sometimes merely veil foolish pride. Just because an itchy rash may have a psychological cause is no reason not to treat the rash topically. Few of us would balk at taking medication to stop scratching while we determine what internal disruption has caused this eruption. There are times when temporary help may get you through extreme feelings that can occur when your life is in transition or when you are facing upheavals such as divorce, illness, a move or a death in the family. Remember, there is no one way that is right for everyone. Trust your head and your gut. You really do know more than you think you know about what you need. Your task is to find the right professional or professionals to help you. Life really is too hard to navigate alone.

Better Living Through Chemistry: Mind-Mending Medicines Band Aids Versus Surgery: No Need To Tough It Out

Some people feel there is a stigma attached to taking medication and wish instead to see themselves as heroically bearing the pain much as they imagine a sports hero or heroine might do. This attitude can be as foolish as expecting a magic potion to cure all your ills. When used well, medication can be successfully used as a catalyst, not as a crutch. ''Toughing it out'' can sometimes merely veil foolish pride. Just because an itchy rash may have a psychological cause is no reason not to treat the rash topically. Few of us would balk at taking medication to stop scratching while we determine what internal disruption has caused this eruption. There are times when temporary help may get you through extreme feelings that can occur when your life is in transition or when you are facing upheavals such as divorce, illness, a move or a death in the family. Medication can be useful for a short while, much like taking insulin for diabetes. A diabetic may begin with a requisite large dose, but is sometimes able, with appropriate exercise and dietary changes, to cut back, or eliminate insulin entirely. George Stephanopoulos, in his White House memoir All Too Human, has written about "burnout so draining that he sought psychiatric help." One doesn't need to work at the White House to get burned out; it happens to many of us. Medication helped him over the hump and psychotherapy helped him to move on. The then presidential adviser began visiting a therapist after experiencing insomnia following several stressful events. Hives erupted across his chin, and everyday noises sounded like fingernails screeching across slate or the tines of a fork scraping a bone-china plate. He writes, "Zoloft…would help stop my nerves from flooding my brain with the chemical fueling my compulsive symptoms. Soon I slept four hours straight, then six. I no longer woke-up waiting for the sound to start. The feedback cleared, and I could breathe deeply again. The medication stripped away layers of worry, allowing me to remember what it was like to be me—a melancholy nail biter, sure, but not someone consumed by anxiety, not someone who measured himself by his proximity to a president or convinced himself that words and deeds would make or break a presidency. I still worked hard, but I worried less. I cared about what we could do, but I didn't obsess. Calmer, more detached, I prepared to leave." Stephanopoulos stopped the medication after he moved to a less pressured life and changed careers. Robert Boorstein, a well-respected member of the Clinton administration, has also spoken movingly of learning to cope with several manic-depressive episodes. One major manic episode occurred because of non-stop tension while he was working on the presidential campaign of Michael Dukakis, then Governor of Massachusetts. As manic episodes go, the content was fairly typical: a combination of politics, a bit of religion and a lot of space odyssey travel. Some friendly police officers, took him to the emergency room of his local hospital. His psychiatrist was called in. The high adrenalin job was one that could have produced a major stress reaction in anyone. But, in Mr. Boorstein's case a genetic predisposition and immediate events probably conspired to produce his manic episode. Medication and psychotherapy have helped Mr. Boorstein to continue an active and well-regarded political career. In cases where there is probably a genetic cause or a propensity towards a "meltdown,” psychotherapy and medication used together can often work best. Medication can stabilize you enough to benefit from the insights and tools psychotherapy has to offer. When the root cause is biological, it may be appropriate for medication to become a life-long ally. In such cases, there really can be better living through chemistry. Not long ago a former client called me in a panic. She had completed her course work for her degree nine years earlier, and the university now told her that she had only three months to complete her dissertation or she could "forget it.” Suzy panicked. A short pep talk plus a call to a psychopharmocologist seemed the answer. "Suzy," I said. "We have no time to analyze anything. Just like the Nike ad says, 'Just do it.' Get all the help you can, see me, and please take your pills." Suzy's essential issues aren't solved. She is still afraid of success, and she still procrastinates. But now, she has a raise to go with her promotion and she has the pride of being called "Doctor." A contrasting tale is the former patient who after an absence of ten years called in a state of turmoil. He had been offered a job promotion in the technical field in which he had been trained and now, in his early forties, he had had enough of city life and thought he really wanted to return to his Midwest roots, tend sheep, and return to school to finish the ministry degree he had abandoned as a young man. He reentered therapy for about three months, ultimately deciding that neither pills nor big city life would alleviate his stress. What he wanted was a pastoral life, shepherding sheep and ministering to a human flock of his own. I met him at a conference several years later. He was a happy man doing what he wished with no need for anything more than the life he had chosen. Remember, there is no one way that is right for everyone. Trust your head and your gut. You really do know more than you think you know about what you need. Your task is to find the right professional or professionals to help you. Life really is too hard to navigate alone. This column's for you, Dr. D. Dorree Lynn, PH.D.

On The Couch with Dr. Dorree Lynn FAMILY LAW Advisor® HOME PAGE These articles are provided for informational purposes only. No materials posted here are intended to constitute medical advice, which by necessity, must relate to each person's individual situation. This site does not constitute a patient-professional relationship. You are urged to seek help from a local mental health professional concerning your specific circumstances. No information or materials posted here are intended to constitute legal advice, nor can we guarantee the accuracy of posted information, especially as to each individual situation. LawTek does not independently check the information contained herein and does not refer or endorse any product, service, or firm. This site does not constitute an attorney-client relationship; local counsel should always be consulted. © 2000 LawTek Media Group, LLC all rights reserved

Suggest this page to a friend.

http://www.divorcenet.com/relations/otc-33.html