Medication or the power of will?

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I personally loathe medication of any and all forms. If I have a headache, it needs to persist for at least a day before I even think about taking an asprin and then it still depends on what type of headache I have (pounding, humming, numb or piercing).

Alot of MD's prescribe loads and loads of medications for aspergers and the side diagnoses like ADD, ADHD, OCD, etc. (I probably have ADD Inattentive Type next to aspergers)
Mostly they are anxiety relievers, but there are some meds they prescribe that are right out brain chemistry altering.

Before I decided to get an official diagnosis, I made it very clear that I wouldn't have any of the 3 following:

1: no medications that are perception or brain chemistry altering, I never took more then an asperin and I rather die then to have them stuff me full of meds.
2: no limitations on my actions, wants and needs. I was never a big spender so making a problem out of me wanting to buy something is just plain wrong.
3: under no surcumstances will I release any type of power of attorney, the only thing I gave permission for was that my parents had direct access to my accounts so that they could keep track of my bills and payments (which I usually forget), if anyone tries to take my rights away from me and take power of attorney over me, I'll simply disappear. (not kill myself or anything, I never had suicidal thoughts and never will)

I'm intelligent and feel that, especialy considering I never hurt anyone and am kinda hopeless when people ask me for help and keep giving it, that any of the problems I have related to aspergers or ADD should be or should be allowed to be managed by learning to restrain myself, understand myself and learn to understand how normal people think so that I can compensate my social inadiquacies trough thinking instead of using the instincts normal people have in that field.

I already learned alot about seeing people's emotions and telltales about their feelings trough their body language and facial expressions, especially when I've known someone for some time it becomes easyer to understand their reactions and feelings.

So, how do you all feel about this. Do you welcome medication to relieve anxiety and other traits that medication exists for, or do you prefer, like me, to take control over yourself and learn to deal with your problems on an intellectual level?

I agree with the basic gist of your post, but there are some instances where medication is necessary. It should be used as a last resort, rather than a first one. I believe in the force of will and don't think one should visit the medicine cabinet for everything. A headache, for me, is something I need to get rid of before it becomes too incapacitating. Some medications haven't worked for me, but others have. I need to take medication for seizures to stay in control. As long as I'm taking it, I have no problems, and I want to keep it that way. I don't like taking medication, but I have to.

I once took antidepressants for a few months to avoid suicide but something in me hates relying on pills. Anxiety tablets are good for the initial physiological reaction but they're not designed to be taken forever (at least not the ones I know about) so they'd be useless unless I wanted to be particularly calm for a brief period of time.

I take paracetamol though because it takes away the pain. I'm careful not to take them too often though as my sister is addicted to strong ibruprofen.

I would never take anything once upon a time. I could easily have a headache for 2 days and not even think about asprin.

I have taken things occasionally but in the last few years I have had a pretty hard time, work (not having any), relationships (always failing in them), friends (so many misunderstandings which I can now relate to having AS) and simply feeling like I do not belong in the world.

I never talk about what goes on inside my head to people I hardly know. And even when I do it falls on deaf ears because I find it hard to communicate in a way that they understand.

I have been seeing the same doctor now for about 2 years and I have gradually began to open up to him. I mentioned to him that I think I may have AS and he was on board straight away (I am still waiting for a diganosis). Because of this I have grown to trust him more and express some of my deeper feelings.

I have extensive knowledge of positive thinking, alternative health and have used many techniques to help me, but I was still finding it ever more harder to cope.

I asked my doctor for valium (which I have tried from a friend in the past) and I knew this would be a very short term pill but not a long term solution. It helped and I am very greatful for having it at that time.

Now I am on a mild antidepressant which has made a difference and I find that I am coping better. I will be on this for about a year and I'm happy to do this.

Basically what I am saying is that everything has its place (even if its a last resort). Medication, alternative medicine, therapies etc can all be helpful at times.

Abuse of any substance is not good. But in control and moderation all things can be ok.

I have taken very large number of medications and most did not infact alter my
brain/perceptions in a fashion that is noticeable or unpleasant. The effects are generally more subtle.

In the case of ADHD-I which I also likely have. I have used reboxetine and wellbutrin.
They both have noradrenaline re-uptake properties and have limited efficacy in the treatment of ADHD. I found that I did infact feel quite unlike myself on them. But thats
going to be a problem you likely run into in treating ADHD. It really is a large part of how you see yourself and treating it will be problematic I fear.

agree with 9CatMom... i only take em as a last resort

you cant rely on will power though with the more serious symptoms.. or even the less serious if will power just doesnt work... i used to take risperdal and that helped with eye contact and concentration and mind sharpness..then all of a sudden stopped taking them once i ran out..(probly shouldnt have as i was on a heavy dose...and i didnt end up sleeping that night....) same with lovan... just didnt wanna take them anymore.. and a month and a half later the effects of both medications are still with me even though i dont take them, so they must have helped my brain learn something new... or something..

only side effect is i now laugh at peoples emotions oh well it cheers me up

I was suspicious when I started, fearing side effects and the fact that they could "steal" my identity. I was wrong. I have started takin paxil (SSRI) (started with 20 mg but after 5 days switched to just 10) 35 days ago and it really helped me to escape from the hole I was digging for myself. I'm now back on track with my (weird) life. I'm sure psychoterapy would have been useless (in the best case). I think sometimes meds are good (if not necessary). Right now I'm so grateful to the Psychiatrist (probably the main AS expert in Italy) who really gave me back my life and the joy to live it. All the other doctors I went to (who didn't know AS) were just wasted time and money ( and they made me feel even worse).

Bottom line: meds CAN be good.

EDIT: The wikipedia page of Temple Grandin says that "She regularly takes anti-depressants". You do the math...

The main thing why I rather change things intellectually rather then medication is because over the years, long before I got diagnosed (which only happened a month ago) I've built up an understanding of myself, both physically and mentally. I know what my limits are in certain fields, what I can and can't do.

Knowing what caused my being different is just the next step in understanding why I am how I am and whats available and out there, to help me cope and manage my life so that I can either successfully live outside society or live in harmony with it.

Understanding myself is imho the best way to help others understand me too.
Knowing and understanding myself has also helped me to be quick on my feet when I do something from the subcontious that isn't appropriate and adjust and react in ways to rectify the situations.

The only things I really still have problems with that have a clear impact on my life, is that its nearly impossible for me to start a conversation with a complete stranger and that there are certain situations, both social and work related that drive my anxiety trough the roof.

The first is usually easelly relieved because I have some friends and family that do seem to understand me (and now that I'm diagnosed even better) and help me make first contact with people, so that it becomes much easyer to make contacts, they also help me be aware of other people's intentions, so that I don't get suckered or hurt because of my inability to read people.

The second I manage by either making people at work aware that they shouldn't involve me in the situations I can't handle (with the diagnosis, this has become much simpler and it also provides legal protections against getting descriminated for these deficits) and with the social ones, I just avoid them the best I can or take someone with me that knows me.

Having medications alter what I know about myself could be a disaster for me.

Btw, there is also the problem that I'm allergic to quite a few things and no matter what medicine I take it'll always be an exploration to see what unusual side effects it might have on me.

I took anti-depressants when i was in a bad work/education situation I could not walk away from and had to stick out. It helped once an effective med was found with less side effects but I got off them as soon a my life situation changed and haven't taken anything for years. I feel I have also learnt my limits and can make changes necessary to keep things undercontrol before they go too far.

I once thought exactly as you did, and that to take any form of medication was a 'weakness'. Though I do continue to grit my teeth and naturally overcome my deficits, I am more open to the alternative of medication. I reason that as my social anxiety isn't exactly a rational or natural state, to take unnatural medication to cancel it out is fine (two unnaturals making a natural make it okay in my mind).

I don't take medication of any sort exept pain killers when I have a headache or Nytol sleeping pills if I can't sleep but thats every once in a while. I had a scare earlier this year where I nearly had to go on permanant medication but I got through on my own

I don't like taking medication but there are some things that despite trying various non-medication interventions and therapies etc. are still significant problems - to the extent that they prevent me from doing the most basic day to day things, so for these I have to take medications.

I also have some physical health problems and if I don't take medication for these I can get very, very ill.

I also avoid medication as much as possible. I have a high pain threshold, so I literally need to be feeling something as painful as a broken bone in order for me to want painkillers, but I agree there are valid reasons for taking medications. I also have Paroxysmal Kinesigenic Dyskinesia, and if I don't take a small dose of a mild anticonvulsant every day, then I have to deal with the chance of ending up convulsing on the floor every time I move.

Knowing your limits is good, and I've also analysed myself and my limits over the last few years. But part of knowing your limits is knowing when you're better off taking medication.

i thought about taking a mild anti depressant recently but then i snapped out of my depression, im sure it will be back but i'll just do alot of exercizes to get rid of it. i think i'd really only take any kind of a medication if i lossed touch with reality, and was like a schizo

TheMaTrIx, lol I think that you kind of remind me of me that you wrote about this. The difference between me and people with aspergers is that I do not have any disorder of any kind.

I've always felt obligued to determine how best to deal with the biological charactoristics in my brain. First of all, I know that my brain is physically healthy.

I've also read a best selling book about the brain and that this book reinforces a positive outlook on things with one of the last few paragraphs in some words of that last page "do not worry about success when doing things that you have a passion for." + "the actual doing is what matters."

In the past(in the last few years) I have tried alcohol on occasions but so few times that I don't really remember. This was done with maryjuana as well. I also wanted to know what an ssri is so I had taken paxil before for a month and then abrubtly discontinued it which made me feel mildly psychotic + flu-like puking symptoms. I have also tried luvox which made me feel just "out of it" like I wasn't really there and took it for a month then abruptly quit, causing withdrawl symptoms. It is not reccomended to abruptly quit taking it but I did anyway.

However, during those times I knew that there are no physcal tests to test for mental disorders and so I didn't want to feel like a lab-rat to the doctors. I do not see any psychoactive substance something that I need or do I see as there to cure symptoms. If I do anything like that the it would be for selfish reasons as in a recreational kind of pleasure.

However, I am not in need for anything for drug induced euphoria. I am able more to assess myself psychologically.

It is also relevant that the people who did my brain wave QEG are in no way unsupportive of keeping away from having a psychiatrist advocating that I have some sort of mental disease that can be cured with mind-altering substances. Psychiatrists are quacks.

The most important thing to be stable is my enviroment which is fairly stable and so I am becoming more comfortable with my current situation. My relationships are satisfactory with some people while with my "family" it is extremely awkward.

People that are related to me are just average and very low converstational skills. I have very few people other than my family that I like but I don't really know who they are who are in my life, currently.

Again, there are no psychoactive drugs that I find for that can neccesitate a positive change that would be sought to occur with any psychoactive substance. But I think that the reality is that I see that other people around me who actually are abnormal.

If I feel bad, its not my fault: its others around me who live completely different lives and know reality in ways that I find to be highly distorted from my sense of things.

It is very unfortunate to me that I can't communicate myself much since my communication is very much different than how others around me communicate. It has been very depressing when I think about that. I just like keeping to myself since the things I do are different than what others do.

And I'm glad that I am doing better and feeling like I can move on to a bit more things that I feel comfortable with. I feel that some people want to get to know me. I feel that some people who want to know me are actually good communicators. It really helps me when I don't have to worry about being distracted by what people are doing and that I can focus on things that I know that are important so that I can help myself etc...

I see that me - myself is the only advocate to know myself. I have to keep myself busy doing things that I enjoy even though the majority of others I find to be ignorant of.

For one, inspired by all this, I do know that it as an issue for everyone that there is much involved with our own physical health and psychological well-being. One of the things which would be pharmaceuticals is so involved and scientific that the average citizen appears to be stumped on how to comprehend that kind of thing.

When dealing with my own psychological and physical health, it is a very complicated issue. I'm glad that there are good books out there that helps explain how the brain functions etc... Its an ongoing process that I learn what things are and what to do about it.

On these terms, a psychiatrists will tell you how easy it is to take a pharmaceutical "they may catch you when you are young and tell you that its so easy that you will not remember when they diganosed and prescribed".

But is this how the brain functions? Was it meant to be so easy to alter its chemistry? For the corporations and psychpeople, is this good money to do that?

If so then there may be much more in question of how to approach the ethics and the inferiority of our original states of conciousness:

http://www.reason.com/news/show/28679.html

Last edited by earthdweller on 02 Jun 2007, 11:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

It sounds as if you found other coping methods like I did. I'm also pretty firm about not meeting new people unless they are introduced by people I know. The people I work with now say it is very hard to get to know me, but a few of them are the ones who are around when I meet new people and they filter them out for me because I'm not good with reading people (sorry, drugs won't help that).

For other things, I have different ways I cope. At work I sit in a corner with a loud air vent over me that provides white noise so I hear nothing from the rest of the department. I love that air vent and everyone else hates it. My boss will not let people just approach me for no reason. They have to run requests by her. That lessens the contact I have with people. My job itself is very solitary with only minor contact and email suffices. So, in those ways I've arranged work to suit me without the need for chemical interference. I would never drug myself to do my work. There are enough jobs that allow you to be alone.

I can't stand the smells, lights and sounds in grocery stores or places like Home Depot, Walmart, etc. so I don't go to them. My husband goes alone. I'm not drugging myself to go in those places. They are easy enough to avoid and I do not believe they are "necessary" to my existence. That's absurd.

I don't like to socialize and it has nothing whatsoever to do with anxiety. It exhausts me even when I like the person. I'm not taking anti-anxiety meds to socialize because my aversion to it has nothing to do with anxiety. I limit it to people I really want to see instead. I don't do frivilous socialization. My husband is quiet and doesn't exhaust me. As long as that's the case, I'm fine. He's the only one I see on a regular basis for an extended period of time.

I'm definitely not taking anything to curb my obsessions because I enjoy them. I don't care what society thinks about that. They probably wish they enjoyed anything half as much as I enjoyed my obsessions. Their joy is shallow in comparison and I don't envy it at all. I wouldn't trade what I have for that.

In addition, I also have the problems with meds. I have a strong resistance to tranquilizer type drugs and pain killers. 100 mg of Valium would just take the edge off for me. That's a serious problem for any doctor trying to medicate me. I've also become allergic to many antibiotics and pain killers (that I've had after dental work or because of migraines), so no doctor even wants to give me meds for things they need to treat (for instance if I have a sinus infection or something) because they worry that I'll have an allergic reaction. I think if a doctor did want to treat me with drugs, I would be highly suspicious after all the hesitancy with my doctors in the last ten years.

But, given all that, I do think there are people who have to have drugs to deal with sensory issues or for co-morbids and I certainly don't want them to feel badly about that. As long as they have explored their options and alternatives, they should do whatever they have to do in their situation. I also feel that some people use drugs as a crutch and get so caught in the Psych drugs that they think they have to have them whether they do or not. That is a problem and those individuals need to get help to break that cycle.

I don't think the situation is black and white. I think we are individuals and as such, we must each find the answer which is best for each one of us.