• knfrmity@lemmygrad.ml
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    5 months ago

    I always wonder if anti-depressants would even be necessary in a people’s state on its way to communism.

    • DankZedong @lemmygrad.mlOP
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      5 months ago

      One of the meds is also used for people with chronic pain and migraine, so at least one would be necessary.

      • knfrmity@lemmygrad.ml
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        5 months ago

        That’s fair. I also didn’t mean to imply that anti-depressants aren’t currently without value. Even just speaking from personal experience, my family would look a lot different without them.

    • RedJoshi@lemmygrad.ml
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      5 months ago

      I partially agree.

      My impression as a GP is that at least half of the anxiety I see and significant fraction of the depression would be greatly reduced without capitalism, almost all mental illness is in some way exacerbated by the stressors of capitalism. Many who currently need medication could cope with just some therapy and coaching if these stressors were removed

      That said I could name a dozen of my patients off the top of my head who would find it very difficult to function normally without some medication. Admittedly some of that would be generational trauma in part contributed to by past economic stress.

      If the revolution comes tomorrow we’ll be dealing with the psychic fallout of capitalism for generations and even then there will be a small number of people for whom medication is the best option.

      • knfrmity@lemmygrad.ml
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        5 months ago

        Thanks for your professional input, I really appreciate it.

        Your last paragraph is especially important. I overlooked that part, although it’s obvious in retrospect.

      • knfrmity@lemmygrad.ml
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        5 months ago

        I had also bought the standard line that it’s about imbalanced or incorrect brain chemistry, but I’m not sure anymore if that theory holds any water.

        There are a lot of criticisms leveled against it, but I found the book Lost Connections by Johann Hari to be incredibly thought provoking. This was even before I had gone full tankie and read a bit into the links between mental health and capitalism. The tl;dr thesis of Lost Connections is that anti-depressants are cover up the symptoms for a time, but the root of the issue is a broken social structure, for which capitalism is responsible.