Concerns about going on antidepressants

UPDATE : I posted an update to this situation in a reply below, but to cut it short, i decided to go on antidepressants after considering what the replies had to say about them and my general situation.

I also did change the title of the post for accuracy and to better represent the focus

ORIGINAL POST: 

A bit of background. I am 19, failed college 3 years ago due to social difficulties and have been looking for a job since. My parents are divorced and i live with my mum and 2 siblings. I have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder only and not depression or anything else."

My mum wants me to go on antidepressants because she thinks i am unwell but i dont want to for multiple reasons. I want to outline them and i would appreciate thoughts or advice.

1st is that i find it hard to trust doctors anymore because i have a lot of trauma with going to the hospital due to suicidal feelings and feeling rejected/invalidated. I have had a counsellor and a therapist before and they both reported me for saying i was suicidal so i feel like it's not safe to talk to professionals anymore about how i truly feel.

2ndly is that i don't want to be dependant on anything because i fear situations i won't have access to them. Because i have expressed suicidal feelings before they would most likely give them to my mum who have to administer it to me. She is not always around. She is forgetful and gets drunk a few times a week. It's likely i won't be able to take these exactly as directed which would cause anxiety. 

3rdly and lastly is that i fear the concept of antidepressants is unnatural and or dangerous. I feel like i have valid reasons for why i feel so depressed and i feel like it wouldn't lead for anything good for me to block that out. I have heard reports of antidepressants making people more suicidal or likely to self harm and these are things i have struggled with in the past before. Also, i have heard before that believing that your medication won't work may actually make them less likely to work and the opposite can also be true. Idk if that is factual but it makes sense to me.


Also to go into about my reasons for feeling depressed. For me not having any friends has always been very difficult for me to live with and i am only becoming more and more socially isolated as my life goes on. I have limited interests, it's very rare i feel immersed or enjoy anything anymore. I find it impossible to relax and even go to sleep at a normal time. I have nothing to spend my energy on so i am awake for many more hours longer than i was when i had high school so that is why. In general i just feel like life is not worth living for me. I see much more despair and suffering in the world than i see hope and pure joy. But i cannot kill myself because the pain is too much, i have no realistic way of doing so. 

So overall i just feel like antidepressants will not help and make me feel worse, do you agree or disagree?


Parents
  • You certainly have legitimate and valid concerns about the treatment being proposed for you.

    In your shoes, I should have the same concerns.

    It's your body, it's your mental health - and YOU get to choose what is done with it/to it because you are a sound-minded adult by the sounds of things.

    I'm in my 50's, and prior to discovering my ASD, my nearest and dearest seemed convinced that I was somehow depressed and should seek "pills".  I was not depressed - I was struggling with my (at the time, unidentified) ASD.  I do not harshly judge them for their mistake.....I know that they just dearly wanted to help me return to a more happy functionality......but their proposed resolution WAS wrong.

    I do agree with Peter that, if possible, re-entering education might be a good 'next step' for you, if you think you can cope with that.  If that does not appeal, finding any good reason to get you "back out there" with other forms of sentience is going to make you feel more alive inside.

    Personally, I found walking very helpful in turning my mood and my spirit around.  I think it has something to do with the 'forward motion' involved in walking that enables my brain to stop circling around negatives.  The physical exercise also certainly helps your mind feel more lubricated and it will DEFINITELY help with your sleep patterns.  I started with a mere half a mile a day, but soon had that up to 4-5 miles per day (only takes an hour if you tackle it like a task rather than a joyous meander) and it is amazing how many micro interactions you can have with people along the way.  I found these very minor interpersonal chance meetings with animals and humans (whilst walking) very restorative and made me feel much less isolated and alone.

    Don't be stressing about having no friends.  Do baby steps.  Get out first, and see what develops.

    Keep in touch with us on these pages 86128.  You are welcome and you will be understood here.

    Bravo for seeking out this place and seeking opinions on your own opinions.  I reckon you are gonna be just fine - you seem very wise for 19.

    Number.

Reply
  • You certainly have legitimate and valid concerns about the treatment being proposed for you.

    In your shoes, I should have the same concerns.

    It's your body, it's your mental health - and YOU get to choose what is done with it/to it because you are a sound-minded adult by the sounds of things.

    I'm in my 50's, and prior to discovering my ASD, my nearest and dearest seemed convinced that I was somehow depressed and should seek "pills".  I was not depressed - I was struggling with my (at the time, unidentified) ASD.  I do not harshly judge them for their mistake.....I know that they just dearly wanted to help me return to a more happy functionality......but their proposed resolution WAS wrong.

    I do agree with Peter that, if possible, re-entering education might be a good 'next step' for you, if you think you can cope with that.  If that does not appeal, finding any good reason to get you "back out there" with other forms of sentience is going to make you feel more alive inside.

    Personally, I found walking very helpful in turning my mood and my spirit around.  I think it has something to do with the 'forward motion' involved in walking that enables my brain to stop circling around negatives.  The physical exercise also certainly helps your mind feel more lubricated and it will DEFINITELY help with your sleep patterns.  I started with a mere half a mile a day, but soon had that up to 4-5 miles per day (only takes an hour if you tackle it like a task rather than a joyous meander) and it is amazing how many micro interactions you can have with people along the way.  I found these very minor interpersonal chance meetings with animals and humans (whilst walking) very restorative and made me feel much less isolated and alone.

    Don't be stressing about having no friends.  Do baby steps.  Get out first, and see what develops.

    Keep in touch with us on these pages 86128.  You are welcome and you will be understood here.

    Bravo for seeking out this place and seeking opinions on your own opinions.  I reckon you are gonna be just fine - you seem very wise for 19.

    Number.

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