Living with Antidepressants: A Lifelong Journey

Here recently.. I have been off and on medication since I was 12. But I stopped taking them once I was 15-16. Recently after being abused by family after losing my single father to cancer and being physically abused by a Significant Other for 2 years before running away from him.... Almost 5 years of torture.. I finally am in a safe environment with a loving husband and daughter.. I was told, "Unfortunately.. I don't see you ever coming off the medication again.. As long as you want to be social mom not scared of Walmart that is..." (My physicist likes to joke with me to help lighten the mood) I cried myself to sleep that night.. Knowing if I wanted to be a good and interactive mom for my daughter, I would be taking medication for the rest of my life..

Between 10-12 I think. As a kid I thought it sucked because I'd have to remember to take a bunch of pills everyday. It made me feel like I was crazy and everyone else was normal. But over the years I've seen that almost everyone has something going on. Depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, bipolar, etc. And that's okay. I learned that you can have certain diagnoses and still live a normal happy life.

I was 13 when I first was prescribed my medication. The psychiatrist said I may not need it for the rest of my life but my depression had become more intense as I age. I know I will need medication for the rest of my life to function. It is something I am still accepting for sure. It sucks to have to need medication forever but it is a small thing I can do to stay sane.

i started taking antidepressants what i was about 11. has already been almost 12 years on them…unfortunately i don’t see an end in sight

I was 16. I felt relieved and sacred. I hated taking my pills and hided it from my friends even my best friend at the time. When I started dating for longterm I would hide them. My now husband was the man that saw my medicine and how much I took. Over time he asked questions about the medicine and why I take them. That maded me feel better knowing he wanted to know. It's okay to be ashamed of having to any medicine for the rest of your life but try to grow out of that ashame.