Seeing a Psychiatrist

[DendWrite]

So, to make a long story short, I saw a psychologist in high school to deal with my depression. I was never prescribed any medication, and I feel like in college some of these problems are coming back (I'm not currently seeing a therapist).

This isn't a medical advice thread, but I wanted to know if going to see a psychiatrist and/or being on antidepressants would have an effect on potentially being a doctor in the future. I heard someone say that when you are applying for a DEA license, being on certain drugs can potentially cause some difficulties. I have no idea if this is the case...I was just curious.

My gut tells me that no, it won't be a problem, but I wanted to make sure before I did something I'd regret later. I know it sounds kind of mixed up to prioritize my career goals over my mental health. I appreciate any advice you may have (and I'm sorry if this is the wrong forum to post it in, but I'm pre-allo and I imagine that other people might have wondered about this before).

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[TexasPhysician]

I know fellow medical students on anti-depressents, and it has not been a problem for them.

 

[slick27]

there are plenty of med students on them. Just don't tell anyone about it. Keep it to yourself. Don't put it down on your applications.

 

[Stratego]

I know of two doctors on antidepressants, and maintaining licensure has been no problem for them.

 

[DrJosephKim]

Many healthcare professionals take anti-depressants. The important thing is to make sure that you're receiving treatment so that you're not impaired in any way.

 

[whimsical]

I should think it would be better to start working on the problems now, rather than letting them get out of control and having them cause serious issues down the road.

I feel like in the end it's best to work on your personal health.

 

[GH253]

I would recommend, in all sincerity, that you avoid taking drugs if possible. The most recent research on anti-depressants shows that they are not as effective as previously thought, and that you are more likely to develop long-term depression if you take the drugs than if you don't recieve treatment. Also, SSRIs severely disrupt the sleep cycle (especially REM) and I would think that this could have deletrious effects on your ability to handle med school. I have been on/off the drugs in the past and I am very happy to finally be off them for good. IMO, taking drugs is a much darker road to go down than most people appreciate. The dependency issues can be worse than the depression itself. I understand that on a medical website, most people will favor treatment, but this is my cry in the dark for what it's worth. Don't take the decision to use drugs lightly. For me, it was one of the worst decisions I ever made. Also understand that the looming government takeover of healthcare will make your medical records readily availible to anyone with the connections to access them, and that employers and government authorities may be able to find out about your use of psychiatric drugs. Just something to think about.

 

[binko]

I'm on antidepressants. The difference they make for me is subtle but important – Since I started taking them, I have slowly started to spend a lot more time on things I actually want and/or need to do, and a lot less time doing nothing. I was doing reasonably okay before them, but had a lot of fatigue and pointless behaviors (opening the fridge 15 times because I wasn't paying attention the first 14 times, etc) that ended up eating up a ton of my time.

Oh, and the sleep cycle disturbance is sort of a moot point for me – I wasn't sleeping at night because of my inability to stay awake during the day. So I'm actually sleeping better now. For a while I had to take melatonin but now I don't.

BTW this is NOT intended to be medical advice! Just giving my experience so the OP knows there are different experiences with different things for different people.

I agree, though, that it should not be taken lightly. There are side effects to everything, and I wasn't well-informed about the ones associated with my meds. I ended up very, very sick for a few days because I was misinformed about an interaction

 

[dw2158]

I would recommend, in all sincerity, that you avoid taking drugs if possible...

i thought this was not a medical advice thread?

I should think it would be better to start working on the problems now, rather than letting them get out of control and having them cause serious issues down the road.

I feel like in the end it's best to work on your personal health.

i agree with this so hard it hurts!

 

[GoSpursGo]

Despite the OP specifically asking that medical advice not be given, it still has been. That is not appropriate for the SDN forums, and accordingly this thread is being closed.

To the OP, I suggest doing a search in the Confidential Consult forum, where this topic has been covered several times, or you may repost your question there (please read the FAQ before posting)