Meg Jay

I mean, they're not a silver bullet.

They can help some people.

They can be life-saving.

But in other people, they solve one problem and they create another problem.

So one client of mine went on antidepressants to feel less anxious about a relationship, but then he wound up feeling less driven at work.

Antidepressants are a blunt instrument, so they don't go in and target just feelings of sadness or just feelings of anxiety.

They can have a bit of a flattening effect across many areas.

So yes, you may feel less depressed or you may feel less anxious.

But many clients will also say, I feel less happy.

I feel less motivated.

I feel less driven.

I have less interest in sex.

I'm less able to enjoy it.

For years, I just felt like I was going through the motions.

My antidepressant helped to tamp down my panic attacks and my anxiety.

I was on antidepressants for a really long time and they destroyed my libido.

So it can really restrict the range of your feelings in general and your engagement with life.

You've laid out how antidepressants really can help.

They don't do everything that every person wants, but they do do some things.

But let's say that you go on them as a young person and then you want to go off them.