The Complete Guide to Psychiatric Drugs: Straight Talk for Best Results

• Explains what is currently known about the causes and cures of virtually all recognized psychiatric disorders
• Describes the full range of medications that have been proven effective against them
• Helps you to determine whether or not you should try medication
• Provides guidelines for using medications safely and sensibly and for getting the best results with them
• Explores dietary treatments, exercise, relaxation techniques, meditation, self-hypnosis, yoga, and other non-drug therapies
• Explains how to combine drug, non-drug, and alternative therapies for maximum benefit

that said: this book, like all others of its ilk, almost completely avoids touching on the notion that medication in most cases can be terribly anti-therapeutic, and is prescribed by doctors for much the same reason drug addicts prescribe themselves the assortment of illicit drugs - symptom relief. these drugs cure no one, just keep people happily numb and in check, and are basically prescribed to help people improve their level of functioning IN THE SHORT TERM. if it were up to me, i'd restructure the whole system and do away with most of these meds entirely.

there's a funny thing i've noticed: when a patient comes to me and wants both therapy and medication (say, Zoloft), i can almost certainly surmise that he or she has less motivation for doing deep inner work (which produces the long-term gain) than someone who wants therapy alone and is resistant to taking medication. doing therapy (learning to know oneself at one's deepest level of being) is a painful process. medication takes away pain. you do the math.

and as for that idea that being on psych meds gives someone a "platform from which to do deep inner work"? as for evidence, i haven't seen it. but i do think it's a great rationalization!