Relatively recently, due to my anxiety and distress, I was placed on medication. That sounds more terrible than it really is but I can admit to it. I am also putting this forward mostly because I do not believe that people who suggest medication really understand that there is not magic in that bottle nor do I believe that children placed on medication possess the opportunity [and/or vocabulary/range of expression] to provide input regarding how they respond/perceive their prescription.
One of the medications I was placed on was for attention deficit [ADD, ADHD] and as I am an adult, I had some say in the matter and thus was able to pick a variety [ie: Ritalin, Adderall, non-stimulant] and have some voice as to effective dosing. As it has been quite some time since I was last medicated it was interesting to note the differences between this time and last. [Also, the fact that I exhibit a pronounced sensitivity to medications, an ASD perk; I got to watch my medical doctor near-wet herself while the psychiatrist gradually ramped up my dose.]
I have come to the conclusion that medication really is not a 'cure-all' as I still have days/times where I'm scattered, distractible, or hyper-focused except now IT IS HARDER TO SELF-MANAGE! Biggeldy-puck, how frustrating! lol! I have times when it is difficult to concentrate on a flow of related ideas but because the medication helps to concentrate focus, I get too focused on the distractions. Then there are days where I focus so intently on one small faucet of a larger project that I spend all day completing nothing [literally Saturday I spent 8 hours on a spreadsheet for a worthless detail of a larger whole]. The medication makes it harder for me to self-manage on days like those because I am being chemically stimulated to focus.
Not that it is all bad. The medication mostly helps me to concentrate on what I need to be doing so I do not perseverate on one thing, have anxiety because I am not focusing, then shut down and accomplish nothing. Plus it kept me from testing out classic anxiety medications which I was not looking forward to.
When I was initially placed on medication it was done in lieu of testing/diagnosis. I was placed on a dosage which "appeared to do the trick" so nothing further was done. What actually happened was I was placed on a variety which I did not respond appropriately to and instead the medication just made me feel so nauseous and sick that I was incapable of anything beyond sitting miserably at my desk. I was then prescribed a second [and unfortunately worse] medication intended to counter-act the nausea but instead tasted so awful that it boosted the nausea to vomiting. After 4 years, my body finally adjusted so that I only felt ill instead of nauseous. I can now attest [from the vantage point of a variety/dose that works] that the problem was that particular variety not working as it was intended.
Also, medication is not a replacement for knowing how to self-manage.
