July 1, 2025 • 23 mins
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I get asked about medication every single day. Can you get better without it? Is it necessary? What's the best one? Is it cheating to take medication?
Today I'm explaining why I don't answer these questions - and why you should be cautious about content creators who do.
In this episode, I cover:
- The three main reasons mental health content creators shouldn't give medication advice
- Why personal beliefs and autonomy matter more than you might think
- The countless variables that make medication decisions incredibly complex
- Why your recovery journey changes over time (and so do your needs)
- What qualifications actually matter when it comes to psychiatric medications
- A better approach to getting the medication support you need
The reality is this: There are too many personal, medical, cultural, and lifestyle factors that go into medication decisions for any podcaster, YouTuber, or social media creator to give you meaningful advice. Even as a therapist specializing in anxiety disorders, there are clear boundaries I must respect.
This doesn't mean your questions aren't valid - they absolutely are. It means you deserve qualified, ongoing professional support for these important decisions, not one-size-fits-all answers from someone who doesn't know your specific situation.
Whether you use medication or not, the principles of anxiety recovery remain the same. You can't make a wrong choice because you can always change course as you learn and grow.
For full show notes on this episode:
https://theanxioustruth.com/320
My medication story:
https://theanxioustruth.com/145
https://theanxioustruth.com/146
https://theanxioustruth.com/147
Support The Anxious Truth: If you find the podcast helpful and want to support my work, you can buy me a coffee. Other ways to support my work like buying a book or signing up for a low cost workshop can be found on my website. None of this is never required, but always appreciated!
Interested in doing therapy with me? For more information on working with me directly to overcome your anxiety, follow this link.
Disclaimer: The Anxious Truth is not therapy or a replacement for therapy. Listening to The Anxious Truth does not create a therapeutic relationship between you and the host or guests of the podcast. Information here is provided for psychoeducational purposes. As always, when you have questions about your own well-being, please consult your mental health and/or medical care providers. If you are having a mental health crisis, always reach out immediately for in-person help.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
In anxiety and mental health.
Everybody wants to talk aboutmedication.
Everybody wants to askquestions about medication, but
we can't talk about medication,and today I'm going to tell you
why.
So let's get into it.
Hello everybody, welcome backto the Anxious Truth.
This is episode 320 of thepodcast we are recording in June
(00:24):
of 2025.
For those of you listening inthe future, I am Drew Linsalata,
creator and host of the AnxiousTruth.
I am a therapist practicing inthe area of anxiety and anxiety
disorders in New York.
I am also a three-time authoron this topic and a former
sufferer of panic disorder andagoraphobia and depression and
OCD for many years of my life onand off, but better now.
Thank you very much.
(00:44):
Psychoeducator, advocate, guywith a microphone.
And yeah, back again foranother episode of the Anxious
Truth.
This is the podcast where wetalk about all things anxiety,
anxiety disorders and anxietyrecovery.
If you're new here, welcome.
I hope you find the podcasthelpful and if you are a
returning listener, welcome back.
I'm always happy when you spendsome time with me.
Today, we're going to talk aboutwhy we can't talk about
(01:07):
medication, because many of youdo ask questions about
medication and many of you askif I would talk about medication
.
But we really can't, and thereare three primary reasons why.
So I want to get into that, butbefore we do, just a quick
reminder that the Anxious Truthis more than just this podcast
episode.
If you go to my website attheanxioustruthcom, you're going
(01:27):
to find links to all the otherresources.
It's all the free social mediastuff, all the previous podcast
episodes.
You're going to find links tosome very low-cost workshops and
educational sessions thatpeople find very helpful, the
books that I've written.
There's a whole bunch of stuffthere.
So check out theanxioustruthcom.
Avail yourself of all thegoodies.
I think you'll be happy thatyou did, because people seem to
(01:48):
find that stuff helpful.
So let's get into thediscussion for today, which is
why we can't talk aboutmedication Now.
Everybody wants to talk aboutmedication.
I get asked questions aboutmedication every day, all day
long.
The questions are usuallypretty similar Can I get better
without medication?
Is medication necessary?
(02:10):
Is it cheating if I takemedication?
What type of medication is thebest one?
Do you think you needmedication in order to overcome
anxiety?
The questions are usually thesame.
Sometimes there are questionsfrom people who are taking
medication and would like to getoff.
So I do understand that thequestions would be, you know, is
(02:31):
it possible for me to stoptaking my medication and will I
still get better if I do that?
So there's a ton of interest intalking about medication and I
did do three podcast episodesmany, many moons ago where I
talked about my own personalexperience with medication.
You can go back and listen tothose if you'd like.
I can't answer those questionsand I'm not sure that it's
(02:53):
really fair or ethical for anypodcaster or YouTuber or mental
health content creator to answerthose questions either.
And the first reason why is theprinciples of personal belief
and autonomy, which are reallyimportant in this equation,
right?
So no matter what I say aboutmedication, no matter how I
answer questions or respond tocomments or requests to talk
about medication, I am going tobe opposing somebody's personal
(03:17):
beliefs and I'm going to bechallenging the principle of
autonomy.
That's not okay, because anytherapist will tell you that one
of the first things that welearn is that every one of our
clients always has autonomy.
That's not okay, because anytherapist will tell you that one
of the first things that welearn is that every one of our
clients always has autonomy.
We are not here to tell youwhat to do or tell you what is
right for you.
Only you get to decide that andhonestly, I think that extends
into this.
(03:37):
And while this podcast or theseYouTube videos or the social
media content I create is nottherapy, I still think that I
have an obligation to respectyour personal beliefs,
everyone's personal beliefs, andto respect your right to
autonomy.
So no matter how I answer amedication question, I am going
to run counter to somebody'sbeliefs, which means I'm going
(03:59):
to kind of challenge thatautonomy thing, because in a
one-to-many environment like apodcast or a YouTube channel or
a social media scroll, there'san expectation of authority from
people who do what I do, and itcould be very invalidating to
hear somebody that you have cometo, maybe know like or trust
and be careful about that, butit may be difficult to hear
(04:21):
somebody like me say somethingthat runs counter to your belief
about medication or yourexperience with medication.
So if I say that people getbetter without medication
sometimes just because that istrue for some people, people who
are emotionally invested intaking medication, who believe
that it's working for them, whoare having a better life, who
(04:44):
see nothing wrong with it andwho don't want to be medication
shamed and I hear that Icompletely respect that.
I get that are going to feelattacked.
They're going to feelinvalidated.
So if I make any mention of thefact that there are people who
do in fact recover withoutmedication or choose to not use
medication, it's viewed as medshaming and I don't want to do
that because it's really notfair.
(05:05):
I don't even want toaccidentally invalidate or
attack somebody's personalbelief, especially about an
issue as important as this.
If I talk about how there aremany, many people who make good
use of medication, who find themvery useful, who find that
they've really improved thequality of their lives and who
have no problem taking them,maybe for the rest of their
lives, then people who have noproblem taking them, maybe for
(05:29):
the rest of their lives, thenpeople who have a strong bias
against the use of medicationand anxiety and anxiety recovery
, will pipe up because they mayhold that belief because of
lived experience.
Maybe they had horrific sideeffects or maybe they went
through a protracted withdrawalperiod and now they sort of have
a bent against medication.
So they don't want to hearanything good about them.
So, no matter what I do, I amgoing to challenge people's
personal beliefs and I'm goingto, kind of accidentally,
(05:50):
because of the relationship thatwe have in this one-to-many
position of authority whateverinfluencer voice thing that
somehow I wound up in it's goingto look like I'm kind of
challenging your right toautonomy.
Well, I like my meds, but theguy from the Anxious Truth
podcast or YouTube channel saysthat people don't need meds.
That's not fair.
(06:10):
Like that wouldn't be a greatway for you to interpret that
and I wouldn't mean it that way,right?
So we really have to look atthat.
In the end, medication is sucha personal decision and there
are so many different variablesthat go into that that the best
I can do is to say it's apersonal decision and that there
is no right or wrong answer.
We're going to get into this inthe next segment too, but
(06:33):
that's one primary reason why wedon't really talk about
medication here and I don'tanswer your medication questions
and, frankly, I don't think anyother podcast or YouTuber or
social media content creationperson should be doing that
either.
So, in the end, to wrap up sortof this first segment of the
episode, I would say that you'regoing to have to be okay with a
(06:53):
few facts when it comes tomedication, one of which is that
everyone gets to make their ownchoice.
Second one is everybody gets torespect everybody else's
choices and not question them,and that the third is that the
experience of other people isnot your experience, nor is
yours, them and they never willbe of other people is not your
experience, nor is yours, themand they never will be.
(07:14):
So there is no black or white,correct answer to this.
It is very personal and a lotof it is going to have to do
with personal beliefs and yourright to autonomy.
Okay, so what's the secondreason why people like me
shouldn't or don't talk aboutmedication or answer medication
questions?
Well, in simplest terms, I willsay because it's complicated.
It is, it's very complicated.
(07:35):
There are so many differentvariables that go into this.
So many different variablesthat go into this.
There are individual, physical,physiological and medical
variables that go into thisconversation and these decisions
.
There are social and familyvariables that go into this
decision.
Your family might be vehementlyagainst medication or very for
(07:57):
medication and Western medicine.
Your family might be heavilyinvested, from an emotional or
cultural standpoint, in Easternhealing philosophies or
spiritual beliefs, so thatfactors into it.
There are financial variables.
Not everybody can afford themedical care that leads to the
protracted use of medication.
We got to take that intoaccount.
There are cultural variablesand honestly, especially in the
(08:22):
US today, and not to get into ittoo much but it's hard to argue
that medicine and medicationthings that come out of
pharmaceutical companies are notcultural.
Now, because we're experiencinga really big cultural divide at
the moment and that's one ofthe issues or that's one of the
areas that is dividing us, atleast in the US, and it seems to
be in certain other Westerncultures countries as well.
(08:43):
Again from segment one, firstprinciple, beliefs and autonomy
everybody gets to pick their ownpath, but that's one of those
variables that goes into that.
Right, there are lifestylevariables that go into this.
I have no idea what lifestyleyou live.
I don't know what your job is.
I don't know what your demandsare.
I don't know if you have kids.
I don't know if you're inrelationships.
(09:03):
I don't know if you're caringfor an elderly parent.
I don't know if you have pets.
I don't know if you're activein your church or community,
like these things go into thatas well, because sometimes when
we use medication, there areside effects that may impact
your ability to live thelifestyle that you want to live.
So that has to be factored in.
There's your history withmedication.
So when we talk about medication, medication itself is a
(09:25):
variable.
Have you used meds before,psych psychiatric medications or
medications in the anxiety andmental health context?
Are you using any othermedications?
Do you have any other medicalconditions that are presently
being medicated?
Because that may play a role inwhether you can or cannot take
the usual medications that areprescribed in anxiety and
anxiety disorders.
And then there's your specificpresentation.
(09:48):
Like everybody's going to showup presenting in a different way
.
While the principles, say, ofOCD or health anxiety or panic
disorder are the same from oneperson to the next, the way it
shows up in someone's life, theobstacles it creates, the way it
impacts their lifestyle, theirfunctioning in many different
(10:08):
domains, is going to change.
So it's also going to depend onyour specific presentation.
Like there are so many variablesthat go into should I take a
medication?
Can I take a medication?
What kind of medication?
What dose?
Can I do it without medication?
There are so many variablesthat go into this that you have
to get to know somebody.
(10:28):
It's frankly, in my opinion andI will give you my opinion here
.
It seems patently absurd tothink that some dude with a
microphone who's talking to20,000 people on YouTube or
100,000 people on Instagramwould know any of you to any
sort of degree.
That would qualify me even if Iwas medically trained and
that's what I'm going to talkabout next to give you any kind
(10:50):
of actionable advice when itcomes to medication.
There are just too manyvariables that go into this
right, and while we're on thetopic, qualifications and
training do matter.
So unless you are watching avideo or listening to a podcast
or seeing a post or reading ablog or a book written by a
medical doctor or someone inpharmacology or, specifically, a
(11:13):
psychiatrist at least here inthe US, somebody who is neck
deep in qualifications, trainingand knowledge about the use of
psychiatric medications, youprobably shouldn't be asking
about psychiatric medicationsNow.
As a therapist treating anxietyand anxiety disorders, I have
medication discussions with myclients all the time, but there
is a scope within which I muststay.
(11:36):
We can talk about it.
I can help them sort of workout the issue when they're
unsure of what to do, becausethat happens to pretty much
everybody.
A lot of people become unsureof what to do.
That's okay.
So your therapist can sort ofhelp you work through those
things and I have enough baseinformation to help people make
their own well-informeddecisions.
But otherwise I can't tell youthat much about what those meds
(12:00):
are going to do for you or notdo for you, or if they're going
to work, or if you need them orif you don't need them.
I'm not even sure about that.
When it comes to people that Italk to and get to know
intimately, you know for weeksor months or even years on end.
So it's simply not possible forsomebody in this environment
again one to many, one persontalking into a camera or a
(12:21):
microphone that many people arelistening to or watching.
We can't possibly know enoughabout you to give you actionable
, possibly know enough about youto give you actionable, safe,
ethical, okay information aboutyour medication.
So that's the second reason whywe can't really talk about this
and why I don't answer thequestions when I get asked.
So let's move on to the thirdreason why I think it's not okay
(12:46):
for people like me to talk indetail about medication or to
answer questions aboutmedication.
Reason number three why we can'treally have this conversation
in any meaningful way is thatthings change.
That's right.
Things change.
You are a human being.
You change all the time.
Everything changes.
Your body is going to changeover time.
(13:06):
Naturally, on the short term,your body will change.
On the long term, your bodywill change simply because
you're aging every minute ofevery day.
Your mind is going to change,your beliefs are going to change
, your experiences will getfactored into your mental models
of the world and that willchange.
Everything is in flux.
Your morals might change, yourethics might change, you might
(13:27):
be exposed to different culturalthings and shift in your
cultural beliefs or yourcultural affiliations.
That will change Depending onwhere you are in life.
What's going on at any giventime.
Your sort of risk rewardcalculations, which every
medication involves, will changealso, like everything, is going
to change over time, and somedication in anxiety, anxiety
(13:49):
disorders, anxiety recovery andmental health in general is not
a static point in time issue.
It's simply not.
It's a long-term issue.
So medication you know, in thecomment section on a YouTube
video or an Instagram post onone day of one month, of one
week in the year 2025, is kindof useless because, in the end,
(14:12):
the information about whether ornot you should use medication
for your anxiety or yourrecovery.
How it's going to work?
Which one's going to work?
Which dose?
How long you have to take it?
How are you going to work?
Which one's going to work?
Which dose?
How long you have to take it?
How are you going to get off it?
Like one conversation, oneanswer to one question, one
comment on one day, one fixedpoint in time, is kind of
irrelevant, because that is partof a much larger issue.
(14:36):
The decision to make medication,to take medication, the
decision to keep takingmedication, the decision to
change medications, change dosesor possibly discontinue your
use of medication is a long-term, ongoing issue that's going to
change over time.
Sometimes you're going to bethinking you need more.
Sometimes you might be thinkingyou need less.
Sometimes you're thinking youneed to change it.
(14:57):
Sometimes your doctor's goingto think that.
Sometimes you and your doctorare going to decide it's time to
get off the medication.
But this all happens over time,as everything about you changes
your body, your mind, yourculture, your beliefs, your
finances, your jobs, yourrelationships, your beliefs,
your risk-reward calculations.
Everything is going to changeover time.
So we cannot look at medication,especially big, giant questions
(15:22):
like which one should I take?
Do I need to take any at all,can I get off it and are they
necessary for recovery?
Those are single point in timewhen you ask that question, but
you're asking about a thing thatis a long term proposition,
right?
So, when it comes to the use ofmedication or the continued use
of medication or management inthe way you are taking or using
or discontinuing use ofmedication, or the continued use
of medication or management inthe way you are taking or using
(15:42):
or discontinuing use ofmedication, unless your favorite
content creator, instagrammer,tiktoker, youtuber, podcaster,
author, is a physician trainedand experienced in prescribing
and managing the use ofpsychiatric medications in this
particular context, and unlessthey are qualified to help you
(16:03):
that way, and unless they'regoing to literally check in with
you at least once a week to seehow you're doing and watch you
change over time so they canhelp you adjust on the fly and,
by the way, no TikToker YouTuber, instagrammer, blogger,
influencer is doing that,because that simply doesn't
scale.
That's how you work withindividual people and that has
nothing to do with thealgorithmically driven platforms
(16:26):
that we're on right now, likepodcasts, videos and like
endless scroll short videos.
None of them are going to dothat.
So, unless you find an onlinehelper that is literally going
to act as your psychiatrist,your doctor, your therapist, all
of these things in an ongoing,intimate relationship where they
really get to know you andfollow your progress over time
and bring a shit ton ofqualifications into that and
(16:48):
feel like they want to take thetime and effort to be involved
with you on a regular basis fora very long time, don't ask them
that Now.
I know I'm being pretty animatedand maybe a little bit forceful
and a little bit aggressiveabout this, but honestly, why
won't I personally answer yourmedication questions?
Well, for the most part, it'sbecause things change over time.
(17:09):
I don't even know you today,much less what's going to happen
to you over the next six monthsor six years, and I don't
belong in that equation.
When you interact with me orwhen you interact with anybody
who's making videos or podcastsor writing books or making reels
or TikToks about this, you areonly seeing us in one small
snapshot of time.
(17:29):
You see me, I never see you, soI simply have no voice or role
in your medication decisions ormanagement.
That's just the way it is inyour medication decisions or
management.
That's just the way it is.
This is not a simple point intime question, because when it
comes to taking medication orcontinuing to take medication or
(17:50):
not taking medication or goingback on medication, this is an
ongoing issue that changes asyou change, because everything
changes, including your body,mind and the circumstances that
you were in.
So it makes no sense forsomebody like me to give you one
answer to a medication questionon one day in June of 2025.
It just doesn't make any sense.
(18:10):
So now that I've ranted intothis microphone for a good 20 or
so minutes, it's probably timeto wrap this up.
So just a quick recap I knowyou want me to answer questions
about medication.
I know you want other peoplelike me to answer questions or
give you advice or tell you whatto do or help you clarify or.
I do understand why you justwould feel better or reassured
(18:33):
or encouraged if I said you canget better without your
medication.
But I just can't do that andI'm never going to do that.
I can't do that because numberone, I don't get to counter
anybody's beliefs oraccidentally trample on your
right to autonomy to make yourown decisions and do what you
think is right for you.
It's not fair.
I can't do it.
I won't do it.
(18:53):
Number two it's just a supercomplicated thing.
There are so many variablesthat go into making these
decisions and adjusting themover time, and I will never,
ever, ever, know your variables.
So there's really no reason forme to chime in, because I have
no business chiming in.
I don't know nearly enoughabout you and your specific
circumstances to chime in, noram I medically qualified to do
(19:15):
that.
And the third reason why I'm notgoing to answer medication
questions or talk about thismuch more, if at all, at least
on this podcast, is that youchange, things change,
everything change.
And since all I can do torelate to you is to look into a
camera or talk into a microphonein specific slices of time, we
do not have an ongoing intimaterelationship where I get to know
(19:36):
how you're changing, why you'rechanging, what's changing or
what you should do about that.
So it makes no sense for me toinsert my opinions or my advice
or my beliefs about medicationinto your equation.
That actually doesn't make anysense, nor do I think it's
actually very ethical or safe.
So that's it.
That's why I won't answer yourmedication questions.
(19:56):
Now, that being said, if you areinterested in maybe hearing
some expert opinions on that.
If you follow the Disorderedpodcast that I do with Josh
Fletcher and you can find thatat disorderedfm we will probably
be bringing on some people whoare qualified to talk about that
.
We can have an educated, opendiscussion about the pros and
(20:17):
cons, the things you probablyneed to be aware of as you're
making these decisions, because,no matter which way you go, I'm
a huge fan of well-informedconsent when it comes to the use
of medication ordiscontinuation of use of
medication.
So if you check out disorderfmpretty soon, we're going to have
some people on who can havethose kind of discussions with
us and we think they'll beenlightening and informative and
(20:40):
hopefully actionable for youguys.
But the bad news is, evenwithin those discussions with
qualified experts, you're notgoing to be told what to do,
because that just can't happenin this kind of model.
All right, so we'll wrap it uphere.
I appreciate you listening tome rant for the last 20
something minutes.
I hope that it made my positiona little bit more clear not to
(21:01):
dismiss you or to tell you tostop asking me, but this is why
I don't talk about these thingshere and this is why, even in my
other podcasts, we have to bevery careful how we're going to
talk about those things.
This is why I've never writtena book about medication.
If you want to know my personalexperience using medications for
my anxiety and in my anxietyrecovery, you can go back just
(21:26):
search this podcast or, ifyou're on YouTube, search the
YouTube channel for medicationor antidepressants.
There are three episodes I didin a row.
I don't even remember whichones they are.
I'll link them in the podcastdescription or the video
description.
You can listen if you want.
That was just my own personalexperience.
People want to know, so Italked about it that one time,
not going to really talk aboutit again.
And that is it.
If you are listening to this onApple Podcasts or Spotify or
some platform that lets youleave a rating or review, and
(21:46):
you like this podcast and it ishelping you and you dig it,
leave a Firestar rating or maybeeven take a minute or two and
write a little review saying whyyou like the podcast, because
it really helps me out.
It helps more people find thepodcast, more people get help
and that's why I fired up thismicrophone to begin with.
Of course, if you're wonderingwhat to do next with all this
(22:07):
information, it would be to justkeep going right.
Just keep going.
Medication, no medication.
There's no right or wrong.
You may have to work throughthat issue as you go, as
everybody who's been on therecovery path has had to do one
way or the other.
You can't make a wrong choicebecause you can always change
course, you can always adjustand even if things go sideways
(22:27):
whether it's a medication issueor not you always have the
ability to stand up and sort ofchange direction and learn from
that.
So, no matter what you do today, take a different step in a
different direction toward thelife you want, and away from
knee-jerk, blind, unconscious,unthinking reactions to fear
that might be real but not havea basis.
You are winning.
(22:47):
All right, keep going.
I know you can do it.
Hang in there.
I will see you in two weeks forepisode 321 of the Anxious
Truth.
I don't know what we're goingto talk about, but I will be
here.
Thanks for listening, take care.
In anxiety and mental health.
Everybody wants to talk aboutmedication.
Everybody wants to askquestions about medication, but
we can't talk about medication,and today I'm going to tell you
why.
So let's get into it.
Hello everybody, welcome backto the Anxious Truth.
This is episode 320 of thepodcast we are recording in June
(00:24):
of 2025.
For those of you listening inthe future, I am Drew Linsalata,
creator and host of the AnxiousTruth.
I am a therapist practicing inthe area of anxiety and anxiety
disorders in New York.
I am also a three-time authoron this topic and a former
sufferer of panic disorder andagoraphobia and depression and
OCD for many years of my life onand off, but better now.
Thank you very much.
(00:44):
Psychoeducator, advocate, guywith a microphone.
And yeah, back again foranother episode of the Anxious
Truth.
This is the podcast where wetalk about all things anxiety,
anxiety disorders and anxietyrecovery.
If you're new here, welcome.
I hope you find the podcasthelpful and if you are a
returning listener, welcome back.
I'm always happy when you spendsome time with me.
Today, we're going to talk aboutwhy we can't talk about
(01:07):
medication, because many of youdo ask questions about
medication and many of you askif I would talk about medication
.
But we really can't, and thereare three primary reasons why.
So I want to get into that, butbefore we do, just a quick
reminder that the Anxious Truthis more than just this podcast
episode.
If you go to my website attheanxioustruthcom, you're going
(01:27):
to find links to all the otherresources.
It's all the free social mediastuff, all the previous podcast
episodes.
You're going to find links tosome very low-cost workshops and
educational sessions thatpeople find very helpful, the
books that I've written.
There's a whole bunch of stuffthere.
So check out theanxioustruthcom.
Avail yourself of all thegoodies.
I think you'll be happy thatyou did, because people seem to
(01:48):
find that stuff helpful.
So let's get into thediscussion for today, which is
why we can't talk aboutmedication Now.
Everybody wants to talk aboutmedication.
I get asked questions aboutmedication every day, all day
long.
The questions are usuallypretty similar Can I get better
without medication?
Is medication necessary?
(02:10):
Is it cheating if I takemedication?
What type of medication is thebest one?
Do you think you needmedication in order to overcome
anxiety?
The questions are usually thesame.
Sometimes there are questionsfrom people who are taking
medication and would like to getoff.
So I do understand that thequestions would be, you know, is
(02:31):
it possible for me to stoptaking my medication and will I
still get better if I do that?
So there's a ton of interest intalking about medication and I
did do three podcast episodesmany, many moons ago where I
talked about my own personalexperience with medication.
You can go back and listen tothose if you'd like.
I can't answer those questionsand I'm not sure that it's
(02:53):
really fair or ethical for anypodcaster or YouTuber or mental
health content creator to answerthose questions either.
And the first reason why is theprinciples of personal belief
and autonomy, which are reallyimportant in this equation,
right?
So no matter what I say aboutmedication, no matter how I
answer questions or respond tocomments or requests to talk
about medication, I am going tobe opposing somebody's personal
(03:17):
beliefs and I'm going to bechallenging the principle of
autonomy.
That's not okay, because anytherapist will tell you that one
of the first things that welearn is that every one of our
clients always has autonomy.
That's not okay, because anytherapist will tell you that one
of the first things that welearn is that every one of our
clients always has autonomy.
We are not here to tell youwhat to do or tell you what is
right for you.
Only you get to decide that andhonestly, I think that extends
into this.
(03:37):
And while this podcast or theseYouTube videos or the social
media content I create is nottherapy, I still think that I
have an obligation to respectyour personal beliefs,
everyone's personal beliefs, andto respect your right to
autonomy.
So no matter how I answer amedication question, I am going
to run counter to somebody'sbeliefs, which means I'm going
(03:59):
to kind of challenge thatautonomy thing, because in a
one-to-many environment like apodcast or a YouTube channel or
a social media scroll, there'san expectation of authority from
people who do what I do, and itcould be very invalidating to
hear somebody that you have cometo, maybe know like or trust
and be careful about that, butit may be difficult to hear
(04:21):
somebody like me say somethingthat runs counter to your belief
about medication or yourexperience with medication.
So if I say that people getbetter without medication
sometimes just because that istrue for some people, people who
are emotionally invested intaking medication, who believe
that it's working for them, whoare having a better life, who
(04:44):
see nothing wrong with it andwho don't want to be medication
shamed and I hear that Icompletely respect that.
I get that are going to feelattacked.
They're going to feelinvalidated.
So if I make any mention of thefact that there are people who
do in fact recover withoutmedication or choose to not use
medication, it's viewed as medshaming and I don't want to do
that because it's really notfair.
(05:05):
I don't even want toaccidentally invalidate or
attack somebody's personalbelief, especially about an
issue as important as this.
If I talk about how there aremany, many people who make good
use of medication, who find themvery useful, who find that
they've really improved thequality of their lives and who
have no problem taking them,maybe for the rest of their
lives, then people who have noproblem taking them, maybe for
(05:29):
the rest of their lives, thenpeople who have a strong bias
against the use of medicationand anxiety and anxiety recovery
, will pipe up because they mayhold that belief because of
lived experience.
Maybe they had horrific sideeffects or maybe they went
through a protracted withdrawalperiod and now they sort of have
a bent against medication.
So they don't want to hearanything good about them.
So, no matter what I do, I amgoing to challenge people's
personal beliefs and I'm goingto, kind of accidentally,
(05:50):
because of the relationship thatwe have in this one-to-many
position of authority whateverinfluencer voice thing that
somehow I wound up in it's goingto look like I'm kind of
challenging your right toautonomy.
Well, I like my meds, but theguy from the Anxious Truth
podcast or YouTube channel saysthat people don't need meds.
That's not fair.
(06:10):
Like that wouldn't be a greatway for you to interpret that
and I wouldn't mean it that way,right?
So we really have to look atthat.
In the end, medication is sucha personal decision and there
are so many different variablesthat go into that that the best
I can do is to say it's apersonal decision and that there
is no right or wrong answer.
We're going to get into this inthe next segment too, but
(06:33):
that's one primary reason why wedon't really talk about
medication here and I don'tanswer your medication questions
and, frankly, I don't think anyother podcast or YouTuber or
social media content creationperson should be doing that
either.
So, in the end, to wrap up sortof this first segment of the
episode, I would say that you'regoing to have to be okay with a
(06:53):
few facts when it comes tomedication, one of which is that
everyone gets to make their ownchoice.
Second one is everybody gets torespect everybody else's
choices and not question them,and that the third is that the
experience of other people isnot your experience, nor is
yours, them and they never willbe of other people is not your
experience, nor is yours, themand they never will be.
(07:14):
So there is no black or white,correct answer to this.
It is very personal and a lotof it is going to have to do
with personal beliefs and yourright to autonomy.
Okay, so what's the secondreason why people like me
shouldn't or don't talk aboutmedication or answer medication
questions?
Well, in simplest terms, I willsay because it's complicated.
It is, it's very complicated.
(07:35):
There are so many differentvariables that go into this.
So many different variablesthat go into this.
There are individual, physical,physiological and medical
variables that go into thisconversation and these decisions
.
There are social and familyvariables that go into this
decision.
Your family might be vehementlyagainst medication or very for
(07:57):
medication and Western medicine.
Your family might be heavilyinvested, from an emotional or
cultural standpoint, in Easternhealing philosophies or
spiritual beliefs, so thatfactors into it.
There are financial variables.
Not everybody can afford themedical care that leads to the
protracted use of medication.
We got to take that intoaccount.
There are cultural variablesand honestly, especially in the
(08:22):
US today, and not to get into ittoo much but it's hard to argue
that medicine and medicationthings that come out of
pharmaceutical companies are notcultural.
Now, because we're experiencinga really big cultural divide at
the moment and that's one ofthe issues or that's one of the
areas that is dividing us, atleast in the US, and it seems to
be in certain other Westerncultures countries as well.
(08:43):
Again from segment one, firstprinciple, beliefs and autonomy
everybody gets to pick their ownpath, but that's one of those
variables that goes into that.
Right, there are lifestylevariables that go into this.
I have no idea what lifestyleyou live.
I don't know what your job is.
I don't know what your demandsare.
I don't know if you have kids.
I don't know if you're inrelationships.
(09:03):
I don't know if you're caringfor an elderly parent.
I don't know if you have pets.
I don't know if you're activein your church or community,
like these things go into thatas well, because sometimes when
we use medication, there areside effects that may impact
your ability to live thelifestyle that you want to live.
So that has to be factored in.
There's your history withmedication.
So when we talk about medication, medication itself is a
(09:25):
variable.
Have you used meds before,psych psychiatric medications or
medications in the anxiety andmental health context?
Are you using any othermedications?
Do you have any other medicalconditions that are presently
being medicated?
Because that may play a role inwhether you can or cannot take
the usual medications that areprescribed in anxiety and
anxiety disorders.
And then there's your specificpresentation.
(09:48):
Like everybody's going to showup presenting in a different way
.
While the principles, say, ofOCD or health anxiety or panic
disorder are the same from oneperson to the next, the way it
shows up in someone's life, theobstacles it creates, the way it
impacts their lifestyle, theirfunctioning in many different
(10:08):
domains, is going to change.
So it's also going to depend onyour specific presentation.
Like there are so many variablesthat go into should I take a
medication?
Can I take a medication?
What kind of medication?
What dose?
Can I do it without medication?
There are so many variablesthat go into this that you have
to get to know somebody.
(10:28):
It's frankly, in my opinion andI will give you my opinion here
.
It seems patently absurd tothink that some dude with a
microphone who's talking to20,000 people on YouTube or
100,000 people on Instagramwould know any of you to any
sort of degree.
That would qualify me even if Iwas medically trained and
that's what I'm going to talkabout next to give you any kind
(10:50):
of actionable advice when itcomes to medication.
There are just too manyvariables that go into this
right, and while we're on thetopic, qualifications and
training do matter.
So unless you are watching avideo or listening to a podcast
or seeing a post or reading ablog or a book written by a
medical doctor or someone inpharmacology or, specifically, a
(11:13):
psychiatrist at least here inthe US, somebody who is neck
deep in qualifications, trainingand knowledge about the use of
psychiatric medications, youprobably shouldn't be asking
about psychiatric medicationsNow.
As a therapist treating anxietyand anxiety disorders, I have
medication discussions with myclients all the time, but there
is a scope within which I muststay.
(11:36):
We can talk about it.
I can help them sort of workout the issue when they're
unsure of what to do, becausethat happens to pretty much
everybody.
A lot of people become unsureof what to do.
That's okay.
So your therapist can sort ofhelp you work through those
things and I have enough baseinformation to help people make
their own well-informeddecisions.
But otherwise I can't tell youthat much about what those meds
(12:00):
are going to do for you or notdo for you, or if they're going
to work, or if you need them orif you don't need them.
I'm not even sure about that.
When it comes to people that Italk to and get to know
intimately, you know for weeksor months or even years on end.
So it's simply not possible forsomebody in this environment
again one to many, one persontalking into a camera or a
(12:21):
microphone that many people arelistening to or watching.
We can't possibly know enoughabout you to give you actionable
, possibly know enough about youto give you actionable, safe,
ethical, okay information aboutyour medication.
So that's the second reason whywe can't really talk about this
and why I don't answer thequestions when I get asked.
So let's move on to the thirdreason why I think it's not okay
(12:46):
for people like me to talk indetail about medication or to
answer questions aboutmedication.
Reason number three why we can'treally have this conversation
in any meaningful way is thatthings change.
That's right.
Things change.
You are a human being.
You change all the time.
Everything changes.
Your body is going to changeover time.
(13:06):
Naturally, on the short term,your body will change.
On the long term, your bodywill change simply because
you're aging every minute ofevery day.
Your mind is going to change,your beliefs are going to change
, your experiences will getfactored into your mental models
of the world and that willchange.
Everything is in flux.
Your morals might change, yourethics might change, you might
(13:27):
be exposed to different culturalthings and shift in your
cultural beliefs or yourcultural affiliations.
That will change Depending onwhere you are in life.
What's going on at any giventime.
Your sort of risk rewardcalculations, which every
medication involves, will changealso, like everything, is going
to change over time, and somedication in anxiety, anxiety
(13:49):
disorders, anxiety recovery andmental health in general is not
a static point in time issue.
It's simply not.
It's a long-term issue.
So medication you know, in thecomment section on a YouTube
video or an Instagram post onone day of one month, of one
week in the year 2025, is kindof useless because, in the end,
(14:12):
the information about whether ornot you should use medication
for your anxiety or yourrecovery.
How it's going to work?
Which one's going to work?
Which dose?
How long you have to take it?
How are you going to work?
Which one's going to work?
Which dose?
How long you have to take it?
How are you going to get off it?
Like one conversation, oneanswer to one question, one
comment on one day, one fixedpoint in time, is kind of
irrelevant, because that is partof a much larger issue.
(14:36):
The decision to make medication,to take medication, the
decision to keep takingmedication, the decision to
change medications, change dosesor possibly discontinue your
use of medication is a long-term, ongoing issue that's going to
change over time.
Sometimes you're going to bethinking you need more.
Sometimes you might be thinkingyou need less.
Sometimes you're thinking youneed to change it.
(14:57):
Sometimes your doctor's goingto think that.
Sometimes you and your doctorare going to decide it's time to
get off the medication.
But this all happens over time,as everything about you changes
your body, your mind, yourculture, your beliefs, your
finances, your jobs, yourrelationships, your beliefs,
your risk-reward calculations.
Everything is going to changeover time.
So we cannot look at medication,especially big, giant questions
(15:22):
like which one should I take?
Do I need to take any at all,can I get off it and are they
necessary for recovery?
Those are single point in timewhen you ask that question, but
you're asking about a thing thatis a long term proposition,
right?
So, when it comes to the use ofmedication or the continued use
of medication or management inthe way you are taking or using
or discontinuing use ofmedication, or the continued use
of medication or management inthe way you are taking or using
(15:42):
or discontinuing use ofmedication, unless your favorite
content creator, instagrammer,tiktoker, youtuber, podcaster,
author, is a physician trainedand experienced in prescribing
and managing the use ofpsychiatric medications in this
particular context, and unlessthey are qualified to help you
(16:03):
that way, and unless they'regoing to literally check in with
you at least once a week to seehow you're doing and watch you
change over time so they canhelp you adjust on the fly and,
by the way, no TikToker YouTuber, instagrammer, blogger,
influencer is doing that,because that simply doesn't
scale.
That's how you work withindividual people and that has
nothing to do with thealgorithmically driven platforms
(16:26):
that we're on right now, likepodcasts, videos and like
endless scroll short videos.
None of them are going to dothat.
So, unless you find an onlinehelper that is literally going
to act as your psychiatrist,your doctor, your therapist, all
of these things in an ongoing,intimate relationship where they
really get to know you andfollow your progress over time
and bring a shit ton ofqualifications into that and
(16:48):
feel like they want to take thetime and effort to be involved
with you on a regular basis fora very long time, don't ask them
that Now.
I know I'm being pretty animatedand maybe a little bit forceful
and a little bit aggressiveabout this, but honestly, why
won't I personally answer yourmedication questions?
Well, for the most part, it'sbecause things change over time.
(17:09):
I don't even know you today,much less what's going to happen
to you over the next six monthsor six years, and I don't
belong in that equation.
When you interact with me orwhen you interact with anybody
who's making videos or podcastsor writing books or making reels
or TikToks about this, you areonly seeing us in one small
snapshot of time.
(17:29):
You see me, I never see you, soI simply have no voice or role
in your medication decisions ormanagement.
That's just the way it is inyour medication decisions or
management.
That's just the way it is.
This is not a simple point intime question, because when it
comes to taking medication orcontinuing to take medication or
(17:50):
not taking medication or goingback on medication, this is an
ongoing issue that changes asyou change, because everything
changes, including your body,mind and the circumstances that
you were in.
So it makes no sense forsomebody like me to give you one
answer to a medication questionon one day in June of 2025.
It just doesn't make any sense.
(18:10):
So now that I've ranted intothis microphone for a good 20 or
so minutes, it's probably timeto wrap this up.
So just a quick recap I knowyou want me to answer questions
about medication.
I know you want other peoplelike me to answer questions or
give you advice or tell you whatto do or help you clarify or.
I do understand why you justwould feel better or reassured
(18:33):
or encouraged if I said you canget better without your
medication.
But I just can't do that andI'm never going to do that.
I can't do that because numberone, I don't get to counter
anybody's beliefs oraccidentally trample on your
right to autonomy to make yourown decisions and do what you
think is right for you.
It's not fair.
I can't do it.
I won't do it.
(18:53):
Number two it's just a supercomplicated thing.
There are so many variablesthat go into making these
decisions and adjusting themover time, and I will never,
ever, ever, know your variables.
So there's really no reason forme to chime in, because I have
no business chiming in.
I don't know nearly enoughabout you and your specific
circumstances to chime in, noram I medically qualified to do
(19:15):
that.
And the third reason why I'm notgoing to answer medication
questions or talk about thismuch more, if at all, at least
on this podcast, is that youchange, things change,
everything change.
And since all I can do torelate to you is to look into a
camera or talk into a microphonein specific slices of time, we
do not have an ongoing intimaterelationship where I get to know
(19:36):
how you're changing, why you'rechanging, what's changing or
what you should do about that.
So it makes no sense for me toinsert my opinions or my advice
or my beliefs about medicationinto your equation.
That actually doesn't make anysense, nor do I think it's
actually very ethical or safe.
So that's it.
That's why I won't answer yourmedication questions.
(19:56):
Now, that being said, if you areinterested in maybe hearing
some expert opinions on that.
If you follow the Disorderedpodcast that I do with Josh
Fletcher and you can find thatat disorderedfm we will probably
be bringing on some people whoare qualified to talk about that
.
We can have an educated, opendiscussion about the pros and
(20:17):
cons, the things you probablyneed to be aware of as you're
making these decisions, because,no matter which way you go, I'm
a huge fan of well-informedconsent when it comes to the use
of medication ordiscontinuation of use of
medication.
So if you check out disorderfmpretty soon, we're going to have
some people on who can havethose kind of discussions with
us and we think they'll beenlightening and informative and
(20:40):
hopefully actionable for youguys.
But the bad news is, evenwithin those discussions with
qualified experts, you're notgoing to be told what to do,
because that just can't happenin this kind of model.
All right, so we'll wrap it uphere.
I appreciate you listening tome rant for the last 20
something minutes.
I hope that it made my positiona little bit more clear not to
(21:01):
dismiss you or to tell you tostop asking me, but this is why
I don't talk about these thingshere and this is why, even in my
other podcasts, we have to bevery careful how we're going to
talk about those things.
This is why I've never writtena book about medication.
If you want to know my personalexperience using medications for
my anxiety and in my anxietyrecovery, you can go back just
(21:26):
search this podcast or, ifyou're on YouTube, search the
YouTube channel for medicationor antidepressants.
There are three episodes I didin a row.
I don't even remember whichones they are.
I'll link them in the podcastdescription or the video
description.
You can listen if you want.
That was just my own personalexperience.
People want to know, so Italked about it that one time,
not going to really talk aboutit again.
And that is it.
If you are listening to this onApple Podcasts or Spotify or
some platform that lets youleave a rating or review, and
(21:46):
you like this podcast and it ishelping you and you dig it,
leave a Firestar rating or maybeeven take a minute or two and
write a little review saying whyyou like the podcast, because
it really helps me out.
It helps more people find thepodcast, more people get help
and that's why I fired up thismicrophone to begin with.
Of course, if you're wonderingwhat to do next with all this
(22:07):
information, it would be to justkeep going right.
Just keep going.
Medication, no medication.
There's no right or wrong.
You may have to work throughthat issue as you go, as
everybody who's been on therecovery path has had to do one
way or the other.
You can't make a wrong choicebecause you can always change
course, you can always adjustand even if things go sideways
(22:27):
whether it's a medication issueor not you always have the
ability to stand up and sort ofchange direction and learn from
that.
So, no matter what you do today, take a different step in a
different direction toward thelife you want, and away from
knee-jerk, blind, unconscious,unthinking reactions to fear
that might be real but not havea basis.
You are winning.
(22:47):
All right, keep going.
I know you can do it.
Hang in there.
I will see you in two weeks forepisode 321 of the Anxious
Truth.
I don't know what we're goingto talk about, but I will be
here.
Thanks for listening, take care.
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