Depression and Anxiety in Medical School
I have been battling some really bad anxiety since starting med school and after going through psychiatry, I realized that some of what I feel is not normal. I am usually pretty laid back but when I get stressed, I can get overly anxious and preseverate on everything I need to get done. This is of course not healthy. Though I don't expect to be stress-free through this process, I do think my anxiety has been affecting my day (mostly because it keeps me awake at night). I sought help via the school therapist and she referred me to a psychiatrist who recommended a medication called Citalopram. Normally, Citalopram (an SSRI) is used for treating depression and while I don't think I have depression, the same drug is useful for treating anxiety. I have basically one week to decide whether or not I want to try the med and I am really on the fence.
As someone who prides herself on not taking a lot of medications, talking about this is hard. On one hand, I have been doing fine the past month (getting enough sleep, studying a lot, and hanging out with my family/friends when I can). On the other hand, I am about to start Internal Medicine which worries me more then any other rotation. On psychiatry, I would have about 2 breakdowns per week and if that happens again, I don't know if I can handle it. It also takes about 4 weeks for the medication to start working so I worry that should I decide to tackle this problem later, it will be too late.
It is not uncommon for medical students to be on an SSRI. We are all somewhat type A in our personalities and though our anxiety is often the driving force for our success, I have see it lead to depression and even suicide. I think medicine demands so much from you both physically and emotionally, it is hard to find a balance. This year is especially hard for me because everything keeps changing. Sometimes I don't even know where I'll be or who I'll be working with till the night before and the expectations of some residents/attendings is demanding. I don't know if I will choose to start a medication but I do know I need to be more cognizant of how I deal with stress and if not meds, perhaps I need to implement some shelf-soothing mechanisms into my daily routine...lol....or maybe I just need scheduled Melatonin. Update to come....
As someone who prides herself on not taking a lot of medications, talking about this is hard. On one hand, I have been doing fine the past month (getting enough sleep, studying a lot, and hanging out with my family/friends when I can). On the other hand, I am about to start Internal Medicine which worries me more then any other rotation. On psychiatry, I would have about 2 breakdowns per week and if that happens again, I don't know if I can handle it. It also takes about 4 weeks for the medication to start working so I worry that should I decide to tackle this problem later, it will be too late.
It is not uncommon for medical students to be on an SSRI. We are all somewhat type A in our personalities and though our anxiety is often the driving force for our success, I have see it lead to depression and even suicide. I think medicine demands so much from you both physically and emotionally, it is hard to find a balance. This year is especially hard for me because everything keeps changing. Sometimes I don't even know where I'll be or who I'll be working with till the night before and the expectations of some residents/attendings is demanding. I don't know if I will choose to start a medication but I do know I need to be more cognizant of how I deal with stress and if not meds, perhaps I need to implement some shelf-soothing mechanisms into my daily routine...lol....or maybe I just need scheduled Melatonin. Update to come....
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