Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics
According to a report commissioned by Public Health England, one in seven people in England were prescribed antidepressants last year, with 9.1 million patients receiving them, up more than 15% in five years.
Prescribing is highest in deprived areas, while depression symptoms remain nearly twice pre-Covid levels. The figures fuel debate over rising mental-health problems, long-term medication use and whether antidepressants are being overprescribed.
Of particular interest to me, women are prescribed antidepressants at a rate 1.5x higher when compared to men.
PHE's Prescribed Medicine Review included 5 recommendations. ALL 5 recommendations were around making information about dependency and withdrawal more available. There were ZERO recommendations for options that didn't include the prescribing of antidepressants - the assumption being that all the solutions involved these drugs rather than vitamins/minerals or lifestyle "prescriptions".
I have just completed my certification with Dr Mindy Pelz so I am now an authorised Fast Like A Girl coach. A key part of the training focussed on balancing womens' hormones naturally through food, lifestyle, exercise and social connections. So, this is why I'm particularly interested in the fact that women are routinely prescribed antidepressants at a far higher rate then men, particularly as they grow older. An age bracket increase that aligns with the onset of perimenopause.
There are many things that can cause a woman to feel out of balance. Particularly as we enter perimenopause. Why is it often the assumption that depression is the cause? How many women that are being prescribed antidepressants are being tested first for deficiencies in Vitamin D, Iron or Magnesium? Because deficiencies in any of these can have major impacts on our mood.
How many are having conversations with their doctors about their hormone levels?? As women enter perimenopause, declining hormone levels can have a massive impact on many areas of health and wellbeing,
I have a client that went to see their doctor reporting feelings of anxiety. crying and inability to sleep. She is mid 50's and specifically asked if her hormones could be playing a part as none of this was normal for her. She was told by her doctor that hormones had absolutely no impact on any of these things!!! And he prescribed her antidepressants. Fortunately, she pushed for an appointment with another doctor who disagreed vehemently and has tweaked her HRT and my client is already feeling better. And no, she didn't take the antidepressants.
This story had a happy ending, but how many people would simply take the "wise" doctor's advice, get the Rx filled and end up taking unnecessary antidepressants for years??
There are so many things that we can do to proactively improve our health. Medication doesn't fix the underlying problem, it just hides or minimises the symptoms. I am in no way dismissing that medication has a place, and for some it's life changing. But, the side effects, onboarding and withdrawal can be deeply unpleasant with no guaranteed results. So if we are going to prescribe SSRIs, let's at least make sure that the medication is absolutely necessary in the first place.
Women make up 50% of the population. Is it really asking too much to hope that we have access to solutions that aren't just about drugs?
image shot at Ara Ha