Media for products offering relief for sufferers from depression, anxiety and other mental health issue contribute to misconceptions surrounding mental health. Many of the advertisements suggest that depression, anxiety, bipolar, etc. can be cured simply by taking a pill, and the reality is much more complex than simply taking a pill. Mental health is an ongoing process that requires different treatments for different sufferers. Not only does the medication and dose vary, auxiliary treatments, such as therapy and lifestyle changes are also necessary for many patients.
Medication is Different from Other Products
Advertising’s job is to make a person feel like they really need the product. Shampoo commercials geared toward women suggest that the brand of the shampoo will make them more beautiful and glamorous than any other type of shampoo. Cough medicine commercials try to make consumers think that their cough medicine is better than other cures. Medical advertising is no different, but perhaps it should be.
There is a difference between cough medicine and shampoo and drugs that treat mental health. The biggest difference is the needs of the consumer. People buying shampoo just need to wash their hair, people buying cough medicine just need to relieve their cold symptoms. A person in need of mental health medications needs a system to help them manage their condition. The medication alone does not provide the whole system.
Inferring that a mentally ill person needs a certain drug to feel better could be considered unethical. People who are having problems with depression or anxiety may be desperate to find a cure, and these advertisements take advantage of their condition. Patients may become disappointed if they take a medication and it doesn’t improve their circumstance, or it makes them feel worse. If the medication doesn’t work, the sufferer could feel hopeless, as if nothing can help them.
Antidepressants are not an option for everyone. For example, many antidepressants are unsafe for pregnant and nursing mothers. These advertisements suggesting that the best way to cure depression is to take medication leaves behind patients, like the pregnant women, who cannot take the medication. A person who would otherwise seek alternative treatments may slip further into depression. On the other hand, women desperate to feel better could put themselves and their baby at risk by taking the medications against doctors’ recommendations.
Side Effects
These drugs come with a number of dangerous potential side effects. The advertisements usually list the side effects, either in small print in print advertisements or in a rushed voice at the end of a television advertisement. Many people who believe that the drugs are their only cure are willing to take the medication and risk the side effects.
Side effects for depression and anti-anxiety medication can be particularly severe for teenagers and children. Some of these medications have been known to cause violence, suicidal thoughts, and even suicide in many patients, especially in children and teenagers. In this case, the drug may be causing the condition that it was originally meant to cure.
Perpetuating Stereotypes
These advertisements can also be harmful because they perpetuate false ideas and stigma surrounding people with mental health issues. Depression effects both men and women, but many commercials for depression medication feature depressed females. This unfairly, and incorrectly promotes the idea that only women suffer from mental health issues.
Advertisements for psychiatric medications often show people who are indoors, appearing inactive and troubled. Some advertisements show people engaging in socially deviant behaviors, such as excessive sleeping, or acting in overtly anxious ways. These advertisements can perpetuate the myth that people with mental health issues are always strange and unable to function in society. In reality, patients suffering from these conditions engage in a variety of activities, both indoor and outside. They can often have full social lives and productive jobs. The only time that mental health media shows patients social or productive is a demonstration of life on the medication.
Conclusion
Treatments for mental health issues are best discussed between a doctor and a patient. Advertisers and even drug producers should have little to no place in the conversation. Their job is to sell drugs, while the doctor and patients’ goal is wellness. Media meddling in metal health issues has lead to some unfortunate misconceptions, including the idea that all a mentally ill person has to do is take a pill to feel better. While medication can help, it isn’t the only cure, and it shouldn’t be presented as the only cure.
