As the kidz say, read the whole thing.
A Glut of Antidepressants
By RONI CARYN RABIN
Over the past two decades, the use of antidepressants has skyrocketed. One in 10 Americans now takes an antidepressant medication; among women in their 40s and 50s, the figure is one in four.
Experts have offered numerous reasons. Depression is common, and economic struggles have added to our stress and anxiety. Television ads promote antidepressants, and insurance plans usually cover them, even while limiting talk therapy. But a recent study suggests another explanation: that the condition is being overdiagnosed on a remarkable scale.
One 50-year-old New York City woman said her doctor prescribed an antidepressant a few weeks after her husband died, even though she thought her feelings of shock and sadness were appropriate.
“He told me, ‘You have to function, you have to keep your job, you have a daughter to raise,’ ” said the woman, who asked that her name be withheld because few friends or family members knew she was taking antidepressants…
