How easy is it to get prescribed anti-depressants in countries other than the UK!

How easy is it to get prescribed anti-depressants in countries other than the UK?

It's so easy it makes me think how many people are abusing them and don't really need them. Especially in Wales because prescriptions in Wales are free of charge for all now.

Well, I can only tell you about the US, as that's where I live.

I know a lot about psychoactive medications because I have to take them, and I have been on just about everything on the market at one time or another. It's absolutely shocking to me how in the last 10-15 years, as the medications have become more effective, they are literally being passed out like candy.

I know people who have had physical problems which have gone undiagnosed for a long time before a clever doctor realized what was going on. In nearly all cases, the very first thing their original doctor did was give them anti-depressants because he or she assumed that their physical feelings of malaise were due to depression, instead of physical disease processes. The mother of one of my friends could have died because of that. She had a large vessel which was 90% occluded, and she was having a lot of chest pain. Her doctor assumed it was a combination of depression and anxiety disorder, so he gave her antidepressants and Valium. She was fortunate enough to have an acute attack of pain while in the company of people who did not know what her doctor's diagnosis was. They called an ambulance, and the ER doctor did tests and found the occlusion, which was promptly treated with a stent. She could have died if not for the intervention, because antidepressants and Valium are never going to be a solution for a serious blockage in a vessel that goes to your heart.

The actual anti-depressants aren't so bad, because they don't make you feel really great when they are being abused, but the other drugs that are given for mood disorders or anxiety, which frequently accompany depression, are very easy to get. Valium is a popular street drug, as are all the benzos, and they are ridiculously easy to get. I know a girl whose boyfriend is a drug dealer, and he gets part of his product from the regular old pharmacy. He's been pretending to have an anxiety disorder for years now, and he sells the Valium which is prescribed for him for $5 per 5 mg pill. His prescription is for #90 per month, and he pays $5 for the entire prescription. That's quite a profit margin. I cannot imagine how bad it must be if the stuff is free.

Psychoactive medications have their place, and I believe, simply judging from my own situation, that they are absolutely necessary for some people. But doctors really do need to be more careful about who gets what. You can go to a doc here and simply tell him you are so anxious you are having a hard time sleeping/concentrating/doing your homework, and you will most likely get some pretty potent stuff. It's pretty scary.