Is medicated person their true self?

[aimeeandbeatles]

If you're on antipsychotics or some mental health medication, are you you, or what the company making the medication say you should be? How do we know who's really you? The insane, yet brilliant side, or the sane, dull side? How do we know one brain is good and the other one is not? Are we killing our true selfs to get rid of stigma of insanity? Or is the government doing this on purpose, to ruin the brilliant minds who know the government is spying on us, to steal our works in progress?

Your thoughts?

 

[Desmond Hawkins]

I think the insane side is probably not nearly as brilliant as you think. Stick with the sane, medicated side. It is a more tolerable you.

Note: "You" is a universal term and does not necessarily refer to the OP.

 

[DNK]

You are whatever you think you are.

So open ended. But my point is that the answer to this question changes depending on who you ask.

I would say no and yes.

If the real questions is "should I take my meds" I would say it also depends.

 

[Desmond Hawkins]

If the real questions is "should I take my meds" I would say it also depends.

No, it doesn't depend, she should take her friggin' meds!

Don't give irresponsible advice to young impressionable kids who may do damage to themselves based on it.

 

[Princeps]

I'm not myself if i'm not stoned and drunk.

 

[Shadylookin]

Are you still your true self if you get a cast to fix your broken leg? I mean technically they're changing what you are.

For a more mental argument I guess...

are you your true self if you're tired? hungry? receive a promotion? thirsty? got a flat tire? you find out your girl/boyfriend cheated on you? just wake up? didn't get your 3 cups of coffee in? change of environment? matured?

all the things above will undoubtedly change your mental state. Is there any reason why the above things(which we've all experienced some of them) are any less significant to altering your "true self" than medication? Your true self is what you are in this moment.

For instance for anyone willing to dig deep enough into cfc archives I was once a religious person. Afterwards for a time I was a very anti religious person. Now my "true self" can't be both religious and anti-religion. So I would say that really my "true self" was dependent upon the specific moments.

but that's just my stab in the dark at a very philosophical question.

 

[DNK]

No, it doesn't depend, she should take her friggin' meds!

Don't give irresponsible advice to young impressionable kids who may do damage to themselves based on it.

I said, "it depends," not, "get off your meds, you'll be fine."

It's not a call anyone can make over the internet. So it depends.

Edit - clarification: I don't inherently believe mild forms of "insanity" are a bad thing, although it's something that needs to be properly dealt with in a thorough manner. I understand insanity and its pitfalls, and I am not going to say that it's positive on the whole, but it's a complex issue. That was the point I was trying to get across. I have major issues with the pharmaceutical industry, but also understand that there are serious cases out there. It really does depend. If someone is going to take that sentence as a green light, then they have reading comprehension issues.

Excuse me for treating the OP like an adult and giving an honest answer. I guess I assume too much.

 

[scy12]

Well i i suppose i know who my true self is and it is neither sane fully insane , Brilliant or Dull.

 

[Thorbal]

I don´t think that there is a "true self" to begin with. Medication or intoxication, lets assume alcohol, often just tend to reduce your affectual control or "inhibitors". Many people tend to equalize that with being more "free". Psychologically speaking, what you perceive as the "barrier" betwenn you and the "outer world": it´s not your skin or anything - it´s not a physical barrier. The barrier(s) are your internalised self-control mechanisms (your superego if you want to). And when they´re gone or become less strict, you get the feeling of being more "yourself". But it´s just a different mode of perception/mental state. There is no "zero-point".
At least that´s what Norbert Elias says .

And to add in a little bit of Foucault: how do we determine who is insane or who is not? Sometimes, it´s easy: if there´s visible brain damage, for instance. But what do you do if a person is physically ok? Then you can just create an "average behaviour" from which a person is apparently deviating, so you can "adapt" him by medication (if he is experiencing psychological strain or is a severe nuisance to others). So how do we define "insanity" in the first place? A very difficult and interesting question.

 

[Dann]

Re: The OP
To which one of my 5 different personalities is your question addresed to?

 

[ArneHD]

Self is whatever you are. You may not be the original "you" but you are still "you". There is no universal idea of you that, when you changed, destroys the person. A person can have more than one "true selves".

 

[warpus]

antidepressants really mess people up - two of my best friends have been on the stuff and it's totally changed the type of people they are.

they are less depressed, sure, but their personalities are just realy really messed up cause of the stuff... they are both now trying to get off their respective medications, because: it's messing with their sexual libido, making them paranoid, making them more confrontentional, and just generally screwing with the type of people they are/were.

i would never touch the stuff - give me depression over medication any day.

 

[azzaman333]

Meds are for sissies and addicts.

 

[Synobun]

Meds are for sissies and addicts.

While I agree, some people DO have to take meds or else they'll be dead rocks in their bed or not able to get anything accomplished.

Self is whatever you are. You may not be the original "you" but you are still "you". There is no universal idea of you that, when you changed, destroys the person. A person can have more than one "true selves".

Alternating Personalities FTW.

 

[Nylan]

Meds are for sissies and addicts.

You, clearly, have not grown up with the clinically depressed.

 

[philippe]

I'm not myself if i'm not stoned and drunk.

that's stretching it a bit far I would just say i'm a lousy gamer when not intoxicated

 

[Dubai Vol]

aimeeandbeatles should take the meds. Every post aimeeandbeatles has made on this forum proves that aimeeandbeatles should take the meds.

/have plenty of experience with psych wards and psych patients
//take the meds aimeeandbeatles

 

[mrt144]

If you're on antipsychotics or some mental health medication, are you you, or what the company making the medication say you should be? How do we know who's really you? The insane, yet brilliant side, or the sane, dull side? How do we know one brain is good and the other one is not? Are we killing our true selfs to get rid of stigma of insanity? Or is the government doing this on purpose, to ruin the brilliant minds who know the government is spying on us, to steal our works in progress?

Your thoughts?

The true self is highly overrated if it can't function within the bounds of society. I'd rather take my meds for ADD than be jobless, homeless, and depressed.

 

[LucyDuke]

No, it doesn't depend, she should take her friggin' meds!

Don't give irresponsible advice to young impressionable kids who may do damage to themselves based on it.

Kids, adults, doesn't matter. Take your meds. If you don't want to take your meds, talk to the damn doctor that prescribed them about why you don't want to take them, but keep taking your meds until your doctor tells you not to take your meds.

Take your meds.

Meds are for sissies and addicts.

Meds are for sick people.


/also familiar with psychiatric medications and the things that go wrong when you don't take your meds. Take your meds.
//also familiar with fark?

 

[Hundegesicht]

Dunno. I've had my rough spots and been tempted to get on meds before, but try to work everything through with a lot of writing, counseling, and a couple of good friends. I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't handle life, though... I'm really opposed to meds (dislike the idea of chemically controlled personalities), but I can see how they're necessary.

Really, do what you want. The most important thing is being free, I think. But think over "is being free of chemical influence more "free" than being free to live a normal life, have friends, go to college, be happy with my job, fall in love, etc."

Ideally, both are preferable, if you can swing it. Not everyone can, though.