Are antidepressants a meme?

kind of

they're just drugs that alter your state of mind / trains of thought and line of thinking

>>38135468
Mostly
They reduce the likelihood of suicide in pretty much everyone who doesn't have a paradoxical reaction, but they are only really effective in reducing the crushing misery, lethargy and the negative affect symptoms of the very severely (or psychotically) depressed. And even then, electroconvulsive therapy has more reliable benefits
The benefits that just regularly depressed or dysthymic peoples get from antidepressants are generally not impressive, with only some people reporting improved mood, reduced worrying or normalized energy which may be mostly due to placebo effect.
Also some antidepressants may be more effective than others: MAOIs are reserved for the most treatment resistant major depressives, and tends to have the most dramatic effects, even though it requires extreme care to not die of serotonin syndrome. SSRIs, tricyclics or tetracyclics are generally less effective, but have low risk of complications and doctors hand them out like candy for you even suggesting you may be depressed.
Oh, and if you havent been introduced to the mental health system by now, you probably just have meme depression and eating better or exercise will probably fix your melancholy.

>>38135468
Yes absolutely it's mind control CIA bullshit

>>38135851
Is ECT worth it? heard that it causes brain damage, severe memory loss and other bad shit like that

>>38136404
It has serious risks, that's why its nowhere near as common as pharmacotherapy for depression. Psychiatrists generally reserve ECT for severe, intractable depression, usually if there is compounding factors like many suicide attempts, because of the risks compared to an SSRI prescription and a monthly check-up.