One in four American women take medication for a mental disorder

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**Frazzled**

Now one could probably play with their sampling methods and definitions , but...so much has to be left unsaid.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062634/One-American-women-medication-mental-disorder.html

One in four American women take medication for a mental disorder
Women more likely than men to take antipsychotic drugs, according to new report
Most often prescribed to females over 45

Prescriptions for psychiatric problems in all adults have risen 22% since 2001
Usage has quadrupled among men aged between 20 and 64 over the last decade
By Daily Mail Reporter

More than one in four American women took at least one drug for conditions like anxiety and depression last year, according to an analysis of prescription data.
The report, by pharmacy benefits manager Medco Health Solutions Inc, found the use of drugs for psychiatric and behavioral disorders in all adults rose 22per cent from 2001.
The medications are most often prescribed to women aged 45 and older, but their use among men and in younger adults climbed sharply.

On the rise: A bar graph showing the increase in the number of Americans using mental health medication between 2001 and 2010. There are considerably more women doing so than men

In total, more than 20per cent of American adults were found to be on at least one drug for mental health disorders.
A number of celebrities have gone public in recent years with their battles with mental health disorders.

More...Watching too much TV can cause depression... but exercise makes us happy
Rebecca Zahau suicide case will NOT be reopened after police brand Dr Phil autopsy as 'sensationalism'

They include Catherin Zeta-Jones, who was treated for a form of bipolar disorder earlier this year due to the stress of coping with her husband Michael Douglas's fight with cancer.
Model Brooke Shields admitted suffering postpartum depression after the birth of her baby in 2003, while fellow big screen icon Carrie Fisher, of Star Wars fame, told how she had turned to electroshock therapy to treat the worst symptoms of her chronic depression.
Needed help: Actress Catherin Zeta-Jones (left) was treated for bipolar disorder earlier this year, while model and movie star Brooke Shields revealed she had suffered from postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter in 2003

Ends of the spectrum: Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher, 54, turned to electroshock therapy to help treat her chronic depression, while Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps was diagnosed with ADHD when he was nine years old

In adults 20 to 44, use of antipsychotic drugs and treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) more than tripled, while use of anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax, Valium and Ativan rose 30per cent from a decade ago.
The statistics were taken from Medco's database of prescriptions and is based on 2.5million patients with 24 months of continuous prescription drug insurance and eligibility.
The company said women are twice as likely as men to use anxiety treatments as 11per cent of women 45 to 65 are on an anxiety medication.
Women are also more likely than men to take antipsychotic drugs like Zyprexa, Risperdal, and Abilify, which treat disorders like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

However, among men 20 to 64, use of the drugs has quadrupled over the last decade.
Geographical differences: In the 'diabetes belt' states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, about 23per cent of people are on at least one mental health drug. The lowest rate is less than 15per cent

The sex divide: This graph shows how far more women used anti-depressant drugs last year compared to men
Dr David Muzina, a psychiatrist and national practice leader of Medco's Neuroscience Therapeutic Resource Center, said: 'There has been a significant uptick in the use of medications to treat a variety of mental health problems.
'What is not as clear is if more people — especially women - are actually developing psychological disorders that require treatment.
'Or (it might be) if they are more willing to seek out help and clinicians are better at diagnosing these conditions than they once were.'
Pharmaceutical companies have also sought and received approvals to market their drugs to larger groups of people.
Drugs for ADHD, which Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps was diagnosed with when he was nine, are prescribed to boys more often than girls, but adult women now take the drugs more often than men.

ADHD prescriptions to adult women grew 2.5 times from 2001. However, ADHD prescriptions for children have been declining since 2005.
That reflects a decline in prescriptions for psychiatric and behavioral drugs for children.
Worrying trend: There has been a sharp rise in the the percentage of Americans aged between 20 and 44 taking ADHD medication since 2001
Medco found that prescriptions of those drugs for children have dropped since 2004, when the FDA warned they were linked to suicidal thoughts when used in people under 19.
The company said less than 1per cent of children use antipsychotics drugs, although the figure has doubled since 2001.
In the 'diabetes belt' states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Alabama, about 23per cent of people are on at least one psychiatric or behavioral disorder drug.
Diabetes is particularly widespread in those states and the condition is associated with higher levels of depression and anxiety disorders.
The lowest rate of prescriptions was found in Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Michigan, where less than 15 per cent of people are using those medications.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062634/One-American-women-medication-mental-disorder.html#ixzz1e3ktGd8A

**Chowderhead**

Well, yeah. It's generally understood that bitches be crazy.

**htj**

I wonder how much of it is placebo.

**dogma**

Interestingly, the greater willingness of women to take behavior altering medication (and seek therapy) has been cited as a possible explanation for their improving performance in the job market vis a vis men.

**Melissia**

There's a rather simple explanation for this.

Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

**htj**

dogma wrote:Interestingly, the greater willingness of women to take behavior altering medication (and seek therapy) has been cited as a possible explanation for their improving performance in the job market vis a vis men.

They're using performance altering drugs? That's cheating, isn't it?

**Melissia**

htj wrote:I wonder how much of it is placebo.

Dunno, but the medical industry looooves them some placebo effects.

**SilverMK2**

Over diagnosis and an attitude of "instant fix" pill culture combined with a less satisfactory and fulfilling way of life.

**htj**

Melissia wrote:
htj wrote:I wonder how much of it is placebo.
Dunno, but the medical industry looooves them some placebo effects.

Getting people reliant on pills that do nothing, cost nearly nothing to make and have no dangers of side-effects? I'll bet they do.

**MrDwhitey**

Chowderhead wrote:Well, yeah. It's generally understood that bitches be crazy.

Bad of me, but damn I laughed.

Melissia wrote:There's a rather simple explanation for this.

Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

I'm agreeing wholeheartedly to this one.

**SilverMK2**

Melissia wrote:Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

Or are more willing to deal with the problem on their own, or live with it?

**Melissia**

No, it's more complicated than that (but what isn't?).

Basically:

Company comes up with a new affliction of some kind (let's convince people that they can't hold their piss in long enough), then come up with a drug that effects that particular part of the body (expensive in many cases), then market it (can't hold your piss in? URINIDIOT is just for you! Side effects may include [mumbledemumbledemumble]) to build peoples' expectations up, then have efficacy tests where you build peoples' expectations up to enhance the effect of the drug (without testing for number or severity of side effects, to enhance your marketing capability), then market it even more to both doctors and patients, building expectations up even more.

The drug's effects don't have to be very strong or even effective if they can trick the customer into thinking they are, and if they only do efficacy tests and no tests for side effects, they can be as vague as they want on side effects and by the time any dangerous side effects come out, they've already made enough money to write off any potential lawsuits and fines, and have already moved on to the next big drug.

**htj**

Melissia, that is even worse than I thought. If I were the type to post images as commentary, I'd post professor Farnsworth not wanting to live on this planet anymore.

However, some joy was brought to my heart by your wonderfully named hypothetical product.

**dogma**

SilverMK2 wrote:
Or are more willing to deal with the problem on their own, or live with it?

The numbers, at least in America, don't lie regarding performance in education and the job market.

Its also worth noting that dealing with one's problems on one's own is generally more difficult, and takes longer, than using pills to put them off for a time when your life isn't dominated by a competition against several million other people of a similar age.

**Melissia**

Yeah, the pharmaceutical industry is depressing once you really think about it, especially if you have employment experience there.

**SilverMK2**

dogma wrote:The numbers, at least in America, don't lie regarding performance in education and the job market.

I'm not referencing any particular aspect of the subject; simply wondering if there is some element of men, rather than being less willing to admit that they have a problem are more likely to deal with it on their own or live with the problem.

**KingCracker**

Melissia wrote:There's a rather simple explanation for this.

Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

Pfff, more like REAL men have no problems with silly emotions, and dont have to pretend that the fact their mother left them at a young age because their daddy turned into a mommy and all those Uncle Jims and Uncle Teds really weren't your unlces at all, and they had play time in the basement and you were left watching reruns of your favorite shows all alone, actually affected them.

**MrDwhitey**

KingCracker wrote:
Melissia wrote:There's a rather simple explanation for this.

Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

Pfff, more like REAL men have no problems with silly emotions, and dont have to pretend that the fact their mother left them at a young age because their daddy turned into a mommy and all those Uncle Jims and Uncle Teds really weren't your unlces at all, and they had play time in the basement and you were left watching reruns of your favorite shows all alone, actually affected them.

Need a hug?

**Frazzled**

KingCracker wrote:
Melissia wrote:There's a rather simple explanation for this.

Men are less willing to admit they have problems than women.

Pfff, more like REAL men have no problems with silly emotions, and dont have to pretend that the fact their mother left them at a young age because their daddy turned into a mommy and all those Uncle Jims and Uncle Teds really weren't your unlces at all, and they had play time in the basement and you were left watching reruns of your favorite shows all alone, actually affected them.

Kingcracker wins the thread (and 24 hour surveillance...)

**KingCracker**

REAL MEN NEED NO HUGS!

No really, my parents are strait shooters, but wouldnt that be some gak to experience as a growing adult?

**dogma**

SilverMK2 wrote:
I'm not referencing any particular aspect of the subject; simply wondering if there is some element of men, rather than being less willing to admit that they have a problem are more likely to deal with it on their own or live with the problem.

Well, I think you could consider living with a problem to be roughly equivalent to being unwilling to admit that you have a problem, as generally being willing to admit that you have a problem entails a desire to do something about it; though that desire doesn't necessarily translate into action.

But yeah, I've seen quite a few studies indicate that men, at least in certain nations, are markedly less likely to seek outside help with emotional issues than women. That may be a matter of physiology, or a matter of cultural expectations (or both), but it does seem to exist.

**SlaveToDorkness**

Melissia wrote:Yeah, the pharmaceutical industry is depressing once you really think about it, especially if you have employment experience there.

That's what anti-depressants are for! Wait...

**Howard A Treesong**

Pretty sure this is one consequence of a private healthcare system, there's a desire to medicate and make money. In the UK this medication is through the NHS and paid for by the state, thus Doctors are discouraged from handing them out like sweeties.

**htj**

Howard A Treesong wrote:Pretty sure this is one consequence of a private healthcare system, there's a desire to medicate and make money. In the UK this medication is through the NHS and paid for by the state, thus Doctors are discouraged from handing them out like sweeties.

You'd think...

A friend of mine was suffering from insomnia a while back and was hoping to get some sleeping pills. The doctor attempted to put her on a six month course of anti-depressants. Since she was not depressed, this seemed like an odd decision.

**halonachos**

SilverMK2 wrote:
dogma wrote:The numbers, at least in America, don't lie regarding performance in education and the job market.

I'm not referencing any particular aspect of the subject; simply wondering if there is some element of men, rather than being less willing to admit that they have a problem are more likely to deal with it on their own or live with the problem.

Its a machismo aspect, if their dad didn't get help then they won't due to societal roles that were shown to them. Society plays a big part in what a male will say is manly and right for them to do and what is girly and wrong for them to do. Unfortunately this machismo means that men tend to bottle their emotions and it is typical of a lot of men from different cultures. New Englanders will typically show little to no emotion, trust me, we just don't show what we're feeling. Latino and African cultures are incredibly full of this machismo, in fact its why homosexuality is incredibly frowned upon in those two cultures even in the US. It has been known that some Latino fathers will actually kill or maim their sons should they turn out to be homosexuals.

On a side note, one of the reasons American healthcare is so expensive is because the same drug company supplies to Canada where they are limited in their profits. In an attempt to regain any profit they could lose in Canada they price the living hell out of the US market. So if you want cheap drugs, Canada has to be eliminated.

**mattyrm**

My missus was telling me this ages ago and I thought it was BS, she said 1 in 5 Americans have mental issues. I thought it was gak because she always puts down her own country, she told me something ridiculous like 1 in 10 women gets raped as well?

If this is an actual statistic, it begs the question, WHY is America full of mental people!?

Is it the extra stress from working more hours and having less disposable cash? It is something to do with the healthcare system? Do they encourage people to take med's needlessly to make money?

There has to be a logical reason behind it.. having lived in both nations, the culture and basic lifestyle is exactly the same here, so I'm at a loss to understand many of the problems that seem to assail people when I am stateside.

My missus said we spend way more time in the pub here than people in the US, especially through the working week, so we socialise alot more, so maybe that's a factor, socialising is certainly good for your mental state.

Hey you know what that means....

Beer IS good for you!

**halonachos**

Americans get less vacation than in Europe and work more hours on average compared to most of Europe. In fact I think we work 2 to 3 more hours a week compared to the UK.

**Leigen_Zero**

I'd say that SilverMK2 nailed it...

Much easier to dish out pills like sweets than it is to beat the problem with months (and the associated emotional rollercoaster) of therapy...

I think that mattyrm has a good point, AFAIK the states has a distinct culture of overworking for little return, meaning your personal life becomes a misery as all you do is sleep and work. It sounds similar to the Japanese concept of the SalaryMan: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salaryman

EDIT: Ooops got my terminology confused there for a minute, I meant the concept of the salaryman, which typically leads to Karosi

Except that females are probable more apt to seek treatment, so the statistic is much higher.

For me, the best way to feel better after a gakky week has always been to jump into moshpit after a few pints, I'm thinking about developing it to accompany treatment for depression caused by repressed anger. Basically the therapy is that I put you in a dimly lit room filled with those realistic-ish martial arts dummies and pump in some loud thrash-metal so you can go to town on them.

**halonachos**

I work weekends, at least 16 hours a weekend so I can't do that. If I work Black Friday, which I probably will, that's a nice 12 hour workday.

**Frazzled**

You laugh. The wife tells me how her dad would come in every day from work, walk downstairs to beat on a punching bag for 30 minutes and then come up and be happy and human. Always did sound like an excellent idea.

I find a good dog walk to be just the thing, or some range time.