{"id":38543,"date":"2013-04-20T21:15:00","date_gmt":"2013-04-21T02:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=38543"},"modified":"2021-10-07T21:18:58","modified_gmt":"2021-10-08T02:18:58","slug":"is-taking-an-antidepressant-for-fibromyalgia-just-an-easy-way-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-taking-an-antidepressant-for-fibromyalgia-just-an-easy-way-out\/","title":{"rendered":"Is taking an antidepressant for fibromyalgia just an easy way out?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t<h2>Question:<\/h2>\n<p>Hi,<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m going to have some tests for fibromyalgia, etc., due to body pains. My doctor wants to put me on antidepressants for when I have flare-ups and for stress. I don&#8217;t want to use medicine as a crutch, and I have asked God for his help on this. I try to tough it out when I have episodes and try to be a naturalist without medication. Are antidepressants just an easy way out? It seems like doctors only want to prescribe antidepressants for almost everything nowadays.<\/p>\n<p>Thank you for your advice.<\/p>\n\t<h2>Answer:<\/h2>\n<p>A recent discovery showed that one class of antidepressants, amitriptyline, when given in low doses, improves the pain, fatigue, and sleeplessness that comes with fibromyalgia. Only 30% of those with fibromyalgia see this improvement. [&#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.webmd.com\/fibromyalgia\/news\/20090112\/antidepressants-help-treat-fibromyalgia\">Antidepressants Help Treat Fibromyalgia<\/a>&#8220;, WebMD]. Why it works is unknown, but then the cause of fibromyalgia is unknown.<\/p>\n<p>While it is understandable that you don&#8217;t want to be dependent on drugs, if there is something that allows you to be more functional and clear-minded, then there isn&#8217;t anything particularly wrong with taking medication. For more on this, see: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-a-christian-use-medicinal-drugs-that-may-affect-the-mind\/\">Should a Christian use medicinal drugs that may affect the mind?<\/a><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Question: Hi, I&#8217;m going to have some tests for fibromyalgia, etc., due to body pains. My doctor wants to put me on antidepressants for when I have flare-ups and for stress. I don&#8217;t want to use medicine as a crutch, and I have asked God for his help on this. I try to tough it&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[397,908,645,508],"class_list":["post-38543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-depression","tag-health","tag-medication","tag-mental-illness"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":50303,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-link-between-depression-and-serotonin-questioned\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":0},"title":"The Link Between Depression and Serotonin Questioned","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Source: Joanna Moncrieff and Mark Horowitz, \"Depression is probably not caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain - new study,\"\u00a0The Conversation, 20 July 2022. [I'm posting this to demonstrate that even in areas where people have been certain of the answers, they find that things are not always as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Issues&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Issues","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14177,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/which-antidepressant-is-best-for-the-treatment-of-drug-addiction-and-for-dealing-with-anger\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":1},"title":"Which antidepressant is best for the treatment of drug addiction and for dealing with anger?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 12, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Please advise: Which antidepressant would you say is the best for the treatment of drug addiction and also best for dealing with anger? Answer: I have not analyzed the various antidepressants, nor do I have the expertise to make such a judgment call. That is something that would have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":49297,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/thoughts-and-prayers\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":2},"title":"Thoughts and Prayers","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 6, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Matthew W. Bassford People in our society say lots of dumb things. Surely among the most foolish, though, are the denials of the power of prayer. This usually comes up after mass shootings, when conservatives send \"thoughts and prayers\" on behalf of the victims' families. In reply, progressives sneer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/prayer-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18710,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/im-carrying-about-so-much-guilt-i-hide-it-from-my-parents-but-am-i-wrong-for-doing-so\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":3},"title":"I&#8217;m carrying about so much guilt. I hide it from my parents, but am I wrong for doing so?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 20, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: For some time, I have carried guilt for many things; guilt which I am not often able to suppress. I am a fifteen-year-old girl and my life hasn't exactly been a box of roses. Within the first three years of my life, I was fed lies by my aunt,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20099,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-marijuana-be-used-for-legitimate-medical-purposes\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":4},"title":"Can marijuana be used for legitimate medical purposes?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 20, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is using marijuana or components of marijuana for legitimate medical diagnoses biblical? Answer: While it is popular for promoters of marijuana to talk about \"medical marijuana,\" there currently does not exist any known medical uses for marijuana that there isn't a superior drug already on the market that doesn't\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14202,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-do-i-still-not-have-control-over-my-anger\/","url_meta":{"origin":38543,"position":5},"title":"Why do I still not have control over my anger?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 17, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: This morning, I found that I still have problems with anger management. I had to go to a doctor's appointment again, and when I went to the front desk, the secretary mentioned my bill. I have been unable to pay, due to no work, and many health problems which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38543"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38543\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}