Antidepressants do not offer a permanent cure to depression.

Many people think that you can cure depression in the same way you do for an infection; just a pop of medication and you’re good to go. However, anyone who has worked with depressed people for a substantial amount of time knows that there is no such thing.

Depression is a very complicated condition and as such, requires a multi-faceted treatment approach. While people with severe depression may require medication, people with mild depression could do just fine with alternative forms of treatment.

Additionally, antidepressants do not offer a permanent cure to depression. Once you stop taking them, your symptoms will return, because that is how the antidepressants work. They simply target one or two mood-related neurotransmitters while you are using them.

That is why patients who stop taking their medication after they feel better usually go back to being depressed after a while. Ultimately, taking antidepressants isn’t the only effective way of dealing with depression. Some alternative treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy and psychotherapy have shown high success rates and can be used in combination with medication if deemed necessary.

Needless to say, it is entirely up to a doctor to diagnose someone with depression and choose which kind of treatment is best for them.