People who are diagnosed with depression by their doctor are usually prescribed some sort of antidepressant medication.  These medications are designed to correct the chemical imbalance in the brain that is believed to be the cause of depression.  Most of the time, these medications are only masking the symptoms instead of treating the condition.  The reason they don’t treat the condition is because nobody knows what causes depression.  Drug companies believe that it is a chemical imbalance in the brain, therefore they create medications that alter the brains chemical function.  However, many scientists believe that it is caused by a specific gene that it is inherited from the parents.  Some psychologists believe that it is caused by environmental pressure such as the loss of a loved one or the loss of a job.

                Doctors prescribe antidepressant medications because they have no other means of helping these people that suffer from depression.  Doctors will prescribe antidepressants that have been on the market for many years and have a minimal amount of side effects.  Describing antidepressant medications is simply the proper procedure that doctors undergo in order to provide some sort of help, even if the antidepressant medications are questionable in nature.  Many claim that the medical industry and the drug companies are working together to make a profit off of drugs that do not work.  In reality, doctors have their hands tied because there is no other procedure that will assist them in treating patients that suffer from depression.  The best thing that they can do is prescribe antidepressant medications and to determine if the medications will conflict with any existing health issues.

                Perhaps when scientists are able to discover what the cause of depression is, they may be able to successfully develop an antidepressant medication that will treat the depression itself and not simply mask the symptoms.  Many of the antidepressant medications on the market today are experimental and they are not endorsed by the FDA.  Many of these medications are not subject to long-term clinical tests, therefore when the long-term side effects are discovered, they are immediately pulled off of the market.  The side effects range from increased thoughts of suicide to having adverse effects on the health.  Doctors are simply doing their part in prescribing these antidepressant medications because they have no other way to treat people who suffer from depression.  Depression is a phenomenon is around for decades, but has only recently been addressed and researched.

                Doctors will prescribe an antidepressant medication that is approved by the FDA and will not have any serious negative side effects, although there may be some.  They will ensure that the prescription will not interfere with other medications or any existing health conditions.  If a person is going to be prescribed antidepressant medications by their doctor, they should make sure to ask a lot of questions and to educate themselves as much as they can on the drug that they are going to be taking.