Medication, yay or nay?

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I love mine (celexa), works so well, especially for anxiety. I love how not feeling anxious feels, so care free, so peaceful, so relaxed; So natural.
I can't remember the last time I honestly felt 100% anxiety free (before now of course).

What about "no, because it doesn't do anything"? If we're talking about autism anyway, nothing anyone has given me has ever helped with that.

I do agree with this, because any medicine that I've had only worked for a short time, or more often not at all. Especially as they fail to take away extreme obsessions, and taking them also disqualifies you from certain work.

So I don't bother.

Medication helps with my co-morbid bi-polar and ocd, and it also helps with shutdown depression.

Most of them either dont help, don't work for long, cause more problems or make me unable to do some
of the things I love. One exception though. Lamictal has helped me hugely. It's made a huge difference and
while it does nothing for may basic AS traits, it does make handling many sitiations easier especially social
ones. It's hard to explain, but I find myself taking more chances than before and I seem to have a better
perspective when I DO get depressed.

Just MY experience with them.

I'd go with 'No - simply because going without it often better'.

Looking at ASD-related stuff;
Medication for my anxiety might stop me having meltdowns and chill me out on bad days, but the fact is my anxiety is far lower when I'm in a good place mentally - for example I could have easily passed for an NT four years ago when I was still working, but now the aspie characteristics have gone into overdrive since being unemployed. Medication can't take the place of dealing with the underlying issues that are triggering the anxiety, I'd rather find a way to deal with those.

I mean sure medication is needed for some, there aren't always ways around certain issues and sometimes medications help people cope, but I do think socially we are too reliant on medications, it may be particularly true in the US but I feel here in the UK some areas medication is used as a quick-fix, such as in mental health. My experience has often been that medications caused more harm than good, either in worsening symptoms or risking side-effects, and anti-depressants are a particular evil - I've never been depressed, I was on very low doses for migraines and after about a week I had to stop as I felt like a zombie...so god help those who have to be on antidepressants.

Cannabis works for me and there should be news of the UCI study soon

If there is medication for anxiety, I'm all for it. Maybe when I finally get a diagnosis (probably never).

i say no cuz its all lies and i think its easy for people to use it to abuse you for their own motives.

Anti-depressants help with my anxiety. It's not a cure by any means, but without them I'm worrying and extremely anxious all day long.

Ritalin helps me function. I either can't focus or have low energy. I'm either cranky or depressed. I'm either obsessional or can't think of a single thing to do. Ritalin makes sure I only spend time on a few things and do the most important things first. It makes me talk more, have less sensory overloads and actually comprehend and think thoughts clearly. Oh and turn off that damn chattering in my brain.

I loved Celexa too, when it worked... it was as the OP described. But I would NEVER take anything for autism. Autism is not a ddisease. I took the Celexa for depression and social anxiety.

I believe it's up to the individual to decide for themselves whether medication is or might be helpful for something.

I take stimulant medication for hyperactivity and ADHD-type symptoms associated with my AS. I'm not generally a fan of taking medication for things if I can avoid doing so, because I'd rather not mess about with my body's natural biochemistry and because I've had bizarre reactions to medications (including one that involved my central nervous system shutting down in a very literal sense--I lost consciousness and stopped breathing). However, I think that sometimes, the benefits outweigh any potential risks. For me, it was worth it to try medication because nothing else worked for my symptoms (natural remedies, meditation, more exercise, counselling, relaxation techniques, etc. etc.) and I was desperate to function better.

It tones down the buzzy feeling that makes me need to move all the time--makes me much more physically comfortable.

It settles the chaos in my brain--makes me much more mentally and emotionally calm and stable.

Makes it easier for me to fall asleep at night (because of the above).

It dramatically increases my self-control: lowering the number of out-of-control, raging meltdowns I have by at least 90%; and lowering the number of stupid, sometimes dangerous things I do before I think about what I'm doing (not sure how to quantify that one).

I'm pro medication as it makes me a blanced and more stable person. I don't buy this crap about "it makes you someone else"; it doesn't; it makes you YOU, but a more balanced you.

Medication for me is the difference in shaking with anxiety, and sensory overload and a whole lot of depression and crying as opposed to troubles still, but less of the former.

I take absolutely no medications at all and all of the sickness hardly comes to me.

I'm so blessed.

Yes, I take one medication. I have anxiety disorder NOS which includes serious paranoia which really hurts me. My medication keeps my anxiety in check and allows me to live without constant fear that someone is following me or is going to hurt me or my family. When I go off of it, I can't function. I want to be able to eventually, but for the time being, it's necessary.