I have worked directly and indirectly in inpatient mental health settings intermittently. The parent poster's view is correct with regards to my experience.
Yes, for some people antipsychotics, antidepressants, etc. are a godsend and the difference between living a mostly normal and productive life vs. jumping off a bridge, dying in a homeless encampment because they cannot feed themselves, or committing violent acts against others. To clarify, none of these are hyperbole or exaggeration -- those are two extremes on outcome with mental health issues and antipsychotics can be the difference between the two.
That being said, many, if not most, physicians I have worked with agree with the parent comment. For many patients these medications are not effective and are used as chemical restraints [0] rather than with the goal of normalizing their mental health. Eventually the logic becomes "we'll never fix them, but we can sedate them so much they won't hurt themselves or others" so dosages progressively increase until the patient becomes more sedated and somewhat zombie like. This isn't hospital specific; I have seen it across 3-4 different hospitals in different states. Neuroscience and psychiatry is a very young field and the truth is that we do not know what causes mental health issues or how to deal with them. The chemical imbalance theory is just that, a theory, and more importantly, one with very little scientific proof and backing [1].
Yes, for some people antipsychotics, antidepressants, etc. are a godsend and the difference between living a mostly normal and productive life vs. jumping off a bridge, dying in a homeless encampment because they cannot feed themselves, or committing violent acts against others. To clarify, none of these are hyperbole or exaggeration -- those are two extremes on outcome with mental health issues and antipsychotics can be the difference between the two.
That being said, many, if not most, physicians I have worked with agree with the parent comment. For many patients these medications are not effective and are used as chemical restraints [0] rather than with the goal of normalizing their mental health. Eventually the logic becomes "we'll never fix them, but we can sedate them so much they won't hurt themselves or others" so dosages progressively increase until the patient becomes more sedated and somewhat zombie like. This isn't hospital specific; I have seen it across 3-4 different hospitals in different states. Neuroscience and psychiatry is a very young field and the truth is that we do not know what causes mental health issues or how to deal with them. The chemical imbalance theory is just that, a theory, and more importantly, one with very little scientific proof and backing [1].
[0] https://www.medicinenet.com/what_is_an_example_of_chemical_r... [1] https://www.healthline.com/health/chemical-imbalance-in-the-...