SSRI's are just ONE of the many many classes of anti-depressants used to treat depression/anxiety. Its a shame he doesn't mention this..... an uneducated person could be easily mislead in to thinking all anti-depressants fall under this category. Also i'm unsure why he chooses to attack this category over others, what about the SNRI's, MAOI's, tricyclics, NRI's... and there are other classes.

Reason 1 - cites one study? there are literally millions of studies. And from personal experience i can say that theres a huge difference between a placebo tablet and medication.

Reason 2 - In my experience combining medications can really help, not by a GP but by a psychiatrist. Yes its trial and error to find the right combo, but its rude to say they're shooting in the dark. Many do have substantial experience in combining medications which target different receptors in the brain. Sometimes depression doesn't just go away by targetting the seratonin receptor. Other classes of medications like anti-psychotics and mood stabilisers can augment the benefits of anti-depressants. Its pretty cynical to suggest every Dr is just poly medicating for the fun of it. Some really do care and do have the education to treat to this extent, and some people's depression is so severe they need it.

Reason 3 - i agree to an extent. But theres a huge difference between being shy and having heart palpitations and being rendered house bound because you're too anxious to leave the house. Oh and being "thrifty" as opposed to "hoarding". These things exist and i'm glad there are names for some of these conditions. For years i didn't understand why i was always worried and excessively shy, now knowing i had anxiety was a relief, and is often the gateway to treatment.

Reason 4 - he's right, we are an over medicated society. Just watch tv to see an ad for paracetamol... "why struggle with the pain when you can get on with your day"... People self medicate in different ways, whether its a hobby or a drug, theres a fine line. Drink coffee??? that's a drug. Society has become self indulgent in more ways than one. I don't think attacking very relevant medications for treating mental illness is the right way to vent about this.

Reason 5 - Don't really agree here. Seratonin is complex, simply it is involved in mood regulation. Ecstasy (or MDMA) literally floods the brain with seratonin, thats why the person feels very good. When the effect wears off they feel low in mood because their stores of seratonin has been depleted. Anti-depressants work in a similar way, SSRI's by blocking the re-uptake of seratonin, essentially leaving more in your brain. I can personally say this has helped me, and more people than i can count. We can't exactly measure how much seratonin is affected in a depressed person, but i have no doubt it plays a role in medical treatment. He says himself we have no way of measuring the amount of seratonin in a persons brain... but then goes on to say: People with high seratonin levels can be depressed and those with low levels can be happy. How does he know that if we can't measure the levels? I think "chemical imbalance" is a loose term used to describe what is obviously an imbalance of not only seratonin, but also other chemicals secreted in the brain (norepinephine) etc.

I do agree with the last statement... definately play a role in your own treatment, research, ask questions, follow your instinct.

And don't make a decision based on just ONE opinion, article, study.