Chchchanges

Seems like a lot of changes have been taking place for everyone.

Families moving to more affordable places.

Jobs disappearing. Coming back in extremely different forms.

Kids graduating from schools and moving on to different schools.

People getting divorced or married. Having babies. Not being able to afford said babies (at least not being able to afford those babies in the way they want to afford them).

Some of my friends losing their homes in foreclosures.

What strikes me is how my very different friends are dealing with these changes.

Some of my friend rise to the occasions in amazing ways. They draw their families together, dial down their spending and become more generous to others.

And, sadly, I have a few friends who are running to their doctors complaining about stress, depression, you name it. And they are getting medicated.

I truly have a hard time with that. Believe me, I understand how you might need some help in times like these.

But I would think that, if facing debilitating depression or stress, one would turn first to therapy or counseling. Or at least do that in tandem with medication.

Yet I have two fairly close friends who are shoring themselves up on doctor prescribed medication and nothing else.

I'm concerned. I would hope that if I ever faced that kind of stress I would turn to a trusted therapist or counselor and forgo medication. Or, if I had no choice but to turn to such medication, I would be off of it before long and not have a year or more long dependency upon it. I've expressed my concern to these friends and they are not listening. They think I'm nuts for fighting my sinus infection/flu symptoms without going to a doctor.

Yet, I feel that many Americans run to their doctors constantly and for very silly reasons.