Advertising Psycho Pharmaceuticals Essay -- Media Argumentative Persua

Advertising Psycho Pharmaceuticals I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately, so I decide see my medical doctor to seek her advice on what I can do about my mental health. When I meet with her, she asks me if there have been any changes in my life that might explain my depression. Unfortunately, I cannot think of any particular cause for these feelings. My doctor suggests that I start taking a drug to help me overcome my unhappiness. She tells me that she can prescribe it right now if I want her to. It surprises me that she does not recommend therapy and instead offers a chemical cure. Since this is the first time I am seriously considering using a drug to "fix" my mood, I tell her that I will do some research and let her know my final decision. I do not know very much about antidepressant medications, so she gives me the names of a couple of popular drugs used to treat depression, Paxil(r) and Zoloft(r), to help me with my investigation. I feel the best place to start my inquiry is to look at the we bsites of the companies that produce these drugs. I figure that these sites will provide me with the information I need to make an informed decision on whether drug treatment, and which drug treatment, is right for me. I begin by looking at the website for Paxil(r), http://paxil.com. When the page loads, I am presented with a picture of a worried woman's face in profile in front of an orange-red background. When my eyes move away from this image, I am confronted with the question in big bold black letters, "Does this sound like you?" And this question is referring to the other statements flashing on and off of the screen slowly, statements about being tense, worrying, having anxiety, ... ...er than the Zoloft(r) site, such as the page on the site that discusses the importance of "talk" therapy for helping to cure patients with these disorders. Also, in the prescription information there is an explicit summary of how effective this drug has been for other patients. Overall, neither of these websites gave me a complete view of these medications. I understand now that the companies are trying to sell their product, but at the same time I value my safety while I am taking the medication. I will have to talk to my doctor and seek more extensive information from other medical websites before I have enough knowledge to decide if drug therapy is right for me. Works Cited "Paxil Paroxetine HCl." 2001. GlaxoSmithKline. 7 Oct 2001. http://paxil.com/ "Zoloft (sertraline HCl)." 2001. Pfizer Inc. 7 Oct 2001. http://www.zoloft.com/