Dear Dr. Moore,
Not long ago, my doctor prescribed me as having a (relatively)
mild form of depression. He put me on an anti-depressant. I hate the
side effects, and I don’t like the way it makes me feel, but maybe I’ll
get used to it. My biggest struggle is whether it is right to be on
these at all. If I have the Holy Spirit, why do I need this drug? Is it
ethical for a Christian to take drugs like this?
Dazed and Confused
Dear Dazed,
First of all, you are right to seek medical help. Depression is not
just unpleasant; it can be debilitating and dangerous, and it signals
that something has gone wrong somewhere. Here are some things to think
about.
God created us as whole persons, with body and psyche together. The
body affects the psyche. Going without food, for example, or sleep will
change the way one thinks or feels dramatically. And the psyche affects
the body. We don’t “have” bodies or “have” psyches. We are psychosomatic
whole persons, made in the image of God.
It makes sense to me that biological and physiological factors often
play a role in persons not seeing reality correctly. Some drugs can
“fix” something that’s gone wrong. For example, a malfunctioning thyroid
can be corrected by synthetic drugs that prompt the body to do what
it’s designed to do. Most of the anti-depressants you see advertised on
television don’t “fix” something, as much as they alleviate symptoms.
They rework levels of serotonin or dopamine reception, for instance, so
that a person doesn’t experience the same levels of sadness or dullness
or hopelessness. Continue at Russell D. Moore
