To not give my teen DD medication

I would discuss this with her see how she feels

That is one potential side effect but the op's dd is 15, I don't think her sex life is top priority right now. Side effects are very specific to each person. I threw up my first and only dose of duloxetine, other people take it every day without issue. Being aware of potential side effects is important but you won't know what side effects you'll have until you try.

But with ASD comes depression and anxiety and they do get treatment.

OP mentioned intrusive thoughts/ do you need suicidal and self harm spelt out for you?

no need to be a smart Alec I’m sure CAMHS know what they are doing.

OP I have huge sympathy, I was where you are 18 months ago, before my DD (who was then 15) became even more unwell. She limped through Y11 without medication, managed GCSEs but then had a bit of a breakdown, dropped out of A Levels and became suicidal.
Medication has helped her enormously, she has been on sertraline for about 3 months and says her low mood has largely resolved. Unfortunately she is left with severe social anxiety so we aren't sure what next steps look like yet, but at least there will be next steps.
For us, medication has been very beneficial, but for others it may not be necessary. I wish it hadn't been for us but I am enormously grateful that something has worked.
I totally disagree with people suggesting you don't have your DD's interests at heart or that you are neglectful (!) you are just trying to do what is best - and it's really hard. I wish you and your DD all the very best of luck with this, I hope you both feel better soon!

I would advise your daughter to look into the loss of sexual function which is a huge problem with medication. Being numb to your feelings is one thing which many aim to achieve through meds but this impacting on your sexual function and being unable to feel pleasure sexually is a huge issue and can lead to mental health issues and it is well known side effect of the medication.

Your daughter needs to be informed about all the meds and the impact before making a decision.

A well-informed, sensible post @catlover123456789

I have OCD. Medication saved my life. If your DD needs it, she needs it. Medicines like diazepam are addictive; that's not the sort of medication your DD is being offered.
There are effects of stopping and starting Antidepressants (eg sertraline) and Antipsychotics but its not an addiction, you don't become reliant on them (apart from to make you feel well), you don't need to take more and more to get the same effect. You take a prescribed dose and increase/decrease gently depending on how well they are managing your symptoms. They don't act immediately and need time to work. Best time to start would be during a school holiday in case there are side effects like sickness/dizziness. Just a note that Fluoxetine has been shown in studies to be more effective for those with OCD, as opposed to Sertraline. It worked better for me. You might want to query this alternative with your healthcare provider if OCD is your DD's main concern, and get their advice. Do your own research and write down a list of questions/concerns for your healthcare provider.

Source: my own, long mental health journey. I am not a professional. Discuss everything with your healthcare provider.

My ds had sertraline and another med when he was 13. He also does well academically but he was hating life.

He chose to take them till he was 16, no side effects and now he is old enough to have other strategies for coping.

He is happy and I have no regrets.

If you haven’t already researched Pans and pandas as the cause of the OCD then it is worth doing so as searching for the root cause could potentially help rid her of it. You haven’t said what medication and if it will cure the OCD. It must be a very hard thing to live with and you would want to medications offered to be the most effective ones for this.

Sertraline is very effective for OCD

if unsure about what autism is, this link has some general info spectrumcentre.co.za/what-is-autism/

😂Embarrassing to say that using stigma is wrong and the labels themselves are the stigma. The labels literally mean 'this person is abnormal'. I do not agree in labelling people as abnormal which is what people do the minute you label someone. To label is to stigmatise. is my point. No labels are needed is my point.

You misunderstood my point.

So the rule is to all agree and do not respond to those who label you and use stigma and name call. All must agree and no debating.

Righto! I'll ask for your advice on what to say in each thread if that is ok?

Or you could tell others that they shouldn't be labelling or name calling me and they should respect other's opinions differ and that is the nature of debate?

If others struggle to accept that opinions differ that is not my issue and I shouldn't be told what to do because others disagree and wish to use stigma against others.

As someone who has worked with hundreds neurodivergent young people, getting medication right is often life changing. Medication can be the difference between a young person being anxiously isolated away from community and being an active part of the community or being violently heightened when anxious and being more resilient. Often it takes number of medical reviews to get medication right.

I didn't say anything about biological factors being stigmatising sorry you have misunderstood.

Your friend misunderstood what trauma is then as it isn't always one big event.

I do not believe any mental health conditions are a result of trauma. I believe they are all from stigma.

What do you believe on the history and what do you think about things like black man's disorder and wandering womb?

Why the upward trend on cases? Snow-plough parents and an increasingly oppressive and abusive world. Back in 2000 16-24 year olds didn't have the world of the internet on their devices or in fact phones were just starting to be a thing. Now 16-24 year olds are bullied online, harassed, sexually harassed, groomed, abused and are addicted to things such as online porn etc. The society in which they live is different and much more abusive than it was. So it stands to reason that combined with their inability to deal with minor set backs and then an ever abusive world no wonder it increases. Kids cry and wail if their phone is taken off them and cannot cope without it for longer than 5 minutes calling it abuse if a teacher asks them to put it away.

By all means you have the right to believe what you want. Treatment-resistant depression? You mean that the meds given do nothing and so the person is labelled as the problem again and told to top themselves not the medication that is doing nothing! I disagree that it exists. Like giving someone antibiotics for something but the antibiotics do not treat that illness so they say the illness is the problem not that the meds do naff all. I'd label it wrong support.

Yes you have. When you label you use stigma.

Nope not pharmaceutical companies. The people who 'found' the illness. The ones who discovered all 500 existed with no science to say this is what we have found. The same people who admit they ignored the illnesses they 'found' and didn't include them in the diagnostic manual as they were ones they could get labelled as having.

I don't feel it is helpful in you using stigma against me or others so I welcome you not commenting any more. If you wish all to agree with you I also advice not to debate any longer with anyone. It would be most helpful for you.

She asked for advice and I offered it, then everyone who disagreed then decided to make comments to which I responded. If you feel it is unhelpful then do not comment on those you disagree with and engage with them, ignore and continue.

Thank you.

If the medics have deemed it worth trying medication I think you owe it to her to try them.

It's not a failing in you or her that she may need medication to help her feel better.

Would you feel the same if she had a physical condition which required medication to let her live a better life?

Why does the camhs team feel now is the right time to start them?

Are medical staff involved with the prescribing them, monitoring them and knowing if they are the right approach?

I think everyone can understand this. No one wants their child to face more adversity and there will be parts of DD’s personality which she will view as a positive which are there because of her autism. I think as a parent it’s difficult to acknowledge the extent that their children, especially girls with autism, are working hard to just tread water to get through day to day.

@Foxjonessssss that sounds really positive, I hope it's helpful for your DD.

@whippy1981 I'm curious why you think the idea of biological factors are stigmatising? I personally find the assumption of 'trauma' more stigmatising. Traumatic and adverse experiences are of course a factor or a trigger for many psychological difficulties and mental illnesses, but it isn't always the case. Years ago I was taken in by the then popular (and still popular to an extent) idea that if you had psychological problems but didn't know why, something must have happened to you that you have repressed. It did a huge amount of damage to me and many other people.

I had a friend who was very interested in 'trauma' (I use inverted commas because the word has lost all meaning in my opinion) and read a lot of pop psychology books and would speculate as to the cause of someone's depression or OCD or whatever. She'd say things like 'it must have been sexual abuse', which is frankly just vile.

I agree with you regarding the idea that antidepressants correct a 'chemical imbalance', and the hypothesis has been peddled as fact for far too long. I also agree that it is not comparable to a diabetic needing insulin. But equally I feel the idea of mental ill health being the result of some deep-rooted trauma in every or most cases is also wrong, and has helped to create a $2.5bn therapy industry as of 2023 which is projected to rise to $40bn by 2033 https://www.thebrainyinsights.com/report/emotional-counseling-service-market-14387#:~:text=Market%20Introduction,USD%2040.15%20billion%20by%202033 Yet the incidence of depression and anxiety continues to follow an upward trend and has more than doubled in 16-24 year olds in the UK since 2000 https://www.ucl.ac.uk/psychiatry/news/2023/sep/changes-depression-anxiety-and-stress-over-two-decades

In my opinion the general upward trajectory of depression and anxiety is fuelled by the decline of social infrastructure and an increasingly sick society, and medication and introspection are not efficient means of tackling that. However, I don't believe the same is true in all cases of depression and anxiety or in all cases of other mental disorders. I believe that biological factors underpin, predispose or otherwise play a large part in many cases and certain medications and treatments are capable of greatly improving symptoms for some people. I don't think it helps that depression and anxiety have become catch all phrases to describe periods of low mood and worry. There is a gulf between a person who comes away from a GP appointment with a diagnosis of depression and a prescription for citalopram and gets on with their life, and a person with severe, treatment-resistant depression who cannot function or even speak and has to be hospitalised. I would argue that the two are not the same illness. For the latter, 40-50% treated with ECT go into full remission following treatment, which to me suggests a strong neurobiological component.

But you keep saying things that aren't true?

I've never referred to stigma. I've never called you mental.

"Creators" (assumign you mean the pharmaceutical companies who create and distribute medicines) simply do NOT say that there's no science behind these drugs.

I'm not engaging with you any more. I don't think it's helpful.

OP - good luck with trying medication. I really hope your DD gets some relief.