Sedatives

[godismybestpal]

Hey guys!
Some non-Catholics talk about how we can use sedatives (both modern medicine and herbal medicine) to calm down. What do Catholic Church say about this idea?

 

[kimg901]

Im not on any sedative but have been on an anti-depressant for 4 years now. I dont need them for depression but I have a side effect that wont go away without them and as my priest told me “its not wrong to be on them if they trully help you and your not abusing them” . This of course is not offical Vatican policy.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

The Church has no issue with sedatives being proscribed by a competent licensed physician.

Jim

 

[datritle]

you don’t need a doctor to give you sedatives, nor is it always right. if i want to get to sleep, i take melatonin…i wouldn’t go to a doctor for that. or valerian root, or chamomile, or hops.

 

[CB_Catholic]

Hey guys!
Some non-Catholics talk about how we can use sedatives (both modern medicine and herbal medicine) to calm down. What do Catholic Church say about this idea?

Some times sedatives are necessary. I work in a hospital and administer them frequently to people before surgery or a procedure. Some people are severely traumatized and need them for a while. Sometimes mentally ill people need them if their behavior is out of control, or sometimes severely depressed people with high anxiety need them. There are other reasons also. The Church does not object to their use for medical reasons.

What I would NOT do is advise a person against them if he needs them and tell them to use herbal remedies, etc. That is something that should be discussed with their Dr., not people on a message board.

 

[godismybestpal]

Yeah I can get what you’re saying but doesn’t modern medicine take us away from our real problem. I can understand why someone would drink hop tea before going to bed but eating pills I don’t understand. Some catholics have told me that all those pills just make us focus on certain material substances rather than on our real spiritual problems.

 

[gh4]

Yeah I can get what you’re saying but doesn’t modern medicine take us away from our real problem. I can understand why someone would drink hop tea before going to bed but eating pills I don’t understand. Some catholics have told me that all those pills just make us focus on certain material substances rather than on our real spiritual problems.

Taking one pill is not eating pills. If you dislike pills, then by all means, don’t take them. But don’t look down on someone who does because you have no clue why they take them, and it’s really between the patient and their doctor alone.
A sedative does NOT make someone focus on material things vs. spiritual things.
I think perhaps it’s ALWAYS best left up to the doc and his patients.

 

[godismybestpal]

Taking one pill is not eating pills. If you dislike pills, then by all means, don’t take them. But don’t look down on someone who does because you have no clue why they take them, and it’s really between the patient and their doctor alone.
A sedative does NOT make someone focus on material things vs. spiritual things.
I think perhaps it’s ALWAYS best left up to the doc and his patients.

So we are supposed to look both at the material and the spiritual. Now I get it.

 

[Christine85]

I believe you need to get to the root of your problems instead of using medicine as a bandaid.
But in some cases they are necessary to give someone a break for a bit, but it’s important not to become reliant upon it

 

[Statius]

There are certainly situations in which these substances are very useful, and I think we have to be careful not to let our preconceptions stop us from using substances to alleviate suffering where appropriate. It’s a complex issue, with some debate as to when it’s appropriate to prescribe these things and when other avenues would be more suitable. I think it’s mostly a matter for doctors.

That said, I think such substances do highlight interesting questions about how we perceive ourselves. I’m on a medication which, as a side effect, calms me down. It’s changed how I behave, at least a little bit, but what does it mean if my altered chemical make-up has changed my behaviour? To me, it makes me wonder how much my behaviour has always been shaped by chemicals, natural and otherwise, and what that means for my own free will. I’m not sure I have any answers.

 

[Liturgy_Geek_1]

Hey guys!
Some non-Catholics talk about how we can use sedatives (both modern medicine and herbal medicine) to calm down. What do Catholic Church say about this idea?

Well, how about the idea that antidepressants, antipsychotic medication and sedatives are used to treat real illnesses? Mental illness is a real illness. It has nothing to do with a level of one’s faith, their devotion to God or anything else.

Living with mental illness is suffering. A very wise Poor Clare called suffering a “kiss from the Cross by our Lord.” Please don’t think that taking medication makes everything “all better.” It doesn’t. And please folks, try not to be judgmental of those who are suffering from mental illness. We get enough of that already. Thank you.