Sertraline

They gave him pills because he wasn’t as happy

as everyone else

so he sat in his chair for a year and a half

while people grew older around him

and the cushions slowly gave way under his a*s;

He still wasn’t happy, but he wasn’t sad anymore

he just… was,

this thing that breathed and smoked

and took in the sun that warmed every afternoon

when they turned his chair to the window;

His children laughed

and grew older

his wife was serious

and grew older

the dogs barked and played

and grew older

the sky itself spun its skirts

and grew older

the Earth moaned and rolled

and grew older

time turned and no one groaned

so he sat and he sat and he ate his meds no black, no white,

those pills, little pale yellow tablets

like the candy he ate as a kid but these ones oh god

these ones only brought the numb;

They made him take these pills because of his despair

laid the winding sheet of nothing over his body

and left him in his f*****g chair

for a year and a half

just breathing

time turned and no one groaned

not even him

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

it's like getting C grades in college, or finishing in the middle of the pack in a race every time.
No highs, no lows...I am on Sertraline now...sort of in a daze.
and yes, we are owned by the pharmaceutical companies...and the interest is killing us...not the interest in us...but their own interests.
j.

[JR]

Thanks Jacob, appreciate the read. For me, it was losing the highs that was so damaging... I was ok with the lows going away, but yeah, like you said... it's always a C grade.

[emmajoy]

Wondering if there's a pill against taking pills? Seriously. Wondering too if there are as many manufacturers making meds than there are firearms? Seriously.

Why don't people watch out for each other any more, note variations of moods, etc. and help out showing that they care. Why don't anxious people turn to medication and calm and similar or, if properly advised, natural remedies. What do people do when they need escape moods or general day to day stress, otherwise? They run, they swim, cycle, go to the gym, etc. They use their bodies to wind down mental stress, they let off steam. And when that';s done, what to they do to release the noises in their heads, the rush of heart beat, etc.. they go sit outdoors.. or switch off noise in any way they can. Or.. they show, give and share Love/ Perhaps.

Sertraline doesn't work, many drugs don't work. Only too often patients are advised to use alternatives, and after those fail to do anything promising, stop working or cause problems,there's always another lab made drug to take its place. Yes, it's tested, yes, its okayed by the board of.. Who or what is gaining? Ppeople, the sick.. or the investors in whole.sale whatever it is?

Sorry, but it's human beings we want not zombies who sit by watched over by others sitting by et al. I vent because I care so damned much.

[JR]

I've found the best therapy for me is nature, being outside, and using my physical body. We definitely want to be our human selves.

[emmajoy]

Surely we're born to be part of the Natural World - unless we're aliens from another world or creatures made by robots as robots. Perhaps. The mind can go in so many different places when it comes to remedies. Hug a tree, listen patiently and hear the world beneath its bark. Now that;s medicine.. (Perhaps better when the weather's warmer, drier and such!)

[Chris Shaw]

Sertraline turned my grandson into a zombie. He's off it now and on another medication which suits him much better. Your poem an account of how devastating the side effects can be, both to the patient and those who loved him. So very well conveyed.

Chris

[JR]

Thanks Chris. Yeah, it's really a fine line when you start messing with brain chemicals. For me, that one just doesn't work.

[Rania M]

Hey! Both my sister and I have used Sertraline in the past. I take only Alzolam now. Nightly, if too anxious. I hope you feel good soon.

[JR]

Thanks! I appreciate the read. I've used it a couple of times, and it's just not for me. But everyone does what they need to do, when they need it.

[AJNJ]

My cousin is just 13 and he’s been prescribed this very drug. He has OCD. They aren’t starting him on it yet coz he’s so young and they’re anxious about its side-effects. What happens when you take it? How does it feel? Is it safe?

[JR]

Safe as in it won't kill you, yes. The side effects are pretty much what I described above... a sense of being numb, never getting either sad or happy, just existing in the middle.

[AJNJ]

Okay... I wonder if it’s addictive though...? Thanks for the info.

[R.E. Ray]

JR, this poem is haunting, and it's the trajectory of America. We're the most medicated country in the world. We're creating near-zombies, and big pharma grows rich in the distance. "Numb" is the word that echoes through this poem, and it's that disconnection to others, nature and humanity that I fear hasn't peaked. Who would've imagined such a state even 25 years ago? Now, we eat pills like M&Ms and Skittles, but gain nothing but numbness from the ingestion. One of your best, I say.

[JR]

Thanks man. I was put on Zoloft for various times in my life, and it's just the worst. No ups, no downs, you're not living, you're just breathing. I stopped writing or playing guitar or doing anything really. And it's terrifying to think of how many millions of people are kept in that state constantly. Appreciate the review.

[R.E. Ray]

I have family members who take Prozac, and though they claim it helps with depression, I've noticed a flatness in their personality. I look a drug called Paxil in the late 90s for about three months (for anxiety), and I hated how it made me feel. Sure, I wasn't anxious, but it changed me. I became lazy, gained 20 pounds and had no motivation.

I know mental health is a problem in the US, but I don't believe drugs are the answer, at least long term. And, your poem shows why they're not a good solution.

[Relic]

I can pretty much relate to this. Each time my father sees the doctor there's a new pill to take and his bed has become his tomb. Life sucks when you get old.

[JR]

It does indeed. And yeah, they have a pill for everything these days.