what we do
mental health campaign
the facts about antidepressants
How many women have been prescribed antidepressants?
33% of all women have taken antidepressants.
Amy says: “I was 13 when I got referred to the counselling service at Platform 51. I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and domestic violence and I couldn’t tell anybody what was wrong. I could hardly speak. I don’t take medication at all any more, but I have been on some pretty hefty stuff! Now I’ve reached the point when it’s all about believing I can help myself.
What alternatives are women offered to antidepressants?
Over half of women who took antidepressants were not offered alternative treatments.
The lack of appropriate treatment is especially worrying for mothers. Over half of new mothers get post-natal depression. Rachel did. She says: “I was prescribed three different tablets including sleeping pills. When Jacob was eight months I just couldn’t function properly and ran away for four days.”
How many women on antidepressants have been on them for 10 years or more?
Almost a quarter of women on antidepressants have been on them for 10 years or more.
Lizzy says: “I am worried about antidepressants because I know people who have been on them for years, and I don’t want to end up that way. I don’t want to be relying on tablets to make me feel all right of a day.”
Please help
We offer women counselling and work with women in groups where they discover they are not alone with their problems. They share experiences and talk freely without the fear of being judged, and they get the help they need.
Your donation today will make a real difference to women. Please donate now. Or text your gift to GIFT05 £10 to 70070. Thank you.
To get a representative picture of the mental health experiences of girls and women, Platform 51 commissioned Opinium Research LLP to carry out a nationally representative, quota-controlled survey of more than 2,000 UK adults aged 18+ in England and Wales in June 2011.
£23 could
£23 could pay for a victim of abuse to have a consultation with our women-only counselling team.
£50 could
£50 could pay for up to six women with post-natal depression to join group support sessions.
£100 could
£100 could pay for a woman who has become dependent on antidepressants to get a series of counselling sessions.
Antidepressants
Read our briefing about women and the use of anti- depressants
