Yes. I'll admit it. I do drugs. Heavy drugs.

However, I do not take drugs to alter my mind. Actually, if I want to have a mind-altering experience, I have to stop taking drugs.

I am involved in a long-term relationship with big bad Depression, and her sexy little  sister, Mania. These two used to take turns beating, kicking, strangling, stomping, and smothering me. They whispered creepy lies into my ears, and led me blindfolded into oncoming traffic. 

I needed to do something about those girls. They were gonna kill me.

So I put them in chemical restraints. I know, I know - I've heard the arguments -"But you're putting yourself in restraints! You're numbing yourself to who you really are!  You're dimming your inner light! You're crippling yourself! You're enslaving yourself to Big Pharma!"

And you know what? The wrong medications do ALL of that to people and more. Being on the wrong psych meds is often worse than being on no meds at all.  That's what's given psych meds such a bad name.That, and the use (abuse) of meds as if they were a complete form of mental health treatment.

Psych meds are base camp. Mental health is the mountain. You start at base camp, gather up all the support and supplies you need,  then start your climb. 

Please -if you suffer from severe depression, do not try to climb the mountain without food, water, rope, a harness, and the right kind of shoes.  You will hurt yourself.

Natural, holistic approaches to mental health are fabulous. I am a total New Age fruitcake, and I practice many  "alternative" forms of spiritual healing. But telling someone with severe depression to do yoga and meditate is like telling someone with two broken legs to take a ballet class. "Forget those big, clunky, invasive casts! Those'll make your legs sweat and your skin turn pale. You need to stretch yourself, learn to do a plie', a round de jambra, a fondu! The health benefits will be amazing. You'll see."

But, you know - it's hard to stretch your leg on the barre with a broken fibia protruding through your torn and bleeding skin. I'm just saying.

I'm writing this because a friend of mine - also on meds - was recently told that if she believed more deeply in God, she would not need to take psych meds. She was also told that her meds were a "spiritual crutch." 

This breaks my heart. Spirituality and medical care should not be treated as mutually exclusive.  Can we take insulin and be spiritual? Can we take  blood pressure medication and be spiritual? Can we get chemotherapy and be spiritual? Can we take vitamins and be spiritual? Who decides?

Mental Illness is extremely painful and extremely mysterious. No one, under any circumstances, should feel obligated to endure such confusion and pain because what works for them is not deemed "spiritually correct."

Psychiatry is far from perfect. We humans are still pretty stupid when it comes to the brain. But  the right psych meds given to the right person can free a human soul from the prison of mental illness.

And if that's not spiritual, what is?