Do I Need Medication, Therapy, or Both?

Medication

Therapy

Both

• Medication works relatively quickly
• Effectively manages psychiatric symptoms
• Is less costly than therapy
• Helps patients who are not willing or able to do therapy
• Is more useful in severe cases
• May have intolerable side effects

• Therapy treats underlying psychological problems
• Provides a new opportunity to feel understood and accepted
• Requires patience
• Requires the establishment of a trusting therapeutic alliance

• Combination of medication and therapy often produces better outcomes than either treatment alone
• Medication may make it easier to do therapy
• Therapy differentiates psychological reactions from medication side effects