Feel a pain, pop a pill. In those six words we can easily sum up the American philosophy toward health and wellness, a philosophy for physical pain and mental health we are only too happy to spread around the world. When treating our mental health, however, we forget that these drugs, while having an almost magical effect, are not a cure-all; their use is accompanied by a plethora of side effects and additional health risks.

A New York Times article from Sept. 1 told the story of a family whose son was placed on several anti-psychotics from the age of 18 months for illnesses ranging from autism to oppositional defiance disorder, and was later found to be misdiagnosed. Now, at six years old, he is only medicated for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), and is able to have a child’s life instead of his previous overmedicated and overweight existence.

When children are medicated so heavily when so young—and statistics show that only 40 percent of children and adolescents prescribed these drugs are adequately assessed prior to being given a prescription—they are robbed of a certain part of themselves. While their behavior problems are under control, children in this situation are no longer children, but rather drones or robots bearing vacant expressions.

And how does this come about, one may ask? Well, statistics also show that it is families with lower incomes that are more likely to turn to an anti-psychotic regimen rather than opting for a psychotherapeutic approach, based on cost alone. However, it must be remembered that these pills treat the outward showings of the symptoms through altering neural chemicals, and don’t address the other sides of behavioral disorders. It is a quick fix to prescribe pills when additional measures and talk therapy should be utilized, with medication supplementing that routine, instead of the other way around.

So whose fault is it: the doctors’? The pharmaceutical companies’? The government’s? The consumers’? The answer is all and none of the above. Comprehensively, we need to uncover a new philosophy when treating mental illness, instead of relying on copious amounts of prescription medications. There should be second opinions and active research into all of the side effects and alternative therapies. Common sense needs to be used in the face of prescriptions. Most of all, we should recognize that some problems cut deeper than pills can adequately heal.