Drug fear keeps depression patient away from doctor

A fear of taking antidepressants often results in people's reluctance of going to see the doctor when they are suffering from depression, a study find. The finding was published Monday in the U.S. journal Annals of Family Medicine. The researchers from the University of California investigated 1,054 adults on why they wouldn't tell the doctors about their depression symptoms, as well as any possible mental disorder. Among the participants, 43 percent admitted that they had been reluctant to tell the doctor about their depression symptoms. Their top concern was the possibility of being prescribed an antidepressant -- a worry voiced by 23 percent of the whole study group. Another 16 percent thought dealing with "emotional issues" is not the doctor's job. And a similar percentage worried that the diagnosis of depression may leave a negative record on their medical records. The study would be helpful for looking into the reasons that patients harbor the attitudes that they do, said Dr. Hellerstein of the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University Medical Center in New York.