Reykjavík Grapevine - 06.10.2017, Síða 16

Too Much, Girl
Iceland has seen an 87.5% rise in teen girls on
antidepressants since 2012

Words: Charley Ward
Photo: Art Bicnick
Icelandic teenage girls are taking
antidepressants in ever-increasing
numbers. Since 2012, the number
of girls aged 15-19 who have been
prescribed antidepressants has
rocketed up by 85.7% and the dos-
age strength has increased by 120%.
While there has been a general in-
crease in anti-
depressant pre-
scriptions across
the board, no
other group has
seen a higher in-
crease than these
young women.
“We have to
f o c u s o n t h e
roots of the prob-
lem,” says Ólafur
E i n a r s s o n , a
project manager
at the Director-
ate of Health.
“Why is there so
much despair
and is there a
way to guide people to feel better?”
For the last few years, Iceland
has topped the league tables for
the country with the most anti-
depressant users, despite the fact
that the country does not appear
to have higher rates of depression
than other nations. This raises
several questions: are teenage girls
struggling more with their mental
health than other demographics
or are they just more likely to seek
help? And are doctors too quick
to write out a prescription where
something else would suffice?
Over-reliance on
medication
Ólafur does feel that antidepres-
sants are overprescribed. “They are
supposed to be the last resort. We
have to focus on other treatments,”
he says. “Some people say that the
best preventive treatment for any
illnesses is exercise—and that’s not
only exercise in fancy workout gear
in an expensive gym, but just a walk
or an easy run. In fact, doctors can
prescribe for exercise—it is called
‘hreyfiseðlar’ or ‘activity prescrip-
tion.’”
Anna Ólafsdóttir, General Man-
ager of the Icelandic Mental Health
Alliance, agrees that GPs are too
quick to prescribe
antidepressants
and feels that
m a n y y o u n g
people seeking
support for their
mental health
would benefit
from speaking
to a counsellor.
“ B e t w e en 5 0 0
and 600 people
come to hospital
because of self
harm each year
and most of them
are young wom-
en,” she says.
One study
on self-harm carried out at a col-
lege in Iceland revealed that 27.5%
of girls between the ages of 16-20
have hurt themselves at least once.
Unfortunately, the scarcity of free
or affordable psychiatrists and
psychologists at the first level of
healthcare in Iceland means doc-
tors seem to be relying on antide-
pressants to treat sufferers instead.
“Parents have to pay a lot for
their children to visit a psycholo-
gist and many don't have the mon-
ey to do that,” Anna continues. “So
many GPs give children medicine
instead of therapy. That means the
big question is whether we take so
much medicine because we don’t
have access to therapy.”
Too much, too young
Unfortunately, simply acknowledg-
ing that doctors may be prescrib-
ing too many antidepressants does
nothing to determine why so many
girls are seeking mental health sup-
port to begin with. Anna refers to
her colleague, a psychologist who
works in within the secondary
school system, who says many stu-
dents come to him with feelings of
anxiety without being able to pin-
point the cause.
“They're in school, they’re in
sports, they’re working and also
having a great social life,” she says.
“In so many cases, he tells them it’s
just too much. You have to live a
simpler life. But they say that there
is nothing they can cut out.”
Gunnar Hrafn Birgisson, a clini-
cal psychologist who regularly sees
young female clients, says teenage
girls often come to him with issues
relating to self-esteem. “Disliking
themselves is very common,” he
says. “They dislike their body and
compare themselves with someone
they think is perfect. They think
this is how they should be and they
don't fulfill the criteria.”
He adds that research sug-
gests that spending a lot of time
on smartphones and computers
has also been linked with increas-
ing anxiety and depression levels
amongst both female and male
adolescents.
Making things better
Regardless for the reasoning be-
hind these growing levels of dis-
tress, it’s unlikely that prescribing
teens increasingly high doses of
antidepressants is the best solu-
tion. “These medicines can have
side effects and it’s questionable
if they address the reason people
get depressed,” says Ólafur. “Most
practicing doctors in Iceland are
prescribing antidepressants for pa-
tients on the first visit. Maybe this
should only be in the hands of more
specialised physicians.”
In the meantime, Anna recom-
mends that in order to reduce their
stress levels, teenage girls should
try to reduce the expectations they
place on themselves. “Try not to
be too occupied by how beautiful
you are on Facebook, or being able
to reply to everyone’s texts and be
there for everyone and just take
some time to focus on yourself,”
she says.
16 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 18 — 2017
“Between
500 and 600
people come
to hospital
because of self
harm each year
and most of
them are young
women.”
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