Medication

Plain information on medication for mental health: what it does, how it fits with therapy, and who in Nigeria can assess you and prescribe it. It's for anyone who has been offered medication, or wonders whether they need it.

Many Nigerians fear that needing medication means you're "mad", or that it will change who you are. Medication for mental health is a medical tool, like treatment for blood pressure or diabetes. It's prescribed by a doctor, usually a psychiatrist, after an assessment, and many people use it alongside talking therapy. Therapists, counsellors and psychologists, including everyone on Mytherapist.ng, provide therapy and don't prescribe. Our glossary explains antidepressants in plain terms.

Start with whether you need therapy, medication or both. If you need a psychiatrist, our guides to psychiatric hospitals in Lagos and psychiatric hospitals in Abuja list public and private options.

If medication might help, ask a doctor or your therapist for a referral to a psychiatrist, and take your questions with you. For talking therapy alongside medical care, you can browse licensed therapists on Mytherapist.ng.