At times there are reasons to be depressed, but these are short-lived. However, in some cases, medicine is the only way to make yourself feel better, regardless of what some people might think.

According to an article in the Kansas City Star ("Mental health woes rise: Almost half of all college students need help before graduation"), nearly 50 percent of students will have some form of depression during their college years. Why? Because "students are coming under greater pressure as they compete for better grades and higher-paying jobs and many students, shielded from failure all their lives, suffer their first setbacks at college."

For example, when Sarah (name changed) first started college, she sometimes felt like the world was against her. She cried easily and frequently. Other times she felt on top of the world, but those moments could end with an unfriendly comment from a passing stranger. She overanalyzed everything and broke down in the face of the smallest problems.

Sarah is clinically depressed.

So she went to a psychiatrist and started taking Prozac, an antidepressant.

However, Sarah said people frowned on using medicine to treat depression, saying she should be able to handle her own issues.

Dr. Mohsen Amiri, clinical psychiatrist in Kansas City. Mo., said, "[Clinical depression] is a chemical imbalance in your brain. You are not insane or crazy; it's a disease and nothing to be ashamed about."

Without Prozac, Sarah said she would not be able to function. Prozac gives her the seratonin her body lacks, thereby righting her brain's chemical imbalance.

Sometimes medicine is the answer. I agree that Ritalin is given to children like candy. But with illnesses like clinical depression, sometimes the only way to recover is to take medication.

A lot of people think they can handle depression on their own, but it isn't possible. The overwhelming highs and lows can weigh heavily on both the affected and those close to them.

In a 13-year study about depression "K-State found the number of students seeing school counselors for depression had doubled, (and) the number reporting suicidal thoughts had tripled."

Some might believe taking medicine for depression is unnecessary, but it is a disease - something the afflicted cannot control - and others must understand that often the only cure for clinical depression is medication.

Megan Green is a senior in mass communication. Please send comments to opinion@spub.ksu.edu.