system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5 why we have over the counter painkillers but not OTC antidepressants or anti-anxiety meds?
gpt
OTC painkillers are pretty simple and hard to mess up. Their effects are very well-documented and consistent, and they have a relatively short half-life in the body. Wait a few hours and it'll all be gone, even if you have some kind of allergic reaction.

None of that is true of antidepressants. We aren't quite sure how they work because we aren't quite sure how consciousness works. They have different effects on everyone, and most of them build up in the nervous system over time and take days or weeks to flush out if something goes wrong. Furthermore, they are given to people who are, you know, mentally ill. People who you want to keep checking up on in case something goes wrong. Prescription refills are a way to do that.