Zoloft

At the end of chapter 13, Dr. Barney prescribes Craig with Zoloft and instructs him to get it right away. As soon as he started taking the medicine, improvements in his everyday life were showing. He was so astounded by the immediate results. He says, "I don't know how, but suddenly I feel good about my life- what the hell? I was a kid; I had plenty more to do; I'd been through some crap but I was learning from it" (Vizzini 98). The pills were effectively bringing Craig back to his old self. He began to feel functional and efficient again. In fact, he was so motivated by the results, that he began to thinking about talking to girls in school about his problem because he thought that would make him seem brave and sexy; he took pride in his struggle through his health issues. However, as the story progressed, Craig experienced some 'fake shifts.' When he ran out of his final bottle of Zoloft, he did not take anymore; he did not even request a new prescription from Dr. Barney. His motto was, "Okay, if I ever feel bad again, I'll remember how good it felt that night on the Brooklyn Bridge" (Vizzini 106). The pill's value had changed. Every since Nia told him pills were for wimps, it was over for him. He was done, and back to his normal self. I do not understand why he would let Nia's remark change his opinion about the drug that made him healthier. Why would he want to go back to being sick? Why does he let Nia's opinion dominate and control his own feelings? I think the decision to cease taking Zoloft was one of the worst things he could have done at that point of his life. I understand he is still in high school, and making decisions are hard because he is still immature, but why would he take something that helpful out of his life?