Psychiatrist is the only mental health professionals who can prescribe medications for psychological problems. Not all medications given are life long, in fact majority of the patient treated for psychiatry problems get off their medications in due course of time or are off medications when they are fine. Some patients may have to take medications for considerable period of time and even lifelong but they form a smaller portion of the patients seen by psychiatrists.

Remember that many physical illnesses too need medication for lifelong like diabetes, hypertension.