Anti-depressants don't work - study (depressed, diet, Zoloft, psychiatrist)
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I think there are probably different types of mental illness, and for some people, anti-depressants DO work. Maybe it's the placebo effect, or maybe the pharmacology is actually doing something. I dunno. The article mentioned that the drugs can have impact on different patients, and I agree with that. I also think the drugs are possibly more beneficial when combined with "talking therapy" (psychoanalysis) and when prescribed by a psychiatrist rather than a general medical practitioner. That's just my opinion as someone who has spent 25 years of her life dealing with severe depression.
I've taken a bunch of different ones in my life -- Paxil, Prozac, Zoloft, Wellbutrin, Celexa -- and I'd say that in general they didn't do much for me. The last one did -- Celexa -- but it was combined with Concerta (an ADD drug), and I started taking it at the tail-end of my marriage. Was it the drug cocktail that helped...or my separation? I'm inclined to give most of the credit to the separation. (And, of course, the fact that I had a terrific therapist and was doing really great work with her.) However, I do think that that last cocktail greatly improved my memory, my coherence, and my ability to focus, and I think that was EXTRAORDINARILY helpful for my recovery at that time.
The side-effects of a couple of the drugs were often more impactful (in a negative way) than beneficial, I decided. Paxil and Zoloft and Celexa didn't have any noticeable side effects for me, but Prozac and Wellbutrin both interfered tremendously with my sleep, and Wellbutrin gave me an arrhythmia, a racing heart, and a hand-tremor.
My expectation of anti-depressants is not that they CURE depression or make one happy, but rather that they ease the worst of the depression symptoms just enough to allow the depressive to play a more active role in her recovery. I think taking the drugs without doing any kind of other (psychoanalysis) work is unlikely to yield hoped-for dramatic results. (But hey...that's just based on my own experience, and I realize everyone is different.) I think the "problem" with the drugs, however, is that people mistakenly believe that taking them is going to fix all their problems.
I also think that beneifts of tackling the physical side of depression -- through exercise, diet, regular sleep, hydration, and supplements -- cannot be overstressed. I've been "depression-free" for about 6 years now, but when I fall into a funk that lasts more than a few days, I "treat" it my focusing on my physical health. It works for me every time.
I think there are probably different types of mental illness, and for some people, anti-depressants DO work. Maybe it's the placebo effect, or maybe the pharmacology is actually doing something. I dunno. The article mentioned that the drugs can have impact on different patients, and I agree with that. I also think the drugs are possibly more beneficial when combined with "talking therapy" (psychoanalysis) and when prescribed by a psychiatrist rather than a general medical practitioner. That's just my opinion as someone who has spent 25 years of her life dealing with severe depression.
I've taken a bunch of different ones in my life -- Paxil, Prozac, Zoloft, Wellbutrin, Celexa -- and I'd say that in general they didn't do much for me. The last one did -- Celexa -- but it was combined with Concerta (an ADD drug), and I started taking it at the tail-end of my marriage. Was it the drug cocktail that helped...or my separation? I'm inclined to give most of the credit to the separation. (And, of course, the fact that I had a terrific therapist and was doing really great work with her.) However, I do think that that last cocktail greatly improved my memory, my coherence, and my ability to focus, and I think that was EXTRAORDINARILY helpful for my recovery at that time.
The side-effects of a couple of the drugs were often more impactful (in a negative way) than beneficial, I decided. Paxil and Zoloft and Celexa didn't have any noticeable side effects for me, but Prozac and Wellbutrin both interfered tremendously with my sleep, and Wellbutrin gave me an arrhythmia, a racing heart, and a hand-tremor.
My expectation of anti-depressants is not that they CURE depression or make one happy, but rather that they ease the worst of the depression symptoms just enough to allow the depressive to play a more active role in her recovery. I think taking the drugs without doing any kind of other (psychoanalysis) work is unlikely to yield hoped-for dramatic results. (But hey...that's just based on my own experience, and I realize everyone is different.) I think the "problem" with the drugs, however, is that people mistakenly believe that taking them is going to fix all their problems.
I also think that beneifts of tackling the physical side of depression -- through exercise, diet, regular sleep, hydration, and supplements -- cannot be overstressed. I've been "depression-free" for about 6 years now, but when I fall into a funk that lasts more than a few days, I "treat" it my focusing on my physical health. It works for me every time.
I totally agree about your statement about the drug easing the worst of ones symptoms so we can play an active role in our recovery! Paxil has allowed this for me,so when I wean, I know I can handle whatever symptoms I was having. Its not immpossible! But Im speaking of anxiety and not depression!
Greenchili
Personally I prefer pot. It's cheaper and healthier. But of course DAS IS VERBOTEN!!! by the drug Nazis. And I've found a low carb (no sugar, white flour products) mostly raw food diet made a world of difference. Sugar & caffeine always make me anxious & jittery. I think it's true for a lot of people. Analogy > instead of removing the nail from their foot they take pain killers.
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