USA Today:
The number of Americans using antidepressants doubled in only a decade, while the number seeing psychiatrists continued to fall, a study shows.
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There have been many studies connecting the overuse of MSG and Aspartame to depression, especially in children. There is a lot of research on the net, it's worth looking into (especially for people who feel like they "shouldn't" be depressed or don't have any kind of history).
http://www
http://www
A walk in the sun is a far better choice. For most people, there's no magic pill to shake away the blues. For some, maybe it's necessary for most, there are better and more effective ways. It just takes some serious dedication to being "okay".
Has anyone noticed how every single drug on TV warns about liver damage? But they just keep peddling it anyway. Too many people turn to pills to cope with life, when they should learn how to deal on their own. Doctors are way too quick to whip out the prescription pad nowadays for everything.
"And the pills that mother gives you don't do anything at all."
Have a problem? Take a pill.
A cornerstone of our "health care" system.
Its been this way for a few decades now, sadly..
It's pathetic.
Prescription drugs are an epidemic. And they do more harm than good.
I will bet they have much more than doubled in the last 10-20 years. All for profit.
If cocaine or heroin use doubled in ten years, the government would be demanding more police powers and more taxes to fund a larger 'war on drugs'- but because these drugs come from so-called 'legitimate' drug sellers who make large campaign contributions and buy lots of advertising time, I guess we're supposed to see this as a positive trend...
"See, more Americans using pills... isn't that wonderful.
(rolling eyes...)
Probably because psychoactive drugs are now handed out by GPs instead of psychologists under the supervision of psychiatrists.
Amen.
Pills rule!
The article states the false, but commonoly believed, association between psychiatry and psychotherapy. Most psychiatrists do not have training in psychotherapy. They chat with a patient for about 15 minutes and write a prescription. To practice psychotherapy or psychoanalysis, you need 2 years of training and be yourself in therapy, whether you are a physician or not.
This is not good--it just goes to show how Big Pharma runs medicine in this country and that talk therapy has been replaced with drugs.
Also, underlying issues for depression are ignored see www.mercol
Dietary issues, vitamin/mineral deficiencies, lack of exercise, hormone deficienci
Anti Depressants = Pre existing Mental Disorder
Health Care can be canceled for any reason.
Got to love the Health Care Monolopys !!!!!!
exactly.
You have to give them credit for having such a comprehensive plan for us.
As a nurse i see people taking so many pills it is ridiculous. Some take 10 to 20 pills a day.....wh
Don't forget Nurse Jackie and House.
We are exposed to drug addicts at all levels.
Drugs are in your best interest. Repeat 500 times a day.
I switched to Marijuana works much better for me!!!
LOL!!! Oh but it does.
You know what's funny, or rather what's not funny, is how controversial that is, with the doctors who love to prescribe the antidepressants.
I'm a serious pot smoker, for various reasons - "depression," originally, but more importantly, these days, because I have a serious illness (ankylosing spondylitis) that requires a heap of medications, so if I DIDN'T smoke a lot of weed, I'd never eat, or sleep...
...I've been looking for a psychiatrist lately. But I can't find one that doesn't demonize marijuana to the point of rendering himself ridiculous and useless, as far as being part of an effective medical support system. A guy I met with a couple of weeks ago, told me I have a severe ADD issue, which he wanted to prescribe me some kind of speed for... but, he said, "Nothing I prescribe will work, if you're also taking any street drugs, like marijuana, ecstasy, or cocaine."
Honest, a DOCTOR grouped those three drugs together..
...I told this story to my rheumatologist yesterday, and he said, "well, you have to understand. You never know where the marijuana is coming from, so there's no way to tell what's actually in it. Your marijuana could be laced with just about anything, and probably is, and you'd never know."
So now my basic (slightly off topic) question is this: where are the doctors getting so much wild-eyed misinformation about drugs and medicines?
Wild-eye misinformation? Thats easy! They get it from the pharmaceutical industry, DEA, FDA and government generally. All these evil institutions have financial interest in perpetuating the drug war and suppressing the truth about marijuana.
Hey, how would like to have to deal with a bunch of, sick, troubled people every day?
Doctors are just doing what they have been trained to do.
Who trains them?
Try exercise first. Cognitive behavioral therapy should also be tried.
Antidepressants should be used as a last resort, not a first option, in IMHO.
Research has shown that our automatic thoughts keep us depressed. These thoughts pop into our heads with negative messages. CBT gives us the "antidote" in an inner dialogue. If that voice keeps saying, you're no good, then you can learn to counter with a counter thou7ght - yes, I am good, just good as anybody else. A pill sends a message that something is wrong with you such as a chemical imbalance. No chemical imbalance has ever been proven in most cases.
Most people could change their exercise habits and profit from CBT. Both have been scientifically proven to work.
Taking a head med sends the wrong signal to the depressed person - yes, I'm chemically imbalanced so I need to purchase the next head med. The serotonin Nazis want your serotonin levels increased to brighten up your personality. Many get agitated from hyper-serotonin syndrome and do commit suicide or homicide. Some patients improperly discontinue long-acting serotonergic agents without tapering off properly. Overall, antidepresssants are dangerous and do not represent a "cure" for a "chemical imbalance.
Exercise? Are you serious? Sorry, I have never laughed at someone's response so much before...t
Yes exercise. And diet.
When you sit around on the couch all day eating junk food, it can effect you personality as well as your body.
Look it up before you ridicule.
Its odd that you dont mention anything about nutrition.
Nutrition is the elephant in the room when it comes to depression.
Amen. Sugar highs and lows are serious matters.
Funny you should mention CBT. I always thought that would be the rational way to go, but many studies recently have shown that telling yourself that you're good when deep down you know you aren't just makes ya feel worse.
Maybe you haven't seen some of the study results here at HP or elsewhere?
Rather interesting since CBT has been around for a few decades now. I've never really read any studies over the years that proved or disproved that it worked. Until recently. Hmmm...
It's more than just about being optimistic and thinking positively though.
For instance when I was suffering from depression I was still optimistic and I didn't have thoughts that I was worthless or of suicide or anything, but I did have a lot of trouble concentrating so my psychologist worked on that with me. She gave me specific ways to help me focus that were really effective and helpful.
True long-term crushing depression is real and requires close supervision by a physician, along with medication. It is extremely important that this is diagnosed and treated asap. There is, however, a tendency for patients to run to their physician with a temporary downturn in their lives, crying that they're depressed. Of course, there's also the purely American tendency to run to their physicians for every little twinge or complaint they've seen addressed on television. We've become a nation of neurotics and Big Pharma is taking advantage of it in a big way!
You got that right!
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First Posted: 08- 4-09 02:02 PM | Updated: 08- 4-09 02:05 PM