AngrySeahorse
Peter Sullivan (51)
Big post this but given my own experiences with mental illness & my studies through Psychology (3rd year) I cant resist to comment on a subject close to me.
I won’t go into the details but after going through what I did years ago there is a big difference between what’s chronic & what regular sadness, grief, etc is. I will say that problems don’t always stop after depression has gone, the fear of situations like r/ship break ups, rejection, etc can bring up fears of chronic mental illness recurring again & that alone can cause behavioural issues even when the mental illness is gone.
The comments Clyde made on defence mechanisms & people viewing him as arrogant when really he wasn’t resonated with me a lot because I can be the same in that regard.
I concede the pressure to be tough is expected more of males & that can prevent them from opening up but females are not immune to this either. With my upbringing & what was expected of me I’m a good example of this. Also, having a good supportive family isn’t really something that helps, IMO, I found I worried about upsetting them with my burdens so kept it quiet.
The following is what I have learned from Biological Psychology. In regards to chemical imbalances there is no way you can measure serotonin levels in the brain of a LIVING being. Therefore to find out a depressed persons level to know exactly the amount of medication that is needed or indeed if a chemical imbalance is even present then I would need to euthanise the patient, check their levels, & then bring them back to life to then admin the required meds if they indeed have a chemical imbalance. Unfortunately science has not yet been able to make this possible.
Analysis from the brains of deceased persons has found some chronic sufferers had normal/typical neurotransmitter ranges. This supports two things, it lends support to explain why some people do not respond to antidepressant medication at all & it also supports that while chemical imbalances may cause depression in some people or be one of many causes of depression it still does not explain depression in every person. It’s dangerous to proclaim chemical imbalances as the one reason for depression. I’m not trying to jump down people’s throats with my science speak but it’s a misconception that can be harmful if it becomes common layman’s knowledge, it can actually fuel more stigma toward people with mental illness e.g. “So you don’t have a chemical imbalance? Right, you’re faking depression, get over it”.
Meds, for mine, are a last resort when all else isn’t working. It can help take away some of the fog the mind has to allow people more sleep for instance to help them have a chance to recover. Fitness training is one of the best remedies (for those able to exercise) endorphins released from exercise are awesome for depression – from my experience.
Depression being hereditary has researchers divided as well. Personally I believe it does have a link.
Last science comment but on obsessiveness, I wouldn’t pick someone out for depression just due to that trait. That could actually be OCD which can appear with or without depression, before or after. If it appears after then it’s more likely a result of the OCD & not the cause, so the treatment would need to be for OCD & not depression (IMO, I’m not a doc or a psychiatrist but this is what I have been taught).
It’s a lot easier talking about this in the safety of a forum, can’t say I’d do this in person unless I was with a really close friend (happy to say I have at least a couple of those). I will say that you have to be absolutely careful of who you open up & talk to because some people are only interested in gossip or getting you in the shit (like for instance in a work place situation some power climbers might mention your illness to your boss, paint a picture that you’re unstable & unsuitable & that can have negative implications for your future, the mental illness is bad enough let alone the situation being compounded). Many say to me they wouldnt be so foolish but when your depressed, anxious, etc I feel it can sometimes weaken your decision making & instincts about people especially if you're desperate to get help & feel ready to talk you may well open up but do so to the wrong person/people.
Ultimately I admire what Clyde has done & I think reading his article its obvious to me that its only the tip of the iceberg. The good thing about his article is that like on this forum its got people talking about this serious issue.
I won’t go into the details but after going through what I did years ago there is a big difference between what’s chronic & what regular sadness, grief, etc is. I will say that problems don’t always stop after depression has gone, the fear of situations like r/ship break ups, rejection, etc can bring up fears of chronic mental illness recurring again & that alone can cause behavioural issues even when the mental illness is gone.
The comments Clyde made on defence mechanisms & people viewing him as arrogant when really he wasn’t resonated with me a lot because I can be the same in that regard.
I concede the pressure to be tough is expected more of males & that can prevent them from opening up but females are not immune to this either. With my upbringing & what was expected of me I’m a good example of this. Also, having a good supportive family isn’t really something that helps, IMO, I found I worried about upsetting them with my burdens so kept it quiet.
The following is what I have learned from Biological Psychology. In regards to chemical imbalances there is no way you can measure serotonin levels in the brain of a LIVING being. Therefore to find out a depressed persons level to know exactly the amount of medication that is needed or indeed if a chemical imbalance is even present then I would need to euthanise the patient, check their levels, & then bring them back to life to then admin the required meds if they indeed have a chemical imbalance. Unfortunately science has not yet been able to make this possible.
Analysis from the brains of deceased persons has found some chronic sufferers had normal/typical neurotransmitter ranges. This supports two things, it lends support to explain why some people do not respond to antidepressant medication at all & it also supports that while chemical imbalances may cause depression in some people or be one of many causes of depression it still does not explain depression in every person. It’s dangerous to proclaim chemical imbalances as the one reason for depression. I’m not trying to jump down people’s throats with my science speak but it’s a misconception that can be harmful if it becomes common layman’s knowledge, it can actually fuel more stigma toward people with mental illness e.g. “So you don’t have a chemical imbalance? Right, you’re faking depression, get over it”.
Meds, for mine, are a last resort when all else isn’t working. It can help take away some of the fog the mind has to allow people more sleep for instance to help them have a chance to recover. Fitness training is one of the best remedies (for those able to exercise) endorphins released from exercise are awesome for depression – from my experience.
Depression being hereditary has researchers divided as well. Personally I believe it does have a link.
Last science comment but on obsessiveness, I wouldn’t pick someone out for depression just due to that trait. That could actually be OCD which can appear with or without depression, before or after. If it appears after then it’s more likely a result of the OCD & not the cause, so the treatment would need to be for OCD & not depression (IMO, I’m not a doc or a psychiatrist but this is what I have been taught).
It’s a lot easier talking about this in the safety of a forum, can’t say I’d do this in person unless I was with a really close friend (happy to say I have at least a couple of those). I will say that you have to be absolutely careful of who you open up & talk to because some people are only interested in gossip or getting you in the shit (like for instance in a work place situation some power climbers might mention your illness to your boss, paint a picture that you’re unstable & unsuitable & that can have negative implications for your future, the mental illness is bad enough let alone the situation being compounded). Many say to me they wouldnt be so foolish but when your depressed, anxious, etc I feel it can sometimes weaken your decision making & instincts about people especially if you're desperate to get help & feel ready to talk you may well open up but do so to the wrong person/people.
Ultimately I admire what Clyde has done & I think reading his article its obvious to me that its only the tip of the iceberg. The good thing about his article is that like on this forum its got people talking about this serious issue.
