I have struggled, and continue to do so, with “the blues” and anxiety throughout the ups and downs of life. I truly believe that most cases of depression can be overcome with a clean “paleo” diet and plenty of vitamin D.

Thanks for all your great information!

Brendon

There are somewhere around 50 – 100 chemicals which work as or modify the effects of neurotransmitters, and many of them respond to problems with the endocrine system via the hypothalamic-pituitary axis.

My “depression” is endemic to one side of the family and is more related to hibernation than suicidality. I’ve been on and off various meds for years. Curiously (or not) discovering the blood glucose swinging from (mostly) nearly diabetic to nearly hypoglycemic several times a day and sitting on that has made a spectacular improvement to the depression and ADD, as has (probably) adding more Omega 3 and sat fats: maybe Vitamin D3 also.

IF this was placebo effect then how come different drugs have markedly different effects – and how come with a rational diet I am maintaining on 1/6 of my original dose? (I tried 1/12 of the dose but started slowing down again so it’s not entirely driven by the high/low BG and hyperinsulinemia but controlling that has had major knock-on effects)

There are such a bunch of physical as well as mental stressors in modern life, including but not limited to crap diets and overexposure to environmental toxins, that finding the cause and dealing effectively with it may be hard. In many cases drugs are necessary but like statins they are used to medicate away the effects of an inappropriate diet/lifestyle instead of being limited to those who genuinely need them, or in the case of SSRIs for hypothyroid to cover up the actual cause of the problem

Added to the fact that there has been a ten fold increase in the incidence of depression over the last fifty years (because we are living differently)

There are basic emotional needs as well as the physical ones that Mark describes http://unk.com/t/3

However, the complete Big Pharma bashing is uncalled for. Medicine–pharmaceuticals–saves peoples’ lives. My father’s life expectancy has doubled because of the drugs that were created, tested, and distributed by so-called Big Pharma. What drugs? Chemotherapy drugs. Not to mention steroids, anti-nausea medications, vitamins, and pain killers that allow him to continue working full time despite having an extremely painful and aggressive form of cancer.

Sure, there are problems in the system, but don’t forget that real good is done for society by a lot of the people who work for these companies. Researchers spend their lives trying to make things better for the rest of us. The business side mishandles things, especially things that are human and not financial, but the industry as a whole is getting too much flack on here.

I know the point of this post wasn’t that all pharmaceuticals are bad. I just wanted to inject a reminder that the pharmaceutical industry is not black-and-white. Like most other things in life, it is extremely complex. But I willingly accept the flaws in order to receive the benefits. (Well, that’s not entirely true, as I support a massive overhaul of the system, but for all intents, it’s how it plays out in my real life.)

One other thing, totally different from my initial point: GPs prescribing psychiatric medications can be dangerous. My partner has bipolar-1, and his GP put him on an SSRI. It nearly drove him into a manic episode. A psychiatrist would’ve known better.

I have had a doc induce a manic and a subsequent depression(and a couple of deaths in the family during the time) because of overdoses of anti-depressants. I was on a supposedly life long medication, Lithium, which I have stopped since a while after getting my life in order – a regular exercise program, dumping all junk food and colas and choosing natural foods instead and walking away from two stressful jobs. Also my liver was impacted(but found early) due to side effects of some of the meds I was on. Right now, I guess I know the root causes of my problems and I think I have a handle on it. As many people point out here, it is the treating of the symptoms instead of the real causes the real problem here. But I believe this is a problem that can be treated without meds if the root cause is figured out and in my case nobody helped me find out for a long time till I figured it myself.

As an acupuncturist I often deal with chronic conditions. I think your ability to stand up for your body and your needs and remind people they haven’t walked in your shoes is admirable and deserves some acknowledgement. I wish many of my patient’s could stand up and learn from what you just did.

While there is a lot of misuse and overuse of medications in today’s world, there is a reason pharmaceuticals were manufactured in the first place. They worked when nothing else did. Additionally they often worked faster.

There is something to be said for living a life that is satisfying. That in and of itself can help with your overall health. We all need to make our OWN choices because owe are the only people who really know our bodies. I think THAT is a lesson everyone needs to learn and remember.