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I don't buy it. Something else is going on. Look: Pretty much everybody I know is on antidepressants. Are we really facing a massive epidemic of sudden chemic

I don't buy it. Something else is going on. Look: Pretty much everybody I know is on antidepressants. Are we really facing a massive epidemic of sudden chemical imbalances? Everybody. I propose that our brain chemistry is unchanged, and unless you want to redefine normal in such a way as to exclude the entire current human population, the problem here is not medical.

DanBC 10y ago
> sudden chemical imbalances? Nobody credible believes the chemical imbalance stuff anymore. That doesn't make depression any less real - the fact that more people have a diagnosis might mean that a bunch of people who had unmet need are now getting the treatment they deserve.
- AstralStorm 10y ago
  It might well be chemical imbalance, but like most chemical systems in the body, it is probably a symptom.
Jtsummers 10y ago
The problem is medical, it's also societal. The solution is not chemical, but antidepressants are effective (for many people) in alleviating their symptoms. Loneliness -> Depression for many people. Stress -> Depression for many people. The solution is to address those. What causes you stress, can you alleviate it, can you change your circumstances. What causes your loneliness. Can you move somewhere else, can you meet other people and develop a social life. There is a (probable) chemical imbalance for most of these people, but the cause is not the chemical imbalance, it's the emotional/physical/mental stressors. They're what need to be addressed for long term recovery. EDIT: I should amend this. Some cases of, particularly the severe cases, anxiety and depression are the result of an actual chemical imbalance where addressing concerns like the above won't help. In those circumstances, medication is certainly appropriate and probably necessary.
- rak00n 10y ago
  I saw this TedTalk[0] earlier that vouches this idea. The genes we got from our hunterer gatherer ancestors cannot sustain sedentary isolated life we live today. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drv3BP0Fdi8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drv3BP0Fdi8.

DanBC 10y ago

> sudden chemical imbalances? Nobody credible believes the chemical imbalance stuff anymore. That doesn't make depression any less real - the fact that more people have a diagnosis might mean that a bunch of people who had unmet need are now getting the treatment they deserve.

AstralStorm 10y ago
It might well be chemical imbalance, but like most chemical systems in the body, it is probably a symptom.

Jtsummers 10y ago

The problem is medical, it's also societal. The solution is not chemical, but antidepressants are effective (for many people) in alleviating their symptoms. Loneliness -> Depression for many people. Stress -> Depression for many people. The solution is to address those. What causes you stress, can you alleviate it, can you change your circumstances. What causes your loneliness. Can you move somewhere else, can you meet other people and develop a social life. There is a (probable) chemical imbalance for most of these people, but the cause is not the chemical imbalance, it's the emotional/physical/mental stressors. They're what need to be addressed for long term recovery. EDIT: I should amend this. Some cases of, particularly the severe cases, anxiety and depression are the result of an actual chemical imbalance where addressing concerns like the above won't help. In those circumstances, medication is certainly appropriate and probably necessary.

rak00n 10y ago
I saw this TedTalk[0] earlier that vouches this idea. The genes we got from our hunterer gatherer ancestors cannot sustain sedentary isolated life we live today. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drv3BP0Fdi8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drv3BP0Fdi8.