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Neuroscience and depression is so fascinating because the idea that you have a chemical imbalance in your brain is, still, a theory. I'm more intrigued by the s

Neuroscience and depression is so fascinating because the idea that you have a chemical imbalance in your brain is, still, a theory. I'm more intrigued by the studies coming out about Ketamine, psybicilin, marijuana therapies, as a new angle to augment antidepressants and other prescriptions. I truly believe the switch is in there somewhere and through science we'll find it, so that mental illness can be corrected where appropriate.

PragmaticPulp 6y ago
> the idea that you have a chemical imbalance in your brain is, still, a theory. The idea that psychiatry believes depression to be a "chemical imbalance" is a myth. It's a common strawman argument against psychiatry or SSRIs, but the truth is that the field of psychiatry doesn't put much weight on "chemical imbalance" takes. More information in this article: https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/debunking-two-chemical-imbalance-myths-again https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/debunking-two-chemical... > I'm more intrigued by the studies coming out about Ketamine, psybicilin, marijuana therapies, as a new angle to augment antidepressants and other prescriptions. Ketamine is interesting as a short-term rescue for severe cases, but it's not a long-term solution. Some doctors are trialing long-term maintenance therapy, but the effects tend to wane over time and tolerance is a major issue. Most providers who use ketamine will use it to kick-start regular treatment. Marijuana is not a treatment for depression and should not be viewed as such.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- loveistheanswer 6y ago
  >the truth is that the field of psychiatry doesn't put much weight on "chemical imbalance" takes. Plenty of psychiatrists still assume mental illness of all sorts are primarily caused by chemical imbalance, which is why so many of them solely rely on chemicals to treat mental illness. "Schizophrenia is caused by a chemical imbalance and other changes in the brain."[1] [1]https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/schizophrenia https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseas...
  - phobosanomaly 6y ago
    I mean, it's all chemicals, right? It's chemicals all the way down. Neurotransmitters secreted by lipid-bound sacs (cells) packed with protein and sugar, arranged in vicinity of each other based on chemical and electrical (chemical influx/action potential) pulses. We abstract the chemistry from a machine-code level (raw, chaotic, biochemistry) up to medicine's version of brain C++ (neuroscience), and then brain Python (psychology). And, so, sure, maybe mental illness isn't simple chemistry (only a matter of one or two neurotransmitters a little off-kilter), but everything happening in your brain right now is chemistry, and so deviations from normal must therefore be a matter of chemistry. I would argue that calling it an imbalance or whatever is just a matter of semantics, but everything we see, and are, and do, and perceive is chemistry and changes in the chemistry (imbalances, whatever you want to call it) influence everything we see, and are, and do, and perceive. At a low level with current technology, we can tweak individual neurotransmitters pharmacologically (SSRI). With things like CBT we can try to tweak the chemistry in a more complex manner, and at a higher level of abstraction (changing wiring of chemical and electro-chemical synapses via chemically-mediated long-term potentiation/depression). So, I want to try to make the argument that it's less a matter of whether you address chemical imbalances or not, but rather at what level of abstraction you address the chemical imbalances. I'm genuinely not trying to be a pedantic douchebag. I'm just trying to argue that it's all the same shit, just at different levels of abstraction.
    - loveistheanswer 6y ago
      >I mean, it's all chemicals, right? It's chemicals all the way down. That is a theory, not a scientific fact. The current state of physics tells us we do not understand the fundamental nature of matter. The current state of neuroscience tells us we do not understand the fundamental nature of consciousness either. So saying "consciousness is just chemicals" is like saying "bankum is just gobledeygook"; the terms are not fully understood or defined on a fundamental level.
      - phobosanomaly 6y ago
        Are you arguing for the existence of an intangible soul?

PragmaticPulp 6y ago

> the idea that you have a chemical imbalance in your brain is, still, a theory. The idea that psychiatry believes depression to be a "chemical imbalance" is a myth. It's a common strawman argument against psychiatry or SSRIs, but the truth is that the field of psychiatry doesn't put much weight on "chemical imbalance" takes. More information in this article: https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/debunking-two-chemical-imbalance-myths-again https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/debunking-two-chemical... > I'm more intrigued by the studies coming out about Ketamine, psybicilin, marijuana therapies, as a new angle to augment antidepressants and other prescriptions. Ketamine is interesting as a short-term rescue for severe cases, but it's not a long-term solution. Some doctors are trialing long-term maintenance therapy, but the effects tend to wane over time and tolerance is a major issue. Most providers who use ketamine will use it to kick-start regular treatment. Marijuana is not a treatment for depression and should not be viewed as such.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
loveistheanswer 6y ago
>the truth is that the field of psychiatry doesn't put much weight on "chemical imbalance" takes. Plenty of psychiatrists still assume mental illness of all sorts are primarily caused by chemical imbalance, which is why so many of them solely rely on chemicals to treat mental illness. "Schizophrenia is caused by a chemical imbalance and other changes in the brain."[1] [1]https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/schizophrenia https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseas...
- phobosanomaly 6y ago
  I mean, it's all chemicals, right? It's chemicals all the way down. Neurotransmitters secreted by lipid-bound sacs (cells) packed with protein and sugar, arranged in vicinity of each other based on chemical and electrical (chemical influx/action potential) pulses. We abstract the chemistry from a machine-code level (raw, chaotic, biochemistry) up to medicine's version of brain C++ (neuroscience), and then brain Python (psychology). And, so, sure, maybe mental illness isn't simple chemistry (only a matter of one or two neurotransmitters a little off-kilter), but everything happening in your brain right now is chemistry, and so deviations from normal must therefore be a matter of chemistry. I would argue that calling it an imbalance or whatever is just a matter of semantics, but everything we see, and are, and do, and perceive is chemistry and changes in the chemistry (imbalances, whatever you want to call it) influence everything we see, and are, and do, and perceive. At a low level with current technology, we can tweak individual neurotransmitters pharmacologically (SSRI). With things like CBT we can try to tweak the chemistry in a more complex manner, and at a higher level of abstraction (changing wiring of chemical and electro-chemical synapses via chemically-mediated long-term potentiation/depression). So, I want to try to make the argument that it's less a matter of whether you address chemical imbalances or not, but rather at what level of abstraction you address the chemical imbalances. I'm genuinely not trying to be a pedantic douchebag. I'm just trying to argue that it's all the same shit, just at different levels of abstraction.
  - loveistheanswer 6y ago
    >I mean, it's all chemicals, right? It's chemicals all the way down. That is a theory, not a scientific fact. The current state of physics tells us we do not understand the fundamental nature of matter. The current state of neuroscience tells us we do not understand the fundamental nature of consciousness either. So saying "consciousness is just chemicals" is like saying "bankum is just gobledeygook"; the terms are not fully understood or defined on a fundamental level.
    - phobosanomaly 6y ago
      Are you arguing for the existence of an intangible soul?