So how about daily serotonin injections to all elected officials?
Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
51–60 of 200 posts
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#52(Just my personal, anecdotal experience - I have strong family history of depression and anxiety on both sides of my family and it's something that's afflicted me since I was a teenager.) I will be extremely hesitant to take antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications ever again after my last experience with them. For me, the medications helped by tempering all of my feelings - I no longer felt sad or anxious, inste…
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Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#53Just FYI, when reading any article with Marc Hauser as one of the lead authors, one should at least read up on the controversy regarding his methods: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Hauser#Scientific_miscond... This article was published in 2010, he had to resign his faculty position at Harvard in 2011, and was found guilty of scientific misconduct in 2012 by the government Office of Research Integrity.
> They concluded that Hauser had fabricated data in one study, manipulated results in multiple experiments, and incorrectly described how studies were conducted.
Yeah, not the sexy kind of misconduct.
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Not just slightly different. It can be extremely variable from person to person. Not just SSRIs. I had a very bad experience with Mucinex D (or DM?) about 12 years ago, the first time I tried it. I can only imagine it was what clinical depression is like. For two days (until I stopped taking because I was so scared) I lost all interest in my life. I wasn't interested in my young children, ow my wife, or watching an…
Mucinex DM has dextromethorphan[0] which can act as a non-selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor. [0]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dextromethorphan see section on dependence and withdrawal
Well, that makes sense then. Thanks for the additional info. Honestly have been kinda scared of the whole class of medication that affects mood since this experience, but I've been lucky enough to not feel the need for medication nor been prescribed any of that sort, so haven't had to make that choice.
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#55This reminded me of this BBC article about the brain effects of ordinary drugs:
"The medications that change who we are"
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200108-the-medications-...
> They’ve been linked to road rage, pathological gambling, and complicated acts of fraud. Some make us less neurotic, and others may even shape our social relationships. It turns out many ordinary medications don’t just affect our bodies – they affect our brains. Why? And should there be warnings on packets?
> We’re all familiar with the mind-bending properties of psychedelic drugs – but it turns out ordinary medications can be just as potent. From paracetamol (known as acetaminophen in the US) to antihistamines, statins, asthma medications and antidepressants, there’s emerging evidence that they can make us impulsive, angry, or restless, diminish our empathy for strangers, and even manipulate fundamental aspects of our personalities, such as how neurotic we are.
> If these claims are true, the implications are profound. The list of potential culprits includes some of the most widely consumed drugs on the planet, meaning that even if the effects are small at an individual level, they could be shaping the personalities of millions of people.
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#56As does Histamine.
Mirtazapine is a great example of this and can have profound effects on behavior
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#57Huh, given that something like 15% of Americans are on SSRIs, I wonder how this affects the political landscape (which seems overrun with a new kind of moralizing in the last few decades)
Reductions in empathy, increases in “hey what’s the harm”... kind of like society over the last few years?
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#58(Just my personal, anecdotal experience - I have strong family history of depression and anxiety on both sides of my family and it's something that's afflicted me since I was a teenager.) I will be extremely hesitant to take antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications ever again after my last experience with them. For me, the medications helped by tempering all of my feelings - I no longer felt sad or anxious, inste…
Similar thoughts. I think SSRI's are the wrong direction. Acute drug experiences with therapy and behavioral modification are the future. do some molly and ketamine and have a good talk.
Caveat: If you have dissociative symptoms, are prone to anxiety, have a family history of psychosis or have a psychosis in your symptom profile, seriously reconsider the above advice.
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#59(Just my personal, anecdotal experience - I have strong family history of depression and anxiety on both sides of my family and it's something that's afflicted me since I was a teenager.) I will be extremely hesitant to take antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications ever again after my last experience with them. For me, the medications helped by tempering all of my feelings - I no longer felt sad or anxious, inste…
I would like to recommend a lecture by George Lakoff - The Neuroscience of Language and Thought
Within the first 10 minutes he speaks of the fact that rational thought as we see it simply does not exist. All our choices are based on the ability to distinguish a preference and that ability is based on emotion.
It would only make sense that medication impairing our emotions would also impair our choice making.
Re: Serotonin selectively influences moral judgment and behavior
#60Huh, given that something like 15% of Americans are on SSRIs, I wonder how this affects the political landscape (which seems overrun with a new kind of moralizing in the last few decades)
Ouch, that is a lot.
There is something like Serotonin Irritation Syndrome which can cause aggressive feelings and thoughts. Personally I tried to increase my serotonin twice, once with Tryptophan a few years ago and recently with Inositol. Both times I felt very aggressive. Maybe I should use it right before a chess game, who knows it helps ;)
It is sometimes mentioned that for people who are sensitive to psychosis (like me) this can be a tipping point towards aggressive behaviour.