Live data from Hacker News

Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

nytimes.com

131–140 of 223 posts

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#131

> Most people’s natural cycle is somewhat longer than the 24-hour solar day, which means that, left to our own devices, we would get quickly get out of sync with the external world. I've always had very bad issues sleeping and waking "on time." In school this led to me regularly missing class and eventually dropping school entirely, and with regular work schedules I hardly ever got good sleep. A little while ago, I m…

Hah that's interesting almost the exact same thing happens to me if I allow myself desired rather than scheduled sleep.

In a way though I wish my natural cycle was closer to the typical 9-5. I found it easy to be isolated or depressed on the days when your waking life is so different than everyone elses.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#132
post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a certain level of orthodoxy in psychiatry now.. I have yet to see anyone try to get any information other than "let's try putting you on this extremely mood altering pill with side effects for a month". No attempt is made to find any real evidence other than anecdotal patient information. Maybe the science isn't there?

Maybe the science isn't there? That's exactly it. A given drug may be one person's savior and another person's nightmare. It's extremely complex. To get just a hint of what may be going on, check out Scott's article on ANTIDEPRESSANT PHARMACOGENOMICS [0]. [0] https://slatestarcodex.com/2017/03/06/antidepressant-pharmac...

And it's failing patients left and right, who have to somehow go to work while already stressed anxious or depressed while now having to deal with rapid mood changes, insomnia, or one of any other side effects. If you roll the dice and get the wrong medication you will be worse off where you started. People shouldn't be used as test tubes - in no other field is it okay to "experiment" on people like in psychiatry.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#133

I wonder what damage our twice yearly clock changes do. An hour doesn't seem like much but, giving an entire population a little bit of jet lag simultaneously has to be bad for us, right?

Clocks should be a means to measure time, not manipulate when people do things.

Yes, this! It's a measurement. Daylight savings time makes about as much sense to me as it would to have a "Winter Temperature Time", where we would all shift our thermometers up by some number of degrees to pretend it is still warm out. Nothing is actually changing, after all, we're just making it more difficult to talk about.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#134
post #4

I wonder how much coffee plays into this. I've yet to meet someone who sleeps consistently more than 8 hours per night who feels the need to drink coffee. edit: 8 quality hours of sleep, e.g. you wake up and you're not tired.

I have sleep apnea.

I need 10 hours of sleep and coffee in order to function.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#135
post #4

I wonder how much coffee plays into this. I've yet to meet someone who sleeps consistently more than 8 hours per night who feels the need to drink coffee. edit: 8 quality hours of sleep, e.g. you wake up and you're not tired.

That's me. Genetic daytime sleepiness is a thing.

Modafinil has been a lifesaver for me.

Also, you have people with inherited dopamine management issues. Adhd aside, dopamine regulates internal clock, so delayed sleep phase is also a real thing. F.lux, blindshades and enough sunliht help, but just to a certain extent.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#136
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is there a comment like this on every single HN post lately? Yes, you fall outside of the fat part of the bell curve. Congrats. What's your point? A single outlier does not disprove the post. edited to add: fat part of the bell curve , since being outside of the bell curve entirely is not what I meant.

1. This isn't a lately thing, this type of thing has been happening for the over eight years I've been here. 2. Around 1% of people have the gene I'm referring to. Telling them they are all depressed without bothering to mention the possibility of the gene is something I'd expect better of the NYT. Just sharing the comment provides alternate theories to other HN readers that don't feel depressed. 3. I'm not sure if y…

Hear hear.

On the other hand you have people who have messed up sleep due to genetics, and this causes depression. And people who could sleep all the time and on schedule and still not feel rested.

The article hurts them all, and you too.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you mind me asking what age you are? >last December I became a morning person using early morning light and exercise // Where do you live that gets light on December mornings?

I DO mind! I'm terribly offended!! Just kidding. I'm 53. My bedroom gets light at 6 am when I wake up and turn on the light net to my bed. :-) So I have an alarm that goes off then. You just need to keep your eyes open for several minutes for the cells in your eyes to recognize that there is enough light to start shifting your circadian rhythm. It really works. Just be sure to stick with it. And to go right back to i…

Thanks for answering despite the obvious and unnecessary offense I caused you. ;0)

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#138
post #58

If you suffer from depression, you should thoroughly research LSD and then make your fully informed personal decision. On the negative side, this substance may become one of the reasons the pharmaceutical industry will lose recurrent revenues from disappearing dependency on expensive anti-depressants.

LSD can help breaking bad patterns, but if someone has messed up eurotransmitter genetics, after two weeks they will return to the baseline :(

If you read reports of people after psychodelics, for many of them, after two weeks the symptoms return.

But yehah, people should research it more, and try it. Same with MDMA for fighting with traumas and anxiety.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Clocks should be a means to measure time, not manipulate when people do things.

Yes, this! It's a measurement. Daylight savings time makes about as much sense to me as it would to have a "Winter Temperature Time", where we would all shift our thermometers up by some number of degrees to pretend it is still warm out. Nothing is actually changing, after all, we're just making it more difficult to talk about.

http://www.businessinsider.com/daylight-savings-dst-should-d...

"Daylight-saving time is dumb and we should get rid of it"

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#140
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you mind me asking what age you are? >last December I became a morning person using early morning light and exercise // Where do you live that gets light on December mornings?

I recently bought a Philips HF3520. I've read great things about it but unfortunately I'm too heavy of a sleeper that it doesn't work for me. Give it a shot, it's definitely worth it in the long run if it works for you.

FWIW it's "on offer" on Amazon UK, http://amzn.to/2mNBFR6 £90 (aff. link); USA it's http://amzn.to/2me5lUa $114.
Post reply on HN