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Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
41–50 of 407 posts
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
And you think the effects of drugs is universal? Exercise is a side effect free treatment that works for some people so it’s worth a shot because it sometimes works.
The poster you responded to didn't claim that drugs were universally helpful. I think the main point is that there is no universal that works for everyone. For some exercise works, for some drugs, for others therapy. And "works" isn't a yes/no, one might work a little for you, one might work super great.
The poster questioned the universality of exercise. And the went on to say that drugs worked for them in the next sentence. Clearly the two statements are related.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#43If it helps anyone I take antidepressants and have had a positive experience with them. Depression can be caused by a chemical imbalance and no amount of exercise or talking about it will fix it. One of the most frustrating things when your really low is people giving advice like do exercise to feel better - please don’t do this.
Exercising can help. It's not bad advice or inappropriate to suggest it. People shouldn't suggest it as if it's a cure all and certainly shouldn't suggest you just need to buck up, but the study is showing it can really help.
Context: I'm "using" SSRIs, talk therapy, psychotherapy, strength training and endurance training -- all in parallel right now.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#44I read the title as "Exorcise". I'll show myself out.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#45If it helps anyone I take antidepressants and have had a positive experience with them. Depression can be caused by a chemical imbalance and no amount of exercise or talking about it will fix it. One of the most frustrating things when your really low is people giving advice like do exercise to feel better - please don’t do this.
> Depression can be caused by a chemical imbalance and no amount of exercise or talking about it will fix it.
This is a debatable. As far as I understand things: 'chemical imbalance' has no tests to confirm that's actually true, That's just a story they tell to relax people.
Which is orthogonal to the point that antidepressants can work for some people.
We don't know how depression works. It very well may be many little things dressed in a trench coat.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266656032...
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-022-01661-0
https://www.neurocaregroup.com/news-insights/the-death-of-ch...
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#46I found this to be contradictory with my mental health period even after losing nearly 100 pounds, and going from zero to walking 8 to 10 miles a day, my mental health did not improve. It felt good to accomplish goals, two life-changing goals, really, but my overall disposition and deep depression did not change. I have no explanation for this.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#47This is a finding that keeps coming up, and I've certainly found it true in my life, but there's a significant chicken-and-egg problem in that depression frequently precludes the motivation to exercise, and if you don't already have a deeply-disciplined routine to overcome the lack of motivation, people won't do it. Exhortation to develop those good habits in the good times, I suppose.
You can also have a "deeply-disciplined routine" and get thrown out of it and hit depression because exactly by that one impact.
Source: Myself.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#48This is a finding that keeps coming up, and I've certainly found it true in my life, but there's a significant chicken-and-egg problem in that depression frequently precludes the motivation to exercise, and if you don't already have a deeply-disciplined routine to overcome the lack of motivation, people won't do it. Exhortation to develop those good habits in the good times, I suppose.
We have a certain amount of "willpower" that can overcome motivational barriers. This willpower is limited, though. It's very helpful to have clear guidance on where to allocate this very limited resources, especially in situations where people are otherwise struggling. All of which is to say -- these exhortations can play a useful role. :)
Yup, which is why diets fail. People who are fat generally do not have enough available willpower to lose weight.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#49I took meds for depression a few years ago. I don't know that they did anything other than signal to myself that I wasn't ready to give up. They may have served as a kind of "dumbo's feather" that helped me get through a rough patch. Exercise might be similar. People who choose to exercise make the statement to themselves that they are worth doing something positive for. Some mental health problems resolve with time and without medication, and in those cases, exercise might be a great way to address them. But if you're struggling, call your doctor and make and appointment. Medication is sometimes the answer.
Re: Exercise can be nearly as effective as therapy for depression
#50Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'd argue that depression kills and optimal therapy is: anti-depressants, exercise AND talking therapy and the time to start is NOW. I wouldn't knock the effectiveness of any of them with the caveats that: (1) you can get anti-depressants from you primary care doc, the best practice is to start on something, ramp up your dose and try something different if it is not working or you don't like the sides. I really thoug…
Or avoid medication for anything but treatment resistant depression. SSRIs are not well understood. Their side effects are not great. Getting off them is miserable. I had them. I felt dead inside. Mission accomplished. Depression was gone, so was my desire to eat, have sex, or do anything else. I wasn’t depressed, I was a zombie. 8 adjustments and medications later I got off them and realized they’re yet another pill…
yeah... i did forget to add meaningful community and spiritual activities to that list but people can have just as strong objections to them as they do to the other things on my list!