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Depression lies

wilwheaton.net

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Re: Depression lies

#91

Post by SoftwareMaven »

luriel wrote: post #3
huggah wrote: post #2

We have an incredible capacity for denial and self-deception. For years, I would periodically drop into severe depression; I would stop sleeping, stop eating, stop answering my phone or email. I wouldn't leave my room for weeks on end; on a few occasions I was so successfully reclusive that people worried that I disappeared or died called the police to investigate. A few times I almost did die; I think the biggest re…

Knowing you "have a problem" doesn't mean you or anyone understands the problem or what to do about it. And even if you know what to do, doesn't mean you can do it either, the psychological, social or just practical barriers can be impossible to climb. Medication has a statistical significant effect, but is often marginal at best, and most of the effect is placebo. And this assumes an accurate diagnosis, and don't co…

I can't read the full article (paywalls...grumble...), but this[1] would indicate better-than-placebo performance for those with major depression.

Please don't spread unsubstantiated rumors on this topic. As many of us know from personal experience, the results of giving people an excuse to say "that medicine doesn't work anyway" can be devastating.

1. http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1991-19312-001

Re: Depression lies

#92

Post by GFischer »

mfceo wrote: post #90

before doing anything that this guy auggests, listen up : Leave the meds behind. meds are the last resport. you have to try everything else before doing what this guy did and let go of your supernatural expectancies from yourself. Work less, eat better, sleep more, enjoy your life more, stress less, change your life, live healthier, enjoy enough daylight, and first make sure that you are not infact surrounded by assh…

You started out with some good suggestions, and I do agree that meds shouldn't be picked up lightly.

However, I don't understand your rant when you go on saying that "i do find it sometimes difficult to compete agains all these people on meds as they don't have to deal with as much humane feelings anymore"

I'd also appreciate it if you used better spacing and punctuation (uppercase I for example), it makes your post harder to read and sound like a rant.

Re: Depression lies

#93

Post by gfunk911 »

raintrees wrote: post #9

One thing that helped me was additional vitamin D. I did some quick research and found out that one must be careful, as overdosing will bring back the same symptoms, but after adding an additional 1000 IUs a day, I am not getting as depressed as I used to. Please note that my depression was minor, more of the "there is too much going on, I can't get started on anything, I don't feel like working, I think I will just…

It's my understanding that "overdosing" on Vitamin D is very difficult. I take 5000 IU every morning. Do you have links to the research you found?

Re: Depression lies

#94

Post by SoftwareMaven »

nkurz wrote: post #69
bad_user wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does it really work? My guess is that's just how slim people tell fat people that laziness got them fat and so they should do more exercise, i.e. people that never suffered from a certain condition giving advice to people suffering from that condition. " I failed the test because I'm stupid " - that's just how I felt when I got rejected after an onsite interview with a certain company that's renowned for its hiring s…

Does it really work? Statistically, CBT combined with medication is currently the most effective clinical treatment for depression. Personally, having tried a number of sessions, I think it works very well for some, and not so well for others. If your tendency is to blame yourself for things that are beyond your control, it may be a great aid. If instead you want to understand the world so as to make it better, CBT p…

This feels like a false dichotomy. Is it really abandoning the truth to make the effort to give equal or greater weight to "something is wrong with the company for not hiring me" as "something is wrong with me for not getting a job at the company"? In this case, you cannot know the actual truth (unless you really did screw up, but I've never seen anything about CBT that says "ignore your mistakes"), so why should you take 100% of the blame?

BRW, I hope it doesn't sound like I'm trying to convince you to give CBT another shot. I have a lot of respect for people who have found their "happy" place. I would just hate to see somebody else not try it because they think it means becoming self-delusional. As somebody who suffers from "if it went wrong, it's my fault" syndrome, I can attest that, in reality, I'm really not that important.

Re: Depression lies

#95

Post by chmike »

huggah wrote: post #75
chmike wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You could be bipolar with a hypo maniac phase. You should check this with experts.

I was initially diagnosed with a Major Depressive Disorder; my first round of SSRIs sent me into a manic episode. That was enough to get me diagnosed with Bipolar II. I question whether that was an accurate diagnosis; my experience with bipolar medication was pretty awful, and with behavioral treatments (CBT and environmental changes) I seem to do okay without them, which is much more rare for people who suffer from…

I'm afraid the bipolar diagnostic is probably right. I would say the recurrence of the depression is a sign of that. Correlation with season variations is the most common, but not the rule.

Medication efficiency and side effect are known to vary individually.

In the end, the only thing that matters is that you find a treatment that helps you to feel and live better. I have heard lithium could help smooth the mood changes. Did you heard of that ? Unfortunately, some people have too bad side effects with it.

Re: Depression lies

#96

Post by anonymous »

throwaway120912 wrote: post #43

Forgive the disposable account, I am a long-time registered user with high karma but even I think that once in a while there is a topic that requires anonymity (or at least further pseudonymity). I do not feel I suffer from depression, yet I think of suicide frequently. Frequently as in, once every couple of days to several times a day, for as long as I remember. Frequently these are just passing thoughts, of how I m…

There is one argument that wins for myself, every time. I won't do it, because it's the same as giving up, which I'm way too stubborn and proud to do. And yes, there are times at 4 in the morning when I'm still tossing and turning and shaking with anxiety, that I really wish it would just end for good; however, I quite literally can't let myself do it. It's against my inner principles, which are so concrete and immovable, no amount of wetware buggyness can override.

I do worry that I'm destroying my health with worrying though, the irony of which doesn't escape me.

Re: Depression lies

#98

Post by DanBC »

bad_user wrote: post #40
kevinburke wrote: post #10

I'd also recommend reading psychologist Martin Seligman's book "What You Can Change and What You Can't", which covers a variety of mental health issues from sexual fetishes to fear of spiders to schizophrenia, and the treatment options available for each. Cognitive behavioral therapy teaches people to recognize negative thoughts ("I failed the test because I'm stupid"), dispute the thought ("If I'm stupid, how did I…

Does it really work? My guess is that's just how slim people tell fat people that laziness got them fat and so they should do more exercise, i.e. people that never suffered from a certain condition giving advice to people suffering from that condition. " I failed the test because I'm stupid " - that's just how I felt when I got rejected after an onsite interview with a certain company that's renowned for its hiring s…

> Does it really work?

Yes, CBT does really work. There is plenty of very good evidence to show the effectiveness of CBT.

You've taken a very brief example sentence, demolished it, and used that to dismiss an effective therapy.

The fact that you don't appear to understand CBT, nor know much about it, hasn't stopped you dismissing out of hand as bad advice.

Re: Depression lies

#99

Post by DanBC »

bad_user wrote: post #73
kevinburke wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Studies have shown the two to have the same effectiveness rate at treating depression, around 50%. It turns out it is actually healthy to pass the blame. I'd suggest reading one of Seligman's other books, Learned Optimism, for more, but in studies of people in high-pressure situations (freshman year at Army, cold call insurance salesman at MetLife, etc), the most successful people are the ones who externalize (blame…

I don't know, maybe it indeed works, but the problem is you have to believe what you keep telling yourself and that's hard. In regards to seeing the real world and your place in it for what it is, I think that the extremes are hurtful. For instance many of us here posses an over average intelligence (whether we were born with it, or we acquired it through hard work that's another discussion). Also, many of us here ha…

> but the problem is you have to believe what you keep telling yourself and that's hard.

Well, no. You just have to start by believing less strongly your original negative thought.

Situation: "I failed this test".

Hot thought: "I'm stupid".

Belief in hot thought: 80%

Emotion: Shame

Evidence to challenge hot thought: "I passed the test last month with an 'A'"; "I do better than many of my peers at testing"

Alternative theories: "I didn't work hard enough. And I spent a lot of time with the wrong section of the book." "The teacher is new and inexperienced. I have as much evidence that they made a mistake as I have for me being stupid, so maybe they did make mistakes in grading."

New belief in hot thought: 50%

So, you're not trying to convince yourself that these other theories are correct. You're just trying to make the negative thoughts you have less strong, less over-bearing, less destructive.

It's an iterative process too - the first times you interrupt your thoughts you lessen the severity of the negative thinking, and then you begin to strengthen the possibility of the alternatives, and then it starts happening automatically.

It's fine to have some negative thinking. But that negative thinking should be based on reality, and should not interfere with your ability to live a day to day life. People with depression are not thinking negative thoughts like "I'm a bit thick, I should learn more about $SOMETHING". They're thinking "I am hopeless. I am worthless. I can't learn more about $SOMETHING because I'm stupid and there's no point in even trying."

Once negative thinking gets to the point where you cannot sleep; you do not apply to jobs because you "know" that you won't get them; you socially isolate yourself; well, obviously it's no longer serving a useful purpose.

Re: Depression lies

#100

Post by gfunk911 »

rubashov wrote: post #84

I thought I was depressed and anxious for almost two years. It turned out I just had a chronic sinus infection. I'm suspicious that a lot of what gets considered as psychiatric problems are really physical health problems. Anecdotally, a lot of people switch to a nutrient dense diet and cut out potential allergens and wind up feeling all better.

Also very interested in your story. I have a deviated septum causing sinus problems and an anxiety problem.......
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