Tips on how to cure depression

Some helpful sites

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:33:00 +0000

In my previous post I wrote that I'm no doctor. However recently a person advised me a couple of sites where you can actually find a therapist or another family doctor.

I think these can be a nice addition to Wellsphere - a site where everyone can share their knowledge on some medical topic. The sites are quite new but promise to be helpful resources for those who need a bit of consultation from pros. I became their featured blogger as well with my same hope - to share my experience with those who may need help in struggling with depression.

Unfortunately I don't have as much time for posting as I used to have but there are still some important topics that I wanted to write about and I promise to make a couple of posts in a few days.

I'll share all I know about depression but I'm not a doctor

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 12:36:00 +0000

Recently I've received a comment from anonymous user who suffered from a loss of a loved one and asked for help. I answered but I would like to make it a separate post too for I think this is important. Several people who read my posts also asked me if I'm a doctor or a psychologist. The answer is no I am not.

I am a person who suffered depression for several years. Medical help was and is unavailable where I live so I had to deal with it by myself. I tried several medications which I managed to get without prescription which I do NOT recommend you to do because some meds have side-effects and other may not suit and even harm you. I was aware of this. I did suffer some side-effects. But I did it because we have a disaster of healthcare and we do not have any qualified professionals here who can even make a more or less accurate diagnosis say nothing of suitable treatment.

What is more important is that I did do some self-therapy. My inner voice was my patient and my doctor. I took time to sit and think and prosect my problems and my reactions and my thoughts. I cut my wounds open in order to see what causes the pain and how can I cure it. Now there is still lots of things to do. Some of my problems are solved but some wounds still cause lots and lots of pain and I still have to deal with them too. However I think I already have some experience and I know people may need it and this is why I started this blog - to share what I have learned. May be it'll help someone too.

But still. I am not a therapist. I am not a psychologist. I am a blogger. My posts may get you to the right idea or may make you think about something important, or even show you some way for your own self-help therapy. But if you realize you have a serious problem: you suffered abuse or loss of a loved one or whatever else. Please find some professional help. I do not want to take responsibility on treating you through the internet. Moreover I think it's ridiculous. I can give you an advice or tell you what is my opinion of your state or what I think you shall do. I can and will share all the experience that I have but to heal you I need to see you. To see your physical shape, to see your eyes and gestures when you talk. I need to have knowledge about meds that can be prescribed to some people and cannot to other ones. I would honestly like to help you because I know how it is to suffer depression but I am not the 1st and only person you should approach.

However if you my reader want to talk to me, to consider listening my opinion or knowing about my experience that you think might help you or you want me to listen to you - you may find my email in my profile. I publish it openly and I'm always there. Feel free to write.

Take care!

Personality Disorder Information

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 19:02:00 +0000

Disorder	Rating
Paranoid Disorder:	Very High
Schizoid Disorder:	Moderate
Schizotypal Disorder:	Moderate
Antisocial Disorder:	High
Borderline Disorder:	Very High
Histrionic Disorder:	Moderate
Narcissistic Disorder:	Very High
Avoidant Disorder:	Low
Dependent Disorder:	Moderate
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder:	Moderate
-- Personality Disorder Test - Take It! -- -- Personality Disorders --

An exceptionally good test. Although the results are never precise in any of such test because usually people tend to exaggerate or downgrade certain traits of theirs. Anyway what really drew my attention is the following brief personality disorder Information:

Paranoid
Paranoid personality disorder is characterized by a distrust of others and a constant suspicion that people around you have sinister motives. People with this disorder tend to have excessive trust in their own knowledge and abilities and usually avoid close relationships with others. They search for hidden meanings in everything and read hostile intentions into the actions of others. They are quick to challenge the loyalties of friends and loved ones and often appear cold and distant to others. They usually shift blame to others and tend to carry long grudges.

Schizoid
People with schizoid personality disorder avoid relationships and do not show much emotion. They genuinely prefer to be alone and do not secretly wish for popularity. They tend to seek jobs that require little social contact. Their social skills are often weak and they do not show a need for attention or acceptance. They are perceived as humorless and distant and often are termed "loners."

Schizotypal
Many believe that schizotypal personality disorder represents mild schizophrenia. The disorder is characterized by odd forms of thinking and perceiving, and individuals with this disorder often seek isolation from others. They sometimes believe to have extra sensory ability or that unrelated events relate to them in some important way. They generally engage in eccentric behavior and have difficulty concentrating for long periods of time. Their speech is often over elaborate and difficult to follow.

Antisocial
A common misconception is that antisocial personality disorder refers to people who have poor social skills. The opposite is often the case. Instead, antisocial personality disorder is characterized by a lack of conscience. People with this disorder are prone to criminal behavior, believing that their victims are weak and deserving of being taken advantage of. They tend to lie and steal. Often, they are careless with money and take action without thinking about consequences. They are often agressive and are much more concerned with their own needs than the needs of others.

Borderline
Borderline personality disorder is characterized by mood instability and poor self-image. People with this disorder are prone to constant mood swings and bouts of anger. Often, they will take their anger out on themselves, causing themselves injury. Suicidal threats and actions are not uncommon. They think in very black and white terms and often form intense, conflict-ridden relationships. They are quick to anger when their expectations are not met.

Histrionic
People with histrionic personality disorder are constant attention seekers. They need to be the center of attention all the time, often interrupting others in order to dominate the conversation. They use grandiose language to discribe everyday events and seek constant praise. They may dress provacatively or exaggerate illnesses in order to gain attention. They also tend to exaggerate friendships and relationships, believing that everyone loves them. They are often manipulative.

Narcissistic
Narcissistic personality disorder is characterized by self-centeredness. Like histrionic disorder, people with this disorder seek attention and praise. They exaggerate their achievements, expecting others to recongize them as being superior. They tend to be choosy about picking friends, since they believe that not just anyone is worthy of being their friend. They tend to make good first impressions, yet have difficulty maintaining long-lasting relationships. They are generally uninterested in the feelings of others and may take advantage of them.

Avoidant
Avoidant personality disorder is characterized by extreme social anxiety. People with this disorder often feel inadequate, avoid social situations, and seek out jobs with little contact with others. They are fearful of being rejected and worry about embarassing themselves in front of others. They exaggerate the potential difficulties of new situations to rationalize avoiding them. Often, they will create fantasy worlds to substitute for the real one. Unlike schizoid personality disorder, avoidant people yearn for social relations yet feel they are unable to obtain them. They are frequently depressed and have low self-confidence.

Dependent
Dependent personality disorder is characterized by a need to be taken care of. People with this disorder tend to cling to people and fear losing them. They may become suicidal when a break-up is imminent. They tend to let others make important decisions for them and often jump from relationship to relationship. They often remain in abusive relationships. They are overly sensitive to disapproval. They often feel helpless and depressed.

Obsessive-Compulsive
Obsessive-Compulsive personality disorder is similar to obsessive-compulsive anxiety disorder. People with this disorder are overly focused on orderliness and perfection. Their need to do everything "right" often interferes with their productivity. They tend to get caught up in the details and miss the bigger picture. They set unreasonably high standards for themselves and others, and tend to be very critical of others when they do not live up to these high standards. They avoid working in teams, believing others to be too careless or incompetent. They avoid making decisions because they fear making mistakes and are rarely generous with their time or money. They often have difficulty expressing emotion.

Here's the source of this info and I hope you've found it interesting.

Get rid of disturbing thoughts and memories

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 07:47:00 +0000

Today I'd like to tell you about dreams and memories.

Dreaming the future

There is some exciting activity - dreaming. Dreaming of who you want to become, what you want from your work, partner, life. Dreams inspire, they give us hope and make our belief in good things stronger. Yet there is a thing - a villian of dreams and this is delusion.

When I was even younger than I'm now I used to live in future. I spent hours dreaming and planning what my life will be in the next years. I played movies of future events and future dialogues in my head thinking what I'll do in this or that situation. Not actualy thinking - playing the small comedies and tragedies in my mind. And when one day I woke up looked around and saw nothing of what I've dreamt of I was.. disappointed. My daydreams used to be so realistic and so were my plans that I couldn't believe they are not supposed to come true. And moreover what I did to make them come true actualy turned out into a disaster of my whole life. I got angry. Angry at my friends, I blamed everyone for my faults, everyone who I thought deceived me or didn't care enough of me. Finally I got angry at myself. That I was so stupid to believe in obvious lies, that I didn't make enough effords to achieve what I wanted, that I overdid some things.

The solution came shortly after I took pills to end the nightmare I placed myself in. To skip some time I sat to play one of my favorite computer games.. and it turned out to be much more exciting then death! Sounds ludicruous I know. Yet I'm here and I write these things so maybe it wasn't that stupid after all.

The lesson I took at that time was that dreaming is ok. Dreams add some spice into our life so to say. Delusions are another thing. Delusions is when you start living your dreams which leads to disappointement and pain in reality.

Recollecting the past

Sweet sweet memories of good things and wonderful people and important events... it is so nice to recollect them, to scroll the pages of a photoalbum or a scrap book or to watch home videos. Just don't forget that you can add even more impressions into your personal account. Even right now.

The dark side is bad memories.

This month I have finally solved one of the things that used to drive me crazy for almost half a year - internal dialogues, memories from the past that literally haunted me. Many times a day I caught myself playing some bad moments from my past in my mind over and over again. I changed some events, phrases, details making the events go in various scenarious. I told 'people' different things to 'change' the past to make things go in a different way. But I couldn't really change the past. I knew that but voices in my head kept playing nonetheless. I started thinking about something but in the end I found myself dreaming some awful moments from the past. These dreams exhausted me emotionaly and by the end of the day I was tired, annoyed and irritable. And the worst thing I couldn't stop it.

As undersood the fact that I cannot stop it with my will I made the first step which led to Soultion. I spoke to my husband and told him about all the things that disturbed me. I told him about the dialogues in my head and bad memories and felt easirer. Much easier. The dialogues stopped for about a week which was enough to make my mind.

Living here and now

You see the thoughts about both future and the past are just the different sides of the same coin. These are attempts to escape reality. Unfortunately they change nothing. The cure - 4 steps.

1. First of all speak your problems out. No matter if you share them with your best friend or a complete stranger. Find courage to accept the fact that you have a problem. Telling someone about it is not about complaining it is about telling yourself that you know your problem and not afraid to speak about it and relief your mind from being the only one who knows it.

2. Every time you catch yourself being overwhelmed with disturbing thoughts - don't stop it. Continue thinking about what you thought or dreamed about to the ending. This is again to show yourself that you're not afraid of such thoughts, that you don't run away from them.

3. Take some time to analyze the disturbing thoughts. They don't come from nowhere. Ask yourself why do you want to think about it again and again? Is there something left unsolved? Is there anything you can do about the situation that haunts you? And if so - do it! If there is nothing you can do now but could do when the event took place and you feel guilty about it - don't. Live here and now.

4. Actually tell yourself this phrase every time some bad thoughts approach you. Here and now. It helps. "Here and now I go up the street". "Here and now I make cookies". Think about what's going on here and now, what people surround you, what things are there, weather, sounds. You'll be surprised how many things are left unnoticed when you're occupied with some memories of the past. How many wonderful things are around you just now when you're dreaming about future!

Let the sunshine in

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 09:41:00 +0000

Good things come and go while bad ones tend to stick in a memory and sometimes even good things pass by unnoticed. This is why a depressed mind spend sleepless nights recollecting the worst events in one's life. This used to happen to me for a long time and only recently have I understood it (thanks to my husband a lot) and would like to change things into a positive way.

There are 3 things I'll keep doing until I achieve positive results:

1. Pause every time as I notice something good even a small thing and enjoy the moment. Not just pass by. My camera helped me a lot last year although I did not fully understand it. I captured wonderful treasures of nature and enjoyed every bit of them. I still recollect last spring and summer with a smile because these are memories of the best moments in my life.

2. Create good things for myself. There are so many pleasures in life: good meal, long bubble bath, nice books, colorful pictures, interesting movies. Self-indulgence is great if you add sense to it.

3. Find positive moments even in bad events. This one is the hardes one for me. See when depressed I usually become a paranoid downer who finds bad sides in almost any event. If something good happens sooner or later I'll have a thought that it'll finish soon and the next is obviously something drastic. Being very touchy I would react to a tiniest bad event as if it is a drama of my whole life. But since this time I will do my best to evaluate every event and make my mind clear.

I will let the sunshine in so it could warm me up these days and advice you to do the same. Here is a song which title I took for this post. Take care!

When you paint it black

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:49:00 +0000

"I was weak. That's why I needed you... needed someone to punish me for my sins... but that's all over now... I know the truth. Now it's time to end this. "

- James Sunderland, Silent Hill 2

In my When your colors fade to gray post I wrote tips on what to do when you want to do smth but too tired to do anything. Here is some piece of advice on what to do when you don't want to do anything at all.

So. You sit in your corner and all you want is to be left along. You don't want to do anything creative, you don't want to skip time reading or watching tv or playing some video game. Nothing is interesting. Everything is dull and unimportant. And you hate this state.

And you love it at the same time. No worries though. Let us start and you'll love a sense of relief too, I promise.

The best way to get over this numb state is to get yourself busy. This of course contradicts your very mood, yet ask yourself if you want to make things better or what? If your wish is to become happier and more creative, then you need to force yourself but only in the beginning.

1. Make a list of long-term projects and place it on your desk so that you can see it. This doesn't mean making a list of things you want to do right now (besides right now you seem to want to do nothing). Switch your emotions off and write the cool things that you dream to do one day: a story or a book to write, a site to create, a painting to draw, a set of flowers to bloom in your garden, some jewelry to make, some new pie to bake (or create a set of your own recipes maybe?), remake your house interior, write some cool program or create a new design model.

2. Divide each project into small pieces. Big projects always look almost impossible until you realize that they can be divided into several small and sweet steps. As you think about some big project chances are it overwhelms you and you put it on a shelf of cool-things-never-to-be-done, which you call a to-do-later stuff. Besides a set of small steps to perform will also keep your mind occupied for a long period of time and thus distract from sad thoughts which is the main goal.

3. Choose 1 project and start with the first step. You may need to force yourself into doing this step. Do it. Even if you don't feel like starting. Start with something.

When I created this blog I copypasted info from other sources which is [info] no doubt interesting and useful. Then I burned out. It wasn't my work that I pasted here so I considered blogging as a mechanical rather then creative activity. I abandoned it for several months. I complained that I couldn't write and did no attempt to actually start writing. I blamed other people, said surrounding conditions discourage me from doing anything. Finally I forced myself into the first step: write down any ideas or experiences to my notepad. Now this blog is based on those notes.

4. Keep away from perfectionism. Trying to make a masterpiece from the first sketch means to burn out soon and for long. Don't try to make a clean copy at once, rather make several drafts. Also don't consider drafts as failures. Only cartoon characters make millions copywrites to tear them to pieces one by one. You instead learn and improve with repetition. Thus it is good to keep a track of your attempts.

5. Be honest to yourself and stop creating extra demons. The problem is in your mind only. Be brave, stop running away from distractions. Be a master of your own universe. Correct your own mistakes instead of cancelling newborn projects just becuse you think they started in a wrong way. Take control ower your life and soon you'll succeed.

In the beginning of this post. James Sunderland - a protagonist from Silent Hill 2 video game saw a pyramid-headed monster spoil his life through the game. In the end, however, he understands that the monster is just a visualization of his own wish of self-torture. He makes a decision [a quote] and starts attaking pyramid head. He does not kill it - because it is not real. Instead the monster kills itself, which means James understood that there is no need to blame external powers and he is the one who controls his life and can improve it. His fear gone.

---
A personal note here. Right now I experience a bad period of my life. I don't know what to do about sertain things. My emotions tend to play tricks on me and I don't always control them. Yet I won't give up. I know this. I have lots of projects in my mind and I will bring them into play one by one.

Alcohol and depression

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 08:49:00 +0000

I have thought a lot about the recent events in my life and it made me understand the following: wise are those who learn from their's earlier mistakes. Today I would like to share my experience with alcohol and explain what is actually wrong with us when we decide to use it as a relief from stress.

I said what is wrong with us not with alcohol. This means I will not pose the latter one as root of all evil, which is the simplest thing to do. It is we who decide to drink it thus we shall carry responsibility. The same statement works with other things like drugs that we take, or guns that we shoot. In reality devils are in our minds only and they don't posess things as they do in horror movies.

Back to alcohol. The main mistake is to drink it when you feel bad. Alcohol is a depressant which slows brain activity down. Most people feel relaxed after a couple of shots however more alcohol may cause depression, anxiety and/or aggression. Let me explain it in details.

- The first effect of alcohol as it reaches the outer brain is euphoria, a sense of pleasure as it lowers your inhibition. You seem to relief from stress and feel relaxed.

- With more alcohol your coordination and perception are affected, you can have memory blackouts or have difficulty moving.

- As the alcohol reaches your mid-brain, reflexes diminish, you experience confusion, stupor, and may lapse into a coma.

Depressive/agressive behaviour apears on the second stage. If you felt good before taking alcohol your mood may worsen or change into aggressive. This varies from person to person and depends on many different factors. However, if you are already depressed as you drink chances are you will feel worse. There are more chances that you'd like to self-harm and there are many cases of attempted suicide people commited in drunk state.

To sum this up: when you are depressed and feel that you need to release from stress by drinking some - remember that you will have this relief only for a small period of time and will feel worse afterwards. Remember that and decide what is good for you and what is not. Remember that you're making your own choice whether it is choice to recover or to freak yourself out.

Take care and have a nice weekend!

To my readers...

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 07:28:00 +0000

Dear all who reads my blog, I write tips and advice here which you may find useful. However I would like to be honest and tell you the story which happened to me on this weekend.

Just before I start here is some info you need to know. I was asked in comments whether I am a psychologist or a therapist of sime kind. In fact I'm neither of that. I'm a former cutter and used to suffer depression for about 4 years, tried to commit suicide in 2005. After an antidepressant and self-help therapy I seemed to recover. I started this blog to help those who suffers depression and to share my experience so that someone can find it useful.

Now the story. On Saturday night when me and my husband met our friends I tried to commit suicide. All I remember is 3 things: First: I sat with my husband by the fire and felt wery peaceful. The next is I lay in dirt feeling real bad. The third one is my husband and one of our friends catch a taxi to drive me home.

As we came back home I was told the following: First I sat by the fire with one of our friends ans try to woo him. My husband took me aside so we could speak privately, when a ran psychotic. I screamed bloody murder for about 2 hours, I tried to throw myself before a car for about 10 times scaring the hell out of my husband. I told him that I spoil his life, that he has a writer's block because of me and that I want to die.

I still don't remember a thing. And I doubt if I have a right to advice something about depression after that day. I am ashamed of what I've done but don't want to blame alcohol for it because noone forced me to drink so much. And I'm very scared. My husband got cold real bad when he carried me, and stopped my suicide attempts. He still is very nervous. So bad that his arms and jaws become physically numb from time to time.

I don't know if I will be able to write here and if I have a right to write here. I will think about it.

Take care.

10 Tips to help someone with depression

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:33:00 +0000

Sometimes it is hard to find the right words. Sometimes even the best intentions may hurt. This post is dedicated to people who know someone with depression.

So what to do if one of your friends or relatives is depressed. You feel that you need to comfort her/him. Here are the things to know. Before you start here is the rule you should remember:

First do no harm. Whatever you decide to tell the depressed person, be sure to estimate all pro and contra before saying a thing. Be careful with your words, gestures, mimics.

1. Don't ask what happened. If you lack information about the causes of the person's depression, let her/him be the last who you ask about it. A single memory of some sad thing may trigger a person and make her/his state even worse. Leave these "are you ok" and "what's wrong" things to movie characters.

2. Offer help not pity. If all you want is to say sorry - better make sure to also offer comfort. The depressed person already pities her/himself so again don't make things worse. Sometimes it is as painful to listen someone sorry you as to think about some sad things that trigger bad mood. But:

3. Offer help only if you can actually help. This is the must. If you promised something - do it. Imagine how will your depressed friend or relative feel when s/he realizes that waited for nothing.

4. Tell the depressed person how important he/she is to you. When depressed people tend to think that noone cares about them. Tell them what you love about them, show that you really care. Offer them all your support.

5. Remind them of their positive traits. Depressed person may often think about their bad attributes only and forget about the good ones. Be the one to point out their good side, treat them the jewels they are.

6. Gently encourage the person to do something. I say gently. Don't force them do something if they don't want to. Offer them to go out with you or do something together. The best thing you can do is to get them truly interested with something.

7. Listen when the person wants to talk. A chance to speak out things that worry oneself can be a relief. Sad emotions can burn from the inside untill the person speak them or writes them down.

8. Don't take their pessimism personally. If the depressed person ignores or declines your advice, - don't get frustrated. Depressed person may often think there is no way out. This is just a symptome of their illness. Also don't view someone else's depression as your own fault.

9. Be a good model of positive behaviour. Environment plays a great role in one's mood. So do friends and relatives. Don't multiply sadnes. Influence your dear one to become more healthy by becoming more healthy yourself.

10. The last but not the least don't overdo. Too much concern may be as annoying as loneliness.

When your colors fade to gray

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:37:00 +0000

You want to do something, but don't know what exactly or where to begin. Yet all your fingers are thumbs and you can't do anything. The colors fade to gray and you end up scrolling time by surfing internet, sleeping or playing solitaire. The worst thing is you start feeling guilty for doing nothing. Here are a few tips that may help if you find yourself in such situation.

The key thing is to shake yourself from blues. This means no passive contemplation. Leave meditation for another case. Here we need some active stuff to do.

0. Stop scrolling time. Solitaire is addicting I know. Yet if you don't stop playing it you won't get any success. (By solitare I mean ANY time-scrolling activity you use).

1. Read and comment. Reading books is ok but not in this case. Find blogs, communities or forums where you will participate in communication. Read the topics and write whatever comes to your head in comments. Questions, ideas, your own experience, associations whatever. Just don't be silent. When I had writer's block - I started with minor comments on some social networks untill my creative juices flew again.

2. Meet your friends. There's nothing good as offline communication. Meet or phone your friends. Ask them the latest news, let them tell you some stories, ask if they got any new hobbies, visited some cool place or web-site. Give them your feedback. Hopefully the stories will make you think or even give you some ideas.

3. Get inspired with visual things like video clips, movies or pictures (Not depressive ones!!!). There are l-o-t-s of resources where artists place their pictures or photos and there are as many video services where you can watch stuff for free. Watch things and write down any associations that come to your mind. They may make you want to do something creative too.

4. Learn something new. If you can't do things you used to - than do something else. Learn a language, search wikipedia for some stuff you don't know and try to understand it, choose some weird field to study, or learn more interesting details about some common stuff. Then share your experience with that. My experience again: 2 years ago I though I'll die of boredom untill found an online guide to html\css that changed my life! Now I can make templates for websites or blogger! Hope to make a blog with my own templates soon!

5. If you can't make a whole thing - make a draft. If you're a writer or an artist - carry a notebad or a sketchbook with you. Write down any idea that comes to you. Yeah I know this one is an old thing. But it damn helpful! You don't need to write a poem in your notepad - just a phrase or two. I have a notepad where I write the ideas for this blog. Moreover, the idea of this post came to me about 2 weeks ago when I chated with my friend who told me the idea of the 1st 2 phrases of this post.

6. If you start doing something and it fails - don't torture yourself and the thing you do. If something fails and you get annoyed - the worst thing to do is to proceed. Better shift to something else. Like pp. 1 - 4.

7. If nothing helps - do something useful that does not require thinking i.e. housework. Not only it is a good thing to water plants or clean the house, but it will also make you head clear when your hands are occupied. I mean when you do some routine things you can think about whatever you want without actually being attached to a clear sheet of paper that makes you feel dumb.

Oh and don't think that I forgot to spoil your mood with some morality. Here goes my favorite one. Stop pitying yourself and start doing something. If you keep thinking that you can't do anything - nothing will ever change. Start doing something and as you proceed you'll have no chance to question yourself - cause you've already started!

Don't get stuck in a swamp with your friends

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:50:00 +0000

This is the answer to comment from Joi:

"Realizing that we have more power than we give ourselves credit for helps a lot. Sometimes we just have to switch people OFF the way we do our television or radio when they annoy us!"

It is obvious that usually we communicate with people who we like and avoid those we don't. However, there are situations when we think we have to stand annoying persons for some reason. I will not go deeply into relations with strangers or acquaintances this time. Just a short notice:

You have almost all possible ways to avoid communication with strangers that bother you. Just don't let guilt or underconfidence stop you. You can behave in a same way with aquaintances unless you don't want to break with them off completelly. In this case you can tell them you're either not interested in (or even hate) the particular topic or don't have time for it. In any way remember that you have no obligation to communicate with either of them.

Friends and relatives are a different case. The hardest part here is to actually understand that some of them make you feel sad or depressed. It is a common thing that there are successful people who walk the walk and those who are stuck in a swamp and try to suck as many people with them as possible. Let me explain.

Say you have some idea. You share it with a person and s/he finds tons of reasons why you shouldn't even bother with that. S/he'll tell you the stories of those who tried smth similar and failed, warns you about those difficulties here and there.

In the second case the person agrees with you that it is a great idea and is eager to join you in its realization. But he cannot spare a minute today. Tomorrow perhaps or the next week or well later. Just a little bit later. You wait for him ask him what's the progress and s/he is still eager to participate. S/he will discuss all the tiny details with you, show you their interest yet do nothing practical... Untill you burn out and leave your idea for good.

Now I may be saying a harsh thing, still: these people are loosers. But not just that. They make you become a looser too! They are stuck im their swamp of routine and fears and suck everyone who gets close to them.

A golden rule of all sucessful people is not to communicate with loosers. Never listen to advices of loosers. How dare they advice you something if they cannot improve even their own life! And what kind of advices do they tell you: "don't do this and that because I know it'll make you no good". The fact is they won't see any good in whatever you do. But they do so not because they are bad.

I used to have two friends who were nice people by all means. We loved to dine together, visited each other often, enjoyed speaking about different things. But when it came to something more important like joint business one of them started complaining like "what if we fail" without even starting, and the other one gave hope by joining me, gave 1000 and 1 advice on how to work out some details of little importance but never did a thing.

Now if you realize that someone makes you feel bad in some way - choose between friendship and your sanity. Don't let them imbog you. Switch them off.

Step 3b: Get rid of trigges

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:02:00 +0000

Let us continue dealing with triggers. In the previous post I tried to explain what to do with memory triggers and annoying things. (And if you're new here - here is the beginning of my self-help steps series).

Today let us face web triggers and sensual triggers.

Web triggers

Web triggers are those sites, blogs or communities which somehow worsen your mood. And if you decided to improve your mood and your state try

- not to visit sites which bring you sad memories (i.e. your ex's blog)
- not to visit sites where people share their pain

About the second one: depressed people tend to visit depressive sites and share stories on how bad they feel. However most of the times they feel worse after reading these things. Why? Because consciously or not they try on the others' problems and find correlations with their own. Just like the following way: "John writes that after [some event] he felt so sad. Yeah I usually feel sad after such things too! Like yesterday (...) " - and the damage is done. You read further and further and soak in the depressive environment. Instead visit those pages that either help dealing with problems or where people share success stories.

Sensual triggers

Different people react differently to various sounds, smells or colors and it may seem difficult to control physical reactions to sudden triggers of this kind. However, even autistic people (who have very delicate senses as well as unstable mood patterns) can learn to deal with loud / unpleasant sounds or dazzle lights. Here are some ways to reduce annoyance from sounds, colors and smells.

Sounds

Before I start writing about external sounds let me first ask, what kind of music do you usually listen when feeling sad? L-o-t-s of people (including myself) enjoy listening to depressive music when they're sad. The reason is simple: when you're depressed you pity yourself over and over again, and you LOVE the way it feels and can't get enough of your sorrow. BUT if you want to live withou depression and feel happines because of positive emotions you should stop pitying yourself. Means stop listening to depressive music.

Now external stuff. The best way to reduce annoyance from loud or unpleasant sounds is to actually use ipod or mp3-player which will block external sounds. Just be careful when crossing the street etc! And make sure you have backup batteries or charged accumulators (because I know how annoying it is to have your batteries dead in the middle of your favorite track!).

Colors

There can be some colors in the street that you hate or you can have some ugly-colored things in your surroundings. The simplest tool that will help you to deal with first ones is sunglasses. You can find tons of sunglasses of different styles and colors. Choose whichever you like and make them a part of your image! Have as many sunglasses as you want. Not only will they protect you from dazzling lights and disturbant colors, but they will also make you feel safer. Just accept a small advice: if it is possible take off the glasses when speaking to people important to you because eye contact is a very important part of communication. It can also work perfectly vice versa: you will feel more confident when speaking to an unpleasant person with your glasses on.

What about things you posess or that you have around at home / work - see previous step. In short: try to get rid of these things or ask the person who posesses them to replace these things if it is possible.

Smells

What to do when a gas-helmet is unavailable? Try these tips:

- Bypass the source of unpleasant smell or try to escape it as fast as possible. Hold your breath if needed and if it reminds you something sad - force yourself to think about something else. Or multiply numbers.

- If you cannot bypass the annoying smell but can remove it - do it! The more active you are - the better. The worst thing you can do is to suffer quietly when you can make a positive change.

- If you cannot remove the smell but know that someone can - ask her/him to do so

That's all for this part it seems. And that's all with external disturbants. We dealt with ourselves, people, things and senses. Now it's time for everyday practice. Make changes everyday untill you tick every point in your to-do list. I am sure that you will feel better when have less triggers that worsen your mood.

Step 3a: Get rid of trigges

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:23:00 +0000

In parts 1 and 2 we have dealt with ourselves and people who surround us. Let's now move to distracting objects. If you followed my advice - you should now have a list of disturbing things. Time to classify them. Divide the objects into the following groups or if you don't have a list - then try to fill the following classification:

- Memory triggers (photographs, presents, miscellanous objects in your room, music, videos etc)
- Things that annoy you just with the fact of their existense (furniture, dishware, houseware, some objects in the office/school/institute)
- Web triggers (blogs, sites, communities)
- Sensual triggers (colors, words, phrases, smells, sounds)

You may expand the list and add some categories if necessary. When the list is ready proceed to real actions. Let me start with my own experience.

Memory triggers:

When I first thought about how I am tired of being depressed (by that time enough damage was done) one of the first things I did was that: I took a huge garbage bag and placed it in the middle of my room. Then I opened my paper case, took all the old letters and papers and documents that I will never ever use and threw them all to garbage bag. I threw away the old photos that triggered some bad memories, I sent all the souvenirs, scripts, cds to garbage because a single approach to them made me feel sad.

Then I got to my wardrobe. I took the clothes that I knew I will never ever wear, but kept them anyway. Although I didn't throw them away, I gave them to my neigbours who I knew needed clothes for their small daughter. (Now imagine them carrying a HUGE bag from my appartment to theirs!). After that I decided to have some short rest.

Then I gathered all the things that I knew I'll never use (but kept them anyway for the reason unknown) and sent them to the garbage bag too - the 3d one actually. (Now you can imagine ME carrying 3 HUGE garbage bags to the grbage can!). You get the hint, right?

Things that annoy you just with the fact of their existense

I thought to make some long explanation here, but instead I will tell you what my husband did when faced the problem of old furniture he hated. Yeah he threw it away too. But let me explain the details anyway.

When I first visited his place it was.. well a usual room of a freelancer. A bed, a computer table, a bookshelf and I believe there was some small shelf and a small coffee table. However little by little the number of these objects decreased until finally reached zero. We made an improvised bed from tons of warm blanckets and pillows. The result was a big and warm nest that could be easily taken away and placed back when necessary. The lamps were replaced with luminodiods, the walls were repainted. The computer was moved to the floor so that we could reach it from the nest as well as watch movies.

If you have your own house/appartment you can make it just the way you want. Realize your idea of a sweet home or at least get rid of those things which do not comply with it. Make your home a place where you can rest from everyday stress. I assure you that you won't need to spend l-o-t-s of money to make a change (unless you want to).

If you live in someone's place or with somebody else (i.e. parents) where you cannot make radical changes - try to extract or change at least the most annoying things, find a compromise through the dialog. Explain that certain objects make you feel bad, offer a solution which will satisfy both sides at least halfway. When changing things make sure you will not cause too much discomfort to people you live with.

A small advice before I finish this part: I know that when depressed you will want to paint-it-black. When making the changes listen to your will to feel better, not to your depressive thoughts.

This post seems to be too long already. The rest info on what to do with web and sensual triggers is in the next one.

Step 2: Accept people as they are (but don't let them upset you)

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:24:00 +0000

In step 1 you learnt to accept yourself as you are with all the good and bad sides of your personality (well I hope you did). Now what about other people. They are annoying, they are rude, they are.. they are what they are and most of the times you can do nothing about it. When a person does not want to change - it is almost impossible to to change her/him.

Having read the above you can go sit in the corner and mourn about the unjust way of life. Which of course won't help you. Or you can get furious with the whole world and treat people the bastards they are no matter who. That won't help too.

What will help is an attempt to gain control over every situation. Have you made a list of people who stress you over and over again? Time to deal with each of them depending on every single detail. You know that people are all different. Not everyone who annoys you really means it. They may just never know you're annoyed or sad because of them untill you explain them in a proper way. So if someone disturbs you - don't close yourself, try not to go mad right away - just tell the person that you are not comfortable with what they did and ask not to do that anymore. Try to find some compromise together - it is available in the most of situations unless one of the sides is too stubborn to accept it.

If you are sure that normal dialog is impossible then don't be a victim! Why is it you who should always suffer because of others? Tell the person that you are uncomfortable (if you don't - nothing will change!) make them understand that you're a person and you have an opinion.

It is not always necessary to be rude. In my opinion it is always better not to raise your voice, but if someone tries to interrupt you - just keep talking. When I practiced the things I describe here my usually silent voice turned into strong and 'metallic'. Strong voice means a strong person - practice your voice and tone. When talking to the person also be in a strong position: ask questions and try not to sound guilty or apologetic. It is you who was disturbed than it is a disturbant who is meant to apologize.

Later on after a single succesful dialog you will be proud of yourself. Remeber it! Remember each your success. You will need these memories for self-help. Done? Let's move on to Step 3!

To-do list : 1. accept yourself

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:00:00 +0000

Now as we found the source of depression...

Here's the first point in our to-do list: learn to accept who you are and don't distinguish either your good or bad traits from your personality.

A common thing is: when you feel bad you start thinking about your handicaps, feel guilty, feel sorry for yourself just like these traits are something from outside and has nothing to do with your personality that suffers from their doings. At the same time you never recollect your merits like they don't exist at all.

The fact is both your vices as well as virtues are YOU. And you're quite complicated! Why don't you deny the fact you have a nose or fingers, you don't deny the existence of your heart, your brain, your liver. Then why deny the parts of your character? Nobody's perfect and nobody's a total freak.

Now think: every time you consider yourself stupid, weak, worthless - you cut your chances to actually realize what's wrong in your doing. It's so easy to put a sticker than to digg the problem and find solutions to solve it.

Now to make it short: whatever you are: weak, stupid, crazy - you are who you are and there's nothing good or bad in it. Understand it. Accept it. Having done that move to the second step.

Find the source of your depression

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 07:26:00 +0000

I haven't posted here for a month already and I'll tell you why: I was dealing with things that disturbed me.

Although it can be hard, but trying to shift daily routine to think what actually worries you may be the start of yor self-therapy. You see: depression usually starts with: "I feel bad because of ". Later on it converts into "I feel bad because I feel bad because I feel bad...." - reasons - true and imaginary mix and multiply in your mind so that you kind of forget of the original reasons of your sad state.

Once you have uncovered some moment or event, from which everything started to go wrong - chances are you will find the cure too. The main mistake is to fight symptomes instead of eliminating the source.

Here are some steps I designed and used:

1. Relax and start untwisting the events of the latest days. Find those triggers that worsened your mood recently. Someone who told you things which made you feel bad, something that happened in a wrong way etc.

The key here is to prescind the facts from your emotions or the circle will start going round and round and instead of analyzing the facts you will continue going through bad emotions over and over again.

Relax. Think what made you feel bad today, yesterday, this week. Write it down - it'll help your analysis later. Now don't pause to think over the events. The goal now is to collect information.

2. Practice #1 for as much as it is needed to collect enough facts. It must take from a week to a month to do so. Now it is time for a deep analysis. Ask your notes: what places\people\events make you feel bad. Go further: what colors\sounds\smells\objects are the most annoying. Which words, phrases, tones you don't like.

Here the main thing is again to shift your depressed emotions away. It is them who whispers in your ears: "I want to be left along in a dark room with noone to disturb me, with some saddening music around or no sounds at all". I'll try to explain you why these thoughts are a disaster for anyone depressed.

Make a list of those things that disturb you and make you feel bad. Step by step, answer, what exactly do you hate about your work, what are the most annoying things at home, what do your friends/relatives do wrong.

As you have a roll of reasons on why to kill your neigbors, sell your house, quit job, and commit suicide in front of you - proceed to my next post. There's an alternative to-do list!

Improving Self-Esteem

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 09:20:00 +0000

Along with antidepressant therapy I would like to offer you some more ways to improve your state. Medicinres are ok of course, but why don't help you body get well faster by using these simple techniques. Moreover if you prefer natural remedies, these advices will help you feel better too.

Below I am posting tips on how to learn to estemate yourself higher.

"1. Make a List of Strengths and Positive Attributes

Sit down with a pen and paper and list all the strengths that you have as well as all the positive things that you can say about yourself. This could include skills that you may have (e.g. cooking) or attributes that you possess (e.g. pretty eyes, a lovely voice).

Include in this list all the positive things that you have ever heard people say about you. These do not need to be things with which you necessarily agree. For example, if someone has told you that you have attractive handwriting, but you don't agree - include it on the list. After all, the opinions of others are just as valid as yours, aren't they?

It is also a good idea to go to close friends, colleagues, and relatives and ask them to name three positive things about you - include these on the list as well.

Take a few days to do this exercise. You will be surprised at what you will come up with!
Some people find it hard to make a list of positive things about themselves. If this happens to you, it probably has its root in your childhood. Many people are taught that it is conceited and 'bad' to say anything positive about themselves. If it makes you uncomfortable to write down complimentary things about yourself, there is all the more reason to work at it. Do it even if it makes you feel uncomfortable.

2. Learn to Accept Compliments

Are you the sort of person who feels awkward when other people compliment you? Do you find it difficult to know what to say in response to a compliment?

If you are, begin to practice receiving compliments graciously. If some one compliments you, say 'Thank you' and smile at them. Do not try and discredit the other person's words by pointing out negative things about yourself, like 'It's just an old dress', 'I was just lucky', 'I usually mess up'. Receive the compliment and learn to take pleasure in it. This may be difficult at first, but if you practice it will become easier.

If you allow other people to compliment you, you will help yourself to feel more positive and may even begin to like yourself more.

3. Don't Keep Putting Yourself Down!

People with low self-esteem often say negative things about themselves and may even go out of their way to put themselves down in company and point out their faults when it is not necessary to do so.

Pay attention to how you speak about yourself. Do you say negative things about yourself and your abilities? 'I can't......', or ‘I'm not good at .....', or 'I always make mistakes .....’? Do you deliberately point out your perceived faults or imperfections?

If you recognize this tendency, begin to work on avoiding negative references to yourself. Ask friends and family to remind you when you do so and correct yourself. Change 'I can't' to 'It's difficult, but I can try'. Find positive things to say about yourself rather than criticism. Practice this as much as you can.

4. Stop Apologizing!

Are you always saying 'I'm sorry'? People with low self-esteem often have a habit of apologizing for themselves all the time. If they meet someone in a passage, they say 'I'm sorry'. If they want to speak to someone, they say 'I'm sorry'. Whenever they have to get someone's attention, they say 'I'm sorry'.

Sorry for what? For existing?

Stop apologizing and recognize that you have a right to be around and to be heard. Instead of saying 'I'm sorry' all the time, begin smiling at people - it is much more positive!

5. Try New Things

If your self-esteem is low, the chances are that you avoid trying new things and meeting new people. This only reinforces your negative perception of yourself. What you need to do is to provide yourself with the opportunity to experience success and pleasure in what you do. This will increase your self-esteem and will make you more confident to try even more new things.

So take up a new hobby, begin a sport, sign up for gym membership or join a hiking club or dance class. Do things that you have never done before like go for a massage or a facial. Buy a cookbook and try out new recipes. Invite some friends around for dinner. The list is endless!

6. Spend Time with People who Help You to Feel Good about Yourself

This is an important one! People with low self-esteem will often allow themselves to be used, bullied and abused. Sometimes they behave like doormats and allow other people to order them around and take advantage of them. They may also seek out people who are negative about life and have difficulty seeing the positive in anything.

If you are being pushed around and feel unappreciated, learn to say 'NO' when you feel like you want to! Choose to spend time with people whose company you enjoy and spend less time with people who do not contribute to your sense of well being. If you are in an abusive or destructive relationship, get out of it or seek professional help. Do an 'audit' of your relationships and stop spending time and energy on people who bring nothing positive to your life. The longer you allow yourself to be unappreciated and taken advantage of, the worse you will feel about yourself. You can change that!

7. Treat Yourself with Respect and Consideration

If you do not respect yourself and see your needs as important, then no one else will do so either. Learn not to always put yourself last and be in touch with your needs.
Look after your physical self. Have your hair cut, dress in clothes that you like and take care of your grooming and your health. Spoil yourself with things that you enjoy like bubble baths and special treats. Do things that help you to feel good.

Look after your environment. Keep your home tidy and spend time and energy making your environment beautiful. Polish a table, buy yourself some flowers, use scented oils in your bedroom, open the curtains and let the sun come in. Organize your work space and personalize it to express your personality. All these things are important ways of showing yourself that you are worth caring for. If you do them often, you will be surprised to find other people beginning to do them for you as well!

8. Smile at Other People and Look Them in the Eye

People who lack confidence often avoid eye contact and spend their time looking down at the ground.

Stop looking down! Look up and greet people. Look them in the eye and smile. Say 'Hi!' Most people will smile back and the friendly response will feel good. This may seem like a small thing, but it will also help you to feel more positive about yourself.

9. Be Aware of your Body Language

Stand up straight! Put your shoulders back and your head up. Posture plays a more important role than we realize in how we feel about ourselves. Stooping and making your body less noticeable is a subconscious way of communicating that you are not worthy to take up space in your surroundings and conveys a message of subjugation and humility to others - an 'I'm not good enough' message.

Help yourself to feel better and more confident by standing straight and tall!

10. If Nothing Changes, Get Help

These are all practical exercises that you can do to help yourself to feel more confident and to increase your sense of self worth. Obviously you cannot expect to change overnight and old habits and perceptions are hard to break.

However, if you have really tried to change the way that you feel about yourself and find that you are fighting a loosing battle, don't give up and feel that you can never change. An experienced counselor can help you to change the negative ways that you relate to yourself and help you to develop a more positive sense of self-esteem. It is well worth the investment in time and money to work on your self-esteem. One of the great joys of being a therapist is seeing people's lives change drastically for the better once they begin to see themselves in a more positive light!"

Taken from Self-Esteem - eBooklet

How tricyclic antidepressants work

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:48:00 +0000

If you haven't read a preface, I'd strongly recommend you to look through it: Part 1, 2, 3.

THE TRICYCLIC ANTIDEPRESSANTS

What are the tricyclics used for ?
Tricyclic antidepressants are used to improve mood in people who are feeling low or depressed. The tricyclics may also be used to help the symptoms of anxiety and a number of other symptoms. The tricyclics are the most commonly prescribed antidepressants but there are many other antidepressants. All these drugs seem to be equally effective at the proper dose but have different side effects to each other. If one drug does not suit you, it may be possible to try another.

How do the tricyclics work ?
The brains has many naturally occurring chemical messengers. Two of these are called serotonin (sometimes called 5-HT) and noradrenaline. Both are important in the areas of the brain that control or regulate mood and thinking. It is known that these two chemical messengers are not as effective or active as normal in the brain when someone is depressed. Tricyclic antidepressants increase the amount of these chemical messengers in the brain. This can help correct the lack of action of these messengers and help to improve mood. The tricyclics can also effect another chemical in the brain called "acetylcholine" and this is the cause of some of their side-effects.

"Reduced" nerve activity but with recycling blocked, and increased messages passes:

Side-effects:
Some antidepressants e.g. the tricyclics and venlafaxine, block the reuptake of serotonin and noradrenaline.
Unfortunately, these antidepressant drugs also affect other transmitter systems e.g. acetylcholine, dopamine, histamine etc. Some are a bit like "blunderbuss" treatments i.e. they hit the part that seems to be wrong, but also hit lots of other parts which aren't wrong. The side effects you get from drugs are from these extra "hits". The amount that these drugs effect different transmitters varies between drugs and is the reason you get slightly different side effects from each of the different drugs. These can include:

- If you block acetylcholine receptors, it may blunt your reactions, can produce mild sedation and confusion etc. as well as producing a dry mouth, blurred vision etc.
- Affecting your noradrenaline may also sometimes upset your blood pressure e.g. you may feel dizzy when you stand up etc.
- Too much serotonin and you may feel sick, less hungry, get headaches or migraines
If you block histamine receptors, it can make you feel drowsy (just the same as if you take an antihistamine tablet such as "Piriton" for hay fever or allergy).

Source

How SSRI antidepressants work

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:14:00 +0000

We continue listing different types of antidepressants. If you missed the preface, I'd strongly recommend you to read it here: PART 1, 2, 3

SPECIFIC SEROTONIN RE-UPTAKE INHIBITORS

"What are the SSRI's used for ?

SSRIs are antidepressants which are used to help to improve mood in people who are feeling low or depressed. Fluoxetine ("Prozac") may also be used to help treat the eating disorder "Bulimia nervosa". In addition to this, the SSRIs are now widely used to help a variety of other symptoms. These include anxiety (where a lower starting dose often helps), social phobia and social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic, pre-menstrual syndrome and agoraphobia. Some drugs are "licensed" (ie officially approved) for some of these conditions (e.g. paroxetine for social phobia) but this does not necessarily mean the others do not help, just one manufacturer can prove it and has applied for a licence.
Trazodone ("Molipaxin") and nefazodone ("Dutonin") are not strictly pure "SSRIs" but have many of the same effects and so are included in this group for convenience.
The SSRIs are now one of the most commonly prescribed antidepressants but there are many other similar drugs. All these antidepressants seem to be equally effective at the proper dose but have different side effects to each other. Apart from nausea, the SSRIs generally have less side effects than the older drugs. If one drug does not suit you, it may be possible to try another. Starting with a lower dose for a week or so may also help the drugs to be more tolerable or have less side effects.

How do the SSRI's work ?
The brains has many naturally occurring chemical messengers. One of these are called serotonin (sometimes called 5-HT) and is important in the areas of the brain that control mood and thinking. It is known that this serotonin is not as effective or active as normal in the brain when someone is feeling depressed. The SSRI antidepressants increase the amount of this serotonin chemical messenger in the brain. This can help correct the lack of action of serotonin and help to improve mood."

"Reduced" nerve activity but with recycling blocked, and increased messages passes:

Side-effects:
SSRI antidepressants mainly block the reuptake of just serotonin. This why they are called the SSRIs ie. Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors.
Many other antidepressant drugs also affect other transmitter systems e.g. acetylcholine, dopamine, histamine etc. and have many side effects. SSRIs really only block the reuptake of serotonin, and so have less side effects. However, they still have some side effects ;-
- Too much serotonin in some parts of the brain can make you feel sick, less hungry and get headaches or migraines.

Source

How MAOI Antidepressants work

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:51:00 +0000

Now let us look carefully at different types of antidepressants. But before doing this, I'd strongly recommens you to read the preface (Parts 1, 2, 3) before you continue to specific types of medicines.

Mono-Amine Oxidase Inhibitors

As we understood from the preface,

"There are many chemical messengers (or "neurotransmitters") called "monoamines" which occur naturally in the body. One of the effects that monoamines have is on mood. If the levels of monoamines in the body are high we may feel 'high', and if they are low we may feel 'low'. MAOIs stop the breakdown of these monoamines. They block the monoamine oxidase enzyme which breaks down the transmitter, so the next time an impulse comes along, there is more transmitter, a stronger message is passed, and activity in that part of the brain is increased. By stopping the breakdown of these, the MAOIs may bring back the amounts of monoamines to normal. This helps to improve mood in people who are feeling low or depressed."

"Reduced" nerve activity but with (mono-amine oxidase) enzyme blocked (or inhibited), and increased messages passed:

Side-effects:
Some antidepressants e.g. the tricyclics, block the reuptake of serotonin and noradrenaline. Others mainly block the reuptake of just serotonin e.g. the SSRIs. The MAOIs block the monoamine enzyme which breaks down noradrenaline, serotonin and some other transmitters. They are Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors.
Unfortunately, the MAOIs also block an enzyme in the body which breaks down other compounds. One of these is an amino acid called tyramine. Tyramine is an essential compound which the body needs, and is found in many foods. However, if you have too much tyramine in the body, it can make your blood pressure rise. Foods such as cheese, yeast and meat extracts etc contain lots of tyramine. If you eat any of these foods while taking an MAOI, your body can not break down (or metabolise) the tyramine. You then get an excess of tyramine in the body, which increases your blood pressure very quickly. This can at cause headaches initially but can be very dangerous and has caused many deaths.
The MAOIs also affect other transmitters which are broken down by the MAO enzyme.
- Affecting your noradrenaline may also sometimes upset your blood pressure e.g. you may feel dizzy when you stand up etc.

Source.

How antidepressants work. PART 3

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:30:00 +0000

Here is the last part of the material about Antidepressants and it is actually about them. After 2 long and sweet parts of a preface here is the last one which describes depression build-up process.

"5. Depression

People with depression usually have problems with poor sleep, low mood and appetite, loss of energy and interest or pleasure etc. It is a common illness, affecting 3% of the population per year. The main theory about why this happens is the so-called "monoamine hypothesis".

We know that serotonin and noradrenaline in the brain are involved with control of sleep/wake, emotions, mood, arousal, emotion, drive, temperature regulation, feeding etc. Thus, if a person has too little serotonin and noradrenaline in the part of the brain that controls mood, this will produce too little activity, and that part of the brain become slower and less effective. This will lower mood.

In depression, it is known that there are reduced levels of serotonin and noradrenaline. These reduced levels lead to a lowering of mood. The full reasons are not fully known but stress may well play a part in causing this.

"Normal" communication between cells:

"Reduced" nerve activity e.g. as in depression:

There are lots of other theories about how depression occurs e.g. genetics, how the brain develops, stress etc. There may in fact be many causes and in each person there may be a combination of these. Stress may in fact cause changes in the brain which then result in reduced levels of serotonin and noradrenaline. Transmitters other than much serotonin and noradrenaline are probably also involved.

How antidepressants work. PART 2

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:26:00 +0000

Here goes the second part of the material. This one is about neurotransmitters's and receptors' work.

"3. What happens when a message is passed from one cell to another.

1. A brain cell decides to send a message to another cell in order to make something happen e.g. tighten a muscle, release a hormone, think about something, pass on a message etc.

2. An electrical impulse is sent from the brain cell down one of the nerve fibres/neurones towards the end. It travels at about 120 miles per hour.

3. This message or impulse arrives at the end of the nerve fibre. When it arrives, a chemical ("transmitter") is released from the nerve end.

4. The transmitter is then released and travels across the gap between the first nerve fibre and the next/receiving one.

5. The transmitter hits a receptor on the other side. It fits into it just like a key fitting into a lock.

6. When the transmitter hits the receptor, the receptor changes shape. This causes changes inside the nerve ending which sets off an electrical message in that nerve fibre on to the next brain/nerve cell. This sequence then carries on until the effect occurs e.g. the muscle moves etc.

7. The transmitter is either broken down by enzymes (10%) and removed or taken back up again into the nerve ending (i.e. recycled) - a process known as re-uptake.

8. The nerve fibre and synapse is then ready for next message

Important points:- The passage of messages only works one way or one direction- There is only one type of transmitter per synapse- The transmitter allows an electrical message to be turned into a chemical message and back into an electrical message.

4. "Transmitters"

Although there are over 80 known different "transmitters" in the brain, each nerve ending only has one type. These "neurotransmitters" tend to be grouped together and each seems to have specific roles e.g.:

Serotonin or 5-HT - In the brain, it controls mood, emotions, sleep/wake, feeding, temperature regulation, etc.Too much serotonin and you feel sick, less hungry, get headaches or migraines.Too little and you feel depressed, drowsy etc.

Dopamine - there are three main groups (or pathways) of dopamine neurones in the brain.In the brain, one group controls muscle tension and another controls e.g. emotions, perceptions, sorting out what is real/important/imaginary etc.Not enough dopamine in the first group and your muscles tighten up (e.g. as in Parkinson's Disease).Too much dopamine in the second group gives you an overactive brain i.e. too much "perception e.g. you may see, hear or imagine things that are not real

Noradrenaline (NA) - (sometimes called "norepinephrine" or NE)In the brain, it controls sleep, wakefulness, arousal, mood, emotion and drive.Too much noradrenaline and you may feel anxious, jittery etc.Too little and you may feel depressed, sedated, dizzy, have low blood pressure etc.

Acetylcholine (ACh) - In the brain, it controls arousal, the ability to use memory, learning tasks etc.Too much in your body and your muscles tighten up.Too little can produce dry mouth, blurred vision and constipation, as well as becoming confused, drowsy, slow at learning etc.

Glutamate - Acts as an "accelerator" in the brainToo much and you become anxious, excited and some parts of your brain may become overactive.Too little and you may become drowsy or sedated

GABA - Acts as a "brake" in the brainToo much and you become drowsy or sedated.Too little and you may become anxious and excited

In many mental health problems, it is known that some of these transmitters get out of balance e.g. you have too much or too little of a particular transmitter."

Seems like now you should understand the basic processes in your brain. Now let's head to PART 3 and see how depression develops.

How antidepressants work. PART 1

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:24:00 +0000

Today I searched for some clear explanation on how SSRI antidepressants work, that will not resemble an encyclopedic article with dozens of medical terms on top of each other.

And I’ve found it. Call it love from the first sight if you wish but the article I am quoting below is amazingly clear and simple for understanding. I am dividing it into 3 parts + several separate posts about each type of antidepressants. First part explains how our brain works. Second part gives a basic review on neuron transmitters. Third part – and depression develops.
If you have a clear picture on these subjects you may then skip these parts and move to medications descriptions.

PART 1

1. The brain

“In order to try to understand a little about how drugs work, it is best to first learn a few facts about the brain. Each human being has: One head. One brain. Each brain has somewhere around 10,000,000,000 brain cells. Each brain cell has lots of connections with other brain cells by means of nerve fibres (the wiring connecting brain cells together). There are about 4 million miles of nerve fibres in each brain. Some fibres may have up to 10,000 branches in them. Each brain cell has lots of connections with other cells, possibly over 25,000! The junctions at the end of the neurones are called synapses.

2. A Synapse

Synapses are very important because:
They are the route by which brain cells talk to each other
Synapses are of the same basic design in the brain, the heart, the legs etc.
There are a lot of them If we can get chemicals (e.g. drugs) into the gap between them in the brain, we can affect the way in which brain cells talk to each other e.g. we can slow the messages down, speed the up etc.

A synapse looks like this:

In the drawing you will see the following:

- Axon - A neurone (or cell body) has many axons (or nerve fibres).
- Vesicles - these contain the transmitter.
- Transmitters - these are small chemicals used by brain cells as messengers. They are stored in the vesicles in the nerve ending ready to be released
- Receptors - these are structures on the surface of the receiving cell which have a space designed just for the transmitter (if the transmitter is a key, receptors are the lock into which they fit)
- Enzymes - these surround the synapse and break down any spare transmitter that might leak out to other synapses nearby. - Electrical signal - This is the way in which one brain cell sends a message to another. The signal travels down the nerve fibre rather like an electrical "Mexican Wave".”

Sounds pretty simple, huh? Let’s move to PART 2

Key points about antidepressant therapy

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:40:00 +0000

One more thing before I start describing different kinds of antidepressants. Well actually here are 13 things - some key points about antidepressant therapy that can be useful for both those who take their medicine already and those who is about to start. These tips will help you to understand some basics and answer most of the frequently asked questions about antidepressants.

"- It takes from two to six weeks for an antidepressant to begin to work. You may feel worse before you feel better because side effects can occur almost immediately, whereas therapeutic benefits appear later. The good news is that most side effects dissipate within days or weeks.

- Antidepressants are not habit-forming and are not drugs of abuse.

- Do not despair if the first medication does not work. Finding the appropriate medication(s) and dosages may take time. The good news is that many different antidepressants are available.
- The most frequent reason for an antidepressant “failure” is that the dose was too low and the duration of treatment too short.

- Feeling better is not a good reason for discontinuing or reducing your medications. Individuals often are tempted to stop medication too soon, risking relapse or recurrence.

- For individuals with bipolar disorder or recurrent major depression, medication may have to become part of everyday life to avoid return of disabling symptoms.

- You should never mix medications of any kind—prescribed, over-the counter, herbs, or borrowed—without consulting a doctor.

- Some drugs, like alcohol, reduce the effectiveness of antidepressants and should be avoided. This includes wine, beer and hard liquor.

- Some drugs, which are usually safe when taken alone, can cause severe and dangerous side effects if taken with other drugs. Always tell dentists, pharmacists and other medical specialists that you are taking antidepressants.

- If you have been prescribed an MAOI (such as Parnate or Nardil), you will have to avoid certain foods and over-the-counter medications. Be sure to get a complete list of disallowed foods and medications from your doctor and always carry it with you.

- Antianxiety drugs, such as diazepam (Valium) or alprazolam (Xanax), are not antidepressants. They are sometimes prescribed along with antidepressant therapy, but should not be taken alone for a depressive disorder.

- Scientific studies suggest that patients with three or more episodes of depression or two severe episodes may need to be maintained on antidepressants indefinitely. The maintenance dose should be the same as the dose required to achieve an initial therapeutic response.

- Antidepressants work best in most individuals when prescribed alongside a course of psychotherapy. People taking both medication and engaging in psychotherapy generally take less time to feel better and maintain their gains longer than those taking antidepressant medications alone."

Tips are taken from here

Take care!

Special populations and depression therapy

Aluajala@gmail.com (Aluajala) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 09:50:00 +0000

Today I would like to start speaking about antidepressant therapy as the most common depression cure method. However, before listing different medications in-depth I'll begin with short advices for the below-mentioned groups:

"When deciding on therapy, some clinically depressed patients require special considerations:

Bipolar disorder -- these patients have extreme mood swings (periods of excessive high spirits followed by severe depressive episodes). Typically, the antidepressants are augmented with mood stabilizers.

Children/adolescents -- The SSRI fluoxetine is the only effective (and approved) antidepressant for this age group. There have been reports that children on antidepressants are more likely to commit suicide than those who are not on antidepressants; while some data suggest that this may be true, it has not been proven conclusively. Primary care providers need to weigh the risks of antidepressant therapy versus untreated depression. Most often, treatment carries fewer risks of suicide than non-treatment.

Pregnant/postpartum women -- Depression can be a common symptom during pregnancy and postpartum -- it usually corrects itself, but sometimes severe depression must be treated (in about 10 percent of pregnant/postpartum women). Antidepressants can pass to the fetus and through breast milk. The effects of antidepressants on the developing fetus and newborn are not well known. Therefore, doctors should carefully consider the risks and benefits of treatment.

Treatment for depression is not a short-term process but a long-term project with specific goals of remission and maintenance. Multiple approaches of medication, psychotherapy and patient education are most effective in the treatment of MDD. Close consultation with a physician and/or psychiatrist can provide the best treatment options".

Source

Now good luck and you can now proceed to:

- Noradrenergic and Specific Serotonin Antidepressants (NaSSA)
- Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOI)
- Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRI)
- Tricyclic Antidepressants
- Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI)