Snow-White said:
i ditn know antidepressants FIX chemical imbalances.
in whcih case .. id be less resistant to it .. serisiously feel like i might need them in phases. i am aware i do have a chemical imbalance in my body - baseless depression ..
hmmmm
i don't think the drugs FIX the imbalance. what they do is allow your brain to use the serotonin (and/or some related chemicals, depending on the drug) that should be floating around in your brain anyway, but for some reason isn't being used. that's why the newer class of drugs is called "SSRIs" - selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (hey, that's from memory, so it might be a bit off). they allow they brain to utilize the chemical/s without which you are feeling the symptoms of depression - anxiety, disinterest in things you normally like, hopelessness, etc.
what causes this imbalance in the first place? doctors aren't sure. is it a case of the mind following the body, or the body following the mind - or are they the same thing? dunno. nobody knows. i think they'd do well to find some concrete answers if possible, because a lot of the debate going on is about these grey areas - but i'm no scientist.
i think that they don't prescribe SSRIs in "phases," though; more in low, steady state doses together, HOPEFULLY, with therapy. the idea being that, as long as you are alive, there is hope that you can find ways to apporach your problems and solve them, but that depression can sap that energy from you even to the point of attempting suicide, because you see no hope....
that is the problem i have with tom cruise's rants. would you deny a person who couldn't walk a crutch until they healed, even if the problem was not in their legs but in their minds? we aren't sure what causes depression, if the problem is organic or spiritual/mental or some combination of the two - but to impose a solution on others because of your spiritual viewpoint (in tom's case, that the problem is caused by aliens, apparently
) is holier-than-thou cruelty.
my much more than $0.02, hope it was helpful, snow white