Antidepressants and your intuition.

If they made me feel numb, then maybe. But as it is, the bring me up from a very low point to a low point. My average is still below normal, with occasional forays into mania and occasional good and balanced times.

I haven't noticed much of a difference in intuition since I lowered my medication (my doctor's helping me on a plan to get off it now that I'm not suicidal).

I honestly think that with my brain working all crazy when I was really depressed, what I thought were intuitions may have actually been products of an sick (as in ill) mind. I interpreted things in an "off" way, couldn't make myself believe things I "knew" to be true....so my intuitions were completely untrustworthy.

Going on medication at first actually helped me have confidence that when I had an intuition I might be on track.

Drugs can "help" when your mind is completly ****-up but but but that's the worst solution i know, i really really suggest you look for natural solution, natural anti depressor like kanna/sceletium.

http://www.sceletium.org/

i'v taken it in the past, the feeling is really great, it's like the body is warmer and you'r less in your head and more in your body and really cheap, really really cheap.

The Earth is there to provide all we need, we used natural plants for thousands of years with success, don't let doctors scrap you with their stuff, all theses Prozac, Zoloft, Effexor and etc are bullshit

Dont go there or Get out of there!!!!
Omeada Lusvam

Anyankah said:

What makes you say that? All the SSRI's are fairly similar, and far from what I would think of as mild. They mess with your brain function (which sometimes people need and is worth it.) With regards to mildness in general, as opposed to individual reactions (which vary tremendously, both between the same person on different medications and between different people on the same medication), what matters more is the dosage. Do you mean that it's an SSRI as opposed to a different class of antidepressant? The older ones had more side effects, the newer ones have more varied effects.

Click to expand...

During the times when I've needed my antidepressants, they have actually helped me. One of the worst initial symptoms of my depression is not being able to order my thoughts - thoughts tumble over one another and I can't concentrate at all.

So for me, it helped.

I agree that it is very important to figure out the root causes. Therapy is the way to do this for some people but not others. And medication, though a kludge, can be useful in this: it's easier to sort out your life if you're functional.

Click to expand...

Yikes. I couldn't disagree more. Therapy is the way for *everyone,* whether they take anti-depressants or not. IMO, any doctor who prescribes anti-depressants without requiring therapy along with them should have their license taken away.

Whether therapy works or not is up to the willingness of the participant and the effectiveness of the therapist but, as a person with a masters in human behavior, the idea of people thinking that anyone can get to the root cause of serious emotional problems without going through therapy is, well, scary.

We have become a 'take this pill,' and don't call me in the morning, society. That's truly frightening.

Caat

Well it's a hard road for us who suffer from chemical inbalanced depression. I've had depression problems for the past 25 years. My sister also suffers from it. I have no choice but to take certain meds because my depression doesn't stem from the ups and downs of life, I just get depressed no matter what. I also have an anxiety problem and without my meds I would go completely nuts. I do agree that the drug companies are ruthless and only care about cash, but for some of us with serious mental illnesses we have no choice. It can be a no win situation sometimes.

Chris

Oh I forgot to add I do have a therapist, but I'll admit sometimes talking to her doesn't make me feel any better sometimes. I would recommend everyone to at least try having a therapist, but don't think just because you have one you'll be magically healed. I know people that have struggled with depression their whole life and for some it's just something they deal with everyday of their life. I may be one of them.

Chris

I'm surprised to see this thread become a "meds vs therapy" or a "meds and therapy" thread - only TheOld has mentioned the alternatives. I also want to add that a well-known French psychiatrist, Dr David Servan-Schreiber, a specialist in clinical depression and anxiety, has written a book that has been of assistance to millions of people. France is one of the most medicated country in the world, with one of the highest number of people (proportionately) on anti-depressants. Dr Servan-Schreiber had also noticed that patients of his could be on therapy for years without any visible progress. So he had a very good reason to go looking for alternatives. His book is translated in English, and is called The Instinct to Heal: Curing Depression, Anxiety and Stress Without Drugs and Without Talk Therapy. I recommend it!

I don't think that drugs that act on your brain can do anything else but affect how your brain works, and that includes intuition. Whether that is a good or bad thing will vary from person to person. As some have said on this thread, without their meds, they were simply not functional, so I can imagine it improved their intuition to take their drugs. For my part, the meds had a negative impact on my intuition and imagination.

BTW, I find it chilling to read things like - "they have negative side-effects while you adjust to them". Just how long are we supposed to adjust to these things? I find it horrifying that anyone who does not have the type of clinical chemical depression described by suedeheadsmith is being told to take antidepressants for long periods of time. They are aliens in our body.

I'd love to know more about what the French doctor wrote in his book, Fudugazi.

Brains are chemical factories. There is a lot in modern life that can disrupt the manufacturing of chemicals, and adjustments with pills can sometimes be a quick fix, that saves lives. Eventually, the trick is to teach ourselves how to boost and stabilise our own seratonin levels naturally, with exercise, happy music, good company, pets, humour, sex, meditation, sufficient sleep, etc, getting time in the sun, in short, to live well.

Hi firemaiden - in French it's called simply GUERIR. Dr Servan-Schreiber goes through all sorts of alternative methods for healing depression, anxiety and stress. Everything he suggests is based on clinical research. His book has been - justifiably - a bestseller. I think people are fed up of being prisoners of medication and therapy for years on end.

I agree with you on achieving that balance. We all too often sabotage ourselves and our health, and that can lead to depression, especially if we have depressive tendencies. One of the ways in which we most sabotage ourselves is to go against our hearts' dearest longings. For example - you long to be an actress but you force yourself to become an accountant (or vice-versa! ), or you are in love with someone, but you stay in an unfulfilling relationship "for the sake of the children". These almost always lead to some form of depression, which is medicated - instead of dealing with the root cause - you didn't follow your hearts!

bigcaat said:

Yikes. I couldn't disagree more. Therapy is the way for *everyone,* whether they take anti-depressants or not. IMO, any doctor who prescribes anti-depressants without requiring therapy along with them should have their license taken away.

Click to expand...

I'm nearly as sceptical of therapy as I am of drugs. I certainly don't think everyone should have either.

However I would like to see therapy alongside or instead of drug treatment in the UK. There has been talk of making CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) a standard treatment for depression on the NHS, but I'll believe it when I see it. Mental health services are very underfunded so who knows where the money for this is going to come from.