Depression

[AndyT]

Er... Yerwhat?

Weed just makes you fat, smelly and irritating to most other non-smokers. The stench of a heavy weed smoker is enough to turn your stomach. It can also trigger psychotic episodes in a number of susceptible people aswell as causing general lethargy. Under the effects it slows your reaction times and reduces your IQ. It also offers up the delightful prospect of lung cancer, heart disease and all sorts of other smoking related illnesses.

People who are depressed don't really need to light up, vegetate and eat Wotsits. They just often need a bit of chemical help to break the cycle of mental anguish so that they can help themselves through hobbies, interests, work, personal relationships and exercise, along with therapy if required.

Also SSRIs do not create a physical dependency, there are some unpleasant effects if you titrate too quickly, but they are not addictive.

 

[nightrider1470]

What tiggered my deep depression was finding out my ex had moved on with someone else 3 months after we split. I just couldnt handle it and its what led to me going the doctors.

Whats hard and confusing now, is my mind keeps thinking of all the bad things I said to her and walking away as I told her I didnt love her.

Now I feel so much guilt and super low all the time, even convincing myself I love her, unable to feel the reasons why I walked in the first place....Yes she has every right to move on and is probably better off! But my mind wont eccept that and keeps haunting me with everything negative.

I have an amazing daughter, home, family and am a dont seem to struggle with dates or women liking me in that area, but just feel like I will never meet someone, but worse of all I wont feel love for them and be able to have a functional relationship as I feel "empty"

 

[Cool Breeze]

The only advise I can offer is give it time, and it takes time to get right. You probably read what triggered my episode, but like you I had everything and lucky for me still do have a great Wife and 2 smashing girls, my job is meh but I can cope with that and life in general is on the up.

But I can relate to that emptiness I've been there albeit my own set of circumstances, it's not a nice place to be. Use the support you have available and talk it out, don't expect them to understand it hell my parents still don't get it really. But those closest to me do thankfully.

I'm not gonna ramble on but just remember this your not alone, if you can concentrate on what's good, and a fun thing I used to do was to ask myself questions about why I felt the way I did but in the 3rd person it helped because your giving advise to yourself as if it was a friend or someone you know. It helped unravel things.

Hang in there!

 

[nightrider1470]

Thanks!

I just had a good read of an article. Low serotonin levels in the brain linked with depression will haunt you of past guilt and your greatest fears.

At least I can relax knowing my negative thoughts is the depression and not my true honest thoughts.

Its so hard!! By tomorrow I will forget this and have to read again

What utter tournament

 

[FoxEye]

Been chronically depressed for 15 years or longer.

No 'trigger' that I know of. Everything just seems entirely hopeless. I've kind of given up on life, really. Or at least come to terms that this is as good as it gets.

Never taken any meds for it, don't intend to. For starters I don't think they'd resolve my issues, secondly with all the side effects I'd likely end up depressed and seriously ill.

 

[meh?]

Panic attacks and anxiety here too Had them since I was 12, all caused by being bullyed at school

I have tried meds (diazepam) tried CBT too

 

[Energize]

It really amazes me the amount of people who are on some form of anti depression/anti psychotic/SSRI pills etc. Cannabis covers pretty much all bases, its an anti depressant, it stimulates appetite and it even has anti psychotic properties and guess what? Its had thousands of years of being tried and tested and not one person has ever died from smoking it. These pills you're being given have barely been around a quarter of a decade, the populace are big pharmas guinea pigs. I've known so many people who've been given tons of different pills to try and its messed them up more than before and created a physical dependancy and ultimately thats what big pharma wants, more ill people so they can sell more drugs.

Actually anti-depressants and anti-psychotics have been around for about 60 years.

Your conspiracy theory really makes no sense, depression is something that effects everyone in some way, including the people who run the pharmaceutical companies, so there is no motivation to get everyone hooked on drugs.

Cannabis has far more associated problems with it relating to dependence and addiction than anti-depressants have.

Er... Yerwhat?

Weed just makes you fat, smelly and irritating to most other non-smokers. The stench of a heavy weed smoker is enough to turn your stomach. It can also trigger psychotic episodes in a number of susceptible people aswell as causing general lethargy. Under the effects it slows your reaction times and reduces your IQ. It also offers up the delightful prospect of lung cancer, heart disease and all sorts of other smoking related illnesses.

People who are depressed don't really need to light up, vegetate and eat Wotsits. They just often need a bit of chemical help to break the cycle of mental anguish so that they can help themselves through hobbies, interests, work, personal relationships and exercise, along with therapy if required.

Also SSRIs do not create a physical dependency, there are some unpleasant effects if you titrate too quickly, but they are not addictive.

Cannabis does not need to be smoked, and there is no proof that it causes lung cancer or heart disease. Tobacco has distinct carcinogens when smoked that cannabis lacks.

SSRI's can create a physical dependency, though it's not typical. When the drug is stopped and serotonin levels drop again it can cause sensations of being startled or shocked as well as nightmares as a result of REM sleep rebound because antidepressants suppress REM sleep.

 

[^TANK^]

Depression and Generalised Anxiety Disorder here. Been on antidepressants such as Citalopram, Fluoxetine and Venlafaxine for a decade now. I stopped all medication slowly via my GP a month ago and the withdrawal symptoms were like nothing I have ever experienced before in my thirty one years existence!

I would say the Venlafaxine was making my anxiety worser and overwhelming suicidal and homicidal thoughts were getting overwhelming so went to my GP insisting I needed to try something else before I killed myself or someone else, he recommended Sertraline but I needed to come off the Venlafaxine slowly first he said. It was during this time of weaning myself off my medication that I started to feel so much better in myself, no dark thoughts, no anxiety and no depression.

I never started the Sertraline in the end because I didn't need the medication anymore I feel great without it.

 

[Xordium]

You just have to figure out what works best for you (with guidance). And don't listen to people saying don't do this or do do this. Remember depression is a symptom - therefore the causation is varied and therefore the potential solution will be and also highly variable between individuals.

Hope you get all things sorted the fact you can express yourself here is a positive thing.

 

[^TANK^]

It really amazes me the amount of people who are on some form of anti depression/anti psychotic/SSRI pills etc. Cannabis covers pretty much all bases, its an anti depressant, it stimulates appetite and it even has anti psychotic properties and guess what? Its had thousands of years of being tried and tested and not one person has ever died from smoking it. These pills you're being given have barely been around a quarter of a decade, the populace are big pharmas guinea pigs. I've known so many people who've been given tons of different pills to try and its messed them up more than before and created a physical dependancy and ultimately thats what big pharma wants, more ill people so they can sell more drugs.

Wow where to begin that is a lot of bull ****! I have first hand experience with cannabis and how it wrecked my world not to mention watching other people have nervous break downs and experience psychosis.

 

[^TANK^]

Hope you get all things sorted the fact you can express yourself here is a positive thing.

Thank you. I do have my ups and downs still but ultimately feel much better and with a few changes in my life like who I associate with and keeping myself busy has done me wonders.

 

[AndyT]

Cannabis does not need to be smoked, and there is no proof that it causes lung cancer or heart disease. Tobacco has distinct carcinogens when smoked that cannabis lacks.

SSRI's can create a physical dependency, though it's not typical. When the drug is stopped and serotonin levels drop again it can cause sensations of being startled or shocked as well as nightmares as a result of REM sleep rebound because antidepressants suppress REM sleep.

Most people mix cannabis with tobacco, hence the increased risk of the above. Plus the fact that you can't really operate any heavy machinery or be expected to work at full capacity when stoned.

The effects you mentioned with regards SSRI withdrawal are what I was alluding to when I said there were some unpleasant effects if you titrate too quickly. If you come off slowly, there is generally no problem.

 

[Energize]

Most people mix cannabis with tobacco, hence the increased risk of the above. Plus the fact that you can't really operate any heavy machinery or be expected to work at full capacity when stoned.

People mixing cannabis and tobacco recreationally is not really relevant to the discussion of using cannabis as an antidepressant therapy.

Sativex for example is tincture of cannabis and is used to treat MS symptoms.

The effects you mentioned with regards SSRI withdrawal are what I was alluding to when I said there were some unpleasant effects if you titrate too quickly. If you come off slowly, there is generally no problem.

Yes, but having to titrate the dose downwards to come off it is the definition of dependence.

 

[Sankari]

Does anyone else suffer with depression?

My father was bipolar and also suffered from schizophrenia. He commuted suicide when I was 16 years old.

I've had clinical depression for just over 10 years. It's been hard slog at times, but since last December I've been on an excellent medication (Celapram) which has helped to restore my quality of life. My previous medication (Effexor XR) was not very helpful and had some brutal side effects, so this is a great leap forward for me.

I'm also seeing a psych, free of charge (thanks to Australia's national health service).

 

[Energize]

My father was bipolar and also suffered from schizophrenia. He commuted suicide when I was 16 years old.

I've had clinical depression for just over 10 years. It's been hard slog at times, but since last December I've been on an excellent medication (Celapram) which has helped to restore my quality of life. My previous medication (Effexor XR) was not very helpful and had some brutal side effects, so this is a great leap forward for me.

I'm also seeing a psych, free of charge (thanks to Australia's national health service).

Seems bizarre that your doctor prescribed venlafaxine before trying citalopram given it's toxicity in overdose and worse side effect profile. The standard treatment is to try citalopram or sertraline first, before venlafaxine.

 

[Sankari]

Seems bizarre that your doctor prescribed venlafaxine before trying citalopram given it's toxicity in overdose and worse side effect profile. The standard treatment is to try citalopram or sertraline first, before venlafaxine.

It wasn't the same doctor.

I received my first Effexor prescription in 2003 when I was living in Western Australia. About a year later I moved to the UK and spent nearly 6 years there.

When I came back in 2009 I settled in South Australia. A local GP put me on Effexor again in 2013. By the end of the year it clearly wasn't doing much, so I went to another GP, recited my experiences with Effexor, and asked for something better.

She said I should try SSRIs instead, and gave me Celapram. I never looked back.

 

[Energize]

I realised that it probably wasn't the same doctor, I just mean it's bad practice to prescribe venlafaxine as a first drug.

 

[Storm3y]

I've never understood how depression works really. Got some people close to me that have had depression and I have absolutely no idea why. They've not got money troubles or anything like that, don't work as they don't have to etc. They've got a stress free life basically.

 

[Pestilence]

I've never understood how depression works really. Got some people close to me that have had depression and I have absolutely no idea why. They've not got money troubles or anything like that, don't work as they don't have to etc. They've got a stress free life basically.

It isn't an easy thing to understand if it hasn't affected you personally. Most of the time there is no rhyme or reason; it's a nightmare of irrationality that only compounds itself for sufferers. A storm of despair that fights back against the rational mind attempting to gain control.

When people do what they do under those circumstances, it can be almost impossible for those without experience of it to really understand what went on.

 

[Sankari]

It isn't an easy thing to understand if it hasn't affected you personally. Most of the time there is no rhyme or reason; it's a nightmare of irrationality that only compounds itself for sufferers. A storm of despair that fights back against the rational mind attempting to gain control.

When people do what they do under those circumstances, it can be almost impossible for those without experience of it to really understand what went on.

^^ This.

When I was diagnosed with clinical depression I was four years into a permanent government job that paid well. I had just bought my first house: a 2 bedroom bungalow on a quarter acre block.

I had plenty of friends, a great relationship with my family, and an active social life. But the depression completely warped my perception of reality, and all I could see before me was a vast black hole of despair.